In this context, the Pope stressed that it's important for a person to let himself be evangelized before committing to evangelize others.
Francis pointed to the many youth who offer solidarity and commit at both a social and religious level, saying "there are marvelous youth and they are not few," but also cautioned that young people are particularly susceptible to "the logic of worldliness."
Summarizing the mentality as "the search for success at whatever price, of easy money and easy pleasure," he noted that the temptation seduces many of today's youth, and because of this, they need someone to stand beside them and "contaminate them with the joy of the Gospel."
The Pope then pointed to a third factor he said affects vocational fidelity and which comes from within consecrated life itself: the "counter-witness" of some members of the community.
While there is a lot of holiness inside many communities, there is also sin, he said, noting that particularly challenging situations for consecrated persons are when things become routine, when members get tired and the weight that comes with managing different structures.
Difficulties also arise from internal divisions, the search for power, a worldly mentality in governing institutes and "a service of authority which at times becomes authoritarianism and at other times a 'laissez-faire.'"
"If consecrated life wants to maintain its prophetic mission in the world," he said, "it must maintain the freshness and the novelty of the centrality of Jesus, the attractiveness of the spirituality and the strength of the mission, showing the beauty of following Christ and radiating joy and hope."
Pope Francis also pointed, as he often does, to the importance of fraternal life in the community, which he said is fueled by daily prayer, Mass, the reading of Scripture, fraternal correction, dialogue and mercy toward those who sin.
"All of this accompanies an eloquent and joyful witness of life beside the poor and by a mission that the privileges the existential peripheries," he said, explaining that to maintain this depends on the quality of vocational pastoral ministry.
"Because when a brother or sister is not supported in their consecrated life inside of the community, they seek it outside, with everything that this brings."
Elise Harris was senior Rome correspondent for CNA from 2012 to 2018.