At the conclusion of the Meeting with citizens, the Pope travelled aboard the popemobile to the Cathedral, where at 9:00am, he met with Clergy, Consecrated men and women, members of the laity who are part of Pastoral Councils, members of the diocesan Curia and representatives from the local parishes.
Along the way, before arriving at the Cathedral, the Holy Father made a brief stop, without leaving the popemobile, in front of the Palazzo del Ridotto, where the Mayor of Cesena, Doctor Paolo Lucchi unveiled a plaque inaugurating the Largo Pio VI.
Upon his arrival in Piazza San Giovanni, in front of the Cathedral, there was a group of children and young adults waiting to greet His Holiness.
Before beginning the meeting, inside the Cathedral, the Pope paid a visit to the Chapel of the Madonna del Popolo to adore the Blessed Sacrament and to venerate the image of the Madonna. There were a few sick people there who the Holy Father greeted. His Excellency, Douglas Regattieri, Bishop of Cesena-Sarsina then offered the Pope a few introductory remarks.
Prior to leaving the Cathedral, the Holy Father went to the Sacristy to meet briefly with guests at the Casa Accoglienza and the organizers of his visit. Finally, he boarded the helicopter and, after bidding farewell to the authorities who had welcomed him upon his arrival, he departed for Bologna.
Dear brothers and sisters!
I thank you for your welcome and I cordially greet you all, beginning with your Bishop, His Excellency, Douglas Regattieri. My presence today among you expresses first of all my closeness to your commitment to evangelization. This is the principal mission of the disciples of Christ: to proclaim and to bear witness to the joy of the Gospel.
Evangelization is more effective when it is carried out in unity with intent and with sincere collaboration among various ecclesial realities and among various pastoral subjects, who find in their Bishop a sure point of reference and cohesion. Co-responsibility is a key word, both for carrying out the common work in the field of catechetics, Catholic education, promoting humanity and charitable work; and in the courageous search, in the face of pastoral and social challenges, for new forms of cooperation and the presence of the Church in various fields. The very fact of seeing a Church that is striving to walk in fraternity and unity is already an effective witness to faith. If this is not the case, other things will not work. When love in Christ is above all, even in legitimate cases of special need, we are able to go outside of ourselves, to set ourselves apart both at personal and at group levels, and always in Christ, to go out to meet our brothers and sisters.
The wounds of Jesus remain visible in many men and women who live on the margins of society, even children: marked by suffering, discomfort, abandonment and poverty: people wounded by the difficult trials of life, who are humiliated, who find themselves in prisons or in hospitals. By recognizing and treating these tendencies, at times not only corporeal but also spiritual, we ourselves can be purified and transformed by God's mercy. And together, pastors and lay faithful, we can experience the grace of being humble and generous bearers of the light and strength of the gospel. I am happy to recall, in regard to this first duty of deacons toward the poor, the example of Saint Vincent de Paul who, 400 years ago began in France a true revolution of charity. Even today, we are being asked to set out with apostolic ardour across the open seas of poverty that mark our time, aware of the fact that we are not called to do anything on our own. If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do the builders labour (Ps 127:1).
Therefore, it is necessary for all of us to reserve adequate space for prayer and for meditation on the Word of God: prayer is the strength of our mission - as was more recently demonstrated by Saint Teresa of Calcutta. Ongoing meetings with the Lord in prayer become indispensable both for priests and for consecrated persons, as well as for pastoral workers, called to go out to the garden and toward the peripheries of existence. Since we are driven by apostolic zeal - but always going out with Jesus - we feel the profound need to remain firmly united to the centre of our faith and of our mission: the heart of Jesus, filled with mercy and with love. In our encounter with Him, we become contaminated by his gaze, a gaze that looked with compassion on people who He met on the streets of Galilee. It's a matter of re-discovering an ability to look, the ability to look! Today we can see many faces through various media but there is a risk of looking less and less into the eyes of others. Looking at them with respect and love, we too can bring about a revolution of tenderness. I invite you to do this, to bring about a revolution of tenderness.
Among those who most need to experience this love of Jesus, are our youth. Thank God, young people are still a part of the Church - the next Assembly of the Synod of Bishops will directly involve youth - and they can share their own testimonies with their peers: young apostles among the youth, as Blessed Paul VI wrote in the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi (cf EN, 72). The Church is relying on them and knows that they have great gifts, great attitudes toward goodness, beauty, authentic freedom and justice. They need help in order to discover the gifts that the Lord has given to them, encouraged so that they are not afraid to face the great challenges of the present moment. For this reason, I encourage you to meet them, to listen to them, to journey with them, so that they can encounter Christ and his freeing message of love. In the gospel and in the coherent witness of the Church, young people can discover a perspective on life that can help them to overcome the conditioning of a suggestive culture that exalts individualism to the point of idolatry - people who always refer to I, me, with me, for me and always with me - and open them instead to the possibility of plans for solidarity. In order to challenge young people, today it is necessary that we establish dialogue between youth and the elderly, young people and their grandparents. We know that the elderly are retired, but their vocation is not retired, they must give all of us, especially our young people, the wisdom of life. We need to learn to encourage young people to speak with the elderly, to go to them, to visit them. The prophet Joel has a beautiful phrase in chapter 3 of his book, in verse 1: The elderly will dream and the youth will prophesy. This is the recipe for revolution today
so that the elderly don't enter into attitudes that say: These are things of the past, everything is rusty ... no, dream! Dream! The dreams of old age will make it possible for young people to go on, to add their enthusiasm, to be prophetic. It is up to the young people to challenge the elderly to dream and then to take their dreams and continue on. Encourage this dialogue in your communities, in your parishes, in your groups. This dialogue will make miracles.
A Church that is attentive to young people is a Church family made up of families. I encourage you in your work with families and for families, that we may all be committed during this pastoral year to reflecting on education in effective and loving ways. And return to the reasoning of the elderly, because we should have them at heart. A young person who has not learned, who cannot caress an elderly person, has missed out on something. And an elderly person who does not have the patience to listen to young people, is also missing something. Both of them should help the other to go forward together. Education in the ways of effectiveness and love. This is work which the Lord is asking us to do in a particular way at this time, which is a difficult time both for families and for institutions - the basic cells of society, of concrete families, who must carry the majority of the weight of socio-economic crises without receiving adequate support in exchange. But just when such situations are most difficult, God makes his closeness known to us, his grace, the prophetic strength of his Word. And we are called to be witnesses, intermediaries of this closeness to families and this prophetic strength for families. Here again, I want to focus on something else. When I am hearing confessions and a young woman or a young man comes to me and says that he or she is tired, that he or she loses patience even with children because there is so much to do, I - the first question that I ask is: How many children do you have?, and they say two, three ... Then I ask another question: Do you play with your children? Many times, I have heard from parents, mostly from fathers: Father, when I go out of the house they are still sleeping, and when I come back, they are already in bed. This socio-economic situation closes off the good relationship between parents and their children. We need to work so that this does not continue, so that parents have opportunities to waste time playing with their children. This is important!
Dear priests .. You do not have children ... yes, there is one there, a Greek-Catholic, who has some children; but you do not have any, and they say that when God does not grant children, the devil grants grandchildren! Dear priests, to you in a special way is entrusted the ministry of encounter with Christ; and this presumes your daily encounter with Him, your existence in Him. My wish is for you to rediscover continually, in various stages of your personal and ministerial journey, the joy of being priests. Do not lose this joy! Do not lose it. Perhaps it may be helpful for you to read the four final numbers of Evangelii nuntiandi, what Blessed Paul VI says about this. Joy. Don't lose the joy. Many times, people see sad priests, they look slaughtered, with their chili peppers in vinegar, and sometimes I think: what did you eat for breakfast? Coffee or vinegar? No. Joy, joy! And if you find the Lord, you will be joyful. The joy of being a priest, of being called by the Lord to follow him, to carry his word, his forgiveness, his love, his grace. The joy of being tired at the end of the day: this is beautiful! We don't need any pills to sleep. If you are tired, go to bed and sleep by yourself. This is a call that never ceases to amaze us, the Lord's call. Every day, it is renewed in the celebration of the Eucharist and in the encounter with the people of God to whom we are sent. May the Lord help you to work with joy in his vineyard as welcoming, patient and merciful labourers, like Jesus. And may you infuse this missionary spirit into people and communities you encounter.
Dear brothers and sisters of the Diocese of Cesena-Sarsina, never tire of facing difficulties. Be tenacious in bearing witness to the gospel, journeying together: priests, consecrated persons, deacons and lay faithful. Sometimes there will be misunderstandings, but when there are misunderstandings, talk about them, or speak with the pastor, this will help. But never gossip! Gossip destroys a community: a religious community, a parish community, a diocesan community, a presbyteral community. Gossip is an act of terrorism. Yes, gossip is an act of terrorism because you go, through out the gossip - which is a bomb - and you destroy the other person and then you go away happy. This is the effect of gossip. Think about it. What does Jesus say? If you have something against your brother, go, discuss it with him face to face (cf Mt 18:15). Be courageous, be courageous. And if you don't have the courage to speak, bite your tongue. Then all will be well. Along your journey, always strive to recognize the presence and the support of the Lord's promise, the strength of the Holy Spirit.
With all my heart, I thank you for this meeting and I entrust each of you and your communities, your plans and your hopes to the Holy Virgin, who you invoke with the very beautiful title: Our Lady of the People - she is not a populist! - she is a mother to her people, she is very good. I bless you with all my heart and I ask you please to pray for me. Now, I will give you my blessing.
Outside the Cathedral, at the end of the meeting, the Holy Father stopped to greet the children, young people and adults who were gathered there. He offered the following unscripted remarks:
I wish you a good Sunday! Greetings to the choir: you sing very well; and I also want to greet the choir inside the Cathedral. Greetings to both choirs. Thank you very much.
There are many young people here: raise your hands, children and young people! What should young people do? Did you hear something of what I said (inside the Cathedral)? What should you do? ... Speak with? ... (they reply: Speak with the elderly). Speak with the elderly. Listen to them, speak with the elderly. In this way, you will become revolutionaries.
Good bye! Thank you, and may the Lord bless you!
Along the way, before arriving at the Cathedral, the Holy Father made a brief stop, without leaving the popemobile, in front of the Palazzo del Ridotto, where the Mayor of Cesena, Doctor Paolo Lucchi unveiled a plaque inaugurating the Largo Pio VI.
Upon his arrival in Piazza San Giovanni, in front of the Cathedral, there was a group of children and young adults waiting to greet His Holiness.
Before beginning the meeting, inside the Cathedral, the Pope paid a visit to the Chapel of the Madonna del Popolo to adore the Blessed Sacrament and to venerate the image of the Madonna. There were a few sick people there who the Holy Father greeted. His Excellency, Douglas Regattieri, Bishop of Cesena-Sarsina then offered the Pope a few introductory remarks.
Prior to leaving the Cathedral, the Holy Father went to the Sacristy to meet briefly with guests at the Casa Accoglienza and the organizers of his visit. Finally, he boarded the helicopter and, after bidding farewell to the authorities who had welcomed him upon his arrival, he departed for Bologna.
Speech of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
addressed to clergy, consecrated men and women
and representatives from local parishes
Dear brothers and sisters!
I thank you for your welcome and I cordially greet you all, beginning with your Bishop, His Excellency, Douglas Regattieri. My presence today among you expresses first of all my closeness to your commitment to evangelization. This is the principal mission of the disciples of Christ: to proclaim and to bear witness to the joy of the Gospel.
Evangelization is more effective when it is carried out in unity with intent and with sincere collaboration among various ecclesial realities and among various pastoral subjects, who find in their Bishop a sure point of reference and cohesion. Co-responsibility is a key word, both for carrying out the common work in the field of catechetics, Catholic education, promoting humanity and charitable work; and in the courageous search, in the face of pastoral and social challenges, for new forms of cooperation and the presence of the Church in various fields. The very fact of seeing a Church that is striving to walk in fraternity and unity is already an effective witness to faith. If this is not the case, other things will not work. When love in Christ is above all, even in legitimate cases of special need, we are able to go outside of ourselves, to set ourselves apart both at personal and at group levels, and always in Christ, to go out to meet our brothers and sisters.
The wounds of Jesus remain visible in many men and women who live on the margins of society, even children: marked by suffering, discomfort, abandonment and poverty: people wounded by the difficult trials of life, who are humiliated, who find themselves in prisons or in hospitals. By recognizing and treating these tendencies, at times not only corporeal but also spiritual, we ourselves can be purified and transformed by God's mercy. And together, pastors and lay faithful, we can experience the grace of being humble and generous bearers of the light and strength of the gospel. I am happy to recall, in regard to this first duty of deacons toward the poor, the example of Saint Vincent de Paul who, 400 years ago began in France a true revolution of charity. Even today, we are being asked to set out with apostolic ardour across the open seas of poverty that mark our time, aware of the fact that we are not called to do anything on our own. If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do the builders labour (Ps 127:1).
Therefore, it is necessary for all of us to reserve adequate space for prayer and for meditation on the Word of God: prayer is the strength of our mission - as was more recently demonstrated by Saint Teresa of Calcutta. Ongoing meetings with the Lord in prayer become indispensable both for priests and for consecrated persons, as well as for pastoral workers, called to go out to the garden and toward the peripheries of existence. Since we are driven by apostolic zeal - but always going out with Jesus - we feel the profound need to remain firmly united to the centre of our faith and of our mission: the heart of Jesus, filled with mercy and with love. In our encounter with Him, we become contaminated by his gaze, a gaze that looked with compassion on people who He met on the streets of Galilee. It's a matter of re-discovering an ability to look, the ability to look! Today we can see many faces through various media but there is a risk of looking less and less into the eyes of others. Looking at them with respect and love, we too can bring about a revolution of tenderness. I invite you to do this, to bring about a revolution of tenderness.
Among those who most need to experience this love of Jesus, are our youth. Thank God, young people are still a part of the Church - the next Assembly of the Synod of Bishops will directly involve youth - and they can share their own testimonies with their peers: young apostles among the youth, as Blessed Paul VI wrote in the Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi (cf EN, 72). The Church is relying on them and knows that they have great gifts, great attitudes toward goodness, beauty, authentic freedom and justice. They need help in order to discover the gifts that the Lord has given to them, encouraged so that they are not afraid to face the great challenges of the present moment. For this reason, I encourage you to meet them, to listen to them, to journey with them, so that they can encounter Christ and his freeing message of love. In the gospel and in the coherent witness of the Church, young people can discover a perspective on life that can help them to overcome the conditioning of a suggestive culture that exalts individualism to the point of idolatry - people who always refer to I, me, with me, for me and always with me - and open them instead to the possibility of plans for solidarity. In order to challenge young people, today it is necessary that we establish dialogue between youth and the elderly, young people and their grandparents. We know that the elderly are retired, but their vocation is not retired, they must give all of us, especially our young people, the wisdom of life. We need to learn to encourage young people to speak with the elderly, to go to them, to visit them. The prophet Joel has a beautiful phrase in chapter 3 of his book, in verse 1: The elderly will dream and the youth will prophesy. This is the recipe for revolution today
so that the elderly don't enter into attitudes that say: These are things of the past, everything is rusty ... no, dream! Dream! The dreams of old age will make it possible for young people to go on, to add their enthusiasm, to be prophetic. It is up to the young people to challenge the elderly to dream and then to take their dreams and continue on. Encourage this dialogue in your communities, in your parishes, in your groups. This dialogue will make miracles.
A Church that is attentive to young people is a Church family made up of families. I encourage you in your work with families and for families, that we may all be committed during this pastoral year to reflecting on education in effective and loving ways. And return to the reasoning of the elderly, because we should have them at heart. A young person who has not learned, who cannot caress an elderly person, has missed out on something. And an elderly person who does not have the patience to listen to young people, is also missing something. Both of them should help the other to go forward together. Education in the ways of effectiveness and love. This is work which the Lord is asking us to do in a particular way at this time, which is a difficult time both for families and for institutions - the basic cells of society, of concrete families, who must carry the majority of the weight of socio-economic crises without receiving adequate support in exchange. But just when such situations are most difficult, God makes his closeness known to us, his grace, the prophetic strength of his Word. And we are called to be witnesses, intermediaries of this closeness to families and this prophetic strength for families. Here again, I want to focus on something else. When I am hearing confessions and a young woman or a young man comes to me and says that he or she is tired, that he or she loses patience even with children because there is so much to do, I - the first question that I ask is: How many children do you have?, and they say two, three ... Then I ask another question: Do you play with your children? Many times, I have heard from parents, mostly from fathers: Father, when I go out of the house they are still sleeping, and when I come back, they are already in bed. This socio-economic situation closes off the good relationship between parents and their children. We need to work so that this does not continue, so that parents have opportunities to waste time playing with their children. This is important!
Dear priests .. You do not have children ... yes, there is one there, a Greek-Catholic, who has some children; but you do not have any, and they say that when God does not grant children, the devil grants grandchildren! Dear priests, to you in a special way is entrusted the ministry of encounter with Christ; and this presumes your daily encounter with Him, your existence in Him. My wish is for you to rediscover continually, in various stages of your personal and ministerial journey, the joy of being priests. Do not lose this joy! Do not lose it. Perhaps it may be helpful for you to read the four final numbers of Evangelii nuntiandi, what Blessed Paul VI says about this. Joy. Don't lose the joy. Many times, people see sad priests, they look slaughtered, with their chili peppers in vinegar, and sometimes I think: what did you eat for breakfast? Coffee or vinegar? No. Joy, joy! And if you find the Lord, you will be joyful. The joy of being a priest, of being called by the Lord to follow him, to carry his word, his forgiveness, his love, his grace. The joy of being tired at the end of the day: this is beautiful! We don't need any pills to sleep. If you are tired, go to bed and sleep by yourself. This is a call that never ceases to amaze us, the Lord's call. Every day, it is renewed in the celebration of the Eucharist and in the encounter with the people of God to whom we are sent. May the Lord help you to work with joy in his vineyard as welcoming, patient and merciful labourers, like Jesus. And may you infuse this missionary spirit into people and communities you encounter.
Dear brothers and sisters of the Diocese of Cesena-Sarsina, never tire of facing difficulties. Be tenacious in bearing witness to the gospel, journeying together: priests, consecrated persons, deacons and lay faithful. Sometimes there will be misunderstandings, but when there are misunderstandings, talk about them, or speak with the pastor, this will help. But never gossip! Gossip destroys a community: a religious community, a parish community, a diocesan community, a presbyteral community. Gossip is an act of terrorism. Yes, gossip is an act of terrorism because you go, through out the gossip - which is a bomb - and you destroy the other person and then you go away happy. This is the effect of gossip. Think about it. What does Jesus say? If you have something against your brother, go, discuss it with him face to face (cf Mt 18:15). Be courageous, be courageous. And if you don't have the courage to speak, bite your tongue. Then all will be well. Along your journey, always strive to recognize the presence and the support of the Lord's promise, the strength of the Holy Spirit.
With all my heart, I thank you for this meeting and I entrust each of you and your communities, your plans and your hopes to the Holy Virgin, who you invoke with the very beautiful title: Our Lady of the People - she is not a populist! - she is a mother to her people, she is very good. I bless you with all my heart and I ask you please to pray for me. Now, I will give you my blessing.
Outside the Cathedral, at the end of the meeting, the Holy Father stopped to greet the children, young people and adults who were gathered there. He offered the following unscripted remarks:
Greetings offered by the Holy Father, Pope Francis
to children and youth in front of the Cathedral
I wish you a good Sunday! Greetings to the choir: you sing very well; and I also want to greet the choir inside the Cathedral. Greetings to both choirs. Thank you very much.
There are many young people here: raise your hands, children and young people! What should young people do? Did you hear something of what I said (inside the Cathedral)? What should you do? ... Speak with? ... (they reply: Speak with the elderly). Speak with the elderly. Listen to them, speak with the elderly. In this way, you will become revolutionaries.
Good bye! Thank you, and may the Lord bless you!
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