Angelus on the Resurrection

At 12:00 noon today, the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the faithful and with pilgrims who had gathered in Saint Peter's Square.

Address of His Holiness, Pope Francis

prior to the recitation of the Angelus

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!

The Gospel for this fifth Sunday of Lent narrates the resurrection of Lazarus.  It is the last of the many signs accomplished by Jesus and a gesture that is too large, too divine to be tolerated by the high priests, who upon learning the facts, decided that Jesus had to die (cf. Jn 11:53).

Lazarus had already been dead for three days, when Jesus arrived, and to his sisters Martha and Mary, He uttered words that have forever been remembered by the Christian community.  Jesus says: I am the resurrection and the life, whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live; and he who lives and believes in me will never die (Jn 11:25).  Based on the Lord's words, we believe that the life of those who believe in Jesu and who follow his commandment, after earthly death will be transformed into a new, full and immortal life.  Just as Jesus, was raised up in the flesh, but was not be returned to an earthly life, so we will be resurrected with our bodies which will be transformed into glorious bodies.  He is waiting for us with the Father, and the strength of the Holy Spirit who raised him, and who will also raise up all those who are united to Him.

Before the sealed tomb of his friend Lazarus, Jesus cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out.’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his face wrapped with a cloth (11:43-44). This commanding cry is addressed to every man, because we are all marked for death, all of us; it is the voice of he who is the Lord of life and desires that all have it in abundance (John 10:10). Christ has not resigned himself to the tombs that we have created with our choices of evil and death, with our mistakes, with our sins. He does not resign himself to this! He invites us, he almost commands us, to come out of the tombs in which our sins have buried us. He insistently calls us out of the darkness of the prison in which we have shut ourselves, contenting ourselves with a false, egoistic and mediocre life. Come out! he tells us, Come out! It is a beautiful invitation to true freedom, to let ourselves be seized by these words of Jesus that he repeats to each one of us today. It is an invitation to remove the burial shroud, the burial shroud of pride. Pride makes us slaves, slaves to ourselves, slaves of many idols, of many things. Our resurrection begins here: when we decide to obey this command of Jesus, going out into the light, into life; when the masks fall from our face – often we are masked by sin, the masks must fall! – and we rediscover the courage of our true face, created in the image and likeness of God.

Jesus’ gesture, which raises Lazarus, shows how far the power of God’s Grace can go and how far our conversion can go, our change. But listen well: there is no limit to divine mercy offered to all! There is no limit to divine mercy offered to all! Remember this well. And we can say it all together: There is no limit to divine mercy offered to all! Let us say it together: There is no limit to divine mercy offered to all! The Lord is always ready to remove the stone from the tomb of our sins, which separate us from him, from the light of the living.

Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father spoke again to those gathered in St. Peter’s Square:

I greet all the pilgrims present, in particular the participants in the Congress of the Educational Commitment Movement of Italian Catholic Action. Investing in education means investing in hope!

I greet the faithful of Madrid and Menorca; those from the Diocese of Concordia-Pordenone; the Brazilian group Fraternidade e tráfico humano; the students from Canada, Australia, Belgium and from Cartagena-Murcia; the Alpini of Como and Rome.

I greet the groups of young people who have received or are preparing to receive Confirmation, the young people of various parishes and the numerous students.

Exactly five years have passed since the earthquake that struck Aquila and the surrounding area. In this moment we would like to unite ourselves with that community, which has suffered so much, which still suffers, struggles and hopes, with much confidence in God and in Our Lady. Let us pray for all the victims: may they live forever in the Lord’s peace. And let us pray for the journey of resurrection of the people of Aquila: may solidarity and spiritual rebirth be the power of material reconstruction.

Let us also pray for the victims of the Ebola virus, which has broken out in Guinea and nearby countries. May the Lord sustain the efforts to combat this beginning of an epidemic to ensure care and help for all those in need.

And now I would like to do a simple thing for you. On the past Sundays I suggested to all of you to get yourself a little Gospel to carry with you during the day to be able to read often. Then I thought about the ancient tradition of the Church, during Lent, of giving the Gospel to catechumens, to those who are preparing for Baptism. So, today I would like to offer to you who are in the Square – as a sign for everyone – a small book of the Gospels (he shows the people the book). It will be given to you free of charge. There are places in the Square where you can get one. I see them there, there, there… Go to those posts and get the Gospel. Get it, take it with you, and read it every day: it is Jesus, in fact, who speaks to you there! It is Jesus’ Word: this is Jesus’ Word!

And as he says: freely you have received, freely give, give the message of the Gospel! But maybe some of you think that this is not free. But how much does it cost? How much must I pay, Father? Let us do something: in exchange for this gift, do an act of charity, a gesture of gratuitous love, a prayer for enemies, an act of reconciliation, something…

Today you can read the Gospel with many technological instruments too. You can carry the whole Bible in a telephone, in a tablet. The important thing is to read the Word of God, with all the means, but read the Word of God: it is Jesus who speaks there! And welcome it with an open heart. The good seed bears fruit!

I wish you a good Sunday and a good lunch! Good bye!