Wake up the world!

  

During this Church year, women and men religious are encouraged to "Wake up the World!" What does this mean and how can we carry out this message? As I reflected on it, I thought the pope was asking sisters and other religious to make people aware of the importance of spirituality and prayer in a world filled with violence, war, consumerism, sexism, and materialism. We who have consecrated our lives to God can make an impact on our world by our peaceful, compassionate, loving presence and example. But even more, we have to speak out for those who have no voice: the poor, the immigrant, the elderly, the imprisoned, the trafficked, the children. The Nuns on the Bus are doing this by calling attention to social injustices; teachers are doing this by emphasizing Catholic social teaching in their classrooms; catechists are doing this by teaching acceptance and respect for all people; homilists are doing this by speaking of Jesus' inclusive love and forgiveness; cloistered religious are doing this by praying for those who are disillusioned by addictions, false prophets, negative messages, and exploitation; missionaries are doing this by bringing the gospel message to foreign countries.
We also need to wake up those who have been numbed and distracted by the prevalence of social media, which has flooded every level of society. While it can be used for good, it must be controlled. It must not dull our sensitivity to the needs of those around us and to the beauty of the natural world.