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 expected Sunday appointment.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
The gospel passage for this Sunday (cf Mk 1:21-28) presents Jesus who, with his little community of disciples, enters Capernaum, the city where Peter lived and which at that time was the largest city in Galilee. And Jesus enters into that city.
The evangelist Mark tells us that Jesus, went out on a Saturday, and made his way to the synagogue where he began to teach (cf Mk 1:21). This makes us think of the primacy of the Word of God, a Word worth listening to, a Word to be welcomed, a Word which must be proclaimed. Having arrived at Capernaum, Jesus doesn't delay the proclamation of the Gospel; he doesn't think first about arranging it in a logical fashion; this is certainly necessary; he doesn't think about his little community; he doesn't indulge in the details of its organization. His principal preoccupation is communicating the Word of God with the strength of the Holy Spirit. And the people in the synagogue are impressed because Jesus taught them as one with authority, and not like the scribes (Mk 1:22).
What does with authority mean? It means that in the human words spoken by Jesus, his listeners could feel the strength of the Word of God, they felt the authority of God, they were inspired by sacred scripture. This is one of the characteristics of the Word of God: that it accomplishes what it proclaims. It does this because the Word of God corresponds to God's will. We however often utter empty words, rootless words or superfluous words, words what do not correspond to truth. In contrast, the Word of God always corresponds to truth; it is united with his will and always brings about what it says. After his preaching, Jesus immediately demonstrates his authority by freeing a man who is present in the synagogue, a man who was possessed by a demon (cf Mk 1:23-26). It was Jesus' divine authority that had elicited a reaction from Satan, hidden in that man; Jesus, for his part, immediately silences the voice of the devil and: sternly ordered: Quiet! Come out of him! (Mk 1:25). Solely by the strength of his word, Jesus frees that person from the evil one. And once again, those who are present are astonished: He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him! (Mk 1:27). The Word of God creates astonishment in us. It possesses the strength to amaze us.
The gospel is the word of life: it does not oppress people, on the contrary, it liberates those who have been enslaved by the evil spirits of this world: the spirit of vanity, of attachment to money, of pride, of sensuality ... The gospel changes our hearts, changes our lives, transforms inclinations toward evil and focuses us on good intentions. The gospel can change us! Therefore it is the duty of all Christians to spread its redeeming power everywhere by becoming missionaries and heralds of the Word of God. This is also suggested in today's passage of scripture which closes with the words: His fame - Jesus' fame - spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee (Mk 1:28). The new doctrine taught with the authority of Jesus is that which the Church shares with the world, together with the effective signs of his presence: the authoritative teaching and the freeing action of the Son of God which become words of salvation and gestures of love on the part of the missionary Church. Always remember that the Church has the strength to change lives! Don't forget this. It is the Good News that transforms us only when we allow ourselves to be transformed by it. This is why I always ask you to be in daily contact with the gospel, to read it every day, just one part, one passage, to meditate on it and to take it with you everywhere you go: in your pocket, in your purse ... so you can feed every day from this inexhaustible source of salvation. Don't forget! Read a passage of the gospel every day. It has the strength to change, to transform: to change our lives, to change our hearts.
Let us invoke the maternal intercession of the Virgin Mary, She who listened to the Word and bore it within her womb for the sake of all the world, for everyone. May she teach us to listen carefully to this Word and to be authoritative heralds of the Gospel of Jesus.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
I wish to tell you that on June 6, God willing, I will travel to Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I ask you to pray that my visit to those dear people may bring encouragement to the Catholic faithful, arouse sentiments of good and contribute to the consolidation of brotherhood, peace, inter-religious dialogue and friendship.
I greet all those who have come to participate in the IV World Congress organized by Scholas Occurrentes, being held here in the Vatican from February 2 to 5 on the theme of Responsibility of all in education for a culture of encounter. I greet the families, the parishioners, the associations and all those who have come from various parts of Italy and from all corners of the world. In particular, I greet the pilgrims from Lebanon and from Egypt, the students from Zafra and from Badajoz (Spain); the faithful from Sassari, Salerno, Verona, Modena, Scano Montiferro and from Taranto.
Today, we here in Italy celebrate the Day for Life, which has as its theme this year: Solidarity for life. I extend my appreciation to the associations, the movements and all those who defend human life. I join the Italian bishops in calling for a renewed recognition of the human person and more adequate care for life, from conception to natural death (Message for the 37th National Day of Life). When we are open to life and serve life, we experience the revolutionary power of love and tenderness (cf Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium, 288), inaugurating a new humanism: the humanism of solidarity, the humanism of life.
I greet the Cardinal Vicar, the university professors from Rome and those who are committed to promoting a culture of life.
To all of you, I wish a good Sunday. Please don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch, and goodbye!
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
The gospel passage for this Sunday (cf Mk 1:21-28) presents Jesus who, with his little community of disciples, enters Capernaum, the city where Peter lived and which at that time was the largest city in Galilee. And Jesus enters into that city.
The evangelist Mark tells us that Jesus, went out on a Saturday, and made his way to the synagogue where he began to teach (cf Mk 1:21). This makes us think of the primacy of the Word of God, a Word worth listening to, a Word to be welcomed, a Word which must be proclaimed. Having arrived at Capernaum, Jesus doesn't delay the proclamation of the Gospel; he doesn't think first about arranging it in a logical fashion; this is certainly necessary; he doesn't think about his little community; he doesn't indulge in the details of its organization. His principal preoccupation is communicating the Word of God with the strength of the Holy Spirit. And the people in the synagogue are impressed because Jesus taught them as one with authority, and not like the scribes (Mk 1:22).
What does with authority mean? It means that in the human words spoken by Jesus, his listeners could feel the strength of the Word of God, they felt the authority of God, they were inspired by sacred scripture. This is one of the characteristics of the Word of God: that it accomplishes what it proclaims. It does this because the Word of God corresponds to God's will. We however often utter empty words, rootless words or superfluous words, words what do not correspond to truth. In contrast, the Word of God always corresponds to truth; it is united with his will and always brings about what it says. After his preaching, Jesus immediately demonstrates his authority by freeing a man who is present in the synagogue, a man who was possessed by a demon (cf Mk 1:23-26). It was Jesus' divine authority that had elicited a reaction from Satan, hidden in that man; Jesus, for his part, immediately silences the voice of the devil and: sternly ordered: Quiet! Come out of him! (Mk 1:25). Solely by the strength of his word, Jesus frees that person from the evil one. And once again, those who are present are astonished: He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him! (Mk 1:27). The Word of God creates astonishment in us. It possesses the strength to amaze us.
The gospel is the word of life: it does not oppress people, on the contrary, it liberates those who have been enslaved by the evil spirits of this world: the spirit of vanity, of attachment to money, of pride, of sensuality ... The gospel changes our hearts, changes our lives, transforms inclinations toward evil and focuses us on good intentions. The gospel can change us! Therefore it is the duty of all Christians to spread its redeeming power everywhere by becoming missionaries and heralds of the Word of God. This is also suggested in today's passage of scripture which closes with the words: His fame - Jesus' fame - spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee (Mk 1:28). The new doctrine taught with the authority of Jesus is that which the Church shares with the world, together with the effective signs of his presence: the authoritative teaching and the freeing action of the Son of God which become words of salvation and gestures of love on the part of the missionary Church. Always remember that the Church has the strength to change lives! Don't forget this. It is the Good News that transforms us only when we allow ourselves to be transformed by it. This is why I always ask you to be in daily contact with the gospel, to read it every day, just one part, one passage, to meditate on it and to take it with you everywhere you go: in your pocket, in your purse ... so you can feed every day from this inexhaustible source of salvation. Don't forget! Read a passage of the gospel every day. It has the strength to change, to transform: to change our lives, to change our hearts.
Let us invoke the maternal intercession of the Virgin Mary, She who listened to the Word and bore it within her womb for the sake of all the world, for everyone. May she teach us to listen carefully to this Word and to be authoritative heralds of the Gospel of Jesus.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
I wish to tell you that on June 6, God willing, I will travel to Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I ask you to pray that my visit to those dear people may bring encouragement to the Catholic faithful, arouse sentiments of good and contribute to the consolidation of brotherhood, peace, inter-religious dialogue and friendship.
I greet all those who have come to participate in the IV World Congress organized by Scholas Occurrentes, being held here in the Vatican from February 2 to 5 on the theme of Responsibility of all in education for a culture of encounter. I greet the families, the parishioners, the associations and all those who have come from various parts of Italy and from all corners of the world. In particular, I greet the pilgrims from Lebanon and from Egypt, the students from Zafra and from Badajoz (Spain); the faithful from Sassari, Salerno, Verona, Modena, Scano Montiferro and from Taranto.
Today, we here in Italy celebrate the Day for Life, which has as its theme this year: Solidarity for life. I extend my appreciation to the associations, the movements and all those who defend human life. I join the Italian bishops in calling for a renewed recognition of the human person and more adequate care for life, from conception to natural death (Message for the 37th National Day of Life). When we are open to life and serve life, we experience the revolutionary power of love and tenderness (cf Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium, 288), inaugurating a new humanism: the humanism of solidarity, the humanism of life.
I greet the Cardinal Vicar, the university professors from Rome and those who are committed to promoting a culture of life.
To all of you, I wish a good Sunday. Please don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch, and goodbye!
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