In 1997, Pope John Paul II designated February 2, the Feast of the Presentation, as the World Day for Consecrated Life. This special day, one of the “forgotten legacies” from this beloved Pope’s pontificate, will be celebrated this year on February 5th.
The World Day for Consecrated Life helps the entire Church “to esteem ever more greatly the witness of those persons who have chosen to follow Christ by means of the practice of the evangelical counsels and is intended to be an occasion for consecrated persons to renew their commitment and rekindle the fervor which should inspire their offering of themselves to the Lord.”
To encourage all members of the Church to pray for vocations to the consecrated life, the IRL has a novena, “Living Signs of the Gospel,” containing Pope John Paul II’s messages for this important day. For a free copy of this novena, please call the IRL offices at (847)573-8975. For bulk purchases, please visit our website.
At the conclusion of his general audience this past Wednesday, Pope Benedict XVI recalled that February 2nd was also 
Today the Church is celebrating the World Day for Consecrated Life simultaneously with the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. Pope Benedict XVI is observing the two celebrations by presiding over Vespers in St. Peter’s Basilica this evening.
It is no accident that the event coincides with the celebration of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple. This celebration, wrote Venerable John Paul II, is an “eloquent icon of the total offering of one’s life for all those who are called to show forth in the Church and in the world, by means of the evangelical counsels ‘the characteristic features of Jesus — the chaste, poor and obedient one.’ ”