The Church is catholic

This morning`s General Audience began at 10:30 in Saint Peter`s Square.  The Holy Father, Pope Francis met with groups of pilgrims and the faithful who had come from all over Italy and from every part of the world.

During his catechesis, spoken in Italian, Pope Francis focused his mediation on the catholicity of the Church.

Following the syntheses of the catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father expressed greetings to the various groups of the faithful who were present.  The General Audience concluded with the recitation of the Our Father and the imparting of the Apostolic Blessing.

Catechesis of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

for the General Audience

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!  I see that today there is terrible weather; you are very courageous.  Bravo!

I believe in one holy, catholic Church … Today we pause to reflect on this aspect of the Church: we call it catholic and this is the Year of catholicity.  First of all, what does the word catholic mean?  It is derived from the Greek word kath’olòn which means according to everyone, the totality.  In what sense does this totality apply to the Church?  In what sense can we say that the Church is catholic?  I would say there are three basic meanings.

First, the Church is catholic because it is the space, the house in which we assemble to proclaim the entirety of the faith, in which the salvation Christ brought is offered to all people.  The Church creates the encounter with the mercy of God which transforms us because Jesus Christ is present, he who gives us the true confession of faith, the fullness of sacramental life, the authenticity of the ordained ministry.  In the Church, all of us find that which is needed in order to grow, to live as Christians, to become saints, to walk through every place and time.

For example, we can say that it’s like life in a family: in a family, every one of us is given everything we need in order to grow, to mature, to live.  We don’t grow on our own, we don’t walk on our own, isolated from everyone else, but we walk and we grow in a community, in a family.  It’s the same with the Church!  In the Church, we can listen to the Word of God, assured that it is the message that the Lord has given to us; in the Church we can meet the Lord in the Sacraments which are the open windows through which we receive the light of God, from which we draw the very life of God; in the Church we learn to live in communion, in the love that comes from God.  All of us can ask ourselves today: how do I live as part of the Church?  When I go to Church, do I think of myself being in a stadium or at a football game?  Do I feel as though I’m at a cinema  No, it’s something totally different.  How do I go to Church?  How do I welcome the gifts that the Church offers to me, for my growth, so that I can grow and mature as a Christian?  Do I participate in the life of the community or do I go to church and close myself within my own problems, isolating myself from others? In this first sense, the Church is catholic because it is everyone’s house.  We are all children of the Church and we are all part of that house.

A second meaning: the Church is catholic because it is universal, it is spread through every part of the world and announces the gospel to every man and every woman.  The Church is not a group of elite, it is not concerned only with a few.  The Church is never closed, it is sent to all people, to the whole of mankind.  The Church is present in the smallest parts of itself.  Everyone can say: in my parish, the Catholic Church is present, because even this little parish is part of the universal Church, even this little parish has the fullness of Christ’s gifts , the faith, the Sacraments, the ministry: it is in communion with the Bishop, with the Pope and it is open to all, without distinction.  The Church doesn’t only exist in the shadow of a bell tower, it embraces all peoples, those who profess the same faith, share the same Eucharist, are served by the same pastor.  We feel connected in communion with the whole Church, with all the small and large Catholic communities throughout the world!  This is good!  We also feel that we are on a mission, whether we’re in a small or a large community, all of us should open our doors and go out to others for the sake of the gospel.  Let us ask ourselves: what do I do to communicate the joy of meeting Jesus to others, the joy of belonging to the Church?  Announcing and bearing witness to the faith is not a little thing, it applies also to me, to you, to all of us!

A third and final thought: the Church is catholic because it is the House of harmony where unity and diversity can exist side by side in order to enrich each other.  Let us consider the image of a symphony: it is in tune, it creates harmony even with different instruments being played together; each one maintains its own unmistakable timbre and its own characteristic sounds united in a common purpose.  Then, there is the one who leads, the director, and the players who play together in harmony, but they don’t drown out the sound of any one instrument; the individuality of each one is therefore valued and maximized!

It’s a beautiful image, to consider the Church like a grand orchestra in which there is variety.  We are not all equal and we don’t all have to be equal.  We are all different, different, each with our own qualities.  And this is beautiful in the Church: each contributes that which God has given in order to enrich the others.  Among the various components, there is diversity, but it is a diversity that does not enter into conflict, it does not counteract; it is a variety that is based on the harmony of the Holy Spirit; and he is the true Maestro, he himself is harmony.  Here too, let us ask ourselves: in our communities, do we live in harmony or do we compete among ourselves?  In my parish community, in my movement, where I am part of the Church, is there gossip?  If there is gossiping there is no harmony, there is competition.  This is not the Church.  The Church is harmony in everything: there should never be gossip, one against another, never competition!  Let us accept the other, let us accept the fact that there will be variety, that others will be different, that this one thinks differently from that one – but in the same faith, it is possible to think in different fashions – or do we want to conform everyone?  Uniformity of this kind kills life.  The life of the Church is variety, and when we want to create uniformity for everyone, we kill the gifts of the Holy Spirit.  Let us pray to the Holy Spirit, the author of unity in variety, the author of this harmony, that he might make us ever more catholic, members of this Church that is catholic and universal!  Thank you.

Syntheses of this catechesis were then shared in various languages before the Holy Father offered greetings to the pilgrims who had gathered in the Square.  To the English-speaking pilgrims, he said:

I cordially greet all the English-speaking pilgrims present at today’s Audience, including those from England, Scotland, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Ghana, Nigeria, Australia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Canada and the United States. My particular greeting goes to the new students of the Pontifical Beda College. Upon all of you, and your families, I invoke God’s blessings of joy and peace!

Following his greetings to the Italian-speaking pilgrims, the Holy Father concluded:

My thoughts are especially fixed upon the youth, the sick and upon newly-weds.  I thank you all for your presence at this gathering.  I encourage you all to be on the lookout for the wounds of Jesus, paying particular attention to the poor and those who are most in need.

With special affection, I greet the Bishops of the Churches from Alexandria, Ethiopia and Eritrea, who are particularly united in prayer and in sorrow for so many of the children of their lands who have lost their lives in last week’s tragedy off the coast of Lampedusa.

The General Audience was concluded with the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer and the imparting of the Apostolic Blessing.