At 7:00am today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis departed from the Domus Sanctae Marthae and travelled by car to the Campino airport, where at 7:30, he left for a pastoral visit to Cagliari.
Upon his arrival at the Mario Mameli airport in Cagliari-Elmas, the Pope was welcomed by the Archbishop of Cagliari, His Excellency, Arrigo Miglio; by the Minister of Justice, Her Excellency Anna Maria Cancellieri, representing the Italian Government; by the President of the Region of Sardegna, the Honorable Ugo Cappellacci; by the Ambassador of Italy to the Holy See, His Excellency Francesco Maria Greco; by the Apostolic Nuncio to Italy, His Excellency Adriano Bernardini; by the Prefect of Cagliari, Doctor Alessio Giuffrida; by the Mayor of Elmas, Mister Valter Piscedda; by the Mayor of Cagliari, Mr. Massimo Zedda, by the Extraordinary Commissioner for the Province of Cagliari, Mr. Pietro Cadau; and by Lieutenant Colonel Gianmarco Solinas, Commander of the military airport.
The Holy Father then travelled by car to Cagliari where, at 9:10am, he met with working people at the Largo Carlo Felice. Following the greetings offered by one of the workers, by a businesswoman and by a member of the local trade union, the Holy Father addressed the workers who were assembled.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
I cordially greet all of you: workers, employers, authorities and families who are present. In particular, I greet Archbishop Arrigo Miglio and the three of you who have expressed your problems, your expectations and even your hopes. This visit - as we were saying - begins with all of you who make up the world of workers. Through this encounter, I wish above all to express my closeness, especially in situations of suffering: by the many young people who are unemployed, by people who are unemployed or who find themselves in precarious work situations and by entrepreneurs and traders who are struggling to move forward. This is a reality that I know well, thanks to my experience in Argentina. I myself didn't have to live it, but some in my family did: when my father was young, he went to Argentina, full of illusions about becoming American. He suffered the terrible crisis of the 1930s. They lost everything! There was no work! Even as a child, I used to hear them speak about that period of time ... I myself never knew that suffering, I wasn't yet born, but inside our house, I heard about that suffering, I heard talk of that suffering. I know it well! But I have to say to you: Take courage! I also know that I myself have to do my part, because otherwise this word - take courage - is only a momentary greeting. We should not be content only with a polite smile from a friendly employee, even an employee of the Church who might come and say, take courage! No! That's not enough! I would prefer that courage should come from within and motivate me to do everything in my power as Pastor, as a man. You ... We must face this historic challenge with solidarity and wisdom among you, and among us all.
This is the second city I've visited in Italy. It's curious: both of them, that one and this, are islands. In the first city, I saw the suffering of so many people who are seeking, risking their lives, their dignity, their food, their health: it was a world of refugees. And I saw the response of that city which, being an island, didn't want to isolate but to receive them, and make them its own; providing an example of welcome: a positive response to suffering. Here in this second city, an island that I see before me, here too I find suffering. A suffering which one of you said weakens you and ends up stealing your hope. A suffering, because of the lack of jobs, that makes you - excuse me, the words are a bit strong, but true - you feel as though you have no dignity. And this is not a problem unique to Sardinia, but it is a major problem here. It is not a problem unique to Italy or to some countries in Europe; it is the consequence of a worldwide choice, of an economic system that has resulted in this tragedy, and economic system which has at its heart an ideal which is called money.
At the centre of the world, God did not want an idol, he wanted man to have this honour, man and woman who build the world through their own work. But now, this system void of ethics revolves around a different idol and the world now worships the god of money. The world controls the money! It controls the money! It controls all the things that serve it: that serve this idol. And what happens? In defence of this idol, everyone is piled in the middle and the ends fall off. The elderly fall off because in this kind of world, there is no place for them. Some people speak of a habit of hidden euthanasia, of not taking care of them, of not paying them any attention ... Yes, never mind! And the young people fall off, the ones who cannot find work, who cannot discover their own dignity. Think about it! We live in a world where young people, two generations of young people, have no work. These people have no future! Why? Because they don't have dignity! It's difficult to have dignity if you can't find work. This is the suffering you endure here. This is the prayer that you continue to cry out: Work! Work! Work! It is a necessary prayer. To work means to have dignity; to work means to have the ability to bring bread into your home; to work means to love! To defend this idolatrous economic system, the culture of waste was created; grandparents and young people are being thrown away! We must say No! to this culture of waste. We should say: We want a just system! A system that permits all people to advance. We should say: We don't want this global economic system, that causes so much evil. At the centre of everything, there should be man and woman, just as God wanted it, not money!
I had written down a few thoughts that I wanted to share with you, but seeing you, these are the thoughts that have come to mind. I will hand over these written words to your bishop, as though they had been spoken, but I preferred to share with you what came from my heart, now that I have set eyes on you. Look! It's easy to say don't loose hope, but to all of you: those who have jobs and those who don't, I say: Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope! Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope! Perhaps hope is like the embers in the ashes; help each other with solidarity, blow gently on the ashes because the fire will come again. Hope will carry you forward. Hope is not optimism; that's another thing. Hope is not the duty of only one person; we all must hope. We all must support one another in hope, all of you and all of us who are far away. Hope belongs to you and to us. It belongs to all of us. This is why I say to you: Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope! We are cunning, because the Lord tells us that we are smarter than all other idols. The Lord invites us to be as cunning as the serpent, and as good as the dove. Let us be cunning, and let's call things by their proper names. At this moment in time, in our economic system, in our proposed system of global life there is an idol at our core, and this is not the way it should be! We should be united in our struggle because at the core of it all, at least in terms of our lives, there should be men and women, the family, all of us, so that hope can go on. Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope!
Now I want to finish by praying with all of you, in silence, in silence, praying with all of you. I will say what comes from my heart, and you pray in silence with me.
Lord, God, look upon us. Look upon this city, this island. Look upon our families.
Lord, for you, there was always enough work. You were a carpenter. You were happy.
Lord, there isn't enough work.
Other idols want to rob us of our dignity. The unjust systems want to rob us of our hope.
Lord, do not leave us alone. Help us to help each other, that we may forget a bit of our own selfishness, and feel within our hearts a sense of 'we'. We are a people who want to move on.
Lord Jesus, for you, there was always enough work; give us work and teach us to fight for our jobs, and bless us all in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Thank you very much, and please pray for me!
In a separate post, I will furnish the text which the Holy Father gave to the Archbishop of Cagliari, the words that he intended to share with the workers.
Upon his arrival at the Mario Mameli airport in Cagliari-Elmas, the Pope was welcomed by the Archbishop of Cagliari, His Excellency, Arrigo Miglio; by the Minister of Justice, Her Excellency Anna Maria Cancellieri, representing the Italian Government; by the President of the Region of Sardegna, the Honorable Ugo Cappellacci; by the Ambassador of Italy to the Holy See, His Excellency Francesco Maria Greco; by the Apostolic Nuncio to Italy, His Excellency Adriano Bernardini; by the Prefect of Cagliari, Doctor Alessio Giuffrida; by the Mayor of Elmas, Mister Valter Piscedda; by the Mayor of Cagliari, Mr. Massimo Zedda, by the Extraordinary Commissioner for the Province of Cagliari, Mr. Pietro Cadau; and by Lieutenant Colonel Gianmarco Solinas, Commander of the military airport.
The Holy Father then travelled by car to Cagliari where, at 9:10am, he met with working people at the Largo Carlo Felice. Following the greetings offered by one of the workers, by a businesswoman and by a member of the local trade union, the Holy Father addressed the workers who were assembled.
Address of His Holiness, Pope Francis
to workers gathered at the Largo Carlo Felice
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
I cordially greet all of you: workers, employers, authorities and families who are present. In particular, I greet Archbishop Arrigo Miglio and the three of you who have expressed your problems, your expectations and even your hopes. This visit - as we were saying - begins with all of you who make up the world of workers. Through this encounter, I wish above all to express my closeness, especially in situations of suffering: by the many young people who are unemployed, by people who are unemployed or who find themselves in precarious work situations and by entrepreneurs and traders who are struggling to move forward. This is a reality that I know well, thanks to my experience in Argentina. I myself didn't have to live it, but some in my family did: when my father was young, he went to Argentina, full of illusions about becoming American. He suffered the terrible crisis of the 1930s. They lost everything! There was no work! Even as a child, I used to hear them speak about that period of time ... I myself never knew that suffering, I wasn't yet born, but inside our house, I heard about that suffering, I heard talk of that suffering. I know it well! But I have to say to you: Take courage! I also know that I myself have to do my part, because otherwise this word - take courage - is only a momentary greeting. We should not be content only with a polite smile from a friendly employee, even an employee of the Church who might come and say, take courage! No! That's not enough! I would prefer that courage should come from within and motivate me to do everything in my power as Pastor, as a man. You ... We must face this historic challenge with solidarity and wisdom among you, and among us all.
This is the second city I've visited in Italy. It's curious: both of them, that one and this, are islands. In the first city, I saw the suffering of so many people who are seeking, risking their lives, their dignity, their food, their health: it was a world of refugees. And I saw the response of that city which, being an island, didn't want to isolate but to receive them, and make them its own; providing an example of welcome: a positive response to suffering. Here in this second city, an island that I see before me, here too I find suffering. A suffering which one of you said weakens you and ends up stealing your hope. A suffering, because of the lack of jobs, that makes you - excuse me, the words are a bit strong, but true - you feel as though you have no dignity. And this is not a problem unique to Sardinia, but it is a major problem here. It is not a problem unique to Italy or to some countries in Europe; it is the consequence of a worldwide choice, of an economic system that has resulted in this tragedy, and economic system which has at its heart an ideal which is called money.
At the centre of the world, God did not want an idol, he wanted man to have this honour, man and woman who build the world through their own work. But now, this system void of ethics revolves around a different idol and the world now worships the god of money. The world controls the money! It controls the money! It controls all the things that serve it: that serve this idol. And what happens? In defence of this idol, everyone is piled in the middle and the ends fall off. The elderly fall off because in this kind of world, there is no place for them. Some people speak of a habit of hidden euthanasia, of not taking care of them, of not paying them any attention ... Yes, never mind! And the young people fall off, the ones who cannot find work, who cannot discover their own dignity. Think about it! We live in a world where young people, two generations of young people, have no work. These people have no future! Why? Because they don't have dignity! It's difficult to have dignity if you can't find work. This is the suffering you endure here. This is the prayer that you continue to cry out: Work! Work! Work! It is a necessary prayer. To work means to have dignity; to work means to have the ability to bring bread into your home; to work means to love! To defend this idolatrous economic system, the culture of waste was created; grandparents and young people are being thrown away! We must say No! to this culture of waste. We should say: We want a just system! A system that permits all people to advance. We should say: We don't want this global economic system, that causes so much evil. At the centre of everything, there should be man and woman, just as God wanted it, not money!
I had written down a few thoughts that I wanted to share with you, but seeing you, these are the thoughts that have come to mind. I will hand over these written words to your bishop, as though they had been spoken, but I preferred to share with you what came from my heart, now that I have set eyes on you. Look! It's easy to say don't loose hope, but to all of you: those who have jobs and those who don't, I say: Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope! Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope! Perhaps hope is like the embers in the ashes; help each other with solidarity, blow gently on the ashes because the fire will come again. Hope will carry you forward. Hope is not optimism; that's another thing. Hope is not the duty of only one person; we all must hope. We all must support one another in hope, all of you and all of us who are far away. Hope belongs to you and to us. It belongs to all of us. This is why I say to you: Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope! We are cunning, because the Lord tells us that we are smarter than all other idols. The Lord invites us to be as cunning as the serpent, and as good as the dove. Let us be cunning, and let's call things by their proper names. At this moment in time, in our economic system, in our proposed system of global life there is an idol at our core, and this is not the way it should be! We should be united in our struggle because at the core of it all, at least in terms of our lives, there should be men and women, the family, all of us, so that hope can go on. Don't let yourselves be robbed of hope!
Now I want to finish by praying with all of you, in silence, in silence, praying with all of you. I will say what comes from my heart, and you pray in silence with me.
Lord, God, look upon us. Look upon this city, this island. Look upon our families.
Lord, for you, there was always enough work. You were a carpenter. You were happy.
Lord, there isn't enough work.
Other idols want to rob us of our dignity. The unjust systems want to rob us of our hope.
Lord, do not leave us alone. Help us to help each other, that we may forget a bit of our own selfishness, and feel within our hearts a sense of 'we'. We are a people who want to move on.
Lord Jesus, for you, there was always enough work; give us work and teach us to fight for our jobs, and bless us all in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Thank you very much, and please pray for me!
In a separate post, I will furnish the text which the Holy Father gave to the Archbishop of Cagliari, the words that he intended to share with the workers.
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