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Tuesday, January 05, 2016
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
Friday, 1st January 2016
Mary Most Holy, the Holy Mother of God

EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY

HOLY MASS AND OPENING OF THE HOLY DOOR - BASILICA OF ST MARY MAJOR



Salve, Mater Misericordiae!
With this invocation we turn to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Roman Basilica dedicated to her under the title of Mother of God. It is the first line of an ancient hymn which we will sing at the conclusion of this Holy Eucharist. Composed by an unknown author, it has come down to us as a heartfelt prayer spontaneously rising up from the hearts of the faithful: “Hail Mother of mercy, Mother of God, Mother of forgiveness, Mother of hope, Mother of grace and Mother full of holy gladness”. In these few words we find a summary of the faith of generations of men and women who, with their eyes fixed firmly on the icon of the Blessed Virgin, have sought her intercession and consolation.

It is most fitting that on this day we invoke the Blessed Virgin Mary above all as Mother of mercy. The door we have opened is, in fact, a Door of Mercy. Those who cross its threshold are called to enter into the merciful love of the Father with complete trust and freedom from fear; they can leave this Basilica knowing – truly knowing – that Mary is ever at their side. She is the Mother of mercy, because she bore in her womb the very Face of divine mercy, Jesus, Emmanuel, the Expectation of the nations, the “Prince of Peace” (Is 9:5). The Son of God, made incarnate for our salvation, has given us his Mother, who joins us on our pilgrimage through this life, so that we may never be left alone, especially at times of trouble and uncertainty.

Mary is the Mother of God, she is the Mother of God who forgives, who bestows forgiveness, and so we can rightly call her Mother of forgiveness. This word – “forgiveness” – so misunderstood in today’s world, points to the new and original fruit of Christian faith. A person unable to forgive has not yet known the fullness of love. Only one who truly loves is able to forgive and forget. At the foot of the Cross, Mary sees her Son offer himself totally, showing us what it means to love as God loves. At that moment she heard Jesus utter words which probably reflected what he had learned from her as a child: “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing” (Lk 23:24). At that moment, Mary became for all of us the Mother of forgiveness. Following Jesus’ example and by his grace, she herself could forgive those who killed her innocent Son.

For us, Mary is an icon of how the Church must offer forgiveness to those who seek it. The Mother of forgiveness teaches the Church that the forgiveness granted on Golgotha knows no limits. Neither the law with its quibbles, nor the wisdom of this world with its distinctions, can hold it back. The Church’s forgiveness must be every bit as broad as that offered by Jesus on the Cross and by Mary at his feet. There is no other way. It is for this purpose that the Holy Spirit made the Apostles the effective ministers of forgiveness, so what was obtained by the death of Jesus may reach all men and women in every age (cf. Jn 20:19-23).

The Marian hymn continues: “Mother of hope and Mother of grace, Mother of holy gladness”. Hope, grace and holy gladness are all sisters: they are the gift of Christ; indeed, they are so many names written on his body. The gift that Mary bestows in offering us Jesus is the forgiveness which renews life, enables us once more to do God’s will and fills us with true happiness. This grace frees the heart to look to the future with the joy born of hope. This is the teaching of the Psalm: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. […] Restore to me the joy of your salvation” (51:10,12). The power of forgiveness is the true antidote to the sadness caused by resentment and vengeance. Forgiveness leads to joy and serenity because it frees the heart from thoughts of death, whereas resentment and vengeance trouble the mind and wound the heart, robbing it of rest and peace. What horrible things are resentment and vengeance.

Let us, then, pass through the Holy Door of Mercy knowing that at our side is the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Mother of God, who intercedes for us. Let us allow her to lead us to the rediscovery of the beauty of an encounter with her Son Jesus. Let us open wide the doors of our heart to the joy of forgiveness, conscious that we have been given new confidence and hope, and thus make our daily lives a humble instrument of God’s love.

And with the love and affection of children, let us cry out to Our Lady as did the faithful people of God in Ephesus during the historic Council: “Holy Mother of God!” I invite you to repeat together this acclamation three times, aloud and with all your heart and with all your love: “Holy Mother of God! Holy Mother of God! Holy Mother of God!”


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Tuesday, January 05, 2016
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
Vatican Basilica
Friday, 1st January 2016

XLIX WORLD DAY OF PEACE
HOLY MASS WITH THE PRESENCE OF THE PUERI CANTORES
FOR THE CLOSING OF THEIR XL INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS



We have heard the words of the Apostle Paul: “When the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman” (Gal4:4).

What does it mean to say that Jesus was born in “the fullness of time”? If we consider that particular moment of history, we might quickly be deluded. Rome had subjugated a great part of the known world by her military might. The Emperor Augustus had come to power after five civil wars. Israel itself had been conquered by the Roman Empire and the Chosen People had lost their freedom. For Jesus’ contemporaries, it was certainly not the best of times. To define the fullness of time, then, we should not look to the geopolitical sphere.

Another interpretation is needed, one which views that fullness from God’s standpoint. It is when God decided that the time had come to fulfil his promise, that the fullness of time came for humanity. History does not determine the birth of Christ; rather, his coming into the world enables history to attain its fullness. For this reason, the birth of the Son of God inaugurates a new era, a new computation of time, the era which witnesses the fulfilment of the ancient promise. As the author of the Letter to the Hebrews writes: “God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the world. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word” (1:1-3). The fullness of time, then, is the presence of God himself in our history. Now we can see his glory, which shines forth in the poverty of a stable; we can be encouraged and sustained by his Word, made “little” in a baby. Thanks to him, our time can find its fullness. The use of our personal time can also find its fullness in the encounter with Jesus Christ, God made man.

Nonetheless, this mystery constantly clashes with the dramatic experience of human history. Each day, as we seek to be sustained by the signs of God’s presence, we encounter new signs to the contrary, negative signs which tend to make us think instead that he is absent. The fullness of time seems to fade before the countless forms of injustice and violence which daily wound our human family. Sometimes we ask ourselves how it is possible that human injustice persists unabated, and that the arrogance of the powerful continues to demean the weak, relegating them to the most squalid outskirts of our world. We ask how long human evil will continue to sow violence and hatred in our world, reaping innocent victims. How can the fullness of time have come when we are witnessing hordes of men, women and children fleeing war, hunger and persecution, ready to risk their lives simply to encounter respect for their fundamental rights? A torrent of misery, swollen by sin, seems to contradict the fullness of time brought by Christ. Remember, dear pueri cantores, this was the third question you asked me yesterday: how do we explain this… even children are aware of this.

And yet this swollen torrent is powerless before the ocean of mercy which floods our world. All of us are called to immerse ourselves in this ocean, to let ourselves be reborn, to overcome the indifference which blocks solidarity, and to leave behind the false neutrality which prevents sharing. The grace of Christ, which brings our hope of salvation to fulfilment, leads us to cooperate with him in building an ever more just and fraternal world, a world in which every person and every creature can dwell in peace, in the harmony of God’s original creation.

At the beginning of a new year, the Church invites us to contemplate Mary’s divine maternity as an icon of peace. The ancient promise finds fulfilment in her person. She believed in the words of the angel, conceived her Son and thus became the Mother of the Lord. Through her, through her “yes”, the fullness of time came about. The Gospel we have just heard tells us that the Virgin Mary “treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). She appears to us as a vessel filled to the brim with the memory of Jesus, as the Seat of Wisdom to whom we can have recourse to understand his teaching aright. Today Mary makes it possible for us to grasp the meaning of events which affect us personally, events which also affect our families, our countries and the entire world. Where philosophical reason and political negotiation cannot arrive, there the power of faith, which brings the grace of Christ’s Gospel, can arrive, opening ever new pathways to reason and to negotiation.

Blessed are you, Mary, for you gave the Son of God to our world. But even more blessed are you for having believed in him. Full of faith, you conceived Jesus first in your heart and then in your womb, and thus became the Mother of all believers (cf. Saint Augustine, Sermo 215,4). Send us, O Mother, your blessing on this day consecrated to your honour. Show us the face of Jesus your Son, who bestows upon the entire world mercy and peace. Amen.

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Tuesday, January 05, 2016
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Wednesday, 16 December 2015
2. The signs of the Jubilee

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
On Sunday the Holy Door was opened in the Cathedral of Rome, theBasilica of St John Lateran, and a Door of Mercy was opened in the Cathedral of every diocese of the world, and also in shrines and churches indicated by bishops. The Jubilee is throughout the world, not only in Rome. I wanted this sign of the Holy Door to be present in every particular Church, so that the Jubilee of Mercy could be an experience shared by each person. The Holy Year, therefore, has begun in the entire Church and is being celebrated in every diocese as in Rome. Also, the first Holy Door was opened in the very heart ofAfrica. Rome, of course, is the visible sign of universal communion. May this ecclesial communion become ever more intense, so that the Church may be the living sign of the Father’s love and mercy in the world.

The date 8 December was also meant to highlight this need, by linking, separated by 50 years, the beginning of the Jubilee with the conclusion of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council. In fact, the Council contemplated and introduced the Church to the light of the mystery of communion. Scattered throughout the world and articulated in many particular Churches, however, it is always and only the one Church of Jesus Christ, the one that he wanted and for which he offered himself. The “one” Church that lives of the very communion of God.

This mystery of communion, which makes the Church a sign of the Father’s love, grows and matures in our heart, when the love, which we recognize in the Cross of Christ and in which we immerse ourselves, enables us to love as we are loved by Him. It is an unending Love, which has the face of forgiveness and mercy.

However, mercy and forgiveness must not remain as pleasant words, but must be made manifest in daily life. Loving and forgiving are tangible and visible signs that faith has transformed our hearts and allow us to express God’s very life in ourselves. Loving and forgiving as God loves and forgives. This is a programme of life that can know no interruptions or exceptions, but it pushes us always to go farther without ever tiring, with the certainty of being sustained by the paternal presence of God.

This great sign of Christian life is then transformed into many other signs that are characteristic of the Jubilee. I think of those who will pass through one of the Holy Doors, which this year are the true Doors of Mercy. The Door points to Jesus himself, who said: “I am the door; if anyone enters by me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture” (Jn 10:9). Passing through the Holy Door is the sign of our trust in the Lord Jesus who came not to judge but to save (cf. Jn 12:47). Be careful that no one rather swift or too shrewd tells you that you have to pay: no! Salvation is not paid for. Salvation is not bought. The Door is Jesus, and Jesus is gratis! He himself speaks about those who do not enter as they should, and he simply says that they are thieves and robbers. Again, be mindful: salvation is free. Passing through the Holy Door is a sign of the true conversion of our heart. When we pass through that Door it is good to remember that we must also keep the door of our heart wide open. I am before the Holy Door and I ask: “Lord, help me to thrust open the door of my heart!”. The Holy Year will not be very effective if the door of our heart does not allow the passage of Christ who urges us to go toward others, in order to bring him and his love. Thus, as the Holy Door stays open, because it is the sign of the welcome that God himself holds for us, may our door, that of the heart, also be always wide open so as to exclude no one. Not even he or she who bothers me: no one.

Another important sign of the Jubilee is confession. Approaching the Sacrament by which we reconcile ourselves with God is equal to directly experiencing his mercy. It is finding the Father who forgives: God forgives everything. God understands us even in our limitations, and he even understands us in our contradictions. Not only this, but He tells us with his love that precisely when we recognize our sins he is even closer and he spurs us to look forward. He says even more: that when we recognize our sins and we ask for forgiveness, there is a celebration in Heaven. Jesus celebrates: this is his mercy: let us not be discouraged. Onward, forward with this!

How often have I heard: “Father, I can’t forgive my neighbour, a coworker, the lady next door, my mother-in-law, my sister-in-law”. We have all heard this: “I can’t forgive”. But how can we ask God to forgive us, if we are unable to forgive? Forgiving is something great, yet forgiving is not easy, because our heart is poor and with its efforts alone we cannot do it. However, if we open ourselves up to welcome God’s mercy for ourselves, in turn we become capable of forgiveness. So often I have heard: “I couldn’t see that person: I hated her. But one day, I drew close to the Lord and I asked him to forgive my sins, and I forgave that person too”. These are everyday matters. And this opportunity is close to us.

Therefore, take courage! Let us live out the Jubilee by beginning with these signs that carry the great power of love. The Lord will accompany us in order to lead us to experience other important signs for our life. Take courage and step forward!

Special greetings:
In the joyous climate of the vigilant expectation of the birth of Jesus, Face of the Father’s mercy, I am pleased to warmly greet the Italian-speaking faithful. I am happy to welcome the new priests of the Legionaries of Christ and their family members; the delegation of the Municipality of Bolsena; the tango dancers and the soldiers from the aviation training centre and the commanders of the defence forces. I exhort everyone to intensify your prayer and good works in these days, so that your encounter with the mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God may fill your hearts with that joy, which he alone can give.

I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from England, Ukraine, Indonesia and the United States of America. With prayerful good wishes that the present Jubilee of Mercy will be a profound moment of spiritual renewal, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you all!

I address a special greeting to young people, to the sick and to newlyweds. Let us entrust ourselves to Mary, mistress of faith and model of obedience to the Lord. Dear young people, may you be able to experience Christmas with the same faith with which Mary received the announcement of the Angel Gabriel. Dear sick people, may you ask her to obtain the intimate peace that Jesus brought the world. Dear newlyweds, may you imitate the example of the Mother of Jesus with prayers and virtues.

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Tuesday, January 05, 2016
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
Sunday, 13 December 2015
Third Sunday of Advent

 EXTRAORDINARY JUBILEE OF MERCY

HOLY MASS AND OPENING OF THE HOLY DOOR - BASILICA OF ST JOHN LATERAN


The invitation extended by the Prophet to the ancient city of Jerusalem is also addressed today to the whole Church and to each one of us: “Rejoice... exault!” (Zeph 3:14). The reason for joy is expressed with words which inspire hope, and which can look to the future with serenity. The Lord revoked all condemnation and has decided to live among us.

This Third Sunday of Advent draws our gaze towards Christmas, which is now near. We cannot let ourselves be taken in by weariness; sadness in any form is not allowed, even though we may have reason, with many concerns and the many forms of violence which wound our humanity. The coming of the Lord, however, must fill our hearts with joy. The prophet in whose very name — Zephaniah — is inscribed the content of this announcement, opens our hearts to trust: “God protects” his people. In a historical context of great tyranny and violence, especially by men of power, God makes it known that he will reign over his people, that he will no longer leave them at the mercy of the arrogance of their leaders, and that he will free them from all anguish. Today, we are asked to “let not our hands grow weak” (cf. Zeph 3:16) due to doubt, impatience or suffering.

The Apostle Paul vigorously resumes the teaching of the prophet Zephaniah and reiterates: “The Lord is at hand” (Phil 4:5). Because of this we should rejoice always, and to everyone graciously bear witness to the closeness and care that God has for each person.

We have opened the Holy Door, here and in all the Cathedrals of the world. Even this simple sign is an invitation to joy. The time of great forgiveness begins. It is the Jubilee of Mercy. It is time to rediscover the presence of God and his fatherly tenderness. God does not love rigidity. He is Father; he is tender. He does everything with the tenderness of the Father. We too are like the crowds who ask John, “What then shall we do” (Lk 3:10). The response of the Baptist is immediate. He invites us to act justly and to look after the needs of those who are in need. What John demands of his interlocutors, however, is what is reflected in the law. We, however, are asked for a more radical commitment. Before the Holy Door that we are called to pass through, we are asked to be instruments of mercy, knowing that we will be judged on this. Those who are baptized know that they have a greater task. Faith in Christ leads to a lifelong journey: to be merciful like the Father. The joy of passing through the Door of Mercy is accompanied by a commitment to welcome and witness to a love that surpasses justice, a love that knows no boundaries. It is for this infinite love that we are responsible, in spite of our contradictions.

Let us pray for ourselves and for all who pass through the Door of Mercy, that we may understand and welcome the infinite love of our Heavenly Father, who recreates, transforms and reforms life.


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Tuesday, January 05, 2016
HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
Vatican Basilica
Thursday, 24 December 2015

MIDNIGHT MASS
SOLEMNITY OF THE NATIVITY OF THE LORD


Tonight “a great light” shines forth (Is 9:1); the light of Jesus’ birth shines all about us. How true and timely are the words of the prophet Isaiah which we have just heard: “You have brought abundant joy and great rejoicing” (9:2)! Our heart was already joyful in awaiting this moment; now that joy abounds and overflows, for the promise has been at last fulfilled. Joy and gladness are a sure sign that the message contained in the mystery of this night is truly from God. There is no room for doubt; let us leave that to the skeptics who, by looking to reason alone, never find the truth. There is no room for the indifference which reigns in the hearts of those unable to love for fear of losing something. All sadness has been banished, for the Child Jesus brings true comfort to every heart.

Today, the Son of God is born, and everything changes. The Saviour of the world comes to partake of our human nature; no longer are we alone and forsaken. The Virgin offers us her Son as the beginning of a new life. The true light has come to illumine our lives so often beset by the darkness of sin. Today we once more discover who we are! Tonight we have been shown the way to reach the journey’s end. Now must we put away all fear and dread, for the light shows us the path to Bethlehem. We must not be laggards; we are not permitted to stand idle. We must set out to see our Saviour lying in a manger. This is the reason for our joy and gladness: this Child has been “born to us”; he was “given to us”, as Isaiah proclaims (cf. 9:5). The people who for for two thousand years has traversed all the pathways of the world in order to allow every man and woman to share in this joy is now given the mission of making known “the Prince of peace” and becoming his effective servant in the midst of the nations.

So when we hear tell of the birth of Christ, let us be silent and let the Child speak. Let us take his words to heart in rapt contemplation of his face. If we take him in our arms and let ourselves be embraced by him, he will bring us unending peace of heart. This Child teaches us what is truly essential in our lives. He was born into the poverty of this world; there was no room in the inn for him and his family. He found shelter and support in a stable and was laid in a manger for animals. And yet, from this nothingness, the light of God’s glory shines forth. From now on, the way of authentic liberation and perennial redemption is open to every man and woman who is simple of heart. This Child, whose face radiates the goodness, mercy and love of God the Father, trains us, his disciples, as Saint Paul says, “to reject godless ways” and the richness of the world, in order to live “temperately, justly and devoutly” (Tit 2:12).

In a society so often intoxicated by consumerism and hedonism, wealth and extravagance, appearances and narcissism, this Child calls us to act soberly, in other words, in a way that is simple, balanced, consistent, capable of seeing and doing what is essential. In a world which all too often is merciless to the sinner and lenient to the sin, we need to cultivate a strong sense of justice, to discern and to do God’s will. Amid a culture of indifference which not infrequently turns ruthless, our style of life should instead bedevout, filled with empathy, compassion and mercy, drawn daily from the wellspring of prayer.

Like the shepherds of Bethlehem, may we too, with eyes full of amazement and wonder, gaze upon the Child Jesus, the Son of God. And in his presence may our hearts burst forth in prayer: “Show us, Lord, your mercy, and grant us your salvation” (Ps 85:8).
        

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Saturday, January 02, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY OF JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 27 December 2015



Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
How well you children sing. Well done!
In the climate of joy which is truly that of Christmas, we celebrate this Sunday the Feast of the Holy Family. I am thinking again of the great meeting in Philadelphia this past September; of the many families I have met on my Apostolic Journeys; and of those throughout the world. I would like to greet you all with affection and gratitude especially in our time, in which the family is subject to various kinds of misunderstanding and difficulty which weaken it.

Today’s Gospel passage invites families to welcome the light of hope that comes from the home of Nazareth, in which Jesus’ childhood unfolded in joy. Jesus, says St Luke, “increased in wisdom and in stature, and in favour with God and man” (2:52). The nuclear family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph is for each believer and especially for families an authentic school of the Gospel. Here we admire the fulfilment of the divine plan to make of the family a special community of life and love. Here we learn that every Christian nuclear family is called to be a “domestic church”, to make the Gospel virtues shine and become a leaven of good in society. The classic traits of the Holy Family are: reflection and prayer, mutual understanding and respect, and a spirit of sacrifice, work and solidarity.

From the exemplary witness of the Holy Family, each family can find precious guidance for the style and choices of life, and can draw strength and wisdom for each day’s journey. Our Lady and Joseph teach us to welcome children as a gift of God, to beget them and raise them, cooperating wonderfully in the work of the Creator and giving to the world, in each child, a new smile. It is in a united family that children bring their existence to maturity, living out the meaningful and effective experience of freely given love, tenderness, reciprocal respect, mutual understanding, forgiveness and joy.

I would like to pause above all on joy. The true joy which is experienced in the family is not something random and fortuitous. It is a joy produced by deep harmony among people, which allows them to savour the beauty of being together, of supporting each other on life’s journey. However, at the foundation of joy there is always the presence of God, his welcoming, merciful and patient love for all. If the door of the family is not open to the presence of God and to his love, then the family loses its harmony, individualism prevails, and joy is extinguished. Instead, the family which experiences joy — the joy of life, the joy of faith — communicates it spontaneously, is the salt of the earth, and light of the world, the leaven for all of society.

May Jesus, Mary and Joseph bless and protect all the families in the world, so that in them may reign the serenity and joy, the justice and peace which Christ by his Birth brought as a gift to humanity.


After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters, at this moment my thoughts go to the numerous Cuban migrants who are in difficulty in Central America, many of whom are victims of human trafficking. I invite the countries of the region to generously redouble every effort, so necessary to find a prompt solution to this humanitarian tragedy.

I warmly greet all the families present today in the Square, all of you! Thank you for your witness. May the Lord accompany you with his grace and support you on your daily journey.

I greet all of you, pilgrims from every part of the world; especially the youth from the Diocese of Bergamo who have received Confirmation. I also thank all the young people and children who sang so well and who will continue to sing... Christmas carols in honour of families.

I wish a happy Sunday to all. I thank you again for your good wishes and your prayers. Please continue to pray for me. Have a good lunch! Arrivederci!

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Saturday, January 02, 2016
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
FEAST OF ST STEPHEN, PROTOMARTYR
Saint Peter's Square
Saturday, 26 December 2015



Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
Today we celebrate the Feast of St Stephen. The remembrance of the first martyr follows immediately after the solemnity of Christmas. Yesterday we contemplated the merciful love of God, who became flesh for us. Today we see the consistent response of Jesus’ disciple, who gives his life. Yesterday the Saviour was born on earth; today his faithful servant is born in heaven. Yesterday, as today, the shadows of the rejection of life appear, but the light of love — which conquers hatred and inaugurates a new world — shines even brighter. There is a special aspect in today’s account of the Acts of the Apostles, which brings St Stephen close to the Lord. It is his forgiveness before he is stoned to death. Nailed to the cross, Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34). Likewise, Stephen “knelt down and cried with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’” (Acts 7:60). Stephen is therefore a martyr, which means witness, because he does as Jesus did. Indeed, true witnesses are those who act as He did: those who pray, who love, who give, but above all those who forgive, because forgiveness, as the word itself says, is the highest expression of giving.

We could ask, however, what good is it to forgive? Is it merely a good deed or does it bring results? We find an answer in the very martyrdom of Stephen. Among those for whom he implores forgiveness there is a young man named Saul; this man persecuted the Church and tried to destroy her (cf. Acts 8:3). Shortly thereafter Saul becomes Paul, the great saint, the apostle of the people. He has received Stephen’s forgiveness. We could say that Paul is born by the grace of God and by Stephen’s forgiveness.

We too are born by the forgiveness of God. Not only in Baptism, but each time we are forgiven our heart is reborn, it is renewed. With each step forward in the life of faith the sign of divine mercy is imprinted anew. For only when we are loved are we in turn able to love. Let us remember this, it will be good for us: if we wish to progress in faith, first of all we must receive God’s forgiveness; we must meet the Father, who is willing to forgive all things, always, and who precisely in forgiving heals the heart and rekindles love. We must never tire of asking for divine forgiveness, because only when we are forgiven, when we feel we are forgiven, do we learn to forgive.

Forgiving, however, is not an easy thing, it is always very difficult. How can we imitate Jesus? From what point do we begin to pardon the small and great wrongs that we suffer each day? First of all, beginning with prayer, as St Stephen did. We begin with our own heart: with prayer we are able to face the resentment we feel, by entrusting to God’s mercy those who have wronged us: “Lord, I ask you for him, I ask you for her”. Then we discover that this inner struggle to forgive cleanses us of evil, and that prayer and love free us from the interior chains of bitterness. It is so awful to live in bitterness! Every day we have the opportunity to practice forgiving, to live a gesture so lofty that it brings man closer to God. Like our heavenly Father, may we too become merciful, because through forgiveness, we conquer evil with good, we transform hatred into love and in this way we make the world cleaner.

May the Virgin Mary, to whom we entrust those — and unfortunately there are so many — who like St Stephen suffer persecution in the name of the faith, our many martyrs of today, direct our prayer to receive and give forgiveness. Receive and give forgiveness.


After the Angelus:
Dear brothers and sisters, I greet all of you pilgrims, from Italy and other countries. I renew to all of you the wish that contemplating the Child Jesus, with Mary and Joseph at his side, may engender an attitude of reciprocal mercy and love in families, in parish and religious communities, in movements and associations, in all the faithful and in all people of good will.

In recent weeks I received many messages of good wishes from Rome and elsewhere. It is impossible for me to respond to each one. Therefore, today I express to you and to all my deep gratitude, especially for the gift of prayer.

Happy Feast of St Stephen and please do not forget to prayer for me. Enjoy your lunch! Arrivederci!


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Friday, January 01, 2016
Di Balik Indahnya Kembang Api
 
FOTO: pixabayfree
Penampakan kembang api inilah yang sedang terkenal
Setidaknya semalam saat pergantian tahun
Di mana-mana orang menyalakan petasan
Dan jadilah kembang api itu

Di facebook banyak foto kembang api
Ada yang indah sekali
Ada yang sedang-sedang saja
Ada pula yang kurang indah

Foto-foto tersebut seolah-olah mengatakan hal lain
Mengatakan keindahan kembang api itu
Maka, Anda hebat ketika berhasil mendapat foto yang indah
Dan, perlu belajar lagi untuk yang dapat foto kurang bagus

Kembang api rupanya tentang keindahan
Memang indah sekali api yang berkembang itu
Penonton senang melihatnya
Meski sesekali takut kena apinya yang jatuh

Keindahan itu memang setara dengan kejelekkan
Keduanya selalu berjalan bersama
Menit pertama mengatakan indah sekali
Menit kedua langsung mengatakan buruk sekali

Demikianlah manusia
Senang melihat aksi kembang api
Kalau kena apinya baru menyesal
Jalan akhir adalah berobat ke rumah sakit

Kembang api semalam tentu bukan saja tentang keindahan
Kembang api adalah tanda bersyukur dan bergembira
Bahwa tahun 2015 berlalu dan tahun 2016 baru saja dimulai
Maka, patut disyukuri dan dirayakan dengan bergembira

Kembang api yang indah itu rupanya tidak dibiarkan begitu saja
Ada juga yang bahkan melarangnya
Petasan itu tidak boleh menjadi api
Tidak boleh ada kembang api

Kok bisa ya
Mungkin ada alasan di baliknya
Kembang ini dalam konteks ini rupanya tidak menyangkut keindahan
Mungkin kembang api itu punya potensi lain

Ya, di beberapa kota dan negara, kembang api dilarang
Polisi dan petugas keamanan bahkan selalu siap mencari dalang kembang api
Ini berarti persoalan serius
Padahal banyak orang yang senang melihatnya

Aksi kembang api memang dilarang
Karena merugikan orang tua yang tidur
Berpotensi menjadi api yang membakar siapa saja
Juga, merusak lingkungan, udara jadi kotor

Kembang api
Kiranya tetap ada
Sebab, bukan saj tentang keindahan
Tetapi juga tentang bisnis
Bukan saja tentang polusi udara
Tetapi juga tentang hasrat untuk bessenang-senang

SELAMAT TAHUN BARU untuk pembaca sekalian

PRM, 1/1/2016
Gordi

 *Dipublikasikan pertama kali di kompasiana


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Friday, January 01, 2016
OMELIA DEL SANTO PADRE FRANCESCO
XLIX GIORNATA MONDIALE DELLA PACE
SOLENNITÀ DI MARIA SS.MA MADRE DI DIO
SANTA MESSA CON LA PRESENZA DEI PUERI CANTORES, PER LA CHIUSURA DEL XL CONGRESSO INTERNAZIONALE
Basilica Vaticana
Venerdì, 1° gennaio 2016



Abbiamo ascoltato le parole dell’apostolo Paolo: «Quando venne la pienezza del tempo, Dio mandò il suo Figlio, nato da donna» (Gal 4,4).

Che cosa significa che Gesù nacque nella “pienezza del tempo”? Se il nostro sguardo si rivolge al momento storico, possiamo restare subito delusi. Roma dominava su gran parte del mondo conosciuto con la sua potenza militare. L’imperatore Augusto era giunto al potere dopo cinque guerre civili. Anche Israele era stato conquistato dall’impero romano e il popolo eletto era privo della libertà. Per i contemporanei di Gesù, quindi, quello non era certamente il tempo migliore. Non è dunque alla sfera geopolitica che si deve guardare per definire il culmine del tempo.

E’ necessaria, allora, un’altra interpretazione, che comprenda la pienezza a partire da Dio. Nel momento in cui Dio stabilisce che è giunto il momento di adempiere la promessa fatta, allora per l’umanità si realizza la pienezza del tempo. Pertanto, non è la storia che decide della nascita di Cristo; è, piuttosto, la sua venuta nel mondo che permette alla storia di giungere alla sua pienezza. E’ per questo che dalla nascita del Figlio di Dio inizia il computo di una nuova era, quella che vede il compimento della promessa antica. Come scrive l’autore della Lettera agli Ebrei: «Dio, che molte volte e in diversi modi nei tempi antichi aveva parlato ai padri per mezzo dei profeti, ultimamente, in questi giorni, ha parlato a noi per mezzo del Figlio, che ha stabilito erede di tutte le cose e mediante il quale ha fatto anche il mondo. Egli è irradiazione della sua gloria e impronta della sua sostanza, e tutto sostiene con la sua parola potente» (1,1-3). La pienezza del tempo, dunque, è la presenza di Dio in prima persona nella nostra storia. Ora possiamo vedere la sua gloria che risplende nella povertà di una stalla, ed essere incoraggiati e sostenuti dal suo Verbo fattosi “piccolo” in un bambino. Grazie a Lui, il nostro tempo può trovare la sua pienezza. Anche il nostro tempo personale troverà la sua pienezza nell’incontro con Gesù Cristo, Dio fatto uomo.

Tuttavia, questo mistero sempre contrasta con la drammatica esperienza storica. Ogni giorno, mentre vorremmo essere sostenuti dai segni della presenza di Dio, dobbiamo riscontrare segni opposti, negativi, che lo fanno piuttosto sentire come assente. La pienezza del tempo sembra sgretolarsi di fronte alle molteplici forme di ingiustizia e di violenza che feriscono quotidianamente l’umanità. A volte ci domandiamo: come è possibile che perduri la sopraffazione dell’uomo sull’uomo?, che l’arroganza del più forte continui a umiliare il più debole, relegandolo nei margini più squallidi del nostro mondo? Fino a quando la malvagità umana seminerà sulla terra violenza e odio, provocando vittime innocenti? Come può essere il tempo della pienezza quello che pone sotto i nostri occhi moltitudini di uomini, donne e bambini che fuggono dalla guerra, dalla fame, dalla persecuzione, disposti a rischiare la vita pur di vedere rispettati i loro diritti fondamentali? Un fiume di miseria, alimentato dal peccato, sembra contraddire la pienezza del tempo realizzata da Cristo. Ricordatevi, cari pueri cantores, questa era stata la terza domanda che mi avete fatto ieri: come si spiega questo... Anche i bambini si accorgono di questo.

Eppure, questo fiume in piena non può nulla contro l’oceano di misericordia che inonda il nostro mondo. Siamo chiamati tutti ad immergerci in questo oceano, a lasciarci rigenerare, per vincere l’indifferenza che impedisce la solidarietà, e uscire dalla falsa neutralità che ostacola la condivisione. La grazia di Cristo, che porta a compimento l’attesa di salvezza, ci spinge a diventare suoi cooperatori nella costruzione di un mondo più giusto e fraterno, dove ogni persona e ogni creatura possa vivere in pace, nell’armonia della creazione originaria di Dio.

All’inizio di un nuovo anno, la Chiesa ci fa contemplare la divina Maternità di Maria quale icona di pace. La promessa antica si compie nella sua persona. Ella ha creduto alle parole dell’Angelo, ha concepito il Figlio, è diventata Madre del Signore. Attraverso di lei, attraverso il suo “sì”, è giunta la pienezza del tempo. Il Vangelo che abbiamo ascoltato dice che la Vergine «custodiva tutte queste cose, meditandole nel suo cuore» (Lc 2,19). Ella si presenta a noi come vaso sempre colmo della memoria di Gesù, Sede della Sapienza, da cui attingere per avere la coerente interpretazione del suo insegnamento. Oggi ci offre la possibilità di cogliere il senso degli avvenimenti che toccano noi personalmente, le nostre famiglie, i nostri Paesi e il mondo intero. Dove non può arrivare la ragione dei filosofi né la trattativa della politica, là può giungere la forza della fede che porta la grazia del Vangelo di Cristo, e che può aprire sempre nuove vie alla ragione e alle trattative.

Beata sei tu, Maria, perché hai dato al mondo il Figlio di Dio; ma ancora più beata tu sei per avere creduto in Lui. Piena di fede hai concepito Gesù prima nel cuore e poi nel grembo, per diventare Madre di tutti i credenti (cfr Agostino, Sermo 215, 4). Estendi, Madre, su di noi la tua benedizione in questo giorno a te consacrato; mostraci il volto del tuo Figlio Gesù, che dona al mondo intero misericordia e pace. Amen.

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