Vatican City, May 16, 2015 / 02:17 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Speaking to vowed religious, Pope Francis said Christianity must be festive. He praised the special nourishing power of a nun’s smile.

“The feast is a theological category of life. And you cannot live the consecrated life without this festive dimension. It's a party. But partying is not the same as making noise,” he said May 16.

This festive dimension to life is “one of the things that we Christians forget,” he said, according to Vatican Radio.