(Vatican Radio) The Church remains faithful if she keeps her eyes fixed on Jesus, but she becomes lukewarm and mediocre if she seeks comfort in worldly things. That was Pope Francis’ message on Monday as he reflected on the Gospel reading at Mass in the Casa Santa Marta… Listen to our report: Pope Francis noted that the reading from St Luke’s Gospel tells the story of the widow who puts her two coins in the temple treasury box, while other wealthy worshippers make a great show of the money they’re putting in. Jesus says that “this poor widow put in more than all the rest” because the others were giving away money from their surplus wealth, while she, in her poverty, “has offered her whole livelihood”. In the Bible, Pope Francis said, the widow is the woman who is alone, who has no husband to look after her, who has to manage on her own, who survives on charity. The widow in this Gospel passage, he said, was “a widow who had placed her trust only in the Lord”. I like to look at the widows in the Gospel, he said, as an image of the “widowed” Church who is waiting for Jesus to return. The Church is the bride of Christ, Pope Francis said, but her Lord has gone and her only treasure is in her Lord. If the Church remains faithful, then she leaves everything while waiting for her Lord to return. If she does not have so much faith in the love of her Lord, then she tries to get by in other ways, seeking security in things that are more of this world than of God. The widows of the Gospels, the Pope continued, speak beautifully to us about Jesus and His Church. There is the widow of Nain who was crying as she accompanied her son to be buried outside the city gates. There is the widow who goes to the unjust judge in order to defend her sons, knocking on his door every day and bothering him continuously until he delivers a just sentence for her. This is the widowed Church who prays and intercedes for her children, Pope Francis explained. But the heart of the Church is always with Jesus, the Bridegroom in heaven. According to the desert fathers, the Pope said, our souls also resemble the Church, and the closer our souls, our lives, are to Jesus, the more we are able to avoid worldly, useless things that lead us away from Christ. While the ‘widowed’ Church waits for Jesus, he said, she can be faithful, trusting that her husband will return, or she can be unfaithful to her widowhood, a lukewarm, mediocre, worldly Church seeking comfort in other things. In these last days of the liturgical year, Pope Francis concluded, we would do well to ask ourselves if our souls are searching for the Lord, or if they’re looking for comfort in things which do not please the Lord. Let our souls say “Come Lord Jesus! Come!” And may we leave behind all those useless things which stop us staying faithful. (from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday morning received the Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda, Sir Rodney Williams. The governor-general later met with the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin, who was accompanied by the Secretary for Relations with States, Archbishop Paul Gallagher.
Antigua and Barbuda is a two-island nation on the Atlantic edge of the Caribbean Sea, with a population of just over ninety-thousand, of whom around ten-percent are Catholic. Once a British colony, Queen Elizabeth II remains the head of state, with the Governor-General serving as her official representative.
A statement from the Holy See Press Office called the meeting “cordial,” and said the meeting underlined good bilateral relations, which have recently been strengthened by the appointment by Antigua and Barbuda of an Ambassador accredited to the Holy See.
The statement said the talks also focused on the contribution the Catholic Church makes in the protection and promotion of the dignity of the human person, as well as in the fields of education and social assistance. It called for a “fruitful and mutual” collaboration.
Finally, the discussions touched on some regional and global issues, with particular attention paid to migration and climate change.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday sent a video message to the people of the Central African Republic, on the eve of his visit to the country this Saturday, November 28th.
In his video message, Pope Francis told the people of the Central African Republic of the “joy which pervades me” on the occasion of his first visit to Africa and, in particular, to the CAR.
The Holy Father said, “Your dear country has for too long been affected by a violent situation and by insecurity of which many of you have been innocent victims. The goal of my visit is, above all, to bring you, in the name of Christ, the comfort of consolation and hope. I hope with all my heart that my visit may contribute, in one way or another, to alleviate your wounds and to favor conditions for a better, more serene future for Central Africa and all its inhabitants.”
Pope Francis then reminded them that the theme of his visit is “Let us pass to the other side”, saying that it invites Christian communities “to look ahead with determination and encourages each person to renew their own relationship with God and with their brothers and sisters to build a new, more just and fraternal world”.
At the heart of the Holy Father’s 6-day journey, taking him to Kenya, Uganda and the Central African Republic is his desire to bring a message of peace, reconciliation, dialogue and the impetus to overcome internal divisions.
In war-torn CAR he will open Bangui Cathedral’s Holy Door in a powerful gesture leading up to the Jubilee Year of Mercy.
One of Pope Francis’ last commitments before he boards the Papal plane bringing him back to Rome on November 30, will be a visit to Bangui’s Central Mosque for a meeting with the Muslim community.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday sent a video message to the people of Kenya and Uganda, saying he is coming “as a minister of the Gospel, to proclaim the love of Jesus Christ and his message of reconciliation, forgiveness and peace”.
The Holy Father will visit Kenya and Uganda, as well as the Central African Republic (CAR), from 25-30 November.
Listen to Pope Francis’ video message:
The full transcription Pope Francis’ video message may be found below:
Dear Friends,
As I prepare to visit Kenya and Uganda later this month, I send a word of greeting and friendship to you and your families. I look forward to this time we will have together.
I am coming as a minister of the Gospel, to proclaim the love of Jesus Christ and his message of reconciliation, forgiveness and peace. My visit is meant to confirm the Catholic community in its worship of God and its witness to the Gospel, which teaches the dignity of every man and woman, and commands us to open our hearts to others, especially the poor and those in need.
At the same time I wish to encounter all the people of Kenya and Uganda, and to offer everyone a word of encouragement. We are living at a time when religious believers, and persons of good will everywhere, are called to foster mutual understanding and respect, and to support each other as members of our one human family. For all of us are God’s children. A highlight of my visit will be my meetings with young people, who are your greatest resource and our most promising hope for a future of solidarity, peace and progress.
I know that many people are working hard to prepare for my visit, and I thank them. I ask everyone to pray that my stay in Kenya and Uganda will be a source of hope and encouragement to all. Upon you and your families I invoke God’s blessings of joy and peace!
(from Vatican Radio)…