At noon today in Rome (6:00am EDT), the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study inside the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the faithful and with pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square.
Dear brothers and sisters!
In the gospel passage for this Sunday, the evangelist Luke narrates the visit of Jesus to the house of Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus (cf Lk 10:38-42). They welcome him, and Mary sits at his feet and listens to him; she leaves what she is doing to be close to Jesus: she does not want to miss any of his words. Everything has to be put aside because, when he comes to visit us in our lives, his presence and his word come before everything else. The Lord always surprises us: when we really start to listen to him, clouds vanish, doubts give way to truth, fears give way to serenity, and the different situations of life find their rightful places. When he comes, the Lord always arranges things, even for us.
In this scene of Mary of Bethany at the feet of Jesus, Saint Luke shows the prayerful attitude of the believer, who knows how to stay in the presence of the Master to listen to him and to be in tune with Him. It is a matter of taking a break during the day, of recollecting in silence for a few minutes in order to make room for the Lord who is passing by and finding the courage to remain a little apart with him, and then returning to everyday things with serenity and effectiveness. Praising the behaviour of Mary, who chose the best part (Lk 10:42), Jesus seems to say to each of us: Do not be carried away by things you have to do, but listen first of all to the voice of the Lord in order to perform well the tasks that life assigns to you.
Then there is the other sister, Martha. Saint Luke says that it was she who hosted Jesus (cf Lk 10:38). Perhaps Martha was the older of the two sisters, we don't know, but certainly this woman had the charisma of hospitality. In fact, while Mary was listening to Jesus, she was completely occupied by her many chores. Therefore Jesus tells her: Martha, Martha, you are worried and concerned about many things (Lk 10:41). With these words, he certainly does not intend to condemn her attitude of service, but rather the anxiety with which this attitude is sometimes experienced. We too share Martha's concern and, following her example, we propose to ensure that, in our families and in our communities, we live with a sense of acceptance, of fraternity, so that everyone can feel at home, especially the little ones and the poor when they knock at our door.
Therefore, today's Gospel reminds us that the wisdom of the heart lies precisely in knowing how to combine these two elements: contemplation and action. Martha and Mary show us the way. If we want to enjoy life with joy, we must associate these two attitudes: on the one hand, being at the feet of Jesus to listen to him while he reveals the secret of everything to us; on the other hand, being attentive and ready with hospitality when He passes and knocks on our door, with the face of a friend who needs a moment of refreshment and fraternity. We need this hospitality.
May Mary Most Holy, the Mother of the Church, grant us the grace to love and serve God and our brothers and sisters with the hands of Martha and the heart of Mary, so that by always listening to Christ we can be artisans of peace and hope. And this is interesting: with these two attitudes we will be artisans of peace and hope.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
Fifty years ago yesterday, mankind placed his feet on the moon, achieving an extraordinary dream. May the memory of that great step for humanity ignite the desire to progress together toward even greater goals: more dignity for the weak, more justice among peoples, more future for our common home.
Now I offer a cordial greeting to all of you, Romans and pilgrims! In particular, I greet the novices from the Sisters of Mary, Help of Christians who have gathered from various countries. In a special way, I greet you and I hope that some of you will go to Patagonia: we need to work there! I greet the alumni from the Cristo Rey di Assunción College (Paraguay), the seminarians and formators from the Opera Don Guanella di Iaşi (Romania), the young people from Chiry-Ourscamp (France) and the faithful from Cantù.
I wish you all a good Sunday and please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
Testo originale nella lingua italiana
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters!
In the gospel passage for this Sunday, the evangelist Luke narrates the visit of Jesus to the house of Martha and Mary, the sisters of Lazarus (cf Lk 10:38-42). They welcome him, and Mary sits at his feet and listens to him; she leaves what she is doing to be close to Jesus: she does not want to miss any of his words. Everything has to be put aside because, when he comes to visit us in our lives, his presence and his word come before everything else. The Lord always surprises us: when we really start to listen to him, clouds vanish, doubts give way to truth, fears give way to serenity, and the different situations of life find their rightful places. When he comes, the Lord always arranges things, even for us.
In this scene of Mary of Bethany at the feet of Jesus, Saint Luke shows the prayerful attitude of the believer, who knows how to stay in the presence of the Master to listen to him and to be in tune with Him. It is a matter of taking a break during the day, of recollecting in silence for a few minutes in order to make room for the Lord who is passing by and finding the courage to remain a little apart with him, and then returning to everyday things with serenity and effectiveness. Praising the behaviour of Mary, who chose the best part (Lk 10:42), Jesus seems to say to each of us: Do not be carried away by things you have to do, but listen first of all to the voice of the Lord in order to perform well the tasks that life assigns to you.
Then there is the other sister, Martha. Saint Luke says that it was she who hosted Jesus (cf Lk 10:38). Perhaps Martha was the older of the two sisters, we don't know, but certainly this woman had the charisma of hospitality. In fact, while Mary was listening to Jesus, she was completely occupied by her many chores. Therefore Jesus tells her: Martha, Martha, you are worried and concerned about many things (Lk 10:41). With these words, he certainly does not intend to condemn her attitude of service, but rather the anxiety with which this attitude is sometimes experienced. We too share Martha's concern and, following her example, we propose to ensure that, in our families and in our communities, we live with a sense of acceptance, of fraternity, so that everyone can feel at home, especially the little ones and the poor when they knock at our door.
Therefore, today's Gospel reminds us that the wisdom of the heart lies precisely in knowing how to combine these two elements: contemplation and action. Martha and Mary show us the way. If we want to enjoy life with joy, we must associate these two attitudes: on the one hand, being at the feet of Jesus to listen to him while he reveals the secret of everything to us; on the other hand, being attentive and ready with hospitality when He passes and knocks on our door, with the face of a friend who needs a moment of refreshment and fraternity. We need this hospitality.
May Mary Most Holy, the Mother of the Church, grant us the grace to love and serve God and our brothers and sisters with the hands of Martha and the heart of Mary, so that by always listening to Christ we can be artisans of peace and hope. And this is interesting: with these two attitudes we will be artisans of peace and hope.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
Fifty years ago yesterday, mankind placed his feet on the moon, achieving an extraordinary dream. May the memory of that great step for humanity ignite the desire to progress together toward even greater goals: more dignity for the weak, more justice among peoples, more future for our common home.
Now I offer a cordial greeting to all of you, Romans and pilgrims! In particular, I greet the novices from the Sisters of Mary, Help of Christians who have gathered from various countries. In a special way, I greet you and I hope that some of you will go to Patagonia: we need to work there! I greet the alumni from the Cristo Rey di Assunción College (Paraguay), the seminarians and formators from the Opera Don Guanella di Iaşi (Romania), the young people from Chiry-Ourscamp (France) and the faithful from Cantù.
I wish you all a good Sunday and please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
Testo originale nella lingua italiana
1 comment:
nice article i love fo read it specially your writing style keep it up you work well. royal attitude status in hindi
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