Meeting the Cooperative Confederation

At 11:15 this morning, in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, His Holiness, Pope Francis received in audience the members of the Italian Cooperative Confederation.

Speech of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

for the meeting with the Italian Cooperative Confederation

Brothers and sisters, good morning!

This last (choir) was the most cooperative, the most melodious one!  Congratulations!

Thank you for this opportunity to meet with you and with all that you represent, the fruit of cooperation.  Cooperatives defy everything, even the math, because in a cooperative, one plus one equals three!  In a cooperative, a failure is only a partial failure.  This is the beauty of cooperatives!

Above all else, you hare the living memory of a great treasure of the Italian Church.  In fact, we know that at the beginning of the Italian Cooperative Movement, many agricultural and credit cooperatives, as far back as the 9th century, were wisely founded and promoted by priests and parishes.  Still today, in various Italian dioceses, cooperatives function as effective solutions to the problems of unemployment and various forms of social challenge.

Today, it is a rule, I wouldn't say normal, habitual ... but many times we see: Are you looking for work?  Come, come to this company.  Eleven hours, ten hours of work, 600 Euro.  Would you like that? No? Go home then?  What to do in a world that works like that?  Because there is a code, a line of people who are looking for work: if you're not happy, another person will be.  And hunger, hunger makes us accept that which is given, illegal work ... I can believe, for example, regarding domestic helpers: how many men and women who work as domestics look to social assistance to provide their own lodgings?

All this is well known.  The Church has always known, appreciated and encouraged the cooperative experience.  We read about it in the documents of the Magisterium.  We recall the cry that was launched in 1891, with Rerum Novarum, by Pope Leo XIII: All owners and not all proletarians.  And there are certainly also the pages of the Encyclical Caritas in Veritate, where Benedict XVI expresses his accord with cooperatives for credit and for consumer goods (CV, 65-67), pointing especially to the importance of the economy of communion and the non-profit sector (CV, 41), to affirm the fact that the profit-god is not in fact a divine person, but only a compass and a measure of entrepreneurial activity.  Pope Benedict also explained how our world needs an economy of giving (CV, 34-39), that is to say an economy capable of giving life to businesses, inspiring them to the principle of solidarity and a capacity for creating society.  Through you, the exclamation pronounced by Leo XIII resounds, blessing the innovations put forward by the Italian Catholic Cooperative Movement when he says that, in order to do this, Christianity has the wealth of a marvelous strength (RN, 15).

These, and many other statements of recognition and encouragement offered to cooperatives by the Church are still valid today.  I think also of the extraordinary social teachings of Blessed Paul VI.  These claims we can affirm and strengthen.  It is not necessary to repeat or to cite them in full.

Today, I would like our dialogue to look not only at the past but above all to have it address what is ahead: the new prospects, the new responsibilities, the new forms of initiative of the cooperative businesses. It is a true mission that asks us for creative imagination to find ways, methods, attitudes and instruments to combat the throwaway culture, which we live today, the throwaway culture cultivated by powers that govern the economic-financial policies of the globalized world, where the god of money is at the centre.

Globalize solidarity – this must be globalized: solidarity! – today it means to think of the vertiginous increase of unemployed, the incessant tears of the poor, the need to take up a development that is the true integral progress of the person, who is certainly in need of income, but not only of income! We can think of the needs of health, which the traditional welfare systems can no longer satisfy; of the pressing needs of solidarity, putting again at the centre of the world economy the dignity of the human person, as you said. As Pope Leo XIII would say again today: Christianity has a wonderful wealth of strengths to globalize solidarity!

Therefore, do not pause to look only at what you have been able to do. Continue to perfect, to reinforce and to update the good and solid realities that you have already built. However, you must also have the courage to come out of them, the loads of experience and good methods, to lead cooperation to new frontiers of change, to the existential fringes where hope is in need of emerging and where, unfortunately, the present socio-political system seems, instead, fatally destined to suffocate hope, to rob people of hope and to leave increasing risks and menaces in its wake.

This great leap forward that we propose cooperatives should take, will confirm that all that you have already done is not only positive and vital but also continues to be prophetic. Therefore, you must continue to invent – this is the word: to invent – new forms of cooperation, because the warning: when the tree puts out new branches, the roots are alive and the trunk is strong! -- is also valid for cooperatives.

Here, today, you represent valid experiences in many sectors: from the development of agriculture to the promotion of the building of new houses for those who do not have a house, from the social cooperatives to cooperative credit, largely represented here, from fishing to industry, to enterprises, to communities, to consumption, to distribution and to many other types of service. I am well aware that this list is not complete, but it is sufficiently useful for understanding how precious the cooperative method is, which must go on and continue to be creative. It has revealed itself as such in many challenges. And it will do so again! However, every appreciation and every encouragement risks remaining generic. Instead, I would like to offer you some concrete encouragement.

The first is this: the cooperatives must continue to be the engine that relieves and develops the weakest part of our local communities and of civil society. Sentiment is not capable of this. Therefore the foundation of new cooperative enterprises must take first place, along with further development of the existing ones, in order to create above all new possibilities of work that do not exist today.

My thoughts go first of all to young people, because we know that youth unemployment, which is dramatically high – we can think of some countries in Europe where it is 40, 50%  -- destroys hope in them. However, we can think also of the many women who have the need and will to insert themselves in the world of work. We do not neglect the adults who often remain prematurely without work. What are you? I’m an engineer – Ah, how nice, how nice. How old are you? – 49 – No good, go. This happens every day. In addition to new enterprises, we also look at the companies that are in difficulty, to those that it suits old bosses to allow to die and which instead can be revived with initiatives that you call workers buy out, recovered enterprises, in my language, saved companies. And I, as I said to their representatives, am a fan of recovered enterprises!

A second encouragement – not in any order of importance – is that of activating yourselves as protagonists to bring about new Welfare solutions, in particular in the field of health, a delicate field in which so many poor people no longer find adequate answers to their needs. I know what you have been doing for years with heart and passion, in the fringes of the cities and of our society, for families, children, the elderly, the sick and disadvantaged persons in difficulty for different reasons, bringing to homes both heart and help. Charity is a gift! It is not a simple gesture to calm the heart; it is a gift! When I do charitable things, I give myself! If I am unable to give myself, then it is not charity -- a gift without which one cannot enter the home of one who suffers. In the language of the Social Doctrine of the Church this means to appeal to subsidiarity with force and coherence: it means to join forces!

How good it would be if, beginning from Rome, there could be born through cooperatives in parishes and in hospitals – I am thinking of  the Bambin Gesu in particular,  an efficient network of assistance and solidarity. And people, beginning with the neediest, would be put at the centre of all this solidarity movement: people at the centre, the neediest at the centre. This is the mission we propose to you!  The task for you is to invent practical solutions, to make this network function in concrete situations in your local communities, beginning in fact from your history, with your patrimony of knowledge to combine being an enterprise and at the same time not forgetting that the person is at the centre of everything.

You have done so much, and yet there is still so much to be done! Let’s keep going!

The third encouragement regards the economy, its relationship with social justice, with the dignity and value of persons. Noted is that a certain liberalism believes it is necessary to produce wealth first, and it does not matter how, in order to then promote some redistributive policy by the State. First fill the glass and then give to others. Others think that it is the enterprise itself that must enlarge the crumbs of accumulated wealth, thus absolving the so-called social responsibility. The risk is run of deluding oneself of doing good while, unfortunately, one continues to do only marketing without coming out of the fatal cycle of egoism of persons and companies that have the god of money at the centre.

Instead, we know that by realizing a new quality of economy, the capacity is created to make persons grow in all their potentiality. For instance: the members of the cooperative must not be only furnishers, workers, well treated users, they must always be protagonists, they must grow through the cooperative, they must grow as persons, socially and professionally, in responsibility, in concretizing hope, in doing things together. I am not saying that there must not be growth in income, but this is not enough: the enterprise managed by the cooperative must truly grow in a cooperative way, namely, involving everyone. One plus one equals three! This is the logic.

In the Latin etymology co-operators means to work together, to cooperate and, therefore, to work, help, contribute to reach an end. Do not ever be content with the word cooperative without having the awareness of the true essence and the spirit of cooperation.

The fourth suggestion is this: if we look around us, it never happens that the economy is renewed in a society growing old, instead of growing. The co-operative movement can exercise an important role by supporting, facilitating and also encouraging the life of families. To bring about conciliation, or perhaps better the harmonization between work and family; it is a task you have already started and that you must increasingly carry out. To do this means also to help women to fulfil themselves in their vocation and to bring their talents to fruition. Women should be free to increasingly be protagonists, whether in enterprises or in families! I am well aware that the cooperatives already propose many services and many organizational formulas, such as those which meet the needs of all, of children and of the elderly in particular, from nursery schools to home help. This is our way of managing common goods; those goods that must not be the property of a few and must not pursue speculative ends.

The fifth encouragement, perhaps, will surprise you! Money is necessary to do these things! In general, cooperatives are not founded by great capitalists; rather, it is often said that they are structurally under-capitalized. Instead, Pope Paul VI said: you must invest, and you must invest well! Certainly, in Italy, but not only in Italy, it is difficult to obtain public money to fill the scarcity of resources. The solution I propose to you is this: bring together with determination the good means to carry out good works. Collaborate more between banks and business cooperatives, organize the resources to make it possible for families to live with dignity and serenity; pay just salaries to workers, investing especially in initiatives that are truly necessary.

It is not easy to speak of money. Basil of Cesarea , a 4th-century Father of the Church, said, (and this was adopted by Francis of Assisi), that money is the dung of the devil. The Pope repeats it also now: money is the dung of the devil! When money becomes an idol, it controls man’s choices. And then it ruins man and condemns him. It renders him a slave. Money at the service of life can be managed in the right way by a cooperative, if it is, however, a genuine, true  cooperative where capital does not command man but man commands capital.

Therefore I say to you that you do well – and I say also that you do so ever more – to oppose and combat false cooperatives, those that prostitute the very name cooperative, namely, of a very good reality to deceive people with objectives of profit contrary to true and genuine cooperation. Do well, I say to you, because, in the field in which you operate, to assume an honorable facade and instead pursue dishonorable and immoral ends, often addressed to the exploitation of work, or to the manipulations of the market, and even to scandalous traffic of corruption is a disgrace and a very grave lie which cannot absolutely be accepted. Fight against this! But how should you fight? Only with words? With ideas? Fight with just cooperation, the true one, the one that always wins.

A cooperative economy, if it is genuine, if it is going to carry out a strong social function, if it is going to be a protagonist of the future of a nation and of each local community, the cooperative economy, must pursue transparent and limpid ends. It must promote the economy of honesty! It must be a healing economy in the insidious sea of the global economy: a true economy promoted by persons who have at heart and in mind only the common good.

Cooperatives have a strong international tradition. In this also you have been real pioneers! Your international associations were born well before those that other enterprises created in much later times. Now there is the new great globalization, which reduces some imbalances but creates many others. Therefore, the cooperative movement cannot remain foreign to the economic and social globalization, whose effects are known in all countries, and even within our homes.

However, do cooperatives participate in globalization as other enterprises? Is there an original way that allows cooperatives to address the new challenges of the global market?  How can cooperatives participate in the development of cooperation, safeguarding the principles of solidarity and justice? I say it to you to say it to all the cooperatives worldwide: the cooperatives cannot remain shut-in at home, nor even less so can they come out of their homes as if they are not co-operatives. No, one cannot think of a two-faced cooperative. There must be the courage and the imagination to find the right way to integrate development, justice and peace in the world.

Finally, do not let the collaboration of the cooperative movement with your parishes and your dioceses live only in your memory. The ways of collaboration must be diverse, in relation to those of its origins, but the way must always be the same! Where there are old and new existential fringes, where there are disadvantaged persons, where there are persons alone and discarded, where there are persons who are not respected, stretch out your hand to them! Collaborate among yourselves, in respect to the vocational identity of each one, stretching out your hand!

I know that you have been collaborating for some years with other cooperative associations – even if not connected with our history and our traditions – to create an alliance of Italian co-operatives and co-operators. For the time being it is an alliance in the making, but be confident in reaching a unique association, an ever more vast alliance between co-operators and cooperatives. The Italian co-operative movement has a great tradition, respected in the international co-operative world. The cooperative mission in Italy was very linked from the beginning to the identity, values and social forces present in the country. Please, respect this identity! However, the choices that distinguished and divided were often in the long run stronger than the choices that, instead, joined forces and united the efforts of all. Now you think you can rank in first place that which unites you. It is in fact around that which unites you, the most authentic, the most profound and the most vital part of Italian cooperatives, that you wish to build your new associative form.

You will do well to plan this way, and thus you will take a step forward! Of course, there are Catholic cooperatives and non-Catholic cooperatives. However, is faith saved by remaining shut-in on ourselves?  Remaining alone among ourselves? Live your alliance as Christians, as an answer to your faith and your identity without fear! Faith and identity are the basis. Go forward, therefore, and walk together with all persons of good will! And this is also a Christian call, a Christian call to all. Christian values are not for us alone; they are to be shared! And share them with others, with those who do not think like us but want the same things that we want. Go forward, have courage! Be creators, poets, go forward!

At the end of the retreat

Since Sunday evening of this past week, the Holy Father, Pope Francis and members of the Roman Curia have been on retreat, taking part in Spiritual Exercises.  These Exercises came to a conclusion this morning.  Following the final session, the Holy Father thanked the presenter, Father Bruno Secondin, a Carmelite, for his insights.

Words of gratitude spoken by His Holiness, Pope Francis

at the conclusion of the Spiritual Exercises

In the name of all of us here, myself included, I wish to thank Father for his work among us for our Exercises.  It is not easy to give a retreat to priests!  We are all a bit complicated, but you managed to sow some seeds.  May the Lord make it possible for these seeds you have given us to grow.  I hope, we all hope that we may be able to leave this place with a bit of Elijah's mantle in hand and in our hearts.  Thank you Father!

Chaldean Catholic Church burned

One of the oldest churches in Syria was set on fire on Monday of this week, and hundreds of Chaldean Christians were taken hostage by ISIS militants in the hills located in the North East of the country, following an attack on two villages.

The jihadists set fire to the Catholic church in Tal Hermez, one of the oldest churches in Syria and demanded the release of their prisoners, currently being held by the Kurdish Peshmerga, in exchange for the hostages.  Otherwise, they have threatened to kill them.

The attack began on Monday at dawn with a raid on a village near Tell Tamer, in the Al-Hasakah, where many Assyrian-Chaldean Syrians live.  Women and children were gathered in a part of the village which is dominated by jihadists while the men were transported to the mountains of Abd al-Aziz.

Before the civil war in Syria began in 2011, there were 2 million Christians living in that country, among which, more than 400,000 were Catholic.  Because of the conflict though, thousands of Christians have fled to other countries out of fear of persecution by jihadist groups and by al-Quaeda.

The Syrian Press Agency Sana has confirmed that hundreds of ISIS militiamen riding transport vehicles have launched attacks in several villages throughout Syria, including Tal Hermez, Shamiram Tal, Tal Riman, Tal Nasra, al-Agibash, Toma and Yalda al-Haooz, located in eastern regions of the country.  Dozens of people have been killed.

ISIS hopes to open a corridor to Turkey in order to facilitate the passage of arms and mercenaries.

A new Doctor of the Church

Last Saturday, February 21, 2015, the Holy Father, Pope Francis received His Eminence, Cardinal Angelo Amato, SDB, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in a private audience.

During that audience, the Holy Father confirmed the affirmative decision of the Plenary Session of Cardinals and Bishops who are members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints regarding the title of Doctor of the Church which will soon be conferred upon Saint Gregory of Narek, a Monastic Priest who was born in Andzevatsik (Armenia, now the territory of Turkey) around the year 950 A.D., and died in Narek (Armenia, now the territory of Turkey) around the year 1005.

The title Doctor of the Church is rarely conferred upon Saints of the Church, usually because of the orthodoxy of their teaching, and their holiness of life.

From temptations to joy

For this first Sunday of Lent, the scriptures propose Saint Mark's account of the temptations of Jesus.  Here are some thoughts inspired by this gospel account which might help us to continue our journey.

Out of love for us

After Jesus was baptized,

the Spirit drove him into the wilderness

(Mark 1:12)

A few days ago, we placed ashes on our heads as a sign of our willingness to embark upon the journey that leads us toward the great celebration of Easter.  Before we celebrate though, our journey brings us face to face with some stark realities that we must admit: we are all mortals, we are all sinners, we are all in need of forgiveness.

All human beings are mortal: our lives here on earth are but for a finite period of time.  When we are young, it’s difficult to understand this concept, but as the years go by, we are more and more aware that this life we live is very fragile.  All that we see and touch, all that we possess will one day be taken away from us.  In the case of Noah and his family, all that they could see and touch was washed away by the waters of the flood, except for the contents of the ark.  Luckily for us, today’s first reading reminds us that such a catastrophe will never happen again.  God created a covenant that day with Noah and his descendants: never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth (Genesis 8:11). 

Every new beginning involves a resolution.  In this case God’s resolution was that he would never again use water to destroy evil in our world.  I have sometimes wondered if God ever regretted making such a promise, and yet he never goes back on a promise, so although there have been great tragedies since that time, never again has all flesh been cut off by the waters of a flood, because God loves us; God wants us to live; God wants us to be happy, truly happy, not the happiness that passes away, but the true happiness that is found in immortal realities, intangible things.

All human beings are sinners: no matter how hard we try, no matter what habits we might want to change, no matter what plans we might make to better ourselves, we will always stumble and we will never be able to succeed without God’s help.   Even Jesus had to face temptation: After he was baptized, the spirit drove him out into the wilderness … where he was tempted by Satan (Mark 1:12-13), but here again, God did not go back on his promise.  The voice of God had been heard over the waters when Jesus was baptized: You are my Son, the Beloved, with you I am well pleased (Mark 1:11), so even as Jesus was driven into the desert to be tempted, he was not left alone (cf Mk 1:13): he had the help of angels, and so do we.  The angels watch over us and protect us; they guide us on the journey of life; they are with us at all times, even when we are unaware of their presence, simply to help us find our way.  Even when we sin and turn away from God, the angels help to turn us back toward him, to remember his love for us and to thirst for his presence in our lives.

All human beings are in need of forgiveness: we may not think so, especially when life seems to be good, but the promise of forgiveness is perhaps the most powerful gift that God gives us, because God never goes back on his promise.  Remember the flood?

Christ suffered for sins once for all … in order to bring us back to God (1 Peter 3:18).  The season of Lent is a time of grace for us, an opportunity for God to tell us once again how much he loves us, an opportunity for us to recognize the lengths to which he is willing to go in order to convince us how deeply we are cherished.  God loved us when he created us, when he placed Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden and provided for all their needs; God loved us when he asked Noah to build the ark and protected his family even as the waters of the great flood destroyed all other signs of life.  God has always loved us, and will always love us.

Saint Peter tells us that the story of Noah and the flood prefigures the Sacrament of Baptism, and baptism is an appeal to God for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ (1 Peter 3:21).  The Church has always taught that baptism washes away our sins, but since we can only be baptized once, the Church also provides the Sacrament of Reconciliation so that we can turn back to God whenever we recognize the fact that we have lost sight of Him and need to come back.

Our God loves us; he wants us to be truly happy, and he wants to do everything in his power to give us all the things we need so that we can discover this happiness.  Lent gives us a precious opportunity to re-discover this truth and to celebrate it joyfully.

Vatican Lenten Spiritual Exercises begin

At 6:00pm today in Rome, the annual Spiritual Exercises for the Roman Curia began.  This year, the Exercises are being offered at the House of the Divine Master in Ariccia, and the Holy Father is also participating.

The meditations will be offered by Father Bruno Secondin, of the Carmelite Order, and have as their overall theme: Servants and prophets of the living God, a pastoral letter by the Prophet Elijah.

The Exercises will conclude on Friday morning, February 27.

During the week of the Spiritual Exercises, all audiences have been suspended, including the normal Wednesday General Audience.

First Angelus for Lent

At noon today in Rome, 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 for the usual Sunday appointment.

Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

prior to the recitation of the Angelus

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!

Last Wednesday, Lent began with the rite of Ashes, and today is the first Sunday of this liturgical time which makes reference to the forty days that Jesus spent in the desert, after his baptism in the Jordan river.  Saint Mark writes in today's gospel: The Spirit drove Jesus into the desert and in the desert he remained for forty days, being tempted by Satan.  He was with the wild beasts and the angels took care of him (Mark 1:12-13).  With these few words, the evangelist describes the tests that Jesus willingly faced, before beginning his messianic mission.  This was a test over which the Lord was victorious, a test which prepared him to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.  During those forty days spent in solitude, he faced Satan one on one, disproved his temptations and was victorious.  And in Him, we too are victorious over everything, but it is up to us to protect this victory every day.

The Church reminds us of this mystery at the beginning of Lent, for it gives us the perspective and the sense of this time, which is a time of combat - you have to fight during Lent - a time of spiritual combat against the spirit of evil (cf the Opening Prayer for the liturgy of Ash Wednesday).  And while we cross the desert of Lent, we keep our eyes fixed on Easter, which is the definitive victory of Jesus against the Evil One, against sin and against death.  This then is the significance of the first Sunday of Lent: let us set out decisively on the road with Jesus, the road that leads to life.  Look toward Jesus, what did Jesus do, and go with Him.

And the way of Jesus travels through the desert.  The desert is the place where we can listen to the voice of God and the voice of the tempter.  In the midst of noise and confusion, it is not possible; we hear only superficial voices.  However, in the desert, we can delve to the depths, where our destiny is truly at play: life or death.  How do we listen for the voice of God?  We listen to his Word.  This is why it's important to know the scriptures, otherwise we won't know how to respond to the cunning of the evil one.  Here, I want to return to my suggestion to read the gospel every day: every day, read the gospel, meditate on it, just a little bit, ten minutes; and always carry it with us: in our pocket, in a purse ... Keep the gospel at hand.  The Lenten desert helps us to say no to worldliness, to idols, it helps us to make courageous choices according to the gospel and to strengthen our solidarity with our brothers and sisters.

Therefore, let us enter into the desert without fear, for we are not alone: we are with Jesus, with the Father and with the Holy Spirit.  As it was for Jesus, it is truly the Holy Spirit who guides our Lenten journey, the same Spirit that descended upon Jesus and that was given to us at our Baptism.  Lent, therefore, is a favoured time which should lead us to be ever more aware of how much the Holy Spirit, received at Baptism, has been at work and can work in us.  At the end of the Lenten journey, at the Easter Vigil, we can renew our baptismal covenant and the commitments that flow from it.

May the Holy Virgin, a model of docility to the Spirit, help us to allow ourselves to be guided by Him who wants to make new creations out of each of us.

To Her, I confide in particular, this week of Spiritual Exercises which will begin this afternoon and in which I will participate along with my colleagues in the Roman Curia.  Pray that in this desert of Exercises, we may listen to the voice of Jesus and also that we may correct the many faults that we have.  May we also face the temptations that attack us every day.  I ask you in the meanwhile to accompany us with your prayers.

Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:

Dear brothers and sisters,

I wish to cordially greet the families, the parish groups, the associations and all the pilgrims from Rome, from Italy and from various other countries.

I greet the faithful from Napoli, Cosenza and Verona, and the young people from Seregno who have come to make their profession of faith.

Lent is a journey of conversion which is centred on the heart.  Our hearts need to be converted to the Lord.  Therefore, on this first Sunday of Lent, I want to present each one of you who is here in the Square with a little pocket book entitled: Take care of the heart.  This is it (he shows them a copy).  This book includes all the teachings of Jesus and the essential components of our faith, such as the seven Sacraments, the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the ten commandments, the virtues, the works of mercy, et cetera.  Now, the volunteers will distribute them; among them are many homeless persons who have come on pilgrimage.  As it always is, even today, here in the Square, it is the ones who are in need who themselves offer a great gift: the gift of our doctrine, in order to take care of the heart.  Take one book each and carry it with you, as an aid to help your conversion and your spiritual growth, which always begins in your heart: that is where you play the game of daily choices between good and evil, between worldliness and the gospel, between indifference and sharing.  Humanity needs justice, peace, love and we will only discover them when we return with all our hearts to God, who is the source of all of them.  Take the book, and read it, all of you.

I wish you a good Sunday.  Please, especially during this week of the Exercises, don't forget to pray for me.  Enjoy your lunch.  Good bye!

A visit from Cassano

At 12:15pm today in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, the Holy Father, Pope Francis received in audience a group of people participating in the pilgrimage organized by the Diocese of Cassano all'Jonio.

Speech of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

for pilgrims from the Diocese of Cassano all'Jonio

Dear brothers and sisters,

First of all, I greet the faithful from the Diocese of Cassano all'Jonio, who are here with your pastor, His Excellency, Nunzio Galantino, who I thank for the words he has offered to me.  And I thank you for allowing him to be available to the Episcopal Conference last year.  Thank you very much!  Thank you with all my heart.  But poor man, during this past year, he came and went, came and went ... I believe that it's time to think about giving you another pastor ... (the pilgrims respond: No!) ...  Maybe you can offer him your applause, he will remember it ... I also greet the other bishops who are present, among them including the Eparch of Lungro: in fact the Church in Calabria has traditionally welcomed different rites which express the variety of gifts that enrich the Church of Christ.

I greet the representatives from the Emmanuel Community, born out of a desire to bring life to life with all those who knock at the door.  I thank you, (Father Mario Marafioti) for the words you have offered to me, and I encourage your efforts to welcome the suffering Christ.  This welcome is the result of a style of apostleship based on fervent prayer and intense community life.  The result is seen in Centres of welcome where people are listened to, family homes in Italy and elsewhere and Associations, among which I greet the Emmanuel Volunteers from Cerignola.

The memory of my visit to your diocesan community is still fresh in my heart: the meetings with prisoners, with the sick, with the priests, the religious, the seminarians ... how many seminarians are there now?  (Eight)  Eight?  That's not enough!  We need to pray more for vocations.  Ok?  Ok!  The Lord told us to pray and to ask Him to send us priests.  I trust in your prayers: knock at the heart of Jesus, ask him to send us priests.  I also remember the meeting I had with the elderly: the visit at the Cathedral and at the Seminary; and then the extraordinary presence of people in the Sibari Plain: all of Calabria was there!  I witnessed first-hand both your faith and your love.  May the Lord help you to always walk together with your parishes and your associations, led by the bishop and the priests.  May He help you to be a welcoming community, to accompany all those who are struggling to discern Christ's saving presence.

I would like to reaffirm a thought that I suggested during my visit: whoever loves Jesus, whoever hears and welcomes his Word and whoever lives in sincere response to the call of the Lord cannot be involved in any way with evil works.  Choose either Jesus or evil!  Jesus did not invite devils to lunch: he drove them away because they were evil. Choose either Jesus or evil!  No one can call himself Christian and violate the dignity of persons; anyone who belongs to a Christian community cannot be trained to use gestures of violence against other people and against the environment.  External gestures of religiosity which are not accompanied by true and public conversion are not enough to be considered in communion with Christ and with his Church.  External gestures of religiosity are not enough for others to believe that others are believers, especially if they demonstrate malice and arrogance typical of evildoers, if they live lawless lifestyles.   To those who have chosen the path of evil and are affiliated with evildoing organizations, I renew my invitation to conversion.  Open your hearts to the Lord!  Open your hearts to the Lord!  The Lord is waiting for you and the Church is ready to welcome you. Since your choice to serve evil is so well known, clear and publicly known will your willingness also be to serve good.

Dear brothers and sisters from Cassano, the beauty of your land is a gift fro God and a heritage worth preserving and passing on in all its splendour to future generations.  Therefore, this must be the courageous commitment of all peoples, beginning with your Institutions, so that it is not irreparably scarred by narrow-minded interests.  Among the beauties of your land, is the Emmanuel Community, an example of welcome and sharing with the less fortunate.  Youth who have been devastated by drugs have found in your and in your structure the good Samaritan who knew how to stoop down over their wounds and to anoint them with the balm of closeness and affection.  How many families have found in you the help they needed to hope once again for their children!  The Church is grateful to you for this service.  Placing yourselves alongside young people and adults who are suffering under the weight of dependencies, you have embraced the suffering Jesus and have sown seeds of hope.

Our times are in great need of hope!  Young people cannot be prevented from hoping.  Young people need to hope!  All those who are living experiences of pain and suffering must be offered concrete signs of hope.  Social and associative realities, as well as individuals who work in hospitality and cooperative efforts, are creators of hope.  Therefore I exhort your Christian communities to be builders of solidarity, to not stop in the face of those who, out of narrow-minded self-interest would rather sow selfishness, violence and injustice.  Oppose the culture of death and be witnesses of the gospel of life!  The light of the Word of God and the support of the Holy Spirit will help and guide you with new eyes and to be available to the many new forms of poverty which through so many young people and families into desperation.

Upon all of you who are here and upon the entire Diocese of Cassano all'Jonio I invoke the protection of Holy Mary, who you venerate under the title of Our Lady of Chains and Our Lady of the Castle.  May my blessing also accompany you.  Please, don't forget to pray for me.

And now, all together, we turn to Our Lady, and pray together: Hail Mary ...

Thank you very much for your visit.  God bless you all!

Germany at the Vatican

This morning, the Holy Father, Pope Francis received in audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Her Excellency Angela Merkel, who subsequently met with His Eminence, the Cardinal Secretary of State, Pietro Parolin; accompanied by His Excellency, Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States.

During the cordial discussions, and in view of the upcoming G7 Summit to be held in Bavaria, special attention was paid to various questions of an International nature, with particular reference to the struggle against poverty and hunger; the exploitation of human beings and the rights of women; and the challenges of promoting world health and the protection of Creation. The themes of human rights and religious freedoms in various parts of the world were also considered, emphasizing the importance of spiritual values for social cohesion.

Finally, the Parties considered the situation in Europe, underlining in particular the commitment to reaching a peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine.

With his brothers from Ukraine

At 12:30pm today, in the Sala Clementina at the Vatican Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father, Pope Francis met the Bishops of the Greek-Catholic Church in Ukraine; the Byzantine Rite Bishop of Mukachevo and the Bishops of the Ukrainian Episcopal Conference, received this morning in separate audiences on the occasion of their visit ad limina Apostolorum.

The Holy Father provided three autographed copies of his speech to each of the Prelates, since there are three ecclesiastical jurisdictions in Ukraine.

Speech of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

Addressed to the Bishops of Ukraine

Your Beatitude,
Lord Archbishop,
Dear brother Bishops,

I welcome you to this house which is also your house.  You know this well, since the Successor of Peter has always welcomed with fraternal friendship, his brothers from Ukraine, a country which, rightly, is considered a border line between the descendants of Vladimir and Olga and those of Adalbert and the great Carolingian missionaries, as well as those who refer to the holy Apostles of the Slavs, Cyril and Methodius.  And even before all of this, there were traditions, partially documented, which mention the Apostle Andrew and the two martyred Popes: Saint Clement and Saint Martin I.  Dear brothers, you are most welcome!

With great attention, I have learned about your problems, which are many, and about your pastoral plans.  I entrust them with confidence to the Mother of God and our Mother, who watches over us with tender love:

Your country is in a situation of grave conflict, which has been continuing for several months and is claiming numerous innocent victims and causing great suffering for the entire population.  In this period, as I have assured you on many occasions, directly and through the Cardinal Visitors, I am especially close to you in my prayer for the dead and for those who are being affected by the violence, with supplications offered to the Lord, that he may soon grant peace, and with a call to all the interested parties that they enact the arrangements reached by common agreement and respect the principles of international law; especially, that they observe the truce which was recently signed and has been applied in relation to all other commitments which are conditions to prevent the resumption of hostilities.

I know the historical events which have marked your land and which are still present in your collective memory.  It is a matter of questions which in part have a political basis, and to which you are called to provide direct answers, but there are also socio-cultural realities and human dramas which require your direct and positive contribution.

In circumstances such as those, what is important is to listen attentively to the voices coming from your land, where the people entrusted to your pastoral care live.  Listening to your people, you demonstrate your care for the values that characterize them: encounter, collaboration, an ability to resolve disputes.  Put simply: the search for possible peace.  This ethical patrimony you can feed with love, the divine love that comes from the heart of Christ.  I am well aware that, at the local level, you have specific policies and practices among you, heirs of two established spiritual traditions - Eastern and Latin - as well as other Christians present among you.  As well as a duty, this is also an honour which must be recognized.

At the national level, you are fully citizens of your country, and therefore you have the right to make your thoughts known, even in common form, concerning your destiny.  Not in the sense of promoting a particular political action, but by the indication and reaffirmation of values which constitute the unifying element of Ukrainian society, persevering in tireless pursuit of harmony and the common good, even in the face of grave and complex difficulties.

The Holy See is at your side, also at that of international entities, to make your rights, your concerns and the just evangelical values that motivate you, understood. Moreover, it is searching to see in what ways it can meet the pastoral necessities of those ecclesiastical structures that also find themselves facing new juridical questions.

The crisis triggered off in your country has had, as is understandable, grave repercussions in the life of families. To this is added the consequences of that badly understood sense of economic freedom that has enabled the formation of a restricted group of persons who have enriched themselves enormously to the detriment of the great majority of citizens. The presence of such a phenomenon has unfortunately also polluted the public institutions to differing degrees. This has generated an iniquitous poverty in a generous and rich land.

Do not tire of making present to your fellow citizens the considerations that the faith and your pastoral responsibility suggest to you. The sense of justice and of truth that, before being political is moral, and this task is also entrusted to your responsibility as Pastors. The more you are free ministers of the Church of Christ, all the more, despite your own poverty, will you be defenders of families, of the poor, of the unemployed, of the weak, of the sick, of the elderly pensioners, of the invalids and of those who have been displaced.

I encourage you, with the grace of God, to renew your zeal for the proclamation of the gospel in Ukrainian society and to support one another in this effort with active collaboration. You should always strive to see as Christ sees, he who saw the abundance of the harvest and prayed to the Lord to send the labourers (cf Matthew 9:37-38). This means that you must pray and work for vocations to the priesthood and to the consecrated life and, at the same time, it means that you must take care to be attentive to the formation of the clergy, of the men and women religious, all the while striving to be found in service to a more profound and organic knowledge of the faith within the people of God.

In addition, I would like to give you a further reflection regarding relationships among you, brothers in the Episcopate. I know the complex historical issues that weigh on your mutual relationships, as well as some aspects of a more personal character.

The fact remains indisputable that in both Episcopates there are Catholics and Ukrainians, though they exist in a diversity of rites and traditions. It hurts me, personally, to hear that there are misunderstandings and wounds. There is need for a doctor, and this doctor is Jesus Christ, whom you both serve with generosity and your whole heart. You are one body and, as Saint John Paul II and Benedict XVI have said in the past, I exhort you, in my turn, to find between you the way to receive one another and to support one another generously in your apostolic endeavuors.

The unity of the Episcopate, in addition to giving good witness to the people of God, provides an inestimable service to the nation, either on the cultural and social plane, or especially, on the spiritual plane. You are united in fundamental values and you hold the most precious treasures in common: the faith and the people of God. Therefore, I consider as of supreme importance, the joint reunion of the Bishops of all the Churches sui iuris who are present in Ukraine. Always be generous in talking among brothers!

Whether as Greek-Catholics or as Latin Rite [Catholics] you are children of the Catholic Church, which in your land also was subjected for a long period to martyrdom. May the blood of your witnesses, who intercede for you from Heaven, be the ultimate reason that pushes you to a true communion of hearts. Unite your strengths and support one another, making historical issues a reason for sharing and for unity. Well rooted in the Catholic communion, you will also be able to carry on your ecumenical commitment with faith and patience, so that unity and cooperation may grow among all Christians.

I am certain that your decisions, in agreement with the Successor of Peter, will be able to take charge of your people's expectations. I invite you all to govern the communities entrusted to you, ensuring as much as possible your presence and your closeness to the priests and the faithful.

I hope that you will be able to have respectful and profitable relations with the public Authorities. I exhort you to be attentive and solicitous to the poor: they are your riches. You are Pastors of a flock entrusted to you by Christ; be always well aware of this, also in your internal organizations of self-government. They should always understood as instruments of communion and of prophecy. In this connection, I hope that your intentions and your actions will always be oriented to the general good of the Churches entrusted to you. In this may you be guided, as always, by love for your Communities, in the same spirit that sustained the Apostles, of whom you are the legitimate successors. May you be supported in your work by the memory and intercession of so many Martyrs and Saints, which the grace of the Lord Jesus aroused among you. May the maternal protection of the Blessed Virgin reassure you on your journey of encounter with Christ who comes to reinforce your resolutions of communion and collaboration. And, while I ask you to pray for me, I affectionately impart a special Apostolic Blessing upon you, upon your Communities, and upon the dear people of Ukraine.

Concerning the Vatican Pension Fund

Today the Board of Directors and the College of Auditors who have been examining the Vatican Pension Fund released the following statement:

For several months now, media reports have been circulating alarming reports about the situation of the Vatican Pension Fund and its sustainability, given its commitments to present and future members.  The Fund's Board of Directors and the College of Account Auditors, in its meeting held on February 19 of this year, took the opportunity to officially perform an actuarial study of the assets and the income generated by the Fund as indicated by the Financial Technical actuarial certification drawn up by the actuary and the Fund's financial statements which have duly been approved by the Secretariat of State.

Concerning the actuarial aspect, we note the substantial balance between available resources and loans to current and future retirees, thanks to interventions (approved by the Secretary of State at the behest of the Board of Directors) both concerning contributions (the rates of which have been increased over the years to the current rate of 26% of taxable wages) and performance (the prolongation of the working years to the age of 67 years for lay persons and 72 years for clergy and religious).

The financial statements for the year show that over the course of years, the financial structure of the Fund has been solid.  The coverage ratio of the Fund (the funding ratio) is 95%.

Based strictly on income, the economic and financial situation of the institution records a progressive increase of financial resources and real estate, together with the resources which, from 1993 to 2013 have increased by 22,256,196 per year, continuing an upward trend through the years, which in the last six years has increased from 23,583,882 to 26,866,657, an amount sufficient to cover the actual cost of the existing pensions.

To complete the picture, it should be noted that the Fund's assets at December 31, 2014 are 477,668.000.  Adding the preventative management advance foreseen for 2015 in the amount of 27,140,000, it is conceivable that on December 31, 2015, the Fund will have a net worth of more than 504 million euro, confirming the real strength of the Fund, which has grown from an initial allocation of 10 billion old Italian lire in 1993 to more than 500 million euro in little more than twenty years.

Thank you for your prayers

About a week ago, we learned of the death of one of our oldest and most respected parishioners.  Here is the text of the reflection I prepared for the funeral liturgy which we celebrated earlier today.

Funeral homily for Margaret (Peggy) Dillon

A little more than two years ago, when I had received the news that I was to be appointed as pastor to this parish, I remember speaking briefly with Father Peter.  He told me then that plans had been made for a pictorial directory of the parish to be prepared.  Anyone who has taken the time to browse through this most recent directory knows that it begins with a written history of the life of this parish, and then continues with a pictorial rendering of each of the people who was part of the parish at the time of the book’s printing.

The lived history of this people of faith began on September 19, 1954, and Peggy was present as part of this community then.  Throughout the sixty plus years that have come and gone since that day, she has sat in our pews, she has prayed within these walls, she has decorated this space, she has loved us and she has been loved by us.

Like all those who enter these walls, Peggy came to listen for Jesus’ words of guidance.  How many times did she hear the words of Jesus that we have heard in the gospel account read this morning: I tell you most solemnly, whoever listens to my words and believe in the One who sent me, has eternal life (John 5:24).  Inspired by these words, she dedicated her life to raising her precious son Jim, and then after he and Donnette had been married, she turned her focus to the parish she so dearly loved.  In addition to the love she had for her immediate family, she shared her many gifts with her extended family too.

A dedicated member of the Catholic Women’s League for some sixty-four years, she willingly contributed her talents in many ways to God and to Canada, while joyfully sharing the gift of her faith with all her sisters in the League.  Peggy was a very talented woman, and did not hesitate to share her artistic gifts with this community.  Many parishioners still remember the many years during which she cared for the liturgical environment, beautifying this place of worship with many beautiful banners, all of which she made herself (with the help of anyone who happened to pass by her home).  She was an extremely accomplished seamstress, and many of us have been the benefactors of her willingness to share such talent so generously.  

She was also responsible for the creation of our Prayer Partner program, believing that it was (and still is) important that all true friendships in faith should begin and end in prayer.  Jim told me a few days ago that when Peggy was searching for a way to do something more to bring the parish together, she prayed for guidance and the result of her prayer was a deep understanding that we need to pray for one another, and in fact, we all need someone else to pray for us.  This program still continues today as a testament to this belief.

In recognition for Peggy’s commitment to her faith and to the life of this parish, she was awarded a Diocesan Medal of Merit in 1995, and she always prized this medal as a token of acknowledgement from the Bishop of the diocese for her willingness to share her faith with others.

Today, the community of Saint Peter the Apostle parish gathers to pray our dear sister Peggy home.  A few weeks ago, when she was admitted to hospital, news seemed to spread like wildfire.  I think it was only a matter of hours before I heard that she had been hospitalized, and as the days progressed, more and more people would ask: How is Peggy?  Have you heard?  With each new person who asked, I knew that more and more people were adding their prayers to the chorus of those who were beseeching heaven on her behalf, and when I got a chance to speak with her on the telephone, it was immediately evident that Peggy knew that we were all praying for her.  Please say hello to everyone and thank them for their prayers, she said.  Despite her declining physical condition, I wasn’t at all surprised to hear her speak such words.  Throughout her many decades of committed service, Peggy has always been concerned first and foremost about telling others about God who is the source of life (John 5:26), and about his son Jesus who gave his life for us.

In the days that have come and gone since we received the news that she had completed her journey to the Father’s House, many of us have reflected on the countless ways in which Peggy has been a living part of the history of this parish.  Today, our presence in this place is an act of faith and belief.

• Faith in the promise of Jesus who told his disciples that those who did good will rise again to life (John 5:29); and belief that the promise made to Peggy on the day of her baptism is now being fulfilled. 
• Faith that the Lord … will prepare for all peoples a banquet of rich food; and belief that here in this place, gathered around this table, we already receive a foretaste of the banquet that is yet to come.
• Faith that our sister is now in the loving arms of our God, and belief that the emptiness that now inhabits our hearts is yet another invitation for us to trust that he will remove the mourning veil that seems to enwrap us, and replace it with the abundant joy of knowing that Peggy is rejoicing in heaven along with other members of her family who have gone before her.

Peggy’s earthly life is now complete.  The Book of Revelation says that now, she can rest forever after the work she has completed (Rev 14:13), but from her place in heaven, I am sure that Peggy is now looking down on all those who have known her in this life.  She asked me once to thank you for your prayers; now if she could speak with a human voice, she would tell you herself: I have seen the living God, in whom we have hoped for salvation (cf Isaiah 25:9); let us exult and rejoice, for he has saved us.

With the priests of Rome

At 10:00am today, in the Paul VI Hall, the Holy Father, Pope Francis met with the clergy of the Diocese of Rome.  This meeting usually takes place at the beginning of Lent.

Following a few words of welcome offered by the Cardinal Vicar for Rome, His Eminence, Agostino Vallini, the Pope introduced this morning's gathering by making reference to one of his gatherings held in 2005 with the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on the theme of The art of celebration, the text of which he distributed to all those who were present.

The gathering then continued in the form of a dialogue with the priests who were present.

Ash Wednesday in Rome

This afternoon, a prayer gathering was held in the form of Roman Stations, presided over by the Holy Father, Pope Francis.  At 4:30pm, in the church of Sant'Anselmo all'Aventino, there was a moment of prayer which was followed by a penitential procession toward the Basilica of Santa Sabina.  The procession included Cardinals, Archbishops, Bishops, Benedictine Monks from Sant'Anselmo, Dominican Priests from Santa Sabina and some of the faithful.

At the conclusion of the procession, in the Basilica of Santa Sabina, the Holy Father presided over the celebration of the Eucharist, including the blessing and imposition of ashes.

Homily of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

for the Mass celebrated at the Basilica of Santa Sabina

As the people of God, we begin the journey of Lent, a time in which we seek to unite ourselves more closely with the Lord in order to share in the mystery of his passion and his resurrection.

First, today's liturgy proposes the passage from the book of the Prophet Joel, sent by God to call the people to penance and to conversion, due to a calamity (an invasion of locusts) which devastated Judea.  Only the Lord could save them from that scourge and therefore they needed to beg him for this grace with prayer and fasting, while confessing their sins.

The prophet insists on interior conversion: Return to me with all your heart (Joel 2:12).  Return to the Lord with all your heart means undertaking a journey of conversion that is not superficial or transitory, but rather a spiritual journey at the most intimate level of the human person.  In fact, the heart is the seat of our sentiments, the centre where our choices and attitudes develop.

This return to me with all your heart does not only involve individual persons, but extends to the entire community.  It is a summons addressed to all: Gather the people, gather a solemn assembly, call the elders, gather the children, the nursing infants; let the bridegroom come out of his room and the bride from her canopy (Joel 2:16).

The prophet focuses particularly on the prayer of priests, noting that they should be accompanied by tears.  It would do good for all of us, but especially for our priests, at the beginning of this Lent, to pray for the gift of tears in order to make our prayer and our journey of conversion all the more authentic and free of hypocrisy.

It would be good to ask ourselves: Do I cry?  Does the Pope cry?  Do the Cardinals cry?  Do the Bishops cry?  Do the Consecrated persons cry? Do the priests cry?  Do we cry when we pray?  This is the real gospel message today.  In the passage from the gospel of Matthew, Jesus re-reads the three works of piety prescribed in the Law of Moses: almsgiving, prayer and fasting.  It's worth noting, external facts point to internal realities, a sort of crying of the heart.  Over time, these prescriptions had been tinged by the rust of external formalism, or they had become signs of social superiority. Jesus drew attention to the common temptation in these three works, which can be summarized in their hypocrisy (he names them three times): Be careful not to practice your virtue before others in order to be admired by them ... When you give alms, do not sound a trumpet, as the hypocrites do ... When you pray, do not do as the hypocrites do, they ... love to pray in a standing position, in order to be seen by others ... And when you fast, be not gloomy like the hypocrites (Matthew 6:1, 2, 5, 16).  You know, brothers, that hypocrites don't know how to cry, they have forgotten how to cry, they do not ask for the gift of tears.

When we accomplish something good, almost instantly, there is a desire that is born in us, a desire to be noticed and admired for this good act, to obtain some sense of satisfaction.  Jesus invites us to do these works without any self-interest and to rely only on being rewarded by the Father who sees in secret (Matthew 6:4, 6, 18).

Dear brothers and sisters, the Lord never tires of being merciful toward us; once again he wants to offer us his forgiveness - we all need it.  I invite you to turn to Him with a new heart, purified of all evil, purified by tears, in order to participate in the gift of his joy.  How can we welcome this invitation?  Saint Paul suggests: We beseech you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:20).  This strength of conversion is not only a human act, it is an act of allowing ourselves to be reconciled.  Reconciliation between us and God is possible because of the mercy of the Father who, out of love for us, did not hesitate to sacrifice his own Son.  In fact, Christ, who was innocent and without sin, was made sinful out of love for us (2 Corinthians 5:21) when on the cross, he took upon himself all our sins, and therefore redeemed us and justified us in the eyes of God.  In Him, we cannot become just, in Him we can change, if we welcome the grace of God and not allow this favourable moment to pass by un-noticed (2 Corinthians 6:2).  Please, let us pause, let us stop for just a moment and allow ourselves to be reconciled with God.

With this awareness, we trustingly and joyfully begin our Lenten journey.  May Mary, our Immaculate Mother, who is without sin, support our spiritual struggle against sin, accompanying us in this favourable moment, so that we may be able to sing together the exultation of the Easter day. As a sign of our willingness to be reconciled with God, in addition to our tears which will be offered in secret, in public, we make the gesture of imposing ashes upon our heads.  The celebrant will say: Remember that you are dust and unto dust you shall return (cf Genesis 3:19) or he will repeat Jesus invitation: Repent and believe in the gospel (cf Mark 1:5).  Both formulas are reminders of the truth of human existence: we are creatures with limits, sinners who are always in need of repentance and conversion.  How important it is for us to listen to and to welcome this reminder in our current situations!  The invitation to conversion is therefore a motivation for us to return, like the son in the parable, to the arms of our God, the tender and merciful Father, to cry in His embrace, to trust Him and to trust in Him.

A Lenten call for fraternity

Today, the Holy Father sent a Message to the faithful in Brazil who are beginning the 52nd Lenten Fraternal Campaign organized by the Brazilian Episcopal Conference.  This year, the theme of the Campaign is: Fraternity: the Church and Society and the slogan is I have come to serve (Mark 10:45).

Message of the Holy Father, Pope Francis

to the faithful in Brazil

Dear brothers and sisters in Brazil!

Lent is drawing near, a time of preparation for Easter: a time of penance, prayer and charity, a time for renewing our lives, identifying our lives with that of Jesus through His generous gift to his brothers, especially to those in need.  This year, the National Conference of Bishops in Brazil, inspired by the words: The Son of man did not come to be served, but in order to serve and to give his life for the sake of many (Mark 10:45) proposes as the theme Fraternity: the Church and Society for this traditional campaign.

In fact, the Church as a community composed of those who believe and direct their gaze toward Jesus, the author of salvation and the principle of unity (Dogmatic Constitution, Lumen gentium, 3), cannot be indifferent to the needs of those in our world because the joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of men today, above all the poor and all those who suffer, are also the joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the disciples of Christ (Pastoral Constitution, Gaudium et spes, 1).  What can we do?  During the forty days in which God calls his people to conversion, the Fraternal Campaign aims to help us deepen, in the light of the gospel, the dialogue and the collaboration between the Church and society - proposed by Vatican Council II - as a service of building the Kingdom of God in the heart and the life of the Brazilian people.

The contribution of the Church, with respect to the secular State (cf GS, 76), and not forgetting the autonomy of earthly realities (cf GS, 36), finds concrete form in her Social Doctrine, with which she wishes to evangelically take on from the perspective of the Kingdom, the competent priorities that contribute to the dignity of the human being to exist and to work together with other citizens and institution for the good of all (Aparecida document, 384).  This is not accomplished exclusively in institutions: every one of us must do our part, to begin in our own homes, in our places of work, with the persons with whom we have relationships.  Concretely, we need to help the poorest and the most in need.  Let us remember that every Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the freedom and the promotion of the poor, so that they may be fully integrated in society; this supposes that we are docile and attentively listening for the cry of the poor and ready to respond to it (Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium, 187), above all knowing how to welcome them, for when we generously welcome someone and share something with him (or her) - a bit of food, a place in our home, a bit of our time - not only do we no longer remain poor, but we actually enrich ourselves (Speech to the Community of Varginha, July 25, 2013).  Thus, we can make an examination of our consciences concerning practical and effective ways for every one of us to build a more just, more fraternal and more peaceful society.

Dear brothers and sisters, when Jesus says: I have come to serve (Mark 10:45), he is teaching us the basics of Christian identity: to love through acts of service.  Therefore, I hope that your Lenten journey this year, in the light of proposals put forward by the Fraternal Campaign, predisposes our hearts to the new life given to us by Christ, and that the transforming power of his Resurrection reaches out to everyone in its personal, familial, social and cultural dimensions and strengthens sentiments of fraternity and collaborative living in every heart.  To each and every one of you, through the intercession of Our Lady of Aparecida, I send my heartfelt Apostolic Blessing, asking you to never forget to pray for me.

From the Vatican
February 2, 2015

Francis