The life of a Voluntas Dei
Do you not know that you are a temple of God
and that the Spirit of God dwells within you?” (1 Cor 3,16)
Foundations
The foundations (in yellow): The life of a Voluntas Dei must rest on something solid and durable. It is built fundamentally on the basis of a Christian life deeply lived. The foundations of our life are the Sacraments of Initiation into the Christian life : Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation. Identifying us respectively with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, these sacraments are the very expression of the Holy Spirit. Once well rooted in the Christian life, a person can be called to consecrate his/her life to God in a particular way. This person can then carry within him/her the desire to become a Voluntas Dei if he/she adheres to the objective of the Institute and wishes to make it his/her own. When everything is in place, we have the foundations well achieved upon which one can commence to build a Voluntas Dei temple.
Formation
The walls (in green): The walls of our Voluntas Dei life define the interior space that is ours. Upon these will rest our common apostolic project. They have as their function to allow what we could call a « spiritual practice », and also protect us against the exterior elements so that we can remain peaceful and strong in our walk in the footsteps of Christ. The essential elements of our Voluntas life are spread throughout three groups : 1) the five steps of incorporation ; 2) the spirituality of the 5-5-5 and the five essential values.
The ceiling (in white): Once the walls are built, one can realize the ceiling upon which rests the roof. This is the charism of the Institute that gives its own identity to the whole construction. It is our specific colour, the aspect of the life of Christ that we wish to give to the world.
Now our construction is well advanced. All this work permits the formation of our Voluntas Dei being. Once brought to stability, our residence rests on solid foundations and we can enter deeply and truly into secular consecration.
Witnessing
The roof (in blue): It covers our Christian life and gives to it a specific style. It is at this level that we can really live secular consecration through our commitment to live the evangelical counsels : poverty, chastity, obedience.
The bell tower (our logo): Our life is now a true Voluntas Dei temple. We are ready to witness to Christ according to the specific colour of the Institute. The bells call, invite and challenge those who are on our path. We are « reference points in the landscape in order that each may situate oneself. » We have become light of the world, in the midst of the world.