(Vatican Radio) Tens of thousands of pilgrims crowded St Peter’s Square Wednesday for Pope Francis’ weekly General Audience. In remarks to the English speaking faithful, Pope Francis said “true prayer is born of a heart which repents of its faults and failings, yet pleads for the grace to live the great commandment of love of God and neighbor.” And, we may receive God’s mercy if we are honest and humble.
Below, please find the text of the Holy Father’s remarks in English:
Dear Brothers and Sisters: In our continuing catechesis for this Holy Year of Mercy, we now turn to the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector ( Lk 18:9-14). Jesus contrasts the arrogance and self-righteousness of the Pharisee’s prayer with the tax collector’s humble recognition of his sinfulness and need for the Lord’s mercy. True prayer is born of a heart which repents of its faults and failings, yet pleads for the grace to live the great commandment of love of God and neighbour. Indeed, the proud disdain of the Pharisee for the sinner at his side prevents him from being righteous in God’s sight. To pray well, then, we need to look into our own hearts and there, in humble silence, let the Lord speak to us. The honesty and humility which God asks of us is the necessary condition for our receiving his mercy. The Blessed Virgin Mary is the model of such prayer. In her Magnificat , she tells us that God looks with favour on the humility of his servants, and hears their plea. May she, our Mother, help us to pray as we ought.
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Ireland, Scotland, Norway, Sweden, Vietnam, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Nigeria, Canada and the United States of America. With prayerful good wishes that the present Jubilee of Mercy will be a moment of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Tuesday urged Christians to serve other people, without delay or hesitation, saying if we learnt how to reach out in this way, the world would be a very different place. His remarks came during his homily at the morning Mass in the Santa Marta residence where he used the example of the Blessed Virgin Mary for his reflections on the theme of Christians at the service of others.
Listen to this report by Susy Hodges:
May 31st was the final day of the month dedicated to Mary and the Pope used the day’s readings to illustrate Mary’s courage, her helping hand and concern for others and above all her joy, a joy, he said, that fills our hearts and gives meaning and a new direction to our lives. Referring to Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth, Pope Francis said this is a liturgy full of joy that arrives like “a breath of fresh air” to fill our lives.
Joy and a grimace
“Christians with a grimace or disgruntled expression on their faces, sad Christians, are a very ugly thing. It’s really ugly, ugly, ugly. However, they are not fully Christian. They think they are (Christians) but they are not fully so. This is the Christian message. And in this atmosphere of joy that today’s liturgy gives us like a gift, I would like to underline just two things: first, an attitude; second, a fact. The attitude is one of service or helping others.”
The Pope pointed out how the gospel describes Mary as setting off immediately and without hesitation to visit her cousin, despite being pregnant and despite the risk of meeting robbers along the route. This young girl of 16 or 17, he said, was courageous by getting up straightaway and setting out on her journey.
The Church’s courageous women
“The courage of women. The courageous women who are present in the Church: they are like Mary. These women who bring up their families, these women who are responsible for rearing their children, who have to face so many hardships, so much pain, women who look after the sick…. Courageous: they get up and help other people. Serving others is a Christian sign. Whoever doesn’t live to serve other people, doesn’t serve to live. Serving others and being full of joy is the attitude that I would like to underline today. There is joy and also service towards others.”
The second attitude whose importance was stressed by the Pope is reaching out and meeting other people. Referring once again to Mary’s meeting with her cousin, he noted that the two kinswomen greeted each other with joy and their encounter was very festive. In conclusion, Pope Francis said if we could learn these two things: to serve others and reach out to them, how much our world would change:
“Reaching out to others is another Christian sign. Persons who describe themselves as Christian and who are unable to reach out to others, to go and meet them are not totally Christian. Being of service and reaching out to others both require going out from themselves: going out to serve and meet others, to embrace another person. Through Mary’s service towards others, through that encounter, our Lord’s promise is renewed and makes it happen now, just as it did then. And it is really our Lord – as we heard during the first Reading: ‘The Lord, your God, is in your midst’ – the Lord is about helping other people, the Lord is about meeting other people.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis celebrated Mass in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta on Monday morning. In remarks to the faithful following the Readings of the Day, the Holy Father focused on the threefold theme of the dynamic unity in Christian life, the signs of which are living memory, the prophetic spirit, and the sure horizon of hope.
The Pope took as the central focus of his reflection the Gospel passage of the day – from the Gospel according to St. Mark (12:1-12), in which Jesus addresses the Priests, Scribes and Pharisees with the parable of the murderous tenant-farmers. Against the landowner who planted a well-organized vineyard and entrusted them with its care, the tenants decided to revolt, insulting, beating and killing first the servants the master sent to reclaim the land and collect his due, and then, at the climax of the drama, murdering the only son of the owner – wrongly believing that such an act could earn them a right to inherit the owner’s substance.
Casuistry and freedom
The killing of the master’s servants and of the master’s own son – a Biblical image of the prophets and of Christ Himself – shows a people closed in on itself, one not open to the promises of God, a people that does not await the fulfilment of God’s promises: a people without memory, without prophecy and without hope. The leaders of the people, in particular, are interested in erecting a wall of laws, a “closed juridical system”, and nothing else:
“Memory is no concern: as for prophecy, it were better that no prophets come; and hope? But everyone will see it. This is the system through which they legitimate: the lawyers, theologians who always go the way of casuistry and do not allow the freedom of the Holy Spirit; they do not recognize God’s gift, the gift of the Spirit; and they cage the Spirit, because they do not allow prophecy in hope.”
This is the religious system to which Jesus speaks: “A system – as the First Reading says – of corruption, worldliness and concupiscence,’ so St. Peter says in the First Reading.”
Memory makes us free
Pope Francis went on to say that, at bottom, “Jesus was Himself tempted to lose the memory of His own mission, to not give way to prophecy and to prefer security instead of Hope,” i.e. the essence of the three temptations suffered in the desert. Therefore, Pope Francis said:
“To this people Jesus, because he knew temptation in Himself, reproaches: ‘You traverse half the world to have one proselyte, and when you find him, you make him a slave.’ This people thus organized, this Church so organized, makes slaves – and so it is understandable how Paul reacts when he speaks of slavery to the law and of the liberty that grace gives: a people is free, a Church is free, when it has memory, when it makes room for prophets, when it does not lose hope”
An open heart, or a heart in a cage?
The Holy Father stressed that the well-organized vineyard is in fact “the image of the People of God, the image of the Church and also the image of our soul,” for which the Father always cares “with so much love and tenderness.” To rebel against Him is, as it was for the murderous tenants, “to lose the memory of the gift” received from God, while, “in order to remember and not make mistakes on the way,” it is important “always to return to the roots”:
“Do I have the memory of the wonders that the Lord has wrought in my life? Can I remember the gifts of the Lord? I am able to open my heart to the prophets, i.e. to him, who says to me, ‘this isn’t working, you have to go beyond: go ahead, take a risk’? This is what prophets do: am I open to that, or am I afraid, and do I prefer to close myself within the cage of the law? Finally: do I have hope in God’s promises, such as had our father Abraham, who left his home without knowing where he was going, only because he hoped in God? It will do us well to ask ourselves these three questions.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Sunday afternoon met with members of the Pontifical Foundation ‘ Scholas Occurrentes ’ at the conclusion of their World Congress.
The Foundation is an international project based in Argentina that brings together schools and educational networks from different cultures and religious backgrounds.
The informal meeting, which consisted in testimonials, music, videos and a “question and answer” session between Pope Francis and those present, took place in the Vatican Synod Hall.
It came following a three-day meeting which featured representatives of the Foundation from across the globe gathered in the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in the Vatican to talk on the theme: “University and School: Wall or Bridge”.
Amongst the public were personalities like Salma Hayek, George Clooney and Richard Gere.
The meeting aims to mark the beginning of an interactive initiative launched by Scholas Occurentes with the creation of a website, askpopefrancis.scholasoccurrentes.org where it will be possible to put questions to Pope Francis.
This virtual exchange will result in a book, to be published by Mondadori.
During the meeting Pope Francis also received the gift of an olive tree; he autographed surfboards and of course answered questions.
One girl asked him how to make the world a better place and Francis immediately said by “lowering the level of violence”.
A young Mexican girl spoke of how she was harassed at school, another young student talked of a letter sent to her by a sister working in Africa which contained photographs of children who had been abused.
In both of these cases, said the Pope, children and adolescents suffer the same type of “cruelty,” that is why our world, he continued “needs to listen, needs gentleness, so we can all walk together”.
And warning against an increased risk of “nuclearization” in the world, the Pope said bridges must be built.
He highlighted that words are not enough saying we must also speak with gestures: “a smile, a hug, a pat on the shoulder”; “we must listen to others, ask questions, and dialogue will provide the bridge” he said.
It was observed that the Scholas Occurentes relies heavily on social networks to further this dialogue.
Other topics touched upon regarded a hashtag campaign against bullying, a series of initiatives for the protection of the environment, the use of art and sport to promote Christian values.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis urged the faithful to join in prayer on this coming Wednesday, June 1, International Children’s Day, with a special thought for the children in Syria.
Speaking after the Angelus Prayer in St. Peter’s Square the Pope greeted all the Deacons present in Rome for their Jubilee, thanking them for being present for the occasion but also for their presence in the Church.
And remarking on the upcoming International Children’s Day, Pope Francis said that it will be particularly significant for Christian communities in Syria where Catholics and Orthodox will hold a special prayer for peace, in which children will be the protagonists.
“Syrian children invite children of the world to join them in their prayer for peace” he said.
(from Vatican Radio)…