125 ANNIVERSARY OF SISTER TERESA MIRA (III PART)

In this they will recognize that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another (Jn 13, 35).

Love is what makes of our families and communities the small churches and what makes us similar to God. Loving, we not only reflect the beauty of God-Trinity and of humanity created at his image, but we also announce this beauty to our brethren, discovering for them the loving face of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The love that we have for one another in community, in the family, makes of us prophets and disciples of the beauty of the Church, God and neighbor.

We are called to remind to every human being:

Sister Teresa Mira represents the qualities and virtues that make manifested the beauty of every person created at the image of God. Goodness, sincerity, gratitude, righteousness, honesty, patience, trust in God, piety, obedience… with these qualities she is able to bring others to God. To bring others to God makes of her whole life a mission. How does she do it? She invites us to change, to get closer to God and to the neighbor doing good to all. Her positive way of looking at others and at the world makes them experience the merciful love of God who came not to condemn, but to save and give life.

Our mission means to remind to every person, especially those who in our society live marginalized, forgotten, apart: that he / she is beautiful and loved by God who created us with love and that his love for us is eternal and unconditional.

As consecrated persons, “loving the Church totally and unreservedly, we are sign, memory and prophecy of her beauty” (Const. 10). “Our consecration sets us free, ready to proclaim the beauty of the Church” (Const. 11).

We announce the beauty of the Church “directing all our energies to defend and make shine the dignity of each person, created in the image of the Trinity. We denounce whatever attacks God´s project of communion for humankind” (Const. 12).

In the same way, like Teresa Mira, to announce the beauty of the Church is to “develop our femininity in a profound and fruitful way by giving ourselves generously to the Church, promoting life wherever we are and being ready to dedicate our life serving her” (Const. 12).

To announce the beauty of the Church makes us participate actively in the mission of Jesus of saving humanity obeying to the will of his Father. “In the experience of Francisco Palau, the needs of the most vulnerable persons indicate the way of obedience” (Const. 16).

Teresa Mira, a woman obedient to the will of God, announced the beauty of the Church through her humble, simple and surrendered life, inside and outside the community.

“She tried to put peace in everything and to avoid any kind of heaviness or disturbance, even in the womb of our own family. She was very open with everyone”.

“She was praying and sacrificing herself for the sake of sinners, in a special way for her own father”.

“She was patient and complacent; she knew to lose her own rights and initiatives if it might please someone else”.

“What called my attention the most about her, only by seeing her walking on the street, was her whole being that had something very attractive: sweetness in her eyes, a smile, seriousness in her steps, everything was attracting me. To encounter her was producing joy and happiness in me”.

“She was very kind with everyone. She was helping everyone; you could always find her present in any kind of need. She never spoke bad thing about anyone…”

“She was helping everyone, especially making them trust in the Lord and accept his will. She was suffering because of the sinners, for the sake of salvation of the souls. I know that she offered her life for the salvation of his father”.

“Every day, even in times of war and in spite of difficulties and problems that it could give to her, she was coming to the house of the priest Fr. Carlos de Lopes and some other priest, accompanied by her sister Ela, to receive the Lord. After that, she was bringing Jesus in the Sacrament for all of us so we might receive Him too”.

For Sister Teresa, there was no distinction in persons; for her there was no ‘red’ no ‘white’, believers or non-believers. She was doing good to all without any kind of distinction”.

“Her soul was strong and unwearied. She was the one who, during war, maintained high spirit and who was animating us in the Lord. She never got discouraged nor allowed herself being down because of the events”.

• To create and sow peace in my surroundings. It is the best way of evangelizing. The greeting of Jesus after his resurrection is “May peace be with you” (Jn 20:19-31). This peace announces and opens the future for his disciples, liberates them and turns their sorrow into joy. Ask the Lord to cloth me with his beauty, sweetness, goodness, patience so I will be also the sower of peace, this peace that restores the broken relationships. That all who surrounds me may feel the presence of God.
• Openness and transparency in my relationships: relationships “founded in charity”, where we live a true communion without masks and in sincerity in our manner of communicating our feelings and in our actions.
• Prayer and sacrifice: to avoid anything that could harm others, like destructive critics, false judgments, jealousy, etiquettes… and to dedicate myself more to prayer for the conversion of the souls, accepting certain sacrifices in daily life for the good of others.
• Being patient and kind: to accept, not with resignation but with love, the differences and limitations of others. Accepting to lose so that my sister or brother might grow.
• Being of service: to be attentive to the needs of others, to win over egoism and individualism that blind me and don’t allow me to discover that the others need my word, smile, attention, gaze…
• Thirst of God: allow God to be the owner of my life, receiving sacraments, specially Eucharist and Reconciliation. To awake, from my life, this thirst of God in my brethren.
• Universal love: to fight against any kind of division in community and family avoiding any kind of language that could hinder unity in diversity and communion.
• Strength of the soul: “do not be afraid, it will be fine”, Teresa Mira used to say animating her sisters. To be a person who animates and not discourages; a person who invites to go against the worldly current which sometimes invades our relationships and doesn’t allow us to live happy and faithful to our commitment as Christians and religious.