Click to download Bulletin for March 27, 2016
Spes contra spem , “believe against all hope”. This is the Christian identity card
posed by St Paul who, following in the footsteps of Abraham, was certain that
“the thread of hope”, even in the most difficult of times, “runs the course of
salvation history and, moreover, is a source of joy”. On Thursday morning, 17 March, during Mass at
Santa Marta, Pope Francis put forth this call to never lose hope, to be certain
that hope never disappoints. “Today’s
liturgy”, he began, “prepares us for the Easter celebrations with a reflection
on the virtue of hope”, the humble virtue so often cast aside. In the passage
from the Gospel of John (8:51-59), “Jesus speaks about Abraham and says to the
doctors of the law: ‘Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day’;
he saw it and was glad’”. Abraham, the Pope recalled, was “the man who left his
land without knowing where he was going. He left in obedience, in
faithfulness”. Abraham was also “the man who believed in the Word of God and
was justified in that faith”; but he was also “the man who was tempted along
this path of hope when, both he and his wife, smiled as God told them they
would have a son. But he believed”. Referring
to the First Reading, taken from the Book of Genesis (17:3-9), the Pontiff
highlighted “this covenant: I will give you land, you will be the father of
generations”. Thus, “Abraham believed and this thread of hope runs the course
of salvation history. Moreover, it is a source of joy”. Today,
the Pope continued, “the Church speaks to us about the joy of hope”. Indeed,
“in the first prayer of the Mass”, he recalled, “we asked God for the grace to
preserve the hope of the Church, that it never fail”. St Paul too, “speaking of
our father Abraham, tells us to ‘believe against all hope’”. Thus, Francis
stated, “when there is no human hope, there is the virtue which leads you
forward”. It is “humble and simple, but it gives you joy, sometimes great joy,
sometimes simply peace”. However, we can always be certain that this “hope does
not disappoint”. “Abraham’s
joy grows in history”, said the Pontiff, who repeated the words of the Lord
from the day’s Gospel Reading: “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see
my day”. It’s true, the Pope acknowledged, that hope “is sometimes hidden, it
is unseen”, while “sometimes it is openly manifest”. Thus, upon Mary’s arrival
at her cousin’s house, Elizabeth says to her: “as soon as I heard your voice,
the babe in my womb leaped for joy!”. In this meeting there is “the joy of the
presence of God who walks with his people”, and “when there is joy, there is
peace. This is the virtue of hope: from joy to peace, which never disappoints”. This
is the reason that the People of God, even “in times of slavery, at times in
which they were sojourners, in a foreign land”, they always had “that sense of
certainty that the Prophets cultivated: ‘The Lord will save you’”. That “thread
of hope”, the Pope explained, “begins here with Abraham, God speaks with
Abraham, and it ‘ends’ in this Gospel passage where the same God who spoke with
Abraham says: ‘I am he who spoke; before Abraham was, I am; I am he who called
Abraham; I am he who began this journey of salvation’”. He
is the God, Francis added, “who accompanies us, he is also the God who suffers,
who suffers as his people have suffered, he suffers on the Cross, but he is
true to his word”. Precisely
in this regard the Pope recommended an essential examination of conscience
regarding faith, love and hope, asking several direct questions: “Do you have
faith? Yes father, I have faith: I believe in the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
and in the sacraments. Very well, do you have love? Yes, but not very much, I
try not to quarrel, to help the needy, to do something good in life”. These are
the easy answers that we often give, Francis noted. But, he added, “when you
ask yourself if you have hope, if you have the joy of hope”, the answer is:
“Father, I don’t understand, explain”. Hope,
the Pontiff remarked, is “the humble virtue, the virtue that courses beneath
the water of life, but which supports us so as not to drown in the many
difficulties, so as not to lose the desire to find God, to find that marvellous
face that we will all see one day”. Today, Pope Francis said, “is a fine day to
reflect on this: the same God who called Abraham and made him come down from
his land without knowing where he should go, is the same God who goes to the
Cross in order to fulfil the promise that he made. He is”, the Pope continued,
“the same God who in the fullness of time will make that promise a reality for
all of us”. What “joins that first instance to this last moment is the thread
of hope”. Therefore, what “joins my Christian life to our Christian life, from
one moment to another, in order to always go forward — sinners, but forward —
is hope”. Yet, “what gives us peace in the dark moments, in life’s darkest
moments”, is always “hope”. Hope
“does not disappoint: it is always there, silent, humble, but strong”, Francis
concluded. The he repeated once again “today’s prayer, at the beginning of
Mass: ‘Our hope is in your hands, O Lord, preserve our hope”. …
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Thursday addressed the participants of the Harvard World Model United Nations, reminding them the world’s problems always have a human face.
The Model UN is a four-day international relations simulation promoted by Harvard University for high school students from around the world.
Listen to Devin Watkins’ report:
In his address to this year’s Model UN participants, Pope Francis focused on their experience of diversity as a remedy for the world’s ills.
Reminding them of the value of international structures of cooperation and solidarity, the Holy Father said growth in wisdom is “not only for your own benefit, but for the good of your local communities and broader society.”
“The greatest benefit is your time together, your encounter with people from around the world, who represent not only our many contemporary challenges, but above all the rich diversity of talents and potential of the human family.”
The Pope said the participants’ diversity is itself the greatest testimony to the human face of the problems in the world.
“Behind every difficulty our world is facing, there are men and women, young and old, people just like you. There are families and individuals whose lives are daily shaped by struggles, who are trying to care for their children and provide not only for their future but also the basic necessities for today.”
The Holy Father went on to say, “In the end, our strength as a community, on every level of life and social organization, lies not so much in our learning and personal ability, but in the compassion we show for one another, in the care that we exercise especially for those who cannot care for themselves.”
Pope Francis concluded by reminding his audience of the commitment of the Catholic Church to those most in need, which takes Jesus as its model of service.
“I also hope that your experience has led you to see the commitment of the Catholic Church to serving the needs of the poor and refugees, to strengthening the family and communities, and to protecting the inalienable dignity and rights of each member of our human family.”
The official English translation of the Holy Father’s address is below:
Address of His Holiness Pope Francis t o Participants of the Harvard World Model United Nations
Paul VI Audience Hall
Thursday,17 March 2016
Dear Friends,
I am happy to welcome all of you to the Vatican, and I hope that your time in Rome has been beneficial, as you participate in the 2016 Harvard World Model United Nations. I am grateful to Joseph Hall, the General Secretary of your meeting, for his words offered on your behalf. I am especially pleased to know that your members represent so many nations and cultures and, therefore, reflect the rich diversity of our human family.
As university students, you are given in a particular way to the pursuit of truth and understanding, of growing in wisdom not only for your own benefit, but for the good of your local communities and broader society. I hope that this experience will lead you to appreciate the need for, and the value of, structures of cooperation and solidarity which have been forged by the international community over many years. These structures are especially effective when they are directed to the service of the most vulnerable and marginalized in our world. I pray that the United Nations, and each individual Member State, may always be ordered to such service and care.
The greatest benefit of your time together here in Rome, however, does not have to do with learning about diplomacy, institutional systems or organizations, however significant and worthy of your study these are. The greatest benefit is your time together, your encounter with people from around the world, who represent not only our many contemporary challenges, but above all the rich diversity of talents and potential of the human family.
The issues and challenges you discuss are not faceless. For each of you can articulate the hopes and dreams, the challenges and sufferings, which mark the people of your country. In these days, you will learn much from one another, and will remind each other that, behind every difficulty our world is facing, there are men and women, young and old, people just like you. There are families and individuals whose lives are daily shaped by struggles, who are trying to care for their children and provide not only for their future but also the basic necessities for today. So too, many of those affected by our world’s greatest problems of violence and intolerance have become refugees, tragically forced from their homes, and denied their land and their freedom.
These are the people who need your help, who are crying out for you to hear them, and who are supremely worthy of our every effort on behalf of justice, peace and solidarity. Saint Paul tells us that we are to rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep (cf. Rom 12:15). In the end, our strength as a community, on every level of life and social organization, lies not so much in our learning and personal ability, but in the compassion we show for one another, in the care that we exercise especially for those who cannot care for themselves.
I also hope that your experience has led you to see the commitment of the Catholic Church to serving the needs of the poor and refugees, to strengthening the family and communities, and to protecting the inalienable dignity and rights of each member of our human family. We Christians believe that Jesus calls us to be servants of our brothers and sisters, who care for others regardless of their background or circumstances. This is not only a mark of Christians, however, but is a universal call, rooted in our common humanity.
Dear young friends, I assure you and your families of my prayers. May Almighty God bless you with the happiness he has promised to those who hunger and thirst for justice and work for peace.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has personally inscribed the copy of his new book “Dear Pope Francis” which was given to the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesù Children’s hospital.
The dedication reads: “To all the children of the Hospital Child Jesus and to those who lovingly provide care for them.”
The presentation of the book at the hospital was attended by Father Antonio Spadaro, SJ, who helped Pope Francis prepare his answers to the questions sent by children around the world , and the Director of the Holy See Press Office, Father Federico Lombardi.
“In essence, we are the hospital of the Pope, and our children – we can say – are the children of the Pope! How often our doctors, our nurses, our volunteers have to answer the children’s questions, which are often difficult or tragic. Perhaps the Pope’s answers can also help us,” said Mariella Enoc, the president of the hospital.
In addition to the copy signed by Pope Francis, the publisher donated 500 additional copies to the hospital.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Christian hope is a humble and strong virtue that supports us, so that we do not drown under the many difficulties we face in life. That was Pope Francis’ message at the morning Mass at the Casa Santa Marta. The Pope said that hope in the Lord never disappoints us; it’s a font of joy and peace in our hearts.
Jesus speaks with the doctors of the law, and affirmed that Abraham “rejoiced in hope” to see His day. Pope Francis preached his homily on this passage from the day’s Gospel, to show how hope is fundamental in the life of the Christian. Abraham, he said, “had his temptations along the path of hope,” but he believed and obeyed the Lord, and so set out on the journey to the promised land.
Hope takes us forward and gives us joy
There is, then, the Pope said, something like a “thread of hope” that joins “the whole story of salvation” and is a “font of joy.”
Today the Church speaks to us of the joy of hope. In the first prayer of the Mass we asked for the grace of God to keep us in the hope of the Church, because it does not ‘fail.’ And Paul, speaking of our father Abraham, tells us: ‘He believed against all hope.’ When there is no human hope, there is that hope that carries us forward, humble, simple—but it gives a joy, at times a great joy, at times only of peace, but the security that hope does not disappoint: hope doesn’t disappoint.
This “joy of Abraham,” this hope, he continued, “grows throughout history.” “At times,” he admitted, “it is hidden, it is not seen; at times, it is clearly manifested.” Pope Francis cited the example of the pregnant Elizabeth, who rejoiced at the visit of her cousin Mary. It is “the joy of the presence of God,” he said, “that journeys with His people. And where there is joy, there is peace. This is the virtue of hope: from joy to peace. This hope, he repeated, “never disappoints,” not even in “moments of slavery,” when the people of God were in a foreign land.
Hope sustains us, so we don’t drown in difficulties
This “thread of hope” begins with Abraham, who spoke with God, and ends with Jesus. Pope Francis dwelt on the characteristics of this hope. If, in fact, one can say that he has faith and charity, it is more difficult to speak about hope:
We are able to say this [about faith and charity] easily, but when we are asked, ‘Do you have hope? Do you have the joy of hope?’ ‘But, father, I don’t understand, can you explain?’ Hope, that humble virtue, that virtue which flows under the water of life, but that bears us up so we don’t drown in so many difficulties, so we do not lose that desire to find God, to find that wonderful face which we will all see one day: hope.
Hope doesn’t disappoint: it is silent, humble, and strong
Today, the Pope said, “would be a good day to think about this: the same God who called Abraham and made him go out of his own land without knowing where he was going, is the same God who goes to the Cross, to fulfil the promise He made.”
It is the same God who, in the fullness of time, ensures that the promise would become a reality for all of us. And what unites that first moment to this last moment is the thread of hope. And that which unites my Christian life to our Christian life, from one moment to another, in order to always go forward — sinners, but going forward — is hope. And what gives us peace in bad moments, in the darkest moments of life, is hope. Hope doesn’t disappoint: it’s always there: silent, humble, but strong.
(from Vatican Radio)…