Pope Francis celebrated Mass for the Marian Jubilee on Sunday as part of the celebrations for the Year of Mercy. In his homily he told the faithful present in St Peter’s Square that, “we are given a model, indeed the model, to whom we can look: Mary, our Mother.” The Pope also stressed the importance of gratitude saying, “to be able to offer thanks, to be able to praise the Lord for what he has done for us: this is important!”
Below find the the English translation of the Pope’s Homily
Homily of His Holiness Pope Francis
Marian Jubilee
9 October 2016
This Sunday’s (cf. Lk 17,11-19) Gospel invites us to acknowledge God’s gifts with wonder and gratitude. On the way to his death and resurrection, Jesus meets ten lepers, who approach him, keep their distance and tell their troubles to the one whom their faith perceived as a possible saviour: “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” (v. 13). They are sick and they are looking someone to heal them. Jesus responds by telling them to go and present themselves to the priests, who according to the Law were charged with certifying presumed healings. In this way, Jesus does not simply make them a promise; he tests their faith. At that moment, in fact, the ten were not yet healed. They were restored to health after they set out in obedience to Jesus’ command. Then, rejoicing, they showed themselves to the priests and continued on their way. They forgot the Giver, the Father, who cured them through Jesus, his Son made man.
All but one: a Samaritan, a foreigner living on the fringes of the chosen people, practically a pagan! This man was not content with being healed by his faith, but brought that healing to completion by returning to express his gratitude for the gift received. He recognized in Jesus the true Priest, who raised him up and saved him, who can now set him on his way and accept him as one of his disciples.
To be able to offer thanks, to be able to praise the Lord for what he has done for us: this is important! So we can ask ourselves: Are we capable of saying “Thank you”? How many times do we say “Thank you” in our family, our community, and in the Church? How many times do we say “Thank you” to those who help us, to those close to us, to those who accompany us through life? Often we take everything for granted! This also happens with God. It is easy to approach the Lord to ask for something, but to return and give thanks… That is why Jesus so emphasizes the failure of the nine ungrateful lepers: “Were not ten made clean? But the other nine, where are they? Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” (Lk 17:17-18).
On this Jubilee day, we are given a model, indeed the model, to whom we can look: Mary, our Mother. After hearing the message of the Angel, she lifted up her heart in a song of praise and thanksgiving to God: “My soul magnifies the Lord…” Let us ask our Lady to help us recognize that everything is God’s gift, and to be able to say “Thank you”. Then our joy will be complete.
It also takes humility to be able to give thanks. In the first reading we heard the singular story of Naaman, the commander of the army of the King of Aram (cf. 2 Kg 5:14-17). In order to be cured of his leprosy, he accepts the suggestion of a poor slave and entrusts himself to the prophet Elisha, whom he considered an enemy. Naaman was nonetheless ready to humble himself. Elisha asks nothing of him, but simply orders him to bathe in the waters of the River Jordan. This request leaves Naaman perplexed, even annoyed. Can a God who demands such banal things truly be God? He would like to turn back, but then he agrees to be immersed in the Jordan and immediately he is cured.
The heart of Mary, more than any other, is a humble heart, capable of accepting God’s gifts. In order to become man, God chose precisely her, a simple young woman of Nazareth, who did not dwell in the palaces of power and wealth, who did not do extraordinary things. Let us ask ourselves if we are prepared to accept God’s gifts, or prefer instead to shut ourselves up within our forms of material security, intellectual security, the security of our plans.
Significantly, Naaman and the Samaritans were two foreigners. How many foreigners, including persons of other religions, give us an example of values that we sometimes forget or set aside! Those living beside us, who may be scorned and sidelined because they are foreigners, can instead teach us how to walk on the path that the Lord wishes. The Mother of God, together with Joseph her spouse, knew what it was to live far from home. She too was long a foreigner in Egypt, far from her relatives and friends. Yet her faith was able to overcome the difficulties. Let us cling to this simple faith of the Holy Mother of God; let us ask her that we may always come back to Jesus and express our thanks for the many benefits we have received from his mercy.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday evening presided at the Vigil of the Marian Jubilee taking place in St. Peter’s Square. The Jubilee began on Friday, which was the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, and the highlight of Saturday’s event was the recitation of the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary.
“From the earliest centuries, Mary has been invoked as Mother of Mercy,” Pope Francis said.
“The prayer of the rosary is, in many ways, the synthesis of the history of God’s mercy, which becomes a history of salvation for all who let themselves be shaped by grace,” – the Holy Father continued – “Through prayer and meditation on the life of Jesus Christ, we see once more his merciful countenance, which he shows to everyone in all the many needs of life. Mary accompanies us along this journey, pointing to her Son who radiates the very mercy of the Father.”
The full prepared text of Pope Francis for the Vigil of the Marian Jubilee is below
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In this Vigil we have pondered the fundamental moments of the life of Jesus in company with Mary. In mind and heart, we have returned to the time of the fulfilment of Christ’s mission in the world. The Resurrection , as a sign of the extreme love of the Father who restores everything to life and as a foreshadowing of our future state. The Ascension , as a sharing in the Father’s glory, where even our humanity finds a privileged place. Pentecost , as the expression of the Church’s mission in history until the end of time, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In the last two mysteries, we have also contemplated the Virgin Mary in the glory of heaven . From the earliest centuries, Mary has been invoked as Mother of Mercy.
The prayer of the rosary is, in many ways, the synthesis of the history of God’s mercy, which becomes a history of salvation for all who let themselves be shaped by grace. The mysteries we have contemplated are concrete events by which God’s intervention on our behalf develops. Through prayer and meditation on the life of Jesus Christ, we see once more his merciful countenance, which he shows to everyone in all the many needs of life. Mary accompanies us along this journey, pointing to her Son who radiates the very mercy of the Father. She is truly Hodegetria , the Mother who points to the path we are called to take in order to be true disciples of Jesus. In each mystery of the rosary, we feel her closeness and we contemplate her as the first disciple of her Son, for she does the Father’s will (cf. Lk 8:19-21).
Praying the rosary does not remove us from the problems of life. On the contrary, it demands that we immerse ourselves in the history of each day, so as to grasp the signs of Christ’s presence in our midst. Whenever we contemplate an event, a mystery of the life of Christ, we are asked to reflect on how God comes into our own lives, so as to be able to welcome him and follow him. In this way, we discover how we can follow Christ by serving our brothers and sisters. By accepting and making our own certain outstanding events in the life of Jesus, we share in his work of evangelization, so that God’s Kingdom can increase and spread in the world. We are disciples, but also missionaries, bringing Christ wherever he asks us to be present. So we cannot keep the gift of his presence within us. On the contrary, we are called to share with everyone his love, his tenderness, his goodness and his mercy. It is the joy of sharing that stops at nothing, for it brings a message of freedom and salvation.
Mary helps us to understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ. Eternally chosen to be his Mother, she learned to become his disciple. Her first act was to listen to God. She obeyed the message of the Angel and opened her heart to receive the mystery of divine motherhood. She followed Jesus, listening to every word that issued from his lips (cf. Mk 3:31-35). She kept all those things in her heart (cf. Lk 2:19) and became the living memory of the signs worked by God’s Son to awaken our faith. But is not enough simply to listen. That is certainly the first step, but listening then needs to be translated into concrete action. The disciple truly puts his life at the service of the Gospel.
So it is that the Virgin Mary went immediately to Elizabeth to help her in her pregnancy (cf. Lk 1:39-56). In Bethlehem she gave birth to the Son of God (cf. Lk 2:1-7). In Cana she showed her concern for two young spouses (cf. Jn 2:1-11). At Golgotha she did not flee pain but stood beneath the cross of Jesus and, by his will, became the Mother of the Church (cf. Jn 19:25-27). After the resurrection, she encouraged the apostles assembled in the Upper Room as they awaited the Holy Spirit who would make them fearless heralds of the Gospel (cf. Acts 1:14). Throughout her life, Mary did everything that the Church is asked to do in perennial memory of Christ. In her faith, we learn to open our hearts to obey God; in her self-denial, we see the importance of tending to the needs of others; in her tears, we find the strength to console those experiencing pain. In each of these moments, Mary expresses the wealth of divine mercy that reaches out to all in their daily needs.
This evening let us invoke our loving heavenly Mother with the oldest prayer that Christians have addressed to her, especially at times of trouble and martyrdom. Let us invoke her, in the certainty of being aided by her maternal mercy, so that she, “glorious and blessed”, can be a protection, help and blessing for us all the days of our life:
“We fly to your protection, holy Mother of God. Scorn not our petitions in the hour of need. O glorious and blessed Virgin, deliver us always from every peril”.
(from Vatican Radio)…
Dear Brothers and Sisters, In
this Vigil we have pondered the fundamental moments of the life of Jesus in
company with Mary. In mind and heart, we
have returned to the time of the fulfilment of Christ’s mission in the
world. The Resurrection , as a sign of the extreme love of the Father who
restores everything to life and as a foreshadowing of our future state. The Ascension ,
as a sharing in the Father’s glory, where even our humanity finds a privileged
place. Pentecost , as the expression of the Church’s mission in history
until the end of time, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In the last two mysteries, we have also
contemplated the Virgin Mary in the glory
of heaven . From the earliest
centuries, Mary has been invoked as Mother of Mercy. The
prayer of the rosary is, in many ways, the synthesis of the history of God’s
mercy, which becomes a history of salvation for all who let themselves be
shaped by grace. The mysteries we have
contemplated are concrete events by which God’s intervention on our behalf
develops. Through prayer and meditation
on the life of Jesus Christ, we see once more his merciful countenance, which
he shows to everyone in all the many needs of life. Mary accompanies us along this journey,
pointing to her Son who radiates the very mercy of the Father. She is truly Hodegetria , the Mother who points to the path we are called to take
in order to be true disciples of Jesus.
In each mystery of the rosary, we feel her closeness and we contemplate
her as the first disciple of her Son, for she does the Father’s will (cf. Lk 8:19-21). Praying
the rosary does not remove us from the problems of life. On the contrary, it demands that we immerse
ourselves in the history of each day, so as to grasp the signs of Christ’s
presence in our midst. Whenever we
contemplate an event, a mystery of the life of Christ, we are asked to reflect
on how God comes into our own lives, so as to be able to welcome him and follow
him. In this way, we discover how we can
follow Christ by serving our brothers and sisters. By accepting and making our own certain
outstanding events in the life of Jesus, we share in his work of
evangelization, so that God’s Kingdom can increase and spread in the
world. We are disciples, but also
missionaries, bringing Christ wherever he asks us to be present. So we cannot keep the gift of his presence
within us. On the contrary, we are
called to share with everyone his love, his tenderness, his goodness and his
mercy. It is the joy of sharing that
stops at nothing, for it brings a message of freedom and salvation. Mary
helps us to understand what it means to be a disciple of Christ. Eternally chosen to be his Mother, she
learned to become his disciple. Her
first act was to listen to God. She obeyed the message of the Angel and
opened her heart to receive the mystery of divine motherhood. She followed Jesus, listening to every word
that issued from his lips (cf. Mk 3:31-35). She kept all those things in her heart (cf. Lk 2:19) and became the living memory of
the signs worked by God’s Son to awaken our faith. But is not enough simply to listen. That is certainly the first step, but
listening then needs to be translated into concrete action. The disciple truly puts his life at the
service of the Gospel. So
it is that the Virgin Mary went immediately to Elizabeth to help her in her pregnancy (cf. Lk 1:39-56). In Bethlehem
she gave birth to the Son of God (cf. Lk 2:1-7). In Cana she
showed her concern for two young spouses (cf. Jn 2:1-11). At Golgotha she did not flee pain but stood beneath the
cross of Jesus and, by his will, became the Mother of the Church (cf. Jn 19:25-27). After the resurrection, she encouraged the
apostles assembled in the Upper Room as they awaited the Holy Spirit who would
make them fearless heralds of the Gospel (cf. Acts 1:14). Throughout her
life, Mary did everything that the Church is asked to do in perennial memory of
Christ. In her faith, we learn to open
our hearts to obey God; in her self-denial, we see the importance of tending to
the needs of others; in her tears, we find the strength to console those
experiencing pain. In each of these
moments, Mary expresses the wealth of divine mercy that reaches out to all in
their daily needs. This
evening let us invoke our loving heavenly Mother with the oldest prayer that
Christians have addressed to her, especially at times of trouble and
martyrdom. Let us invoke her, in the
certainty of being aided by her maternal mercy, so that she, “glorious and
blessed”, can be a protection, help and blessing for us all the days of our
life: “We fly to your protection, holy Mother of
God. Scorn not our petitions in the hour
of need. O glorious and blessed Virgin,
deliver us always from every peril”….
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has sent a video-message to the participants of the “Manos Abiertas” [Open Hands] Encounter taking place in Santa Fe, Argentina.
The voluntary association was founded in 1992 by Father Ángel Rossi, SJ, with the motto “To love and to serve.” The theme of this year’s meeting is “Mercy: A journey from the heart to the hands.”
In his video-message, Pope Francis brought up two stories from the New Testament: The parable of the Good Samaritan, and the story of the raising of the son of the Widow of Nain.
“The heart, which in the Good Samaritan is like that of Jesus, was touched by misery: The misery he saw there, the misery of that widowed mother whom Jesus saw, that misery of pain and the misery of the beaten man who was seen by the Samaritan,” – Pope Francis said – “The heart is united with the misery of another and that’s mercy.”
The Pope said mercy is not the same thing as having pity.
“When the misery of the other comes into my heart, I feel mercy; which is not the same as to have pity, pity is another feeling,” – the Holy Father said – “I can feel pity when I see a wounded animal or such a situation, but mercy is another feeling: It is when the misery of another, or a situation of pain or misery, gets into my heart, and I permit the situation to touch my heart. I say this: It is an outward journey, the journey of misery to the heart. And this is the path: It is not mercy if it is not of the heart, a heart wounded by the misery of another.”
He also said mercy is not mere philanthropy.
“It is distinct from having good feelings; this is not mercy, it is having good feelings,” – Pope Francis explained – “It is distinct from hands-on philanthropy, which is not mercy: It is good, it is good, philanthropy is not a bad thing, but it is not mercy, which is another thing. Mercy is the journey of misery to my heart, taken up by my heart, that moves my heart; and sometimes it moves so much that the heart becomes like a compass at the North Pole, and does not know where to stop, because of what it feels.”
The Pope then explained how to tell the difference between mercy and pity.
“First you must ask for the grace to have mercy; it is a grace, and we must ask it of the Lord,” he said.
“The only way to have mercy is to yourself recognize your own sin, and be forgiven by the Lord; through recognizing sin and forgiveness,” – Pope Francis continued. – “You can be merciful only if you truly feel that you have received the mercy of the Lord, otherwise you cannot be merciful … and having received mercy, you will be merciful.”
The Holy Father said this is the return journey, “from the heart to the hands.”
“Stop torturing yourself over what wounded your heart, both by others and yourself,” Pope Francis said. “Let yourself receive mercy and begin the return trip, and with your hands give mercy to others, spreading mercy and love.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
Bulletin for 10/09/2016