At noon today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Regina Caeli with the faithful and with pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square for the usual Sunday appointment.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In the biblical readings for today's liturgy, the word witness is repeated twice. The first time it appears on the lips of Saint Peter: after the healing of the paralytic near the door to the temple of Jerusalem, he exclaims: You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead: of this we are witnesses (Acts 3:15). The second time, it appears on the lips of the risen Jesus: You are witnesses of this (Lk 24:48). The apostles, who see the risen Jesus with their own eyes could not keep this extraordinary experience quiet. He had shown them the truth about his resurrection in order that this truth might reach all people through their witness.
We can ask ourselves: who are these witnesses? A witness is someone who has seen, who remembers and tells the story. To see, to remember and to recount are three verbs which describe identity and mission. A witness is one who has seen with objective eyes, one who has seen something, but not with indifferent eyes; one who has seen and who is convinced by the event. This is why he or she remembers, not only because he or she knows how to reconstruct the facts in a precise manner, but also because these facts have spoken to him or to her at a profound level. Thus, a witness recounts, not in a cold or distanced manner, but as one who has had to question him- or herself because of what was seen, and since that day, has changed and lives a different life. A witness is one who has changed his or her life.
The content of Christian witness is not a theory, not an ideology or a complex system of precepts and prohibitions or even a morality; rather it is a message of salvation, a concrete event, even a person: it is the risen Christ, the one and only Savior of all people. He can be witnessed by those who have had personal experiences of Him, in prayer and in Church, through a journey that begins at Baptism, that is nourished in the Eucharist, that is sealed in Confirmation and that experiences continual conversion through Reconciliation. Thanks to this journey, which is always guided by the Word of God, every Christian can become a witness of the risen Jesus. Such witness is made all the more believable, all the more transparent by an evangelical, joyous, courageous, gentle, peaceful and merciful way of life. If however, a Christian allows him- or herself to be tempted by comforts, by vanity, by egoism, he or she will become deaf and blind to questions about the resurrection posed by many brothers and sisters: how will we communicate the living Jesus, how can we communicate the liberating power of the living Jesus and his infinite tenderness?
May Mary our Mother help us through her intercession, so that we might become, even with all our limits, but through the grace of faith, witnesses of the risen Lord, sharing with those we meet the Easter gifts of joy and peace.
After the recitation of the Regina Caeli, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
In these past hours, we have received news of a new tragedy in the waters of the Mediterranean. A boat full of migrants capsized last night about 60 miles off the coast of Lybia and it is feared that there are hundreds of victims. I wish to express my sincere sorrow at such a tragedy and to assure all the families of the missing and the dead of my thoughts and my prayers. I call once again upon the International community with a heart-felt appeal to act decisively and promptly to prevent such tragedies from ever happening again. These are men and women like us, our brothers who we seeking a better life, hungry, persecuted, wounded, exploited, victims of war; they seek a better life. They were seeking happiness ... I invite you to pray, first in silence, and then all together for these our brothers and sisters.
Hail Mary ...
I offer a cordial greeting to all of you, who have come from Italy and from many parts of the world: to the pilgrims from the Diocese of Santo André in Brazil; to those from Berlin, Monaco and Colon; to the students from Grafton (Australia) and from SAnt Feliu de Llobregat (Spain). I greet the Poles from the diocese of Rzeszów and I am close to the participants in the March for the holiness of life which is taking place in Warsaw, encouraging and promoting the defence of human life.
I greet the members of Catholic Action from Formia; the faithful from Milan, Lodi, Limbiate and Torre Boldone (Bergamo); the youth from Turin, Senigallia, Almenno San Salvatore, Villafontana and Gràssina; the youth from Noventa Vicentina and Catania; the choir from Trecate and the members of the Lions Club.
A special greeting to the group from the Sacro Cuore Catholic University on the occasion today of the National Day of support for this great University. It is important that they continue to form young people in a culture which combines faith and science, ethics and professionalism.
Today in Turin, the solemn exposition of the Holy Shroud begins. I too, God willing, will go to venerate it on June 21. I hope that this act of veneration will help us to find in Jesus Christ, the merciful face of God and to recognize it in the faces of our brothers and sisters, especially in the faces of those who are suffering.
Please don't forget to pray for me. I wish you all a good Sunday; enjoy your lunch!
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Regina Caeli
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In the biblical readings for today's liturgy, the word witness is repeated twice. The first time it appears on the lips of Saint Peter: after the healing of the paralytic near the door to the temple of Jerusalem, he exclaims: You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead: of this we are witnesses (Acts 3:15). The second time, it appears on the lips of the risen Jesus: You are witnesses of this (Lk 24:48). The apostles, who see the risen Jesus with their own eyes could not keep this extraordinary experience quiet. He had shown them the truth about his resurrection in order that this truth might reach all people through their witness.
We can ask ourselves: who are these witnesses? A witness is someone who has seen, who remembers and tells the story. To see, to remember and to recount are three verbs which describe identity and mission. A witness is one who has seen with objective eyes, one who has seen something, but not with indifferent eyes; one who has seen and who is convinced by the event. This is why he or she remembers, not only because he or she knows how to reconstruct the facts in a precise manner, but also because these facts have spoken to him or to her at a profound level. Thus, a witness recounts, not in a cold or distanced manner, but as one who has had to question him- or herself because of what was seen, and since that day, has changed and lives a different life. A witness is one who has changed his or her life.
The content of Christian witness is not a theory, not an ideology or a complex system of precepts and prohibitions or even a morality; rather it is a message of salvation, a concrete event, even a person: it is the risen Christ, the one and only Savior of all people. He can be witnessed by those who have had personal experiences of Him, in prayer and in Church, through a journey that begins at Baptism, that is nourished in the Eucharist, that is sealed in Confirmation and that experiences continual conversion through Reconciliation. Thanks to this journey, which is always guided by the Word of God, every Christian can become a witness of the risen Jesus. Such witness is made all the more believable, all the more transparent by an evangelical, joyous, courageous, gentle, peaceful and merciful way of life. If however, a Christian allows him- or herself to be tempted by comforts, by vanity, by egoism, he or she will become deaf and blind to questions about the resurrection posed by many brothers and sisters: how will we communicate the living Jesus, how can we communicate the liberating power of the living Jesus and his infinite tenderness?
May Mary our Mother help us through her intercession, so that we might become, even with all our limits, but through the grace of faith, witnesses of the risen Lord, sharing with those we meet the Easter gifts of joy and peace.
After the recitation of the Regina Caeli, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
In these past hours, we have received news of a new tragedy in the waters of the Mediterranean. A boat full of migrants capsized last night about 60 miles off the coast of Lybia and it is feared that there are hundreds of victims. I wish to express my sincere sorrow at such a tragedy and to assure all the families of the missing and the dead of my thoughts and my prayers. I call once again upon the International community with a heart-felt appeal to act decisively and promptly to prevent such tragedies from ever happening again. These are men and women like us, our brothers who we seeking a better life, hungry, persecuted, wounded, exploited, victims of war; they seek a better life. They were seeking happiness ... I invite you to pray, first in silence, and then all together for these our brothers and sisters.
Hail Mary ...
I offer a cordial greeting to all of you, who have come from Italy and from many parts of the world: to the pilgrims from the Diocese of Santo André in Brazil; to those from Berlin, Monaco and Colon; to the students from Grafton (Australia) and from SAnt Feliu de Llobregat (Spain). I greet the Poles from the diocese of Rzeszów and I am close to the participants in the March for the holiness of life which is taking place in Warsaw, encouraging and promoting the defence of human life.
I greet the members of Catholic Action from Formia; the faithful from Milan, Lodi, Limbiate and Torre Boldone (Bergamo); the youth from Turin, Senigallia, Almenno San Salvatore, Villafontana and Gràssina; the youth from Noventa Vicentina and Catania; the choir from Trecate and the members of the Lions Club.
A special greeting to the group from the Sacro Cuore Catholic University on the occasion today of the National Day of support for this great University. It is important that they continue to form young people in a culture which combines faith and science, ethics and professionalism.
Today in Turin, the solemn exposition of the Holy Shroud begins. I too, God willing, will go to venerate it on June 21. I hope that this act of veneration will help us to find in Jesus Christ, the merciful face of God and to recognize it in the faces of our brothers and sisters, especially in the faces of those who are suffering.
Please don't forget to pray for me. I wish you all a good Sunday; enjoy your lunch!
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