At 12 noon today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to pray the Angelus with the faithful and with pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In today's liturgy we read from chapter 15 of the Gospel of Luke, which contains the three parables of mercy: that of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and then the longest of all the parables, typical of Luke, the father and two children: the prodigal son and the son who is believed to be righteous - the one who is believed to be holy. All three of these parables speak of the joy of God. God is joyful. This is interesting: God is joyful! And what is the joy of God? The joy of God is forgiving, the joy of God is forgiving! It is the joy of a shepherd who finds his sheep, and the joy of a woman who finds her coin. It is the joy of a father who welcomes the son who was lost, as if he were dead, and is alive again; the one who has returned home. Here is the essence of the Gospel! Here! Here is the heart of the whole Gospel, all of Christianity! But be careful - this is not a matter of sentimentality or of goodness. On the contrary, mercy is the true strength that can save man and the world from the cancer that is sin, evil, moral and spiritual evil. Only love fills the voids, the chasms that negativity and evil open in the heart and in history. Only love can do this, and this is the joy of God!
Jesus is mercy, Jesus is love, Jesus is God made man. Each of us, each of us is the lost sheep, the lost coin, and each of us is the son who has wasted his freedom following false idols, the illusions of happiness, and lost everything. But God does not forget us, the Father never abandons us. He is a patient father, always waiting for us! God respects our freedom, but remains faithful. And when we return to Him, He welcomes us as children, in his house, because he never stops (not even for a moment) expecting, waiting with love. And his heart is rejoicing for every child who comes back. He holds a party because he is joyful. God has this joy, every time one of us sinners comes to Him and asks for His forgiveness.
What is the danger? It is that we might assume that we are just, and that we judge others. We judge God, because we think he should punish sinners, condemn them to death, instead of forgiving. So yes we are in danger of remaining outside of the Father's house! - like the older brother in the parable, who instead of being happy because his brother is back, gets angry with his father who welcomes him and celebrates. If in our hearts there is no mercy, the joy of forgiveness, we are not in communion with God, even if we observe all the precepts, because it is love that saves, not only the practice of the precepts: love for God and for our neighbor who fulfills all the commandments. And this is the love of God, his joy: to forgive. He is always waiting for us! Maybe someone has something heavy in his heart: But, I did this, I did that .... God is waiting for you! He is the merciful father, always waiting for us!
If we live according to the law: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, we will never get out of the spiral of evil. The Evil One is smart, and he deludes us into thinking that human justice can save us and save the world. In fact, only the justice of God can save us! And the righteousness of God is revealed in the Cross: the Cross is God's judgment on all of us and on the world. But how does God judge us? By giving his life for us! This is the supreme act of justice which defeated once and for all the Prince of this world, and this supreme act of justice is also the supreme act of mercy. Jesus calls us all to follow this path: Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful ( Lk 6:36). I ask you one thing right now. In silence, everyone, everyone ... think of a person with whom you are not on good terms, with whom you are angry, who does not love you. Think of that person and in silence, at this time, pray for this person and become merciful toward this person. [ silent prayer ].
Let us now invoke the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
yesterday, in Argentina, José Gabriel Brochero, a priest of the Diocese of Córdoba, who was born in 1840 and died in 1914, was proclaimed Blessed. Driven by the love of Christ, he devoted himself entirely to his flock, to bringing everyone in the Kingdom of God with immense mercy and zeal for souls. He was with the people, and tried to bring many spiritual exercises. He travelled for miles and miles, riding through the mountains with his mule named Facciabrutta, because it was a beautiful animal. He continued his travel even in the rain, he was brave! But even you, with this rain, you're here, you're brave. At the end of his life, this Blessed man was blind and a leper, but he was full of joy, the joy of the Good Shepherd, the joy of the merciful Shepherd!
I want to be united with the joy of the Church in Argentina as they celebrate the beatification of this exemplary pastor, this mule who tirelessly wandered the roads of his parish, searching home by home for the people who were assigned to him, to help them come closer to God. Let us pray to Christ through the intercession of this new Blessed, and ask that there may be more priests who answer the call, ready to imitate the Brochero priest who gave his life in service to evangelization, and who knelt in prayer before the crucifix, giving witness everywhere to the love and mercy of God.
Today, in Turin,the Social Week of Italian Catholics concludes, a meeting focused on the theme Family, hope and a future for the Italian company. I greet all the participants and I welcome the strong commitment that exists in the Church in Italy with families and for families, and that is a strong stimulus for the institutions and for the whole country. Come on! Continue on this path of the family!
I affectionately greet all the pilgrims present today: families, church groups, youth. In particular I greet the faithful of Dresano, Taggì di Sotto and Torre Canne di Fasano; UNITALSI of Ogliastra, the children of Trent, who will soon receive their First Communion, the children of Florence and the Italian Spider Club.
I wish you all a good Sunday and a good lunch. Goodbye!
Greetings of His Holiness, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
In today's liturgy we read from chapter 15 of the Gospel of Luke, which contains the three parables of mercy: that of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and then the longest of all the parables, typical of Luke, the father and two children: the prodigal son and the son who is believed to be righteous - the one who is believed to be holy. All three of these parables speak of the joy of God. God is joyful. This is interesting: God is joyful! And what is the joy of God? The joy of God is forgiving, the joy of God is forgiving! It is the joy of a shepherd who finds his sheep, and the joy of a woman who finds her coin. It is the joy of a father who welcomes the son who was lost, as if he were dead, and is alive again; the one who has returned home. Here is the essence of the Gospel! Here! Here is the heart of the whole Gospel, all of Christianity! But be careful - this is not a matter of sentimentality or of goodness. On the contrary, mercy is the true strength that can save man and the world from the cancer that is sin, evil, moral and spiritual evil. Only love fills the voids, the chasms that negativity and evil open in the heart and in history. Only love can do this, and this is the joy of God!
Jesus is mercy, Jesus is love, Jesus is God made man. Each of us, each of us is the lost sheep, the lost coin, and each of us is the son who has wasted his freedom following false idols, the illusions of happiness, and lost everything. But God does not forget us, the Father never abandons us. He is a patient father, always waiting for us! God respects our freedom, but remains faithful. And when we return to Him, He welcomes us as children, in his house, because he never stops (not even for a moment) expecting, waiting with love. And his heart is rejoicing for every child who comes back. He holds a party because he is joyful. God has this joy, every time one of us sinners comes to Him and asks for His forgiveness.
What is the danger? It is that we might assume that we are just, and that we judge others. We judge God, because we think he should punish sinners, condemn them to death, instead of forgiving. So yes we are in danger of remaining outside of the Father's house! - like the older brother in the parable, who instead of being happy because his brother is back, gets angry with his father who welcomes him and celebrates. If in our hearts there is no mercy, the joy of forgiveness, we are not in communion with God, even if we observe all the precepts, because it is love that saves, not only the practice of the precepts: love for God and for our neighbor who fulfills all the commandments. And this is the love of God, his joy: to forgive. He is always waiting for us! Maybe someone has something heavy in his heart: But, I did this, I did that .... God is waiting for you! He is the merciful father, always waiting for us!
If we live according to the law: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, we will never get out of the spiral of evil. The Evil One is smart, and he deludes us into thinking that human justice can save us and save the world. In fact, only the justice of God can save us! And the righteousness of God is revealed in the Cross: the Cross is God's judgment on all of us and on the world. But how does God judge us? By giving his life for us! This is the supreme act of justice which defeated once and for all the Prince of this world, and this supreme act of justice is also the supreme act of mercy. Jesus calls us all to follow this path: Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful ( Lk 6:36). I ask you one thing right now. In silence, everyone, everyone ... think of a person with whom you are not on good terms, with whom you are angry, who does not love you. Think of that person and in silence, at this time, pray for this person and become merciful toward this person. [ silent prayer ].
Let us now invoke the intercession of Mary, Mother of Mercy.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
yesterday, in Argentina, José Gabriel Brochero, a priest of the Diocese of Córdoba, who was born in 1840 and died in 1914, was proclaimed Blessed. Driven by the love of Christ, he devoted himself entirely to his flock, to bringing everyone in the Kingdom of God with immense mercy and zeal for souls. He was with the people, and tried to bring many spiritual exercises. He travelled for miles and miles, riding through the mountains with his mule named Facciabrutta, because it was a beautiful animal. He continued his travel even in the rain, he was brave! But even you, with this rain, you're here, you're brave. At the end of his life, this Blessed man was blind and a leper, but he was full of joy, the joy of the Good Shepherd, the joy of the merciful Shepherd!
I want to be united with the joy of the Church in Argentina as they celebrate the beatification of this exemplary pastor, this mule who tirelessly wandered the roads of his parish, searching home by home for the people who were assigned to him, to help them come closer to God. Let us pray to Christ through the intercession of this new Blessed, and ask that there may be more priests who answer the call, ready to imitate the Brochero priest who gave his life in service to evangelization, and who knelt in prayer before the crucifix, giving witness everywhere to the love and mercy of God.
Today, in Turin,the Social Week of Italian Catholics concludes, a meeting focused on the theme Family, hope and a future for the Italian company. I greet all the participants and I welcome the strong commitment that exists in the Church in Italy with families and for families, and that is a strong stimulus for the institutions and for the whole country. Come on! Continue on this path of the family!
I affectionately greet all the pilgrims present today: families, church groups, youth. In particular I greet the faithful of Dresano, Taggì di Sotto and Torre Canne di Fasano; UNITALSI of Ogliastra, the children of Trent, who will soon receive their First Communion, the children of Florence and the Italian Spider Club.
I wish you all a good Sunday and a good lunch. Goodbye!
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