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Sunday, December 11, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 4 December 2016

PHOTO: L'OSSERVATORE ROMANO

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
In the Gospel given this second Sunday of Advent, John the Baptist’s invitation resounds: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Mt 3:2). With these very words, Jesus begins his mission in Galilee (cf. Mt 4:17); and such will also be the message that the disciples must bring on their first missionary experience (cf. Mt 10:7). Matthew the evangelist would like to present John as the one who prepares the way of the coming Christ, as well as the disciples as followers, as Jesus preached. It is a matter of the same joyful message: the kingdom of God is at hand! It is near, and it is in us! These words are very important: “The kingdom of God is in our midst!”, Jesus says. And John announces what Jesus will say later: “The kingdom of God is at hand, it has arrived, and is in your midst”. This is the central message of every Christian mission. When a missionary goes, a Christian goes to proclaim Jesus, not to proselytize, as if he were a fan trying to drum up new supporters for his team. No, he goes simply to proclaim: “The kingdom of God is in our midst!”. And in this way, the missionaries prepare the path for Jesus to encounter the people.

But what is this kingdom of God, this kingdom of heaven? They are synonymous. We think immediately of the afterlife: eternal life. Of course this is true, the kingdom of God will extend without limit beyond earthly life, but the good news that Jesus brings us — and that John predicts — is that we do not need to wait for the kingdom of God in the future: it is at hand. In some way it is already present and we may experience spiritual power from now on. “The kingdom of God is in your midst!”, Jesus will say. God comes to establish his lordship in our history, today, every day, in our life; and there — where it is welcomed with faith and humility — love, joy and peace blossom.

The condition for entering and being a part of this kingdom is to implement a change in our life, which is to convert, to convert every day, to take a step forward each day. It is a question of leaving behind the comfortable but misleading ways of the idols of this world: success at all costs; power to the detriment of the weak; the desire for wealth; pleasure at any price. And instead, preparing the way of the Lord: this does not take away our freedom, but gives us true happiness. With the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, it is God himself who abides among us to free us from self interest, sin and corruption, from these manners of the devil: seeking success at all costs; seeking power to the detriment of the weak; having the desire for wealth; seeking pleasure at any price.

Christmas is a day of great joy, even external, but above all, it is a religious event for which a spiritual preparation is necessary. In this season of Advent, let us be guided by the Baptist’s exhortation: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight!”, he tells us (v. 3). We prepare the way of the Lord and make his paths straight when we examine our conscience, when we scrutinize our attitudes, in order to eliminate these sinful manners that I mentioned, which are not from God: success at all costs; power to the detriment of the weak; the desire for wealth; pleasure at any price.

May the Virgin Mary help us to prepare ourselves for the encounter with this ever greater Love, which is what Jesus brings and which, on Christmas night, becomes very very small, like a seed fallen on the soil. And Jesus is this seed: the seed of the kingdom of God.

After the Angelus:
Dear Brothers and Sisters, I extend my greetings to you, Romans and pilgrims!
I greet in particular, the faithful from Cordoba, Jaén and Valencia, Spain; from Split and Makarska, Croatia; from the parishes of Saint Mary of the Oration and the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ in Rome.

I wish you all a blessed Sunday and a good Advent journey, to prepare the way of the Lord, by converting each day.

We will see each other on Thursday for the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. In these days, we pray together asking her maternal intercession for the conversion of hearts and the gift of peace.

And please do not forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch. See you Thursday!


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Wednesday, December 07, 2016
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Paul VI Audience Hall
Wednesday, 30 November 2016

Pope Francis touches a rosary during his general audience in Paul VI hall at the Vatican November 30 (CNS) PHOTO: catholicherald.co.uk

38. Pray God for the living and the dead

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
With today’s catechesis we shall conclude the cycle dedicated to mercy. Although the catecheses are finished, mercy must continue! Let us thank the Lord for all of this and let us keep it in our heart for consolation and comfort.

The final spiritual work of mercy requires us to pray for the living and the dead. We can also place this alongside the last corporal work of mercy, which calls us to bury the dead. The latter may seem a curious request; and although, in certain regions of the world which are living under the scourge of war, with bombings day and night which sow fear and claim innocent victims, sadly this work is timely. The Bible gives a fine example in this regard: that of the elderly Tobit, who, risking his life, would bury the dead in spite of the king’s prohibition (cf. Tob 1:17-19, 2:2-4). Today too, there are those who risk their lives to bury unfortunate victims of war. Thus, this corporal work of mercy is not far from our daily existence. It makes us ponder what happened on Good Friday, when the Virgin Mary, along with John and several women were near Jesus’ Cross. After his death, Joseph of Arimathea — a rich member of the Sanhedrin, who had become a follower of Jesus — came and offered his tomb, newly hewn out of the rock, for Him. He personally went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body: a true work of mercy performed with great courage (cf. Mt 27:57-60)! For Christians, burial is an act of compassion, but also an act of great faith. We bury the bodies of our loved ones, in the hope of their resurrection (cf. 1 Cor 15:1-34). This is a rite that firmly endures and is heartfelt in our people, and which has a special resonance in this month of November which is dedicated in particular to prayer for the departed.

Praying for the dead is, first and foremost, a sign of appreciation for the witness they have left us and the good that they have done. It is giving thanks to the Lord for having given them to us and for their love and their friendship. The Church prays for the deceased in a particular way during Holy Mass. The priest states: “Be mindful, O Lord, of thy servants who are gone before us with the sign of faith, and rest in sleep of peace. To these, O Lord, and to all that sleep in Christ, grant we beseech thee a place of refreshment, light and peace” (Roman Canon). It is a simple, effective, meaningful remembrance, because it entrusts our loved ones to God’s mercy. We pray with Christian hope that they may be with him in Paradise, as we wait to be together again in that mystery of love which we do not comprehend, but which we know to be true because it is a promise that Jesus made. We will all rise again and we will all be forever with Jesus, with Him.

Remembering the faithful departed must not cause us to forget to also pray for the living, who together with us face the trials of life each day. The need for this prayer is even more evident if we place it in the light of the profession of faith which states: “I believe in the Communion of Saints”. It is the mystery which expresses the beauty of the mercy that Jesus revealed to us. The Communion of Saints, indeed, indicates that we are all immersed in God’s life and live in his love. All of us, living and dead, are in communion, that is, as a union; united in the community of those who have received Baptism, and of those who are nourished by the Body of Christ and form part of the great family of God. We are all the same family, united. For this reason we pray for each other.

How many different ways there are to pray for our neighbour! They are all valid and accepted by God if done from the heart. I am thinking in a particular way of the mothers and fathers who bless their children in the morning and in the evening. There is still this practice in some families: blessing a child is a prayer. I think of praying for sick people, when we go to visit them and pray for them; of silent intercession, at times tearful, in the many difficult situations which require prayer.

Yesterday a good man, an entrepreneur, came to Mass at Santa Marta. That young man must close his factory because he cannot manage, and he wept, saying: “I don’t want to leave more than 50 families without work. I could declare the company bankrupt: I could go home with my money, but my heart would weep for for these 50 families the rest of my life”. This is a good Christian who prays through his works: he came to Mass to pray that the Lord give him a way out, not only for him but for the 50 families. This is a man who knows how to pray, with his heart and through his deeds, he knows how to pray for his neighbour. He is in a difficult situation, and he is not seeking the easiest way out: “let them manage on their own”. This man is a Christian. It did me good to listen to him! Perhaps there are many like him today, at this time in which so many people are in difficulty because of a lack of work. However, I also think of giving thanks for the good news about a friend, a relative, a co-worker: “Thank you Lord, for this wonderful thing!”. This too is praying for others! Thanking the Lord when things go well. At times, as Saint Paul says, “we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words” (Rom 8:26). It is the Spirit who prays in us. Therefore, let us open our heart, to enable the Holy Spirit, scrutinizing our deepest aspirations, to purify them and lead them to fulfillment. However, for us and for others, let us always ask that God’s will be done, as in the Our Father, because his will is surely the greatest good, the goodness of a Father who never abandons us: pray and let the Holy Spirit pray in us. This is beautiful in life: to pray, thanking and praising the Lord, asking for something, weeping when there are difficulties, like that man. But let the heart always be open to the Spirit, that he may pray in us, with us and for us.

Concluding these catecheses on mercy, let us commit ourselves to pray for each other so that the corporal and spiritual works of mercy may become ever more the style of our life. The catecheses, as I said at the beginning, end here. We have covered the 14 works of mercy, but mercy continues and we must exercise it in these 14 ways. Thank you.

Special greetings:
I address a cordial greeting to Arabic-speaking pilgrims, in particular to those from Syria and from the Middle East. Let us pray together for the living, for the deceased and for those who live dying of fear caused by war, terror, violence and the loss of their homeland and loved ones. Let us also pray for the many brave people who risk their lives to provide a dignified burial to the dead and to care for the wounded. May the Lord bless you all and protect you from the evil one!

Tomorrow, December first, is World AIDS Day, sponsored by the United Nations. Millions of people live with this disease and only half of them have access to lifesaving treatments. I ask you to pray for them and for their loved ones and to promote solidarity so that the poorest may also benefit from appropriate diagnosis and care. I lastly appeal that all may adopt responsible behaviour to prevent the further spread of this disease.

I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, the Philippines and the United States of America. Upon all of you, and your families, I invoke an abundance of joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you!

I offer a warm greeting to young people, to the sick and to newlyweds. Today is the Feast of the Apostle Andrew, brother of Saint Peter. May his haste to encounter the Lord in the sepulchre remind you, dear young people, that our life is a pilgrimage to the House of the Father; may his strength in facing martyrdom sustain you, dear sick people, when suffering seems unbearable; and may his passionate following of the Saviour inspire you, dear newlyweds, to understand the importance of love in your new family. And on the Solemnity of the Apostle Andrew, I would also like to greet the Church of Constantinople and the beloved Patriarch Bartholomew and join with him and with the Church of Constantinople, in this celebration — with this Sister Church in the name of Peter and Andrew, all together — and to wish them all possible good, all the Lord’s blessings and a great embrace.


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Sunday, December 04, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 27 November 2016
 
PHOTO: L'OSSERVATORE ROMANO
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
Today in the Church a new liturgical year begins, which is a new journey of faith for the People of God. And as always, we begin with Advent. The passage of the Gospel (cf. (Mt 24:37-44) introduces us to one of the most evocative themes of Advent: the visit of the Lord to humanity. The first visit — we all know — occurred with the Incarnation, Jesus’ birth in the cave of Bethlehem; the second takes place in the present: the Lord visits us constantly, each day, walking alongside us and being a consoling presence; in the end, there will be the third, the last visit, which we proclaim each time that we recite the Creed: “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead”. Today, the Lord speaks to us about this final visit, which will take place at the end of time, and he tells us where we will arrive on our journey.

The Word of God emphasizes the contrast between the normal unfolding of events, the everyday routine, and the unexpected coming of the Lord. Jesus says: “For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they did not know until the flood came and swept them all away” (vv. 38-39): so says Jesus. It always strikes a cord when we think about the hours which precede a great disaster: everyone is calm, and they go about their usual business without realizing that their lives are about to be turned upside down. Of course, the Gospel does not want to scare us, but to open our horizons to another, greater dimension, one which, on the one hand puts into perspective everyday things, while at the same time making them precious, crucial. The relationship with the God-who-comes-to-visit-us gives every gesture, every thing a different light, a substance, a symbolic value.

From this perspective there also comes an invitation to sobriety, to not be controlled by the things of this world, by material reality, but rather to govern them. If, by contrast, we allow ourselves to be influenced and overpowered by these things, we cannot perceive that there is something very important: our final encounter with the Lord: this is important. That encounter. And everyday matters must have this horizon, and must be directed to that horizon. This encounter with the Lord who comes for us. In that moment, as the Gospel says, “Then two men will be in the field; one is taken and one is left” (v. 40). It is an invitation to be vigilant, because in not knowing when he will come, we need to be ever ready to leave.

In this season of Advent, we are called to expand the horizons of our hearts, to be amazed by the life which presents itself each day with newness. In order to do this, we must learn to not depend on our own certainties, on our own established strategies, because the Lord comes at a time that we do not imagine. He comes to bring us into a more beautiful and grand dimension.
May Our Lady, the Virgin of Advent, help us not to consider ourselves proprietors of our life, not to resist when the Lord comes to change it, but to be ready to let ourselves be visited by him, the awaited and welcome guest, even if it disturbs our plans.

After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters, I wish to assure my prayers for the peoples of Central America, especially Costa Rica and Nicaragua, which have been struck by a hurricane and, the latter, also by a powerful earthquake. And I also pray for those in northern Italy who are suffering from floods.
I greet all of you pilgrims who have come from Italy and various countries: families, parish groups, associations. I especially greet the faithful coming from Lebanon, Egypt, Slovakia, and the choir of Limburg, Germany. I affectionately greet the Ecuadorian community present here; the families of the Tra Noi (“Among Us”) Movement; groups from Altamura, Rieti, San Casciano in Val di Pesa; UNITALSI [National Italian Union of Transportation of the Sick to Lourdes and International Shrines] of Capaccio, and the students of Bacheria.

I wish all of you a happy Sunday, and a good Advent journey to encounter the Lord. May it be a time of hope: to encounter the Lord who comes to encounter us; true hope, founded on God’s fidelity, and on our responsibility. And please, do not forget to pray for me. Have a good lunch. Arrivederci!

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