The Holy Father, Pope Francis celebrated the Sunday Mass this morning at 10:00am local time in the parish church of Sant'Anna, which is the parish church of Vatican City. One should remember that Saint Peter's is a Basilica, and although this larger church might be perceived by many as the point of focus for many events in the Vatican, the parish church is the place where the people of the Vatican gather to pray and to celebrate the Day of the Lord.
During the Mass celebrated this morning, His Holiness shared the following homily:
What a wonderful sight: First, Jesus alone on the mount, praying. He was praying alone (cf. Jn 8:1). Then, he returned to the temple, and all the people were coming to him (Jn 8:2). Jesus among the people. And then at the end, they left him all alone with the woman (Jn 8:9). The solitude of Jesus. The type of solitude that bears fruit: the fruit of prayerful conversation with the Father, and the beautiful fruit that is the message of the Church for our world today: the fruit of God's mercy shown to this woman.
There is also a difference between the people: there were all the people who came to him, and he sat down and began to teach them, the people who wanted to hear the words of Jesus, people with open hearts, in need of the Word of God. There were others too, who heard nothing, they couldn't hear anything, and these were the people who went with the woman. Master, this woman is one who ... we must do as Moses commanded us to do to women such as these (Jn 8:4-5).
We too believe that we are a people who, on the one hand, want to listen to Jesus, but on the other hand, sometimes we like to beat up on others, to condemn them. And the message of Jesus is this: mercy. For me, I say in all humility, the Lord's strongest message is mercy. But he himself said it: I did not come for the righteous, the righteous will justify themselves. Go blessed Lord, if you can do it, I cannot do it! But they believe they can do it. I have come for sinners (Mk 2:17).
Think of all the chatter that went on after the call of Matthew: But this one eats with sinners (Mk 2:16). He came for us, when we recognize that we are sinners. But if we are like the Pharisee who stood before the altar praying: I thank you Lord that I am not like other men, nor am I like that one who is at the door, like that publican (cf Lk 18:11-12), then we do not truly know the heart of the Lord, and we will never have the joy of knowing his mercy. It's not easy to rely on the mercy of God because God's mercy is an unfathomable abyss. But we must rely on his mercy. O Father, if you knew the type of person I am, you would not even speak with me. Why, what have you done? Oh, I haven't done anything serious! Good! Go, says Jesus, he is pleased when you tell him these things. He forgets. He has a special ability to forget. He forgets, he kisses you, he hugs you and he says only: Neither do I condemn you, now go, and from this moment on, do not sin anymore (Jn 8:11). I have only one word of advice to give you. After a month has passed, we are again in the same condition. Let us always return to the Lord. The Lord never gets tired of forgiving, never. It is we who get tired of asking for forgiveness. Let us ask for the grace to never grow tired of asking for forgiveness, because he never gets tired of forgiving. Let's ask for this grace.
At the conclusion of the Mass, the Pastor of Sant'Anna in Vaticano, Father Bruno Silvestrini, OSA and the Vicar General of His Holiness for Vatican City, Cardinal Angelo Comastri greeted the Holy Father, Francis. Then, the Holy Father concluded with the following words:
There are some here present who are not parishioners, these Argentinian priests. One is my Auxiliary Bishop, but for today, they are parishioners. I want to introduce you to a priest who has come from far away, a priest who works with street kids and drug addicts. He opened a school for them. He's done lots of things to make Jesus known, and these young street kids are working because of the studies they have accomplished. They have the ability to work. They believe in and love Jesus. Gonzalo, come and greet the people: pray for him. He's working in Uruguay. He's the founder of the John Paul II Jubilee Grammar School. He is doing this work. I don't know how he got here today, but I'll find out. Thank you. Pray for him.
During the Mass celebrated this morning, His Holiness shared the following homily:
Homily of His Holiness
for the Mass celebrated at
the parish church of Sant'Anna
Vatican City, Sunday, March 17, 2013
What a wonderful sight: First, Jesus alone on the mount, praying. He was praying alone (cf. Jn 8:1). Then, he returned to the temple, and all the people were coming to him (Jn 8:2). Jesus among the people. And then at the end, they left him all alone with the woman (Jn 8:9). The solitude of Jesus. The type of solitude that bears fruit: the fruit of prayerful conversation with the Father, and the beautiful fruit that is the message of the Church for our world today: the fruit of God's mercy shown to this woman.
There is also a difference between the people: there were all the people who came to him, and he sat down and began to teach them, the people who wanted to hear the words of Jesus, people with open hearts, in need of the Word of God. There were others too, who heard nothing, they couldn't hear anything, and these were the people who went with the woman. Master, this woman is one who ... we must do as Moses commanded us to do to women such as these (Jn 8:4-5).
We too believe that we are a people who, on the one hand, want to listen to Jesus, but on the other hand, sometimes we like to beat up on others, to condemn them. And the message of Jesus is this: mercy. For me, I say in all humility, the Lord's strongest message is mercy. But he himself said it: I did not come for the righteous, the righteous will justify themselves. Go blessed Lord, if you can do it, I cannot do it! But they believe they can do it. I have come for sinners (Mk 2:17).
Think of all the chatter that went on after the call of Matthew: But this one eats with sinners (Mk 2:16). He came for us, when we recognize that we are sinners. But if we are like the Pharisee who stood before the altar praying: I thank you Lord that I am not like other men, nor am I like that one who is at the door, like that publican (cf Lk 18:11-12), then we do not truly know the heart of the Lord, and we will never have the joy of knowing his mercy. It's not easy to rely on the mercy of God because God's mercy is an unfathomable abyss. But we must rely on his mercy. O Father, if you knew the type of person I am, you would not even speak with me. Why, what have you done? Oh, I haven't done anything serious! Good! Go, says Jesus, he is pleased when you tell him these things. He forgets. He has a special ability to forget. He forgets, he kisses you, he hugs you and he says only: Neither do I condemn you, now go, and from this moment on, do not sin anymore (Jn 8:11). I have only one word of advice to give you. After a month has passed, we are again in the same condition. Let us always return to the Lord. The Lord never gets tired of forgiving, never. It is we who get tired of asking for forgiveness. Let us ask for the grace to never grow tired of asking for forgiveness, because he never gets tired of forgiving. Let's ask for this grace.
At the conclusion of the Mass, the Pastor of Sant'Anna in Vaticano, Father Bruno Silvestrini, OSA and the Vicar General of His Holiness for Vatican City, Cardinal Angelo Comastri greeted the Holy Father, Francis. Then, the Holy Father concluded with the following words:
There are some here present who are not parishioners, these Argentinian priests. One is my Auxiliary Bishop, but for today, they are parishioners. I want to introduce you to a priest who has come from far away, a priest who works with street kids and drug addicts. He opened a school for them. He's done lots of things to make Jesus known, and these young street kids are working because of the studies they have accomplished. They have the ability to work. They believe in and love Jesus. Gonzalo, come and greet the people: pray for him. He's working in Uruguay. He's the founder of the John Paul II Jubilee Grammar School. He is doing this work. I don't know how he got here today, but I'll find out. Thank you. Pray for him.
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