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Saturday, November 19, 2016
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
St Peter's Square
Saturday, 12 November 2016

EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY

PHOTO: L'OSSERVATORE ROMANO

Mercy and inclusion

Dear brothers and sisters, Good morning!
In this last Saturday Jubilee Audience, I would like to present an important aspect of mercy: inclusion. Indeed, God, in his design of love, does not want to exclude anyone, but wants to include everyone. For example, through Baptism, he makes us his children in Christ, members of his Body which is the Church. And we Christians are invited to use the same criteria: mercy is the way one acts, that style, with which we try to include others in our lives, and avoid closing in on ourselves and our selfish securities.

In the passage from the Gospel of Matthew that we have just heard, Jesus addresses a truly universal invitation: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (11:28). No one is excluded from this call, because Jesus’ mission is to reveal the Father’s love to everyone. Our task is to open our hearts, to trust in Jesus and accept this message of love, which makes us enter into the mystery of salvation.

This aspect of mercy, inclusion, is manifested in opening one’s arms wide to welcome, without excluding; without labeling others according to their social status, language, race, culture or religion: there is, before us, only a person to be loved as God loves them. The person whom I find at my work, in my neighbourhood, is a person to love, as God loves. “But he is from that country, or that other country, or of this religion, or another... He is a person whom God loves and I have to love him”. This is to include, and this is inclusion.

We encounter so many weary and oppressed people today! In the street, in public offices, in medical practices... Jesus’ gaze rests on each one of those faces, even through our eyes. And how is our heart? Is it merciful? And our way of thinking and acting, is it inclusive? The Gospel calls us to recognize, in the history of humanity, the design of a great work of inclusion, which fully respects the freedom of every person, every community, every nation, and calls everyone to form a family of brothers and sisters, in justice, solidarity and peace, and to be part of the Church, which is the Body of Christ.

How true are Jesus’ words, which invite those who are tired and weary to come to Him to find rest! His arms outstretched on the cross show that no one is excluded from his love and his mercy, not even the greatest sinner: no one! We are all included in his love and in his mercy. The most immediate expression with which we feel welcomed and included in him is that of forgiveness. We all need to be forgiven by God. And we all need to encounter brothers and sisters who help us to go to Jesus, to open ourselves to the gift he has given us on the cross. Let us not hinder each other! Let us not exclude anyone! Rather, with humility and simplicity let us become instruments of the Father’s inclusive mercy. The inclusive mercy of the Father: it is like this. The Holy Mother Church prolongs in the world the great embrace of Christ who died and rose. Also this Square, with its colonnade, expresses this embrace. Let us engage in this movement of including others, to be witnesses of the mercy with which God has accepted and welcomed each one of us.

Special greetings:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from Ireland and Pakistan. With prayerful good wishes that the present Jubilee of Mercy will be a moment of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Dear brothers and sisters, live this last Saturday Audience of the Jubilee with faith, in order to experience forgiveness, mercy and the love of God in your life. I greet with particular affection you volunteers of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. You have been great! You all have come from different countries, and I thank you for the valuable service you have provided so that pilgrims could live this experience of faith well. Over the course of these months, I have noticed your discreet presence in the Square with the Jubilee logo and have admired the dedication, patience and enthusiasm with which you have carried out your work. Thank you very much!

In particular, I extend a greeting to young people, the sick and newlyweds. Yesterday we commemorated Saint Martin of Tours, the patron saint of beggars, whose 17th centenary of the birth we celebrate this year. May his example inspire in you, dear young people, especially you Erasmus students in Europe, the desire to perform acts of solidarity; may his faith in Christ the Lord sustain you, dear sick people, in the trials of disease; and may his moral rectitude remind you, dear newlyweds, of the importance of values in the education of children.


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Saturday, October 29, 2016
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
St Peter's Square Saturday, 22 October 2016

EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY

PHOTO: L'OSSERVATORE ROMANO

Mercy and dialogue

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
The passage of John’s Gospel that we heard (cf. 4:6-15) recounts Jesus’ encounter with a Samaritan woman. What is striking about this encounter is the very succinct dialogue between the woman and Jesus. This allows us today to underline a very important aspect of mercy, which is dialogue.

Dialogue allows people to know and understand one another’s needs. Above all, it is a sign of great respect, because it puts the person into a stance of listening, and into a condition of being receptive to the speaker’s best viewpoints. Secondly, dialogue is an expression of charity because, while not ignoring differences, it can help us investigate and share the common good. Moreover, dialogue invites us to place ourselves before the other, seeing him or her as a gift of God, and as someone who calls upon us and asks to be acknowledged.

Many times, we do not encounter our brothers and sisters, even when living beside them, especially when we give precedence to our position over that of the other. We do not dialogue when we do not listen well enough, or when we tend to interrupt the other person in order to show that we are right. However, how many times, how many times as we are listening to a person, do we stop them and say: “No! No! It isn’t so!”, and we do not allow the person to finish explaining what they want to say. And this hinders dialogue: this is aggression. True dialogue, instead, requires moments of silence in which to understand the extraordinary gift of God’s presence in a brother or sister.

Dear brothers and sisters, dialogue helps people to humanize relationships and to overcome misunderstandings. There is great need for dialogue in our families, and how much more easily issues would be resolved if we learned to listen to each other! This is how it is in the relationship between husband and wife, between parents and children. How much help can also come through dialogue between teachers and their pupils; or between managers and workers, in order to identify the most important demands of the work.

The Church, too, lives by dialoguing with men and women of every era, in order to understand the needs that are in the heart of every person, and to contribute to the fulfillment of the common good. Let us think of the great gift of creation, and the responsibility we all have of safeguarding our common home: dialogue on such a central theme is an unavoidable necessity. Let us think of dialogue among religions in order to discover the profound truth of their mission in the midst of men and women, and to contribute to the building of peace and of a network of respect and fraternity (cf. Encyclical Laudato Si’, n. 201).

To conclude, all forms of dialogue are expressions of our great need for the love of God, who reaches out to everyone, and places in everyone a seed of his goodness, so that it may cooperate in his creative work. Dialogue breaks down the walls of division and misunderstandings: it builds bridges of communication, and it does not allow anyone to isolate themselves, or withdraw into their own little world. Do not forget: dialogue means listening to what the other tells me, and saying what I think, with kindness. If things proceed in this way, the family, the neighbourhood, the workplace will be better. However, if I do not allow the other to say everything that is in his heart, and I begin to shout — today we shout a lot — this relationship between us will not thrive; the relationship between husband and wife, between parents and children, will not thrive. Listen, explain, with kindness; do not bark at the other, do not shout, but have an open heart.

Jesus understood well what was in the heart of the Samaritan woman, who was a great sinner: nonetheless, he did not deny her the opportunity to explain herself; he allowed her to speak to the end, and entered little by little into the mystery of her life. This lesson also applies to us. Through dialogue, we can make the signs of God’s mercy grow, and make them an instrument of welcome and respect.

Special greetings:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Scotland, Indonesia, Malaysia and the United States of America With prayerful good wishes that the Jubilee of Mercy will be a moment of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ.


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Saturday, September 17, 2016
EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Saturday, 10 September 2016

PHOTO: www.tourinrome.com 

Mercy and Redemption

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
The passage that we have heard speaks of God’s mercy which is implemented in the Redemption, that is, in the salvation which we were given with the Blood of his Son Jesus (cf. 1 Pet 1:18-21). The word “redemption” is not often used, yet it is fundamental because it indicates the most radical liberation that God could fulfil for us, for all of humanity and for all of creation.
It seems that man today no longer likes to think he has been freed and saved through God’s intervention; he deludes himself that his freedom is a force for obtaining everything. But in reality this is not the case. How many illusions are sold on the pretext of freedom, and how many new forms of slavery are created in our times in the name of a false freedom! Many, many slaves. ‘I do this because I want to, I take drugs because I like to, I am free. I do elsewise’. They are slaves! They become slaves in the name of freedom. We have all seen people like this who end up on the ground. We need God to free us from every form of indifference, selfishness and self-sufficiency”.

The words of the Apostle Peter clearly express the meaning of the new life to which we are called. By making Himself one of us, the Lord Jesus not only takes on the human condition, but also raises us up to the possibility of being Children of God. By His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ, the blameless Lamb, conquered death and sin to free us from their dominion. He is the Lamb that was sacrificed for us, so that we can receive a new life made up of forgiveness, love and joy. These three words are beautiful: forgiveness, love and joy. All that He assumed was also redeemed, freed and saved. Certainly, it is true that life puts us to the test, and at times we suffer for this. However, in these moments we are invited to turn our gaze to the crucified Jesus who suffers for us and with us, as sure proof that God does not abandon us. Let us never forget that in anguish and persecution, as in everyday sufferings, we are always freed by the merciful hand of God who raises us up to Him and leads us to a new life.

God’s love is boundless: we can discover ever new signs that show his attention towards us and, above all, his wish to reach us and to await us. All our life, although marked by the fragility of sin, is placed under the gaze of God who loves us. How many pages of Sacred Scripture speak to us of God’s presence, closeness and tenderness for every man, especially for the smallest, the poor and the troubled! God has great tenderness, great love for the small ones, for the weak, for those rejected by society. The greater our need, the more his gaze upon us is filled with mercy. He feels compassion and pity towards us because He knows our weaknesses. He knows our sins and He forgives us. He always forgives us! He is so good, our Father is so good.

Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, let us open up to the Lord, and receive his grace! Because, as the Psalm says, “For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with Him is plentious redemption” (130[129]:7).

Special greetings:
I warmly greet the Italian-speaking pilgrims!
My thought goes first of all to the National Civil Protection Service which was supposed to be present today, and which cancelled its participation in order to continue the precious work of care and assistance to the populations struck by the earthquake on 24 August. I thank them for their dedication and the generous help offered in these days! Thank you brothers and sisters!
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from Botswana, South Africa, the Philippines and the United States of America. During your visit to the Eternal City, may your faith in the crucified and risen Christ be renewed and strengthened. May God fill you with his reconciling and tender mercy. God bless you all!

I address a special greeting to the young people of Catholic Action who are gathered for the Youth Festival. I encourage you to continue on the path undertaken, always cultivating the values of love for family and respect for creation, our common home.

I greet those taking part in the Jubilee of Universities and Research Centres, with the hope that the teaching may be rich in values, so as to form people who are able to make their God-given talents bear fruit.

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Thursday, July 14, 2016
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS

EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY

St Peter's Square
Thursday, 30 June 2016



Works of Mercy (cfr Mt 25:31-46)

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
How many times, during these first months of the Jubilee, have we heard about the works of mercy! Today the Lord invites us to make a serious examination of conscience. Indeed, it is good to never forget that mercy is not an abstract word, but it is a way of life: a person can either be merciful or unmerciful; it is a lifestyle. I choose to live in a way that is merciful or I choose to live in a way that is unmerciful. It is one thing to speak of mercy, and it is another to live mercy. Paraphrasing the words of St James the Apostle (cf. 2:14-17), we could say: mercy without works is dead within itself. That’s it! What makes mercy come alive is its constant dynamism in order to go and meet those in need and the necessities of those in spiritual and material hardship. Mercy has eyes to see, ears to hear, hands to lift up again....


Daily life allows us to touch, with our hands, many demands that concern the poorest and most tested of people. We are asked for that particular attention that leads us to notice the state of suffering and need in which so many brothers and sisters find themselves. Sometimes we pass by situations of dramatic poverty and it seems that they do not touch us; everything continues as if it were nothing, into an indifference that eventually creates hypocrites and, without our realizing it, leads to a form of spiritual lethargy that numbs the soul and renders life barren. People who pass by, who move on in life without noticing the needs of others, without seeing many spiritual and material needs, are people who pass by without living, they are people who do not need others. Remember well: those who do not live to serve, do not serve to live.

There are so many aspects of God’s mercy toward us! In the same way, there are so many faces turned to us in order to obtain mercy. Those who have experienced in their own lives the Father’s mercy cannot remain indifferent before the needs of their brothers. The lesson of Jesus that we have heard does not allow escape routes: I was hungry and you gave me food; I was thirsty and you gave me drink; I was naked, displaced, sick, in prison and you assisted me (Mt 25:35-36). You cannot stonewall a person who is hungry: he must be fed. Jesus tells us this! The works of mercy are not theoretical ideas, but concrete testimonies. They oblige us to roll up our sleeves to alleviate suffering.

Due to changes in our globalized world, certain material and spiritual forms of poverty have multiplied: let us give space, therefore, to the imaginings of charity so as to find new ways of working. In this way, the way of mercy will become more and more concrete. It is necessary therefore, that we remain as vigilant as watchmen, so that, when facing the poverty produced by the culture of wellbeing, the Christian gaze does not weaken and become incapable of focusing on what is essential. Focus on the essentials. What does this mean? To focus on Jesus, to see Jesus in the hungry, in prisoners, in the sick, the naked, in those who don’t have work and need to lead their family forward. To see Jesus in these people, our brothers and sisters; to see Jesus in those who are lonely, sad, in those who have made mistakes and need counsel, in those who need to walk with Him in silence so that they feel accompanied. These are the works that Jesus asks of us! To see Jesus in them, in these people. Why? Because this is the way Jesus sees me, sees all of us.

Now let us move on to another thing.
In recent days the Lord allowed me to visit Armenia, the first nation to embrace Christianity at the beginning of the fourth century. It is a nation that, over the course of its long history, has witnessed the Christian faith with martyrdom. I thank God for this journey, and I am deeply grateful to the President of the Republic of Armenia, to Catholicos Karekin ii, to the Patriarch, the Catholic bishops, and the entire Armenian people for welcoming me as a pilgrim of brotherhood and peace.

In three months, God willing, I will make another journey to Georgia and Azerbaijan, two more countries of the Caucasus region. I accepted the invitation to visit these countries for two reasons: on the one hand to highlight the ancient Christian roots present in those lands — again in a spirit of dialogue with other religions and cultures — and on the other to encourage hope and paths of peace. History teaches us that the path of peace requires great tenacity and continuous steps, starting with small steps and gradually increasing them, going to meet one another. Precisely for this reason my hope is that each and every person may give his or her own contribution to peace and reconciliation.

As Christians we are called to strengthen the fraternal communion among us, so as to bear witness to the Gospel of Christ and to be a leaven of a more just and united society. For this reason, the entire visit was shared with the Supreme Patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church, who fraternally hosted me for three days in his home.

I renew my embrace to the Bishops, priests, men and women religious, and to all the faithful of Armenia. May the Virgin Mary, our Mother, help them to remain steadfast in faith, open to encounter and generous in works of mercy. Thank you.

Special greetings:
Let us not allow the culture of wellbeing to weaken our sensitivity to the suffering of our brothers and sisters. Let us be ever vigilant so as to discover their needs, and generous so as to come to their aid.
May God bless you!

I greet the English-speaking pilgrims present at today’s Audience, particularly those from Sweden, China, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Canada and the United States of America. With heartfelt wishes that the current Jubilee of Mercy may be a time of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in the Lord Jesus!

I cordially greet the Polish pilgrims. Dear brothers and sisters, I thank you for accompanying me with your prayers during my visit to Armenia. I ask you to continue praying for me and for the young people in Poland and throughout the world who are preparing for our now imminent meeting in Krakow. May the remembrance of “blessed are the merciful” be ever alive in our hearts and in our deeds. I bless you wholeheartedly. Praised be Jesus Christ!

Lastly, I address my greeting to young people, to the sick and to newlyweds. Today we celebrate the first martyrs of the Church of Rome and we pray for those who to this day pay dearly for belonging to the Church of Christ. Dear young people, may faith have a place and may it give meaning to your life; dear sick people, may you offer your suffering in order that those far away may encounter the love of Christ; dear newlyweds, may you be educators of life and models of faith for your children.

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Saturday, June 25, 2016
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS

EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY
St Peter's Square
Saturday, 18 June 2016

Mercy and conversion (cf. Lk 24:45-48)

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
After his Resurrection, Jesus appeared several times to his disciples before ascending to the glory of the Father. The Gospel passage that we have just heard (Lk 24:45-48) recounts one of these manifestations, in which the Lord indicates the fundamental content of the preaching that they must offer the world. We can synthesize it in two words: “conversion” and “forgiveness of sins”. These are the two qualifying aspects of the mercy of God who lovingly cares for us. Today let us take into considerationconversion.

What is conversion? It is present throughout the Bible, and particularly in the preaching of the prophets, who continually urge the people to “return to the Lord” by asking him for forgiveness and changing their ways. Conversion, according to the prophets, means changing direction and turning to the Lord anew, relying on the certainty that He loves us and his love is ever steadfast. Returning to the Lord.


Jesus made conversion the first word of his preaching: “Repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mk 1:15). With this proclamation he presents himself to the people, asking them to accept his Word as God’s final and definitive words to humanity (cf. Mk 12:1-11). Speaking of conversion with regard to the preaching of the prophets, Jesus insists even more on the interior dimension. In fact, it involves the whole person, heart and mind, in order to become a new creature, a new person. Change your heart and you will be renewed.

When Jesus calls one to conversion, he does not set himself up as judge of persons, but he calls from a position nearby, because he shares in the human condition, and therefore calls from the street, from the home, from the table.... Mercy towards those who needed to change their lives came about through his lovable presence so as to involve each person in his salvation history. Jesus persuaded people with his kindness, with love and with his way of being, he touched the depths of people’s hearts and they felt attracted by the love of God and urged to change their lifestyle. For example, the conversion of Matthew (cf. Mt 9:9-13) and of Zacchaeus (cf. Lk 19:1-10) happened in exactly this manner, because they felt loved by Jesus and, through Him, by the Father. True conversion happens when we accept the gift of grace, and a clear sign of its authenticity is when we become aware of the needs of our brothers and are ready to draw near to them.

Dear brothers and sisters, how many times have we also felt the need to effect a change which would involve our entire person! How often do we say to ourselves: “I need to change, I can’t continue this way.... My life on this path will not bear fruit; it will be a useless life and I will not be happy”. How often these thoughts come, how often!... And Jesus, who is near us, extends his hand and says, “Come, come to me. I’ll do the work: I’ll change your heart, I’ll change your life, I will make you happy”. But do we believe this, yes or no? What do you think: do you believe this or not? Less applause and more voice! Do you believe or not? [‘Yes!’]. So it is. Jesus who is with us invites us to change our life. It is He, with the Holy Spirit, who sows in us this restlessness to change our life and be a little better. Let us follow, therefore, this invitation of the Lord and let us not put up resistance, because only if we open ourselves to His mercy will we find true life and true joy.

All we have to do is open the door wide, and He will do the rest. He does everything, but we must open our heart wide so that he can heal us and make us go forward. I assure you that we will be much happier. Thank you.

Special greetings:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore and the United States of America. With prayerful good wishes that the current Jubilee of Mercy may be a time of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I extend a special greeting to young people, to the sick and to newlyweds. Next Saturday we will celebrate the memory of St William Abbot (or St William of Montevergine). Dear young people, may his evangelical zeal inspire you to courageous choices for the good; dear sick people, may his gentleness sustain you in carrying your cross in spiritual union with the heart of Christ; dearnewlyweds, may his bond with Christ the Saviour help you to unite your family with love. Thank you.
  

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Saturday, May 21, 2016
EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
St Peter's Square Saturday, 14 May 2016

Mercy like piety


Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
It is not a very nice day, but you are brave and you came have come despite the rain. Thank you! This audience is taking place in two locations: the sick are in the Paul VI Hall because of the rain. They are more comfortable there and are following us on the jumbo screen; and we are here. We are together... and I suggest that you greet them with a round of applause. It’s not easy to applaud holding an umbrella in your hand!


Among the many aspects of mercy, there is one which consists in feeling compassion or pity for those who need love. Pietas — piety — is a concept from the Greco-Roman world where, however, it indicated a kind of submission to superiors: above all, devotion due to the gods, then filial respect for one’s parents, the elderly in particular. Today, however, we must be careful not to identify piety with the fairly widespread pietism, which is only a superficial emotion and offends the dignity of others. Similarly, piety should not be confused with the compassion that we feel for the animals that live with us; indeed, it happens that at times we feel this sentiment for animals, and are indifferent to the suffering of brothers and sisters. How often we see people who are so attached to their cats or dogs that they leave their neighbour without help, a neighbour in need.... This is not right.

The piety that we wish to talk about is a manifestation of God’s mercy. It is one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, whom the Lord offers to his disciples to render them “docile in readily obeying divine inspirations” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1831). Many times the Gospel refers to the spontaneous cry that the sick, of those who are possessed, poor or afflicted people addressed to Jesus: “Have mercy” (cf. Mk 10:47-48; Mt 15:22, 17:15). Jesus responded to all with his gaze of mercy and the comfort of his presence. In those invocations for help or requests for mercy, each person also expressed his or her faith in Jesus, calling him ‘Teacher’, ‘Son of David’ and ‘Lord’. They perceived that there was something extraordinary about Him, that could help them to emerge from their state of distress. They perceived in Him the love of God himself. Even if the people were crowding around him Jesus was aware of those cries for mercy and he was moved to compassion, especially when he saw people suffering and wounded in their dignity, as in the case of the haemorrhaging woman (cf. Mk 5:32). He called her to trust in Him and in his Word (cf. Jn 6:48-55). For Jesus, feeling compassion is the same as sharing in the distress of those he meets, but at the same time, it is also getting involved in a personal way so that it might be transformed into joy.

We too are called to cultivate within us attitudes of compassion before the many situations of life, to shake off the indifference that impedes us from recognizing the need of the brothers and sisters who surround us and to free ourselves from the slavery of material wellbeing (cf. 1 Tim 6:3-8).

Let us look to the example of the Virgin Mary, who takes care of each one of her children and is for us believers the icon of compassion. Dante Alighieri expresses it in the prayer to Our Lady in Paradiso: “In you compassion is, in you is pity, [...] in you is every goodness found in any creature (XXXIII, 19-21). Thank you.

Special greetings:
Through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, we are invited on the eve of Pentecost, to shake off our indifference that sometimes blinds us to the needs of our brothers and sisters, and to free ourselves from the bondage of material goods.
May God bless you all.

I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England and the Philippines. In the joy of the Risen Lord, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!

I greet the young people, the sick and the newlyweds. Today is the Feast of St Matthias, the final Apostle to become one of the Twelve. May his spiritual vigour encourage you, dear young people, especially the students of the Sacred Heart and Paul VI of Rome, to be consistent with your faith. May his abandonment in the Risen Christ sustain you, dear sick people, in moments of great difficulty. May his missionary dedication remind you, dear newlyweds, that love is the irreplaceable foundation of the family.


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Sunday, May 08, 2016
EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square Saturday, 30 April 2016

Mercy and reconciliation


Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
Today I would like to reflect with you on an important aspect of mercy: reconciliation. God has never failed to offer his forgiveness to men and women: his mercy is felt from generation to generation. Often we believe that our sins distance the Lord from us. In reality, in sinning, we may distance ourselves from him, but, seeing us in danger, he tries all the harder to find us. God never gives in to the possibility that a person could stay estranged from his love, provided, however, that he find in him or her some sign of repentance for the evil done.


By our efforts alone, we cannot be reconciled to God. Sin truly is the expression of the rejection of his love, with the consequence of closing in on ourselves, deluding ourselves into thinking that we have found greater freedom and autonomy. Far from God we no longer have a destination, and we are transformed from pilgrims in this world to “wanderers”. To use a common expression: when we sin, we “turn away from God”. That’s just what we do; the sinner sees only himself and presumes in this way to be self-sufficient. Thus, sin continues to expand the distance between us and God, and this can become a chasm. However, Jesus comes to find us like a good shepherd who is not content until he has found the lost sheep, as we read in the Gospel (cf. Lk 15:4-6). He rebuilds the bridge that connects us to the Father and allows us to rediscover our dignity as children. By the offering of his life he has reconciled us to the Father and given us eternal life (cf. Jn 10:15).

“Be reconciled to God!” (2 Cor 5:20): the cry that the Apostle Paul addressed to the early Christians in Corinth, today applies to us all with the same vigour and conviction. Let us be reconciled to God! This Jubilee of mercy is a time of reconciliation for everyone. Many people would like to be reconciled to God but they don’t know how to do it, or they don’t feel worthy, or they don’t want to admit it, not even to themselves. The Christian community can and must foster the sincere return to God for those who feel this yearning. Especially those who carry out the “ministry of reconciliation” (2 Cor 5:18) are called to be instruments docile to the Holy Spirit, for where one has abandoned sin mercy can abound (cf. Rm 5:20). No one should be separated from God because of obstacles put there by mankind! And — I want to underline this — that also goes for confessors. It’s valid for them: please, don’t put up obstacles for people who want to be reconciled to God. The confessor must be a father! He stands in the place of God the Father! The confessor must welcome those who come to him to be reconciled to God and help them on the journey to this reconciliation that we are making. It is a very beautiful ministry: not a torture chamber or an interrogation room. No. It is the place where the Father receives, welcomes and forgives this person. Let us be reconciled to God! All of us! May this Holy Year be a positive time to rediscover our need for the tenderness and closeness of the Father, to return to him with all our heart.

The experience of reconciliation to God allows us to discover the necessity of other forms of reconciliation: in families, in interpersonal relationships, in ecclesial communities, as well as in social international relations. Someone recently said to me that in the world there are more enemies than friends, and I believe he is right. Instead, let us build bridges of reconciliation among us, beginning in the family. How many siblings have argued and become estranged over inheritance. This shouldn’t happen! This year is the year of reconciliation, with God and among us! Reconciliation is also a service to peace, solidarity and the welcome of all.

Let us accept, therefore, the invitation to be reconciled to God, in order to become new creatures and to radiate his mercy among our brothers, among the people.

Greeting to participants in the Jubilee for the armed forces and law enforcement:
With joy I welcome the representatives of the armed forces and police, here from all over the world, on pilgrimage to Rome for the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. Law enforcement — military and police — have the mission of ensuring a safe environment, so that each and every citizen can live in peace and serenity. In your families, in the various areas in which you operate, may you be instruments of reconciliation, builders of bridges and sowers of peace. Indeed, you are called not only to prevent, manage and put an end to conflicts, but also to contribute to the building of an order founded on truth, on justice, on love and on freedom, according to St John XXIII’s definition of peace in his Encyclical Pacem in Terris (nn. 18 ff.).

The affirmation of peace is not an easy task, especially because of war, which uproots hearts and augments violence and hatred. I urge you not to be discouraged. Continue on your journey of faith and open your hearts to God the merciful Father who never tires of forgiving us. Faced with the challenges of every day, be shining examples of Christian hope, which is the certitude of the victory of love over hate and of peace over war.

Greetings:
I greet the English-speaking visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from the armed forces and law enforcement agencies who have come from Canada, Kenya, Korea, the Philippines and the United States of America. I also greet the pilgrimage groups from Scotland and the United States. In the joy of the Risen Lord, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!

I affectionately greet young people, the sick and newlyweds: to each of you I extend my encouragement to follow Christ. I entrust you all to the motherly protection of Our Lady.


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Sunday, April 17, 2016
EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY
JUBILEE AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Saturday, 9 April 2016

Mercy and almsgiving

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning,
The Gospel passage we have heard allows us to discover an essential aspect of mercy: almsgiving. It might seem simple to give alms, but we must be careful not to empty this gesture of its importance. Indeed, the term “alms”, derives from the Greek and actually means “mercy”. Therefore, almsgiving must carry with it all the richness of mercy. And as mercy has a thousand paths, a thousand ways, thus almsgiving is expressed in many ways, in order to alleviate the hardship of those who are in need.

The duty to give alms is as ancient as the Bible. Sacrifice and almsgiving were two duties that a devout person had to comply with. There are two important passages in the Old Testament where God demands special attention for the poor, who at times are destitute, strangers, orphans and widows. In the Bible this continuous refrain — the needy, the widow, the stranger, the sojourner, the orphan — is recurrent. Because God wants his people to watch over these brothers and sisters of ours; moreover, I would say that they are at the very centre of the message: to praise God through sacrifice and to praise God through almsgiving.




Along with the obligation to remember them, a precious direction is also given: “you shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him” (Dt 15:10). This means, first of all, that charity requires an attitude of inner joy. Offering mercy cannot be a burden or an annoyance from which to free ourselves in haste. How many people justify their not giving alms by saying: “What kind of person is this? If I give him something perhaps he will go buy wine to get drunk”. If he gets drunk, it is because he sees no alternatives! And you, what do you do in secret, that no one sees? Yet you judge that poor man who asks you for a coin for a glass of wine? I like to recall the episode of the elderly Tobit who, after receiving a large sum of money, called his son and instructed him, saying: “Give alms... to all who live uprightly [...]. Do not turn your face away from any poor man, and the face of God will not be turned away from you” (Tob 4:7-8). These are very wise words that help us understand the value of almsgiving.

Jesus, as we heard, gave us an irreplaceable lesson in this regard. In the first place, he asks us not to give alms in order to be praised and admired by people for our generosity: do so in such a way that your right hand does not know what your left hand is doing (cf. Mt 6:3). It is not appearances that count, but the capacity to stop in order to look in the face of that person asking for help. We can each ask ourselves: “Am I able to stop and look in the face, in the eye of that person who is asking me? Am I able?”. Thus, we must not identify almsgiving with the simple coin offered in haste, without looking at the person and without stopping to talk so as to understand what he or she truly needs. At the same time, we must distinguish between the poor and the various forms of begging that do not render a good service to the truly poor. Thus, almsgiving is a gesture of love that is directed at those we meet: it is a gesture of sincere attention to those who approach us and ask for our help, done in secret where God alone sees and understands the value of the act performed.

Giving alms must be for us too something that is a sacrifice. I remember a mother: she had three children, six, five and three years old, more or less. She always taught her children that one should give alms to the people who ask for it. They were at lunch: each one was eating a Milanese cutlet, as we say in my land, “breaded”. There was a knock at the door. The oldest went to open the door and returned: “Mamma, there’s a poor person asking for something to eat”. — “What should we do?”, the mother asked. “Let’s give him something”, they all said, “let’s give something to him!”. — “Okay: take half of your cutlet, you the other half, you the other half, and we’ll make two sandwiches” — “Ah, no, mamma, no!” — “No? You give him some of yours, give something that costs you”. This is involving yourself with the poor person. I deprive myself of something of my own in order to give it to you. I say to parents: raise your children to give alms in this way, to be generous with what they have.

Thus, let us make the words of the Apostle Paul our own: “In all things I have shown you that by so toiling one must help the weak, remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, who said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:35; cf. 2 Cor 9:7). Thank you!

Special greetings:
In this Jubilee Year, let us ask for the grace to focus a more attentive look of love on the people we help, to stop beside them, and in this way we will discover that there is more joy in giving than in receiving.

I greet the English-speaking visitors attending today’s Audience, particularly the pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Dublin. In the joy of the Risen Lord, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!

I greet the young people, the sick and the newlyweds. May this Holy Year be lived with special intensity. Dear young people, especially you young people from the Profession of Faith of the Diocese of Tivoli, may you always be faithful to your Baptism with a consistent testimony of life; dear sick people, in particular the members of UNITALSI from Lombardy and from Campania, may the light of Easter illuminate you and comfort you in your suffering; and you, dear newlyweds, may you draw from the Paschal Mystery the courage to be leaders in the Church and in society, contributing to the construction of the culture of love.

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