Jesus without profession

Reading a particular reflection on religious consecration, in the light of our religious profession on May 24, I came across the following passage:

Through consecration we follow Christ who was poor, obedient and chaste.  Jesus lived without possessions...  Jesus lived a chaste and celibate life...  Jesus obeyed his Father.  

Mistakenly I read the second sentence as 'Jesus lived without profession'.  As I continued reading, it occurred to me that I missed something.  So I read that para again.  It was only then that I realised I had misread.  However, that mistaken reading also made perfect sense.  Jesus never made a vow or solemn public to live poor, chaste and obedient.  Yet he was! 

This is the aspect we religious need to remember.  Our consecration is not merely because we said those words.  It is basically because we believe in living that kind of life.  We live our religious profession not as a consequence of a set of formulas or oaths, but as an outpouring of love.  The consecration is only a reminder - to ourselves.  Not a guarantee.  The fruitfulness of our consecration is not in repetition of those words of our profession daily or annually, but in our living out of a life full of love for God and all living beings.