Pope Leo XIV Urges Regnum Christi to Renew Charism, Embrace Servant Leadership

Vatican, 29 January, 2026 / 12:43 AM

Pope Leo XIV met Thursday with members of the Regnum Christi federation’s general assemblies of consecrated women and lay consecrated men, urging them to deepen their sense of identity, embrace leadership as service, and strengthen communion across the apostolic movement’s different vocations.

Regnum Christi calls itself a “spiritual family” with four “vocations”: lay members, consecrated women, lay consecrated men, and the Legionaries of Christ, a religious congregation of priests.

The federation has undergone years of reform and renewal following revelations about its founder, Legionaries of Christ Father Marcial Maciel, who was credibly accused of sexually abusing minors and later found to have led a double life, including fathering at least four children. A 2019 Regnum Christi report acknowledged at least 175 minors as abuse victims of 33 priests in the congregation, including at least 60 cases attributed to Maciel.

Pope Leo did not refer to this history on Thursday but invited Regnum Christi members to rediscover the gift that defines them — their charism, a distinctive spiritual gift given for the good of the Church and expressed in a particular mission and way of life.

“Today more than ever it is necessary to know who we are, if we want to dialogue authentically with society without being absorbed or made uniform,” he said, encouraging members to clarify their identity and vocation so they can proclaim the Gospel more fruitfully.

Pope Leo cautioned against treating a charism as something fixed or merely inherited. The one who receives it, he said, is called to keep it alive so it does not become static but instead becomes a “vital force” that flows “creatively and freely.”

“You are a living body in which charismatic energy passes through every cell and every member — who are, in turn, its bearers and transmitters,” he said. That energy, he added, should animate the mission they carry forward and light the path ahead, so it can be handed on “as a living inheritance” to future generations.

The pope also reflected on governance within the apostolic society, describing it as essential service and “a true ecclesial ministry,” meant to accompany brothers and sisters toward a conscious, free, and responsible fidelity in following Christ.

Any form of governance, he insisted, must be oriented toward service: to support, accompany, and help each member become more closely conformed each day to Christ. He encouraged communal discernment and urged members not to fear exploring new forms of governance, remaining faithful to their charism and attentive to the Holy Spirit.

In concluding remarks, Pope Leo emphasized the need to foster “ever deeper communion” within the wider Regnum Christi family while respecting the richness and diversity of its vocations.

“We are all lives on a journey,” he said, adding that “the Lord does not make noise, but his kingdom springs up and grows in every corner of the world.” God, he continued, “continues to surprise us,” allowing himself to be found by paths that are not our own — a fidelity that renews believers’ hope.

After the audience, Mary Patt Pirie of the United States, the director general of studies for Regnum Christi’s consecrated women, praised Leo’s remarks.

“We were very moved, and it felt like something truly relevant to what we are discerning and living,” she said.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.