This morning's General Audience began at 10:00am in Saint Peter's Square where the Holy Father, Pope Francis met with groups of pilgrims and the faithful from Italy and from every corner of the world.
In his speech, the Pope continued the catechesis on mercy, adding a meditation on the theme: Patiently supporting persons who bother us (cf Lk 6:41-42).
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. Then, he issued a call on the occasion of the World Day of rights for children and adolescents which will be celebrated next Sunday, 20 November.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic blessing.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Let us dedicate today's catechesis to a work of mercy that we all know very well, but which perhaps we do not put into practice as we should: patiently supporting people who bother us. We are all very good at identifying a situation that is annoying: it can happen when we meet someone in the street, or when we receive a telephone call ... We immediately think: How long will we need to hear such complaints, gossip, questions or bragging by this person? It sometimes also happens that people who are closest to us can annoy us: among our relatives, there is always someone; in our workplaces there are many; and even in our free time there are such occasions. What should we do with people who bother us? Even we ourselves often bother others. Why has this aspect of caring been included among the works of mercy: patiently supporting people who bother us?
In the bible, we see that God himself needed to use mercy to put up with his people's complaints. For example, in the book of Exodus, the people are really unbearable: first they cry because they are enslaved in Egypt, and God freed them; then, in the desert, they cried because they had nothing to eat (cf Ex 16:3), and God sent quails and manna (cf Ex 16:13-16), but still their complaints did not stop. Moses acted as a mediator between God and the people, and even he sometimes ended up bothering the Lord. But God was patient and therefore he taught Moses and his people this essential dimension of faith.
This leads us to a spontaneous question: do we ever examine our own consciences to see whether we sometimes might be a bother to others? It is easy to point fingers at the defects and the weaknesses of others, but we should learn to put ourselves in the shoes of others.
First, let us look to Jesus: how patient he must have been during the three years of his public life! Once, while he was travelling along with his disciples, he was stopped by the mother of James and John, who said to him: Promise me that these two sons of mine will sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your kingdom (Mt 20:21). The mother was lobbying for her sons, but she was a mother ... Even in that situation, Jesus was inspired to provide a fundamental teaching: his is not a kingdom based on power, it is not a kingdom of glory like earthly kingdoms, but rather a kingdom based on service and giving of ourselves to others. Jesus teaches us to always go to the essential and to look beyond the present situation in order to responsibly take on our mission. Here, we can understand this call with two other spiritual works of mercy: to admonish sinners and to teach the ignorant. Let us think about the great efforts that we can invest when we help someone to grow in faith and in life. I think, for example, of catechists - among which there are many mothers and many religious women - who dedicate their time to teaching children the basic elements of faith. So much effort is required, especially when young boys prefer to play rather than to listen to their catechism!
Accompanying the search for what is essential is beautiful and important, because it makes us share the joy of experiencing the meaning of life. We often come across people who focus on superficial, temporary and trivial things: sometimes because they have never met anyone who inspired them to search for something else, to appreciate true treasures. Teaching others to look for essentials is really a way of helping them, especially in times such as ours when so many seem to have lost their bearings and chase after short-sighted satisfaction. Teaching others to discover what the Lord wants of us is the best way that we can help by putting them on the path toward growing in their own vocation, the path that leads to true joy. In this way, the words of Jesus to the mother of James and John, and then to the entire group of disciples, point the way to avoid falling into envy, ambition and flattery: temptations that are always lurking among us Christians. The need to advise, admonish and teach should never make us feel superior to others, but rather it should oblige us above all to return to ourselves and to verify whether we are being consistent with what we ask of others. Let us never forget the words of Jesus: Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but remain blind to the log that is in your own eye? (Lk 6:41). May the Holy Spirit help us to be patient in enduring, humble and simple in advising others.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then summarized and His Holiness offered greetings to each group of pilgrims in attendance at this morning's General Audience. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from Great Britain, Ireland, Denmark, Iceland, Malta, Nigeria, Indonesia, Malysia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Canada and the United States of America. With prayerful good wishes that these final days of the 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.
At the conclusion of this morning's General Audience, the Holy Father issued the following call:
Next Sunday, 20 November, we will celebrate the World Day of the rights of children and adolescents. I call upon the conscience of all people, institutions and families, that children may always be protected and their welfare be ensured, so that they may never fall victim to various forms of slavery, be recruited into armed groups or be mistreated. I hope that the international community will be vigilant over children's lives, guaranteeing the right to attend school and to gain an education for every boy and girl, so that they may grow up in serenity and look forward to the future with trust.
(Original text in Italian)
In his speech, the Pope continued the catechesis on mercy, adding a meditation on the theme: Patiently supporting persons who bother us (cf Lk 6:41-42).
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. Then, he issued a call on the occasion of the World Day of rights for children and adolescents which will be celebrated next Sunday, 20 November.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic blessing.
Catechesis of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
for the General Audience
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Let us dedicate today's catechesis to a work of mercy that we all know very well, but which perhaps we do not put into practice as we should: patiently supporting people who bother us. We are all very good at identifying a situation that is annoying: it can happen when we meet someone in the street, or when we receive a telephone call ... We immediately think: How long will we need to hear such complaints, gossip, questions or bragging by this person? It sometimes also happens that people who are closest to us can annoy us: among our relatives, there is always someone; in our workplaces there are many; and even in our free time there are such occasions. What should we do with people who bother us? Even we ourselves often bother others. Why has this aspect of caring been included among the works of mercy: patiently supporting people who bother us?
In the bible, we see that God himself needed to use mercy to put up with his people's complaints. For example, in the book of Exodus, the people are really unbearable: first they cry because they are enslaved in Egypt, and God freed them; then, in the desert, they cried because they had nothing to eat (cf Ex 16:3), and God sent quails and manna (cf Ex 16:13-16), but still their complaints did not stop. Moses acted as a mediator between God and the people, and even he sometimes ended up bothering the Lord. But God was patient and therefore he taught Moses and his people this essential dimension of faith.
This leads us to a spontaneous question: do we ever examine our own consciences to see whether we sometimes might be a bother to others? It is easy to point fingers at the defects and the weaknesses of others, but we should learn to put ourselves in the shoes of others.
First, let us look to Jesus: how patient he must have been during the three years of his public life! Once, while he was travelling along with his disciples, he was stopped by the mother of James and John, who said to him: Promise me that these two sons of mine will sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your kingdom (Mt 20:21). The mother was lobbying for her sons, but she was a mother ... Even in that situation, Jesus was inspired to provide a fundamental teaching: his is not a kingdom based on power, it is not a kingdom of glory like earthly kingdoms, but rather a kingdom based on service and giving of ourselves to others. Jesus teaches us to always go to the essential and to look beyond the present situation in order to responsibly take on our mission. Here, we can understand this call with two other spiritual works of mercy: to admonish sinners and to teach the ignorant. Let us think about the great efforts that we can invest when we help someone to grow in faith and in life. I think, for example, of catechists - among which there are many mothers and many religious women - who dedicate their time to teaching children the basic elements of faith. So much effort is required, especially when young boys prefer to play rather than to listen to their catechism!
Accompanying the search for what is essential is beautiful and important, because it makes us share the joy of experiencing the meaning of life. We often come across people who focus on superficial, temporary and trivial things: sometimes because they have never met anyone who inspired them to search for something else, to appreciate true treasures. Teaching others to look for essentials is really a way of helping them, especially in times such as ours when so many seem to have lost their bearings and chase after short-sighted satisfaction. Teaching others to discover what the Lord wants of us is the best way that we can help by putting them on the path toward growing in their own vocation, the path that leads to true joy. In this way, the words of Jesus to the mother of James and John, and then to the entire group of disciples, point the way to avoid falling into envy, ambition and flattery: temptations that are always lurking among us Christians. The need to advise, admonish and teach should never make us feel superior to others, but rather it should oblige us above all to return to ourselves and to verify whether we are being consistent with what we ask of others. Let us never forget the words of Jesus: Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but remain blind to the log that is in your own eye? (Lk 6:41). May the Holy Spirit help us to be patient in enduring, humble and simple in advising others.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then summarized and His Holiness offered greetings to each group of pilgrims in attendance at this morning's General Audience. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from Great Britain, Ireland, Denmark, Iceland, Malta, Nigeria, Indonesia, Malysia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Canada and the United States of America. With prayerful good wishes that these final days of the 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.
At the conclusion of this morning's General Audience, the Holy Father issued the following call:
Next Sunday, 20 November, we will celebrate the World Day of the rights of children and adolescents. I call upon the conscience of all people, institutions and families, that children may always be protected and their welfare be ensured, so that they may never fall victim to various forms of slavery, be recruited into armed groups or be mistreated. I hope that the international community will be vigilant over children's lives, guaranteeing the right to attend school and to gain an education for every boy and girl, so that they may grow up in serenity and look forward to the future with trust.
(Original text in Italian)
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