This morning's General Audience began at 9:25am in Saint Peter's Square. The Holy Father, Pope Francis met there with groups of pilgrims and the faithful from Italy and from every corner of the world.
In his speech, the Pope focused on the theme: Mary Magdalene: apostle of hope (cf Jn 20:15-18a).
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic blessing.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
This week, our reflection revolves - so to speak - around the Easter mystery. Today, we meet the one who, according to the gospels, was the first to see the risen Jesus: Mary Magdalene. The sabbath rest period had only just been completed. On the day of Jesus' suffering and death, there had not been enough time to complete the funeral rites; for this reason, at dawn, enveloped with sadness, the women went to Jesus tomb carrying jars of perfume. The first to arrive was her: Mary of Magdala, one of the disciples who had accompanied Jesus beginning in Galilee, serving the nascent Church. On her way to the tomb she reflected the fidelity of many other women who had dedicated many years to visiting cemeteries, remembering someone who had died. The most authentic ties remain; they cannot be undone even by death: there are those who continue to love even long after their loved ones are gone forever.
The gospel (cf Jn 20:1-2; 11-18) describes Mary Magdalene by immediately pointing out the fact that she was not a woman who was easily filled with enthusiasm. In fact, after her first visit to the tomb, she was disappointed when she discovered the place where the disciples were hiding; she told them that the stone had been removed from the entrance to the tomb, and her first hypothesis was the simplest possible explanation: someone must have taken Jesus' body. The first proclamation that Mary made was not one of the resurrection, but that of a robber who had gone un-noticed while all of Jerusalem had been asleep.
The gospels then recount a second visit that Mary Magdalene paid to Jesus' tomb. She was stubborn! She went, she returned ... because she wasn't convinced! This time her steps were slow, heavy. Mary suffered on two counts: first for the death of Jesus and then over the inexplicable disappearance of his body.
And while she was standing near to the tomb, with her eyes full of tears, God surprised her in a most unexpected way. The evangelist John points out that her blindness persisted: she was unaware of the presence of the two angels who questioned her, and neither did she see the man who was behind them, the one who she thought was the gardener. Instead she discovers the most surprising event in all of human history when she is finally called by name: Mary (Jn 20:16).
How beautiful it is to think about the first apparitions of the risen Jesus - according to the gospels - they took place in such a personal way! To think that there is someone who knows us, sees our suffering and our disappointment, someone who comes to comfort us and calls us by name. This is something that we see described on many of the pages of the gospel. Gathered around Jesus, there are many people who are seeking God; but the most exciting reality is that long before there were crowds around Jesus seeking God, first and foremost there was God who was concerned about our lives, who wanted us to come to know him, and in order for this to happen, he called us by name, he recognizes each one of us personally. Every person is a story of God's love written on this earth. Every one of us is a story of God's love. Every one of us, God calls by our own name: he knows us by name, he looks upon us, he waits for us, he forgives us, he is infinitely patient with us. Is this true or not? Every one of us experiences this.
Jesus called out to her: Mary!: the revolution of her life, the revolution that was destined to transform the existence of every man and woman, began with a name that echoed in the garden where the empty tomb was found. The gospels describe Mary's joy: Jesus' resurrection is not a joy that is given to someone who is drowning, but rather a waterfall that fills us with life. The Christian existence is not woven out of passing happiness, but rather out of waves that overwhelm everything else. You too should try to think about this: at this time in your life, with the baggage of the disappointments and conflicts that each one of us carries in our hearts, there is also God who is close to us, calling us by name and saying: Get up, wipe away the tears, for I have come to free you! This is beautiful.
Jesus does not fit into the world, tolerating the fact that people in it will face death, sadness, hatred, even the moral destruction of persons ... Our God is not incapable of action, but our God - permit me to use the word - is a dreamer: he dreams of transforming the world; this is precisely what he has done in the mystery of the Resurrection.
Mary wanted to hold on to her Lord, but He is forever destined toward our heavenly Father, while she was sent to proclaim the good news to her brothers. So it was that that woman, who before her encounter with Jesus was in the throes of the evil one (cf Lk 8:2), had now become an apostle of new and greater hope. Her intercession helps us to also live this hope in our lives: in the times when we are saddened, when we feel abandoned, let us listen for the Risen Jesus who calls us by name, and with our hearts filled with joy, we too will go out to proclaim: I have seen the Lord (Jn 20:18). My life has changed because I have seen the Lord! Now, I am a different person from the one I was before. I am changed because I have seen the Lord. This is our strength and this is our hope. Thank you.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then translated into various other languages, and he 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, Swaziland, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Canada 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 focused on the theme: Mary Magdalene: apostle of hope (cf Jn 20:15-18a).
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
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!
This week, our reflection revolves - so to speak - around the Easter mystery. Today, we meet the one who, according to the gospels, was the first to see the risen Jesus: Mary Magdalene. The sabbath rest period had only just been completed. On the day of Jesus' suffering and death, there had not been enough time to complete the funeral rites; for this reason, at dawn, enveloped with sadness, the women went to Jesus tomb carrying jars of perfume. The first to arrive was her: Mary of Magdala, one of the disciples who had accompanied Jesus beginning in Galilee, serving the nascent Church. On her way to the tomb she reflected the fidelity of many other women who had dedicated many years to visiting cemeteries, remembering someone who had died. The most authentic ties remain; they cannot be undone even by death: there are those who continue to love even long after their loved ones are gone forever.
The gospel (cf Jn 20:1-2; 11-18) describes Mary Magdalene by immediately pointing out the fact that she was not a woman who was easily filled with enthusiasm. In fact, after her first visit to the tomb, she was disappointed when she discovered the place where the disciples were hiding; she told them that the stone had been removed from the entrance to the tomb, and her first hypothesis was the simplest possible explanation: someone must have taken Jesus' body. The first proclamation that Mary made was not one of the resurrection, but that of a robber who had gone un-noticed while all of Jerusalem had been asleep.
The gospels then recount a second visit that Mary Magdalene paid to Jesus' tomb. She was stubborn! She went, she returned ... because she wasn't convinced! This time her steps were slow, heavy. Mary suffered on two counts: first for the death of Jesus and then over the inexplicable disappearance of his body.
And while she was standing near to the tomb, with her eyes full of tears, God surprised her in a most unexpected way. The evangelist John points out that her blindness persisted: she was unaware of the presence of the two angels who questioned her, and neither did she see the man who was behind them, the one who she thought was the gardener. Instead she discovers the most surprising event in all of human history when she is finally called by name: Mary (Jn 20:16).
How beautiful it is to think about the first apparitions of the risen Jesus - according to the gospels - they took place in such a personal way! To think that there is someone who knows us, sees our suffering and our disappointment, someone who comes to comfort us and calls us by name. This is something that we see described on many of the pages of the gospel. Gathered around Jesus, there are many people who are seeking God; but the most exciting reality is that long before there were crowds around Jesus seeking God, first and foremost there was God who was concerned about our lives, who wanted us to come to know him, and in order for this to happen, he called us by name, he recognizes each one of us personally. Every person is a story of God's love written on this earth. Every one of us is a story of God's love. Every one of us, God calls by our own name: he knows us by name, he looks upon us, he waits for us, he forgives us, he is infinitely patient with us. Is this true or not? Every one of us experiences this.
Jesus called out to her: Mary!: the revolution of her life, the revolution that was destined to transform the existence of every man and woman, began with a name that echoed in the garden where the empty tomb was found. The gospels describe Mary's joy: Jesus' resurrection is not a joy that is given to someone who is drowning, but rather a waterfall that fills us with life. The Christian existence is not woven out of passing happiness, but rather out of waves that overwhelm everything else. You too should try to think about this: at this time in your life, with the baggage of the disappointments and conflicts that each one of us carries in our hearts, there is also God who is close to us, calling us by name and saying: Get up, wipe away the tears, for I have come to free you! This is beautiful.
Jesus does not fit into the world, tolerating the fact that people in it will face death, sadness, hatred, even the moral destruction of persons ... Our God is not incapable of action, but our God - permit me to use the word - is a dreamer: he dreams of transforming the world; this is precisely what he has done in the mystery of the Resurrection.
Mary wanted to hold on to her Lord, but He is forever destined toward our heavenly Father, while she was sent to proclaim the good news to her brothers. So it was that that woman, who before her encounter with Jesus was in the throes of the evil one (cf Lk 8:2), had now become an apostle of new and greater hope. Her intercession helps us to also live this hope in our lives: in the times when we are saddened, when we feel abandoned, let us listen for the Risen Jesus who calls us by name, and with our hearts filled with joy, we too will go out to proclaim: I have seen the Lord (Jn 20:18). My life has changed because I have seen the Lord! Now, I am a different person from the one I was before. I am changed because I have seen the Lord. This is our strength and this is our hope. Thank you.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then translated into various other languages, and he 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, Swaziland, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Canada 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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