At noon today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the faithful and with pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square for the usual Sunday appointment.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today's gospel passage, taken from the tenth chapter of the Gospel of Luke (Lk 10:1-12, 17-20), shows us how necessary it is that we call upon God the Lord of the harvest, asking him to send workers into the harvest (Lk 10:2). The workers that Jesus is speaking about are missionaries of the Kingdom of God, who He himself calls and sends two by two ahead of him to every city and place to which he is planning to go (Lk 10:1). Their task is to proclaim a message of salvation that is revealed to all. Missionaries always proclaim a message of salvation to all people; missionaries are not the only ones who travel long distances, we too are Christian missionaries who proclaim good news of salvation. This is the gift that Jesus gives to us along with the Holy Spirit. This proclamation is for us to say: The Kingdom of God is near at hand (Lk 10:9), for Jesus has brought God close to us; God is in fact one of us; in Jesus, God reigns in our midst, his merciful love triumphs over our sins and our human sufferings.
And this is the Good News that the workers should carry to all people: a message of hope and of consolation, of peace and of charity. When Jesus sends the disciples out ahead of him to the villages, he tells them: First say: Peace be to this house ... Heal the sick that you find (Lk 10:5, 9). All of this means that the Kingdom of God is built one day at a time and already offers its fruits of conversion, purification, love and consolation to people here on earth. This is a beautiful thing! The Kingdom of God is being built here on earth one day after another. Don't destroy it, build it!
What is the spirit in which the disciple of Jesus should carry out this mission? First, he should be aware of the sometimes difficult and hostile reality that awaits him. Jesus does not spare any words about that! Jesus says: I am sending you out like lambs among wolves (Lk 10:3). Beloved. Hostility can always be found at the beginning of the persecution of Christians; for Jesus knows that the mission will be hampered by the work of the evil one. This is the reason why those who proclaim the Gospel need to strive to be free of human conditions of every kind, carrying no purse, no bag, no sandals (cf Lk 10:4), as Jesus has proposed, relying solely on the power of the cross of Christ. This means that we must abandon all reasons for personal boasting, for careerism and for hungering after power. Instead, we should humble ourselves and strive to become instruments of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus.
The mission undertaken by Christians in the world is wonderful, it is a mission that is meant for all people, a mission of service, no one is excluded; it requires much generosity and especially eyes and hearts that are focused on high, in order to invoke the help of the Lord. The world needs Christians who joyfully bear witness to the gospel in their everyday lives. The disciples, who are sent by Jesus, will return full of joy (Lk 10:17). When we do this, our hearts are filled with joy. And this expression makes me think about how much the Church rejoices, is happy when her children receive the Good News thanks to the dedication of many men and women who proclaim the gospel every day: priests - good pastors who we all know -, sisters, consecrated men and women, missionaries ... And I ask myself - listen to the question -: how many of you young people who are here present in the Square today, hear the call of the Lord and are following it? Don't be afraid! Be courageous and share with others the torch of apostolic zeal that has been left to us by these exemplary disciples.
Let us pray to the Lord, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, that the Church will always have generous hearts who work at proclaiming the love and the tenderness of the heavenly Father to all people.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
I express my closeness to the families of victims and those who have been wounded by the attacks that took place yesterday in Dhaka, and also in Baghdad. Let us pray together. Let us pray together for them, for those who have died, and let us ask the Lord to convert the hearts of the violent, who are blinded by hatred. Hail Mary ...
I greet you all, faithful of Rome and pilgrims who have come from Italy and from other countries. In particular, the groups from Bergamo who are led by your Bishop ... those from Bragança-Miranda (Portugal); the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart who have come from Korea with a few of the faithful; the youth from Ibiza who are preparing for their Confirmation; and the group of Venezuelan pilgrims. I also want to greet my fellow citizens from La Rioja, from Chilecito: I see the flag over there!
I also greet some special pilgrims, signs of Mercy: the faithful from Ascoli Pieceno, who have come on foot, travelling along the ancient Via Salaria; and the members of the Italian Equestrian Tourism Federation who have come on horseback, some who have come from Krakow, and those who have come on bicycles and motorcycles from Cardito (Naples).
Finally, I greet the Crumbs of hope for Carla Zichetti Association, the Lay Carmelite Family, the kindergarten students from Verdellino and the young people from Albino and Desenzano, as well as those from Sassari.
During the Holy Year of Mercy, I am happy to recall that on Wednesday of this week, we will celebrate the Memorial of Saint Maria Goretti, the young martyr who forgave her murderer before she died. This courageous girl is worthy of our applause!
And I wish you all a good Sunday. Please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch, and good bye!
Greetings of His Holiness, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today's gospel passage, taken from the tenth chapter of the Gospel of Luke (Lk 10:1-12, 17-20), shows us how necessary it is that we call upon God the Lord of the harvest, asking him to send workers into the harvest (Lk 10:2). The workers that Jesus is speaking about are missionaries of the Kingdom of God, who He himself calls and sends two by two ahead of him to every city and place to which he is planning to go (Lk 10:1). Their task is to proclaim a message of salvation that is revealed to all. Missionaries always proclaim a message of salvation to all people; missionaries are not the only ones who travel long distances, we too are Christian missionaries who proclaim good news of salvation. This is the gift that Jesus gives to us along with the Holy Spirit. This proclamation is for us to say: The Kingdom of God is near at hand (Lk 10:9), for Jesus has brought God close to us; God is in fact one of us; in Jesus, God reigns in our midst, his merciful love triumphs over our sins and our human sufferings.
And this is the Good News that the workers should carry to all people: a message of hope and of consolation, of peace and of charity. When Jesus sends the disciples out ahead of him to the villages, he tells them: First say: Peace be to this house ... Heal the sick that you find (Lk 10:5, 9). All of this means that the Kingdom of God is built one day at a time and already offers its fruits of conversion, purification, love and consolation to people here on earth. This is a beautiful thing! The Kingdom of God is being built here on earth one day after another. Don't destroy it, build it!
What is the spirit in which the disciple of Jesus should carry out this mission? First, he should be aware of the sometimes difficult and hostile reality that awaits him. Jesus does not spare any words about that! Jesus says: I am sending you out like lambs among wolves (Lk 10:3). Beloved. Hostility can always be found at the beginning of the persecution of Christians; for Jesus knows that the mission will be hampered by the work of the evil one. This is the reason why those who proclaim the Gospel need to strive to be free of human conditions of every kind, carrying no purse, no bag, no sandals (cf Lk 10:4), as Jesus has proposed, relying solely on the power of the cross of Christ. This means that we must abandon all reasons for personal boasting, for careerism and for hungering after power. Instead, we should humble ourselves and strive to become instruments of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus.
The mission undertaken by Christians in the world is wonderful, it is a mission that is meant for all people, a mission of service, no one is excluded; it requires much generosity and especially eyes and hearts that are focused on high, in order to invoke the help of the Lord. The world needs Christians who joyfully bear witness to the gospel in their everyday lives. The disciples, who are sent by Jesus, will return full of joy (Lk 10:17). When we do this, our hearts are filled with joy. And this expression makes me think about how much the Church rejoices, is happy when her children receive the Good News thanks to the dedication of many men and women who proclaim the gospel every day: priests - good pastors who we all know -, sisters, consecrated men and women, missionaries ... And I ask myself - listen to the question -: how many of you young people who are here present in the Square today, hear the call of the Lord and are following it? Don't be afraid! Be courageous and share with others the torch of apostolic zeal that has been left to us by these exemplary disciples.
Let us pray to the Lord, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, that the Church will always have generous hearts who work at proclaiming the love and the tenderness of the heavenly Father to all people.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
I express my closeness to the families of victims and those who have been wounded by the attacks that took place yesterday in Dhaka, and also in Baghdad. Let us pray together. Let us pray together for them, for those who have died, and let us ask the Lord to convert the hearts of the violent, who are blinded by hatred. Hail Mary ...
I greet you all, faithful of Rome and pilgrims who have come from Italy and from other countries. In particular, the groups from Bergamo who are led by your Bishop ... those from Bragança-Miranda (Portugal); the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart who have come from Korea with a few of the faithful; the youth from Ibiza who are preparing for their Confirmation; and the group of Venezuelan pilgrims. I also want to greet my fellow citizens from La Rioja, from Chilecito: I see the flag over there!
I also greet some special pilgrims, signs of Mercy: the faithful from Ascoli Pieceno, who have come on foot, travelling along the ancient Via Salaria; and the members of the Italian Equestrian Tourism Federation who have come on horseback, some who have come from Krakow, and those who have come on bicycles and motorcycles from Cardito (Naples).
Finally, I greet the Crumbs of hope for Carla Zichetti Association, the Lay Carmelite Family, the kindergarten students from Verdellino and the young people from Albino and Desenzano, as well as those from Sassari.
During the Holy Year of Mercy, I am happy to recall that on Wednesday of this week, we will celebrate the Memorial of Saint Maria Goretti, the young martyr who forgave her murderer before she died. This courageous girl is worthy of our applause!
And I wish you all a good Sunday. Please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch, and good bye!
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