(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said the story of God’s love for us can be found on the Cross where Jesus emptied himself of his divinity and dirtied himself with sin in order to save humanity. He said that the biblical story of salvation features the serpent, an animal he describes as both a powerful symbol of damnation and mysteriously of redemption as well. The Pope was speaking at his morning Mass on Tuesday at the Santa Marta Residence.
The mystery of the serpent
Using the day’s readings from the Book of Numbers and the gospel of St. John, Pope Francis’s homily reflected on the link between the meaning of Jesus’ annihilation of himself on the Cross and the story of how the people of Israel implored Moses to pray to God to take away the serpents that had been sent among them as punishment by the Lord.
Pope Francis pointed out that the symbol of the serpent features twice in this story from the Book of Numbers.
“The Lord said to Moses: ‘make a bronze serpent and mount it on a pole and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live.’ It’s a mystery: God doesn’t kill the serpents but leaves them alone. But if one of these (serpents) harms a person, look at that bronze serpent and he will be healed. Lift up the serpent.”
The Pope noted that this verb, ‘lift up’ is at the heart of the argument between Christ and the Pharisees described in the reading by the gospel of St. John. At a certain point, Jesus says: ‘When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will realise that I AM.” First of all, he explained, ‘I AM’ is also the name that God used to describe himself and gave to Moses for communicating with the people of Israel. And, then there is that recurring expression: ‘Lift up the Son of Man…”
God’s annihilation
“The serpent is a symbol of sin. The serpent that kills but also a serpent that saves. And this is the Mystery of Christ. Paul, when speaking about this mystery, said the Jesus emptied himself, humiliated himself and annihilated himself in order to save us. And (what’s) even stronger, ‘he became sin. Using this symbol, he became a serpent. This is the prophetic message of today’s reading. The Son of Man, who like a serpent, ‘became sin,’ is raised up to save us.”
Pope Francis went on to explain that this is “the story of our redemption, this is the story of God’s love. If we want to know God’s love, let us look at the Cross, a man being tortured” a God, “emptied of his divinity,” “dirtied by sin.” But at the same time, he concluded, a God who through his self-annihilation, defeats for ever the true name of evil, that which the Book of Revelation calls the ancient serpent.
“Sin is the work of Satan and Jesus defeats Satan by “becoming sin” and from there he lifts up all of us. The Cross is not an ornament or a work of art with many precious stones as we see around us. The Cross is the Mystery of God’s annihilation for love. And the serpent that makes a prophecy in the desert is salvation, it is raised up and whoever looks at it is healed. And this is not done with a magic wand by a God who does these things: No! This is done through the suffering of the Son of Man, through the suffering of Jesus Christ.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) At a public Consistory held on Tuesday, Pope Francis gave his approval for the canonization of five new saints. Christopher Wells reports:
The Public Ordinary Consistory for the Canonisation of Blesseds began with the celebration of Terce (Midmorning Prayer), presided over by Pope Francis in the Consistory Hall at the Apostolic Palace. Following the liturgical prayer, the Holy Father announced the upcoming canonization of five new saints, including Blessed Mother Teresa of Kolkata (née Anjezë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu), whose work among the “poorest of the poor” won her worldwide acclaim. Hundreds of Missionaries of Charity, members of the religious order founded by Mother Teresa, are expected to be in Rome for her canonization, set for 4 September 2016. From Poland, Blessed Stanisłaus of Jesus and Mary (né Jan Papczynski) was a member of the Piarist Order. After leaving the Piarists, Bd Stanisłaus founded the Marians of the Immaculate Conception. Blessed Maria Elizabeth Hesselblad of Sweden , a convert from Lutheranism, founded a new branch of Bridgettine sisters, dedicated to working and praying for the unity of Scandinavian Christians with the Church. She will be the first Swedish saint in more than 600 years. The two northern Europeans will be canonized together on Sunday, 5 June, of this year. The Holy Father also announced the canonization of Blessed José Gabriel del Rosario , from Pope Francis’ native Argentina, known as the “gaucho priest.” Like the famous Argentinian cattlemen, he travelled on a mule throughout the vast territory of his parish in order to be close to the members of his flock. He will be canonized on 16 October 2016, along with Blessed José Luis Sánchez del Río of Mexico. Blessed José was just fourteen-years-old when he was martyred by the Mexican government during the Cristeros War, after refusing to deny his Faith. (from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) The Vatican on Tuesday said it is “urgent” to begin immediately the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the population of Syria. Monsignor Richard Gyhra, the Chargé d’affaires of the Permanent Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, was speaking at the United Nations Human Rights Council. “Recent developments coming from Syria seem to reinforce the feeling of helplessness in front of an endless human tragedy caused by the continuation of the conflict and its procession of refugees, disrespect of human rights and international humanitarian law,” – Msgr. Gyhra said – “Crimes against humanity are frequent and unpunished; intentional attacks against the civilian population are daily.” The Vatican diplomat said “all parties” should be involved in the peace process. “A crucial dimension for reaching a sustainable solution in the peace building process is respect for a pluralistic society where ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities have their place as full members of society and the Syrian State,” said Msgr. Gyhra. “The survival and the well-being of the aforesaid minorities is the guarantee of a democratic State, respectful of differences,” – he continued – “In fact, the recognition of their rights does not weaken in any way the State, on the contrary, it enriches and strengthens it. In this sense, the return of refugees and IDPs is an essential condition for reconciliation, reconstruction and sustainability of any solution of the conflict.” The full text of the Holy See’s intervention at the UN Human Rights Council is below Intervention by Msgr. Richard Gyhra, Chargé d’affaires a.i. of the Permanent Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva at the 31 st Session of the Human Rights Council Item 4 – Interactive Dialogue on Syria Geneva, 15 March 2016 Mr. President, Recent developments coming from Syria seem to reinforce the feeling of helplessness in front of an endless human tragedy caused by the continuation of the conflict and its procession of refugees, disrespect of human rights and international humanitarian law. Crimes against humanity are frequent and unpunished; intentional attacks against the civilian population are daily. The findings of the International Commission are more than alarming. On the other hand, some bright spots, in particular the negotiations that started this week, should push all people of goodwill not to give up in the search to minimize this human, humanitarian and political tragedy, and, above all, to continue to work towards a peaceful and negotiated solution that takes into account the best interests of Syria and all components of the Syrian nation. The Holy See, as it was stated by Pope Francis at the Sunday Angelus Prayer on February 28th last, would like to give its support to regional and international efforts underway to consolidate the recently negotiated ceasefire accepted by the majority of parties involved in the conflict. Regional and international contributions are indispensable and they should be thoroughly devoted to the interests of the Syrian people. Any approach attempting to defend in the first place regional or international interests, using the different parties to the conflict without considering the future of the country and without taking into account the unbearable human suffering, are unethical. These would not meet the requirements for peace and stability in Syria and in the region. Any policy that ignores the true interests of Syria will be counterproductive, prolong the conflict with its miseries and will have serious consequences for the region and the world. In the process of reconciliation and peace building the inclusion of all parties is necessary. All parties involved in the conflict and the International community have a role to play. They are called to look at the long-term interests of the entire region and primarily the real interests of Syria. Obviously the war and the instability do not favor any player but impact negatively all countries involved, directly or indirectly, in this ongoing conflict. The United Nations, in the first place, has an encouraging and facilitating role. Any solution must be based on the rule of law, justice, freedom and respect for human rights. Donor countries also have an interest in investing in peace and reconstruction. Indeed, the continuation of the conflict is a blatant failure of all stakeholders and will only bring grief and instability for all. A crucial dimension for reaching a sustainable solution in the peace building process is respect for a pluralistic society where ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities have their place as full members of society and the Syrian State. The survival and the well-being of the aforesaid minorities is the guarantee of a democratic State, respectful of differences. In fact, the recognition of their rights does not weaken in any way the State, on the contrary, it enriches and strengthens it. In this sense, the return of refugees and IDPs is an essential condition for reconciliation, reconstruction and sustainability of any solution of the conflict. As the Holy See has previously stated it is urgent to begin immediately the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the population in need and to remove all obstacles so that humanitarian organizations can have access to all areas. Without the protection of civilians and their human rights there cannot be a just political solution. Special care should be given to the weakest groups of society. Mr. President, In conclusion, I would like to recall what Pope Francis recently stated: “I have received with hope the news of the cessation of hostilities in Syria, and I invite everyone to pray that this break may bring relief to the suffering population and open the path to dialogue and to the peace that is so desired.” 1 Thank you, Mr. President. 1 Pope Francis, Angelus, February 28, 2016. (from Vatican Radio)…