This morning's General Audience began at 9:25am 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 added a meditation on the theme: I am with you always, until the end of time (cf Mt 28:20): the promise that gives us hope.
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father offered particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
I am with you always, until the end of time (Mt 28:20). These final words of the gospel of Matthew recall the prophetic proclamation that we find at the annunciation of Jesus birth: You will give him the name Emmanuel, which means God with us (Mt 1:23, cf Is 7:14). God will be with us, every day, until the end of time. Jesus will walk with us, every day, until the end of time. The entire gospel is enclosed within these two citations, words that communicate the mystery of God whose name, whose identity is to be with: he is not an isolated God, he is a God-with, especially with us, with the human creature. Our God is not an absent God, sequestered in the heavens, far away; instead, he is a God who is passionate about mankind, so tenderly in love with us that it is impossible for us to be separated from him. We human beings have the capability of breaking bonds and bridges. He however cannot. If our hearts grow cold, his heart always remains warm and glowing. Our God always accompanies us, even if through misfortune, we should forget Him. On the threshold that divides disbelief and faith, a decisive factor is the discovery of being loved and accompanied by our Father, the fact that He never leaves us alone.
Our existence is a pilgrimage, a journey. Even as they are moved by simple human hope, they perceive the seduction of a horizon that motivates them to explore worlds that they do not yet know. Our soul is a migrant entity. The bible is full of stories of pilgrims and travellers. Abraham's vocation begins with this command: Go from your land (Gen 12:1). And the Patriarch leaves behind that piece of land that he knew so well: one of the cradles of the civilization of his time. Everything seemed to conspire against the logic of that journey. Still Abraham departed. We do not become mature men and women if we do not notice a certain attractiveness in the horizon: the limit between heaven and earth that begs to be discovered by people on a journey.
In his journey on earth, man is never alone. Above all, a Christian can never feel that he has been abandoned, because Jesus assured us that he will not wait until the end of our long journey, but that he will accompany us during every one of our days.
How long will God's care for mankind continue? How long will the Lord Jesus walk with us and care for us? The response in the gospel leaves no room for doubt: until the end of time! The heavens will pass away, the earth will pass away, all human hope will be erased, but the Word of God is greater than everything else and will never pass away. He will be God with us, the Lord Jesus who walks with us. There will never be a day in our lives when we will cease to be a preoccupation in the heart of God. But someone might say: What are you saying? I am saying this: there will never be a day during our lives when we will cease to be a preoccupation in the heart of God. He is preoccupied with us, he walks with us. And why does he do this? Simply because he loves us. Do you understand? He loves us! And God will surely provide for all our needs, he will never abandon us in our time of need or our time of darkness. This certainty needs to sink into our minds so that it can never be lost. Someone refers to this presence as Providence. That is to say the closeness of God, the love of God, God walking with us: something which is also called God's Providence - he provides for our life.
It is not by chance that among the Christian symbols of hope, there is one that I especially enjoy: the anchor. It shows that our hope is not vague; it should not be confused with the changing sentiments of those who desire to improve the things of this world in a vivid manner, even leveraging their own willpower. In fact, Christian hope is rooted not in the attractiveness of the future but rather in the security of what God has promised and has brought about in Jesus Christ. If he has assured us that he will never abandon us, if the beginning of every vocation is a call to follow me, with which he assures us that he will always be with us, why should we still be afraid? With this promise, Christians can walk everywhere. Even throughout portions of a wounded world, where things are not going well, we are among those who even there continue to hope. The Psalms say: Even though I should walk through a dark valley, I will fear no evil because you are with me (Ps 23:4). It is precisely in places where darkness is spread that there is the most need for light. Let us return to the anchor. Our faith is the heavenly anchor. We have our life anchored in heaven. What do we need to do? Grab on to the rope: it is always there. And let us keep on going because we are sure that our life is anchored in heaven, anchored on the shore where we will one day arrive.
Of course, if we rely only on our own strength, we would be right to feel disappointed and defeated, because the world often seems to reflect the laws of love. Many times however, it prefers the laws of egoism. But if the certainty that God will never abandon us, that God loves us and that he loves this world endures within us, then this prospect can be suddenly muted. Homo viator, spe erectus, the ancient wisdom says. Along the journey, Jesus' promise: I will be with you causes us to stand erect, with hope, confident that the good God is already at work bringing about that which seems to human eyes to be impossible, because the anchor is fixed in heaven.
The holy people, faithful to God is a people who are standing up - homo viator - journeying on foot - erectus - and journeying in hope. And wherever they may go, they know that God's love has preceded them: there is no place in the world that can hide from the victory of the Risen Christ. And what is the victory of the Risen Christ? The victory of love. Thank you.
The Holy Father's teaching was then summarized in various languages, and he himself offered greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the groups from England, Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Nigeria, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and the United States of America. In the joy of the Risen Christ, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!
In his speech, the Pope added a meditation on the theme: I am with you always, until the end of time (cf Mt 28:20): the promise that gives us hope.
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father offered particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
Catechesis of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
for the General Audience
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
I am with you always, until the end of time (Mt 28:20). These final words of the gospel of Matthew recall the prophetic proclamation that we find at the annunciation of Jesus birth: You will give him the name Emmanuel, which means God with us (Mt 1:23, cf Is 7:14). God will be with us, every day, until the end of time. Jesus will walk with us, every day, until the end of time. The entire gospel is enclosed within these two citations, words that communicate the mystery of God whose name, whose identity is to be with: he is not an isolated God, he is a God-with, especially with us, with the human creature. Our God is not an absent God, sequestered in the heavens, far away; instead, he is a God who is passionate about mankind, so tenderly in love with us that it is impossible for us to be separated from him. We human beings have the capability of breaking bonds and bridges. He however cannot. If our hearts grow cold, his heart always remains warm and glowing. Our God always accompanies us, even if through misfortune, we should forget Him. On the threshold that divides disbelief and faith, a decisive factor is the discovery of being loved and accompanied by our Father, the fact that He never leaves us alone.
Our existence is a pilgrimage, a journey. Even as they are moved by simple human hope, they perceive the seduction of a horizon that motivates them to explore worlds that they do not yet know. Our soul is a migrant entity. The bible is full of stories of pilgrims and travellers. Abraham's vocation begins with this command: Go from your land (Gen 12:1). And the Patriarch leaves behind that piece of land that he knew so well: one of the cradles of the civilization of his time. Everything seemed to conspire against the logic of that journey. Still Abraham departed. We do not become mature men and women if we do not notice a certain attractiveness in the horizon: the limit between heaven and earth that begs to be discovered by people on a journey.
In his journey on earth, man is never alone. Above all, a Christian can never feel that he has been abandoned, because Jesus assured us that he will not wait until the end of our long journey, but that he will accompany us during every one of our days.
How long will God's care for mankind continue? How long will the Lord Jesus walk with us and care for us? The response in the gospel leaves no room for doubt: until the end of time! The heavens will pass away, the earth will pass away, all human hope will be erased, but the Word of God is greater than everything else and will never pass away. He will be God with us, the Lord Jesus who walks with us. There will never be a day in our lives when we will cease to be a preoccupation in the heart of God. But someone might say: What are you saying? I am saying this: there will never be a day during our lives when we will cease to be a preoccupation in the heart of God. He is preoccupied with us, he walks with us. And why does he do this? Simply because he loves us. Do you understand? He loves us! And God will surely provide for all our needs, he will never abandon us in our time of need or our time of darkness. This certainty needs to sink into our minds so that it can never be lost. Someone refers to this presence as Providence. That is to say the closeness of God, the love of God, God walking with us: something which is also called God's Providence - he provides for our life.
It is not by chance that among the Christian symbols of hope, there is one that I especially enjoy: the anchor. It shows that our hope is not vague; it should not be confused with the changing sentiments of those who desire to improve the things of this world in a vivid manner, even leveraging their own willpower. In fact, Christian hope is rooted not in the attractiveness of the future but rather in the security of what God has promised and has brought about in Jesus Christ. If he has assured us that he will never abandon us, if the beginning of every vocation is a call to follow me, with which he assures us that he will always be with us, why should we still be afraid? With this promise, Christians can walk everywhere. Even throughout portions of a wounded world, where things are not going well, we are among those who even there continue to hope. The Psalms say: Even though I should walk through a dark valley, I will fear no evil because you are with me (Ps 23:4). It is precisely in places where darkness is spread that there is the most need for light. Let us return to the anchor. Our faith is the heavenly anchor. We have our life anchored in heaven. What do we need to do? Grab on to the rope: it is always there. And let us keep on going because we are sure that our life is anchored in heaven, anchored on the shore where we will one day arrive.
Of course, if we rely only on our own strength, we would be right to feel disappointed and defeated, because the world often seems to reflect the laws of love. Many times however, it prefers the laws of egoism. But if the certainty that God will never abandon us, that God loves us and that he loves this world endures within us, then this prospect can be suddenly muted. Homo viator, spe erectus, the ancient wisdom says. Along the journey, Jesus' promise: I will be with you causes us to stand erect, with hope, confident that the good God is already at work bringing about that which seems to human eyes to be impossible, because the anchor is fixed in heaven.
The holy people, faithful to God is a people who are standing up - homo viator - journeying on foot - erectus - and journeying in hope. And wherever they may go, they know that God's love has preceded them: there is no place in the world that can hide from the victory of the Risen Christ. And what is the victory of the Risen Christ? The victory of love. Thank you.
The Holy Father's teaching was then summarized in various languages, and he himself offered greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the groups from England, Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Nigeria, Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Korea, Thailand, Vietnam and the United States of America. In the joy of the Risen Christ, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!
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