At noon today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis led the recitation of the Angelus at the Church of Saint Peter Claver in Cartagena.
Dear brothers and sisters!
Just before coming to this church, where the relics of Saint Peter Claver are kept, I blessed the corner stones of two institutions which will serve people in great need and I visited the house of Mistress Lorenza, where many of our brothers and sisters are welcomed every day, fed and loved. These encounters were so very good for me because in them, I could touch with my own hands the love of God that is concretely present every day.
We will pray the Angelus together, remember the incarnation of the Word. Let us think about Mary, who conceived Jesus and brought him into the world. We contemplate her this morning, calling upon her using the name of Our Lady of Chiquinquirá. As you know, for a long period of time this image was abandoned, it had lost its colour, it was broken and pierced. It was treated like a piece of an old sack, used without any respect until it ended up among a group of discarded things.
Then a simple woman, who according to tradition was named María Ramos, the first to be devoted to the Virgin of Chiquinquirá, saw in it something different. She had the courage and the faith to place that ruined and corroded image in a special place, apart from everything else, to restore its lost dignity. She knew how to find and honour Mary, who had carried the Son in her arms, precisely in that object which had been considered by others to be despicable and useless.
In that way, this icon became a paradigm for all those who, in various ways, seek to re-establish the dignity of a brother who has fallen prey to the suffering brought on by the wounds of life, and those who do not give up but who work to build for them a worthy place to call home, to assist those who are in need and above all those who pray with perseverance so that they might rediscover the splendour of children of God who have been hard done by.
The Lord teaches us through the example of the humble and those who are considered worthless. If María Ramos, a simple woman, granted the grace of accepting the image of the Virgin in the poverty of that broken cloth, Isabel - an indigenous woman - and her son Miguel, gave her the ability to be the first to see that image of the virgin transformed and renewed. They were the first to see with their own simple eyes the piece of cloth that had been totally renewed, and in it, the splendour of divine light, which transforms and renews all things. It is to the poor, the humble, those who contemplate the presence of God, to whom is revealed the Mystery of God's love with greater clarity. These few, poor and simple as they were, were the first to see the Virgin of Chiquinquirá and they became her missionaries, proclaimers of the beauty and the holiness of the Virgin.
In this church, we will pray to Mary, who called herself the servant of the Lord, and Saint Peter Claver, the slave of the negros forever, as he was known on the day of his solemn profession. He waited for the boats to arrive from Africa at the main slave markets in the new world. Many times, he welcomed them only with gestures, evangelical gestures, because it was impossible to communicate, because of the differences in languages. But a hug goes beyond all languages. However, Saint Peter Claver knew that the language of charity, of mercy was understood by everyone. In fact, charity helps us to understand the truth and the truth requires gestures of charity: they go together, we cannot separate them. When he felt repulsed by them - because poor people arrived in a state that would repulse others - Peter Claver kissed their wounds.
Austere and charitable to the point of heroism, after having comforted the solitude of hundreds of thousands of people, he did not die as an honoured man, rather they forgot about him, he spent the last four years of his life sick and in his cell and in a frightening state of abandonment. This is how the world repays our goodness; God repaid it in another way.
Effectively, Saint Peter Claver bore witness in a formidable way to the responsibility and attention that every one of us should pay to our brothers and sisters. This saint was unjustly accused by others of being indiscreet in his zeal and had to face harsh criticism and persistent opposition from those who feared that his ministry would threaten the rich slave trade.
Even today, in Colombia and throughout the world, millions of people are sold as slaves, or they have to beg for a bit of humanity, a moment of tenderness, taking to the sea or placing themselves on the road because they have lost everything, beginning with their dignity and their rights.
Mary of Chiquinquirá and Peter Claver invite us to work for the dignity of all our brothers, especially those who are poor and forgotten by society, for those who are abandoned, for those who are immigrants, for those who endure violence and human trafficking. All of them have their dignity and each one of them is a living image of God. Every one of them was created in the image and likeness of God, and the Virgin holds all of them in her arms as beloved children.
Now let us offer our prayer to the Virgin Mother, that she may help us to discover the face of God in every man and women of our time.
Angelus Domini ...
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
From this place, I wish to assure my prayers for every one of the Latin American countries, and especially for nearby Venezuela. I express my closeness to every one of the sons and daughters of that beloved nation, as well as for those who have found a place of welcome in this Colombian land. From this city, the seat of human rights, I make my appeal for the rejection of all forms of violence in political life and for the establishment of a solution to the serious crisis that is being experienced and that is affecting everyone, especially the poor and those who are disadvantaged in society. May the Most Holy Virgin intercede for all the needs of the world and for each one of her children.
I also greet all of you who are here. You have come from various places, as well as all those who are following this visit through radio and television. I wish you all a good Sunday. Please don't forget to pray for me.
The Holy Father, Pope Francis then visited the Shrine of Saint Peter Claver, a Spanish Jesuit missionary known as the apostle to the negros. Inside the church, there were approximately 300 members of the Afro-American community who are being assisted by the Jesuits. Pope Francis entered the church and paused in silent prayer near the reliquary of Saint Peter Claver, in front of which he placed a bouquet of flowers which had been given to him by two children. Then, after having presented a gift to the Rector of the Shrine, he went to the interior courtyard where he met privately with representatives of the Jesuit community.
After his visit, the Holy Father travelled by car to the Monastery of Santo Domingo where he had lunch with the Papal party in the Cloister's dining room. After lunch, Pope Francis travelled by car to the house of the Archbishop of Cartagena.
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters!
Just before coming to this church, where the relics of Saint Peter Claver are kept, I blessed the corner stones of two institutions which will serve people in great need and I visited the house of Mistress Lorenza, where many of our brothers and sisters are welcomed every day, fed and loved. These encounters were so very good for me because in them, I could touch with my own hands the love of God that is concretely present every day.
We will pray the Angelus together, remember the incarnation of the Word. Let us think about Mary, who conceived Jesus and brought him into the world. We contemplate her this morning, calling upon her using the name of Our Lady of Chiquinquirá. As you know, for a long period of time this image was abandoned, it had lost its colour, it was broken and pierced. It was treated like a piece of an old sack, used without any respect until it ended up among a group of discarded things.
Then a simple woman, who according to tradition was named María Ramos, the first to be devoted to the Virgin of Chiquinquirá, saw in it something different. She had the courage and the faith to place that ruined and corroded image in a special place, apart from everything else, to restore its lost dignity. She knew how to find and honour Mary, who had carried the Son in her arms, precisely in that object which had been considered by others to be despicable and useless.
In that way, this icon became a paradigm for all those who, in various ways, seek to re-establish the dignity of a brother who has fallen prey to the suffering brought on by the wounds of life, and those who do not give up but who work to build for them a worthy place to call home, to assist those who are in need and above all those who pray with perseverance so that they might rediscover the splendour of children of God who have been hard done by.
The Lord teaches us through the example of the humble and those who are considered worthless. If María Ramos, a simple woman, granted the grace of accepting the image of the Virgin in the poverty of that broken cloth, Isabel - an indigenous woman - and her son Miguel, gave her the ability to be the first to see that image of the virgin transformed and renewed. They were the first to see with their own simple eyes the piece of cloth that had been totally renewed, and in it, the splendour of divine light, which transforms and renews all things. It is to the poor, the humble, those who contemplate the presence of God, to whom is revealed the Mystery of God's love with greater clarity. These few, poor and simple as they were, were the first to see the Virgin of Chiquinquirá and they became her missionaries, proclaimers of the beauty and the holiness of the Virgin.
In this church, we will pray to Mary, who called herself the servant of the Lord, and Saint Peter Claver, the slave of the negros forever, as he was known on the day of his solemn profession. He waited for the boats to arrive from Africa at the main slave markets in the new world. Many times, he welcomed them only with gestures, evangelical gestures, because it was impossible to communicate, because of the differences in languages. But a hug goes beyond all languages. However, Saint Peter Claver knew that the language of charity, of mercy was understood by everyone. In fact, charity helps us to understand the truth and the truth requires gestures of charity: they go together, we cannot separate them. When he felt repulsed by them - because poor people arrived in a state that would repulse others - Peter Claver kissed their wounds.
Austere and charitable to the point of heroism, after having comforted the solitude of hundreds of thousands of people, he did not die as an honoured man, rather they forgot about him, he spent the last four years of his life sick and in his cell and in a frightening state of abandonment. This is how the world repays our goodness; God repaid it in another way.
Effectively, Saint Peter Claver bore witness in a formidable way to the responsibility and attention that every one of us should pay to our brothers and sisters. This saint was unjustly accused by others of being indiscreet in his zeal and had to face harsh criticism and persistent opposition from those who feared that his ministry would threaten the rich slave trade.
Even today, in Colombia and throughout the world, millions of people are sold as slaves, or they have to beg for a bit of humanity, a moment of tenderness, taking to the sea or placing themselves on the road because they have lost everything, beginning with their dignity and their rights.
Mary of Chiquinquirá and Peter Claver invite us to work for the dignity of all our brothers, especially those who are poor and forgotten by society, for those who are abandoned, for those who are immigrants, for those who endure violence and human trafficking. All of them have their dignity and each one of them is a living image of God. Every one of them was created in the image and likeness of God, and the Virgin holds all of them in her arms as beloved children.
Now let us offer our prayer to the Virgin Mother, that she may help us to discover the face of God in every man and women of our time.
Angelus Domini ...
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
From this place, I wish to assure my prayers for every one of the Latin American countries, and especially for nearby Venezuela. I express my closeness to every one of the sons and daughters of that beloved nation, as well as for those who have found a place of welcome in this Colombian land. From this city, the seat of human rights, I make my appeal for the rejection of all forms of violence in political life and for the establishment of a solution to the serious crisis that is being experienced and that is affecting everyone, especially the poor and those who are disadvantaged in society. May the Most Holy Virgin intercede for all the needs of the world and for each one of her children.
I also greet all of you who are here. You have come from various places, as well as all those who are following this visit through radio and television. I wish you all a good Sunday. Please don't forget to pray for me.
The Holy Father, Pope Francis then visited the Shrine of Saint Peter Claver, a Spanish Jesuit missionary known as the apostle to the negros. Inside the church, there were approximately 300 members of the Afro-American community who are being assisted by the Jesuits. Pope Francis entered the church and paused in silent prayer near the reliquary of Saint Peter Claver, in front of which he placed a bouquet of flowers which had been given to him by two children. Then, after having presented a gift to the Rector of the Shrine, he went to the interior courtyard where he met privately with representatives of the Jesuit community.
After his visit, the Holy Father travelled by car to the Monastery of Santo Domingo where he had lunch with the Papal party in the Cloister's dining room. After lunch, Pope Francis travelled by car to the house of the Archbishop of Cartagena.
No comments:
Post a Comment