At 10:00am today in the Vatican Basilica, the Holy Father, Pope Francis presided over the concelebration of the Eucharist with the Cardinals created during yesterday's Consistory and with the other members of the College of Cardinals who are in Rome at this time.
Lord, if you want to, you can heal me. Jesus, moved with compassion, took his hand, touched him and said to him: I want to; be healed! (cf Mark 1:40-41). The compassion of Jesus! The suffering with that brought him close to every suffering person. Jesus is generous; indeed, he involves himself in every suffering and in every need that people face, simply because He knows about it and wants to suffer with us, because he has a heart that is never shamed by compassion.
He could never again enter publicly into the city, but remained outside, in deserted places (Mark 1:45). This means that, in addition to healing the leper, Jesus also took upon himself the marginalization that the law of Moses imposed (cf Leviticus 13:1-2, 45-46). Jesus is not afraid to risk taking upon himself the suffering of others, in fact he is willing to pay even the ultimate price (cf Isaiah 53:4).
Compassion causes Jesus to react in concrete ways: to reintegrate the marginalized. These are the three key concepts that the Church presents to us today in the Liturgy of the Word: the compassion of Jesus in the face of marginalization and his willingness to integrate.
Marginalization: Moses: addressing the question of leprosy from a legalistic standpoint, calls for them to be distanced and marginalized by the community, for as long as the effects of evil shall last, and declares them unclean (cf Leviticus 13:1-2, 45-46).
Imagine how much suffering and shame a leper had to face: physically, socially, psychologically and spiritually! Not only were lepers victims of a disease, they also had the feeling of being isolated and guilty, punished for their sins! A living death, as one whose father had spat in his face (cf Numbers 12:14).
In addition, a leper incites fear, disdain, disgust and for this reason, was abandoned even by the members of his or her family, avoided by other people, marginalized by society, in fact it was society itself that would expel the leper and force him or her to live at great distances from those who were healthy, a leper would be excluded. Even to the point that if a healthy individual was to come close to a leper, he or she would be severely punished and even treated from then on as though he or she were a leper.
It's true, the purpose of this law was to save the healthy, to protect the righteous and to guard against any risk: marginalize the danger by treating those who are infected with no mercy. In fact, even the High Priest Caiaphas said: It is better that one man should die for the people, than that the whole nation perish (John 11:50).
Integration: Jesus revolutionalizes and severely shakes up the closed in mentality of fear and self-limitation due to prejudice. However, he did not abolish the Law of Moses, but brought it to fulfillment (cf Matthew 5:17), stating for example the ineffective counterproductivity of the law of retaliation; declaring that God was not satisfied with Sabbath observances that demean or condemn; or when, in the case of the sinful woman, he did not condemn her, but saved her from the blind zeal of those who were prepared to ruthlessly stone her, believing that they were applying the Law of Moses. Jesus also revolutionizes consciences in the Sermon on the Mount (cf Matthew 5), opening new horizons for humanity to fully reveal God's logic. The logic of love which is not based on fear but on freedom, on charity, on healthy zeal and the saving will of God: God, our saviour ... desires that all people be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:3-4). I desire mercy, not sacrifice (Matthew 12:7; Hosea 6:6).
Jesus, the new Moses, wanted to heal the leper, wanted to touch him, wanted to reintegrate him in the community, without being hemmed in by prejudices; without being conformed to the prevailing mindset of the people; without worrying about becoming infected. Jesus responds to the plea of the leper without delay, without waiting to study the situation and all the eventual consequences! For Jesus, what matters most of all is reaching out to save those who have been distanced, taking care of the wounds of those who are sick, reintegrating everyone into the family of God. And this scandalizes some people!
And Jesus is not afraid of this kind of scandal! He doesn't think about closed-minded people who are scandalized even by the work of healing, those who are scandalized by any kind of openness, by any effort that does not fit into their mental and spiritual schemes, by a mere caress or sign of tenderness that does not correspond to their accustomed ways of thinking and their ritual purity. He wanted to reintegrate the outcasts, to save those who were excluded from the encampment (cf John 10).
There are two ways of thinking and of proceeding in faith: we can either be afraid of losing those who have been saved or we can be concerned about saving those who are lost. Even today it happens, sometimes, that we find ourselves at the intersection of these two ways of thinking: that of the doctors of the law, which would have removed the danger by casting out the infected person, and the logic of God who, in his mercy, embraces and welcomes him by reinstating him and transforming evil into good, turning condemnation into salvation and exclusion into proclamation.
These two ways of thinking present throughout the history of the Church: casting off and reintegrating. Saint Paul, who followed the Lord's command to continue the proclamation of the Gospel even to the ends of the earth (cf Matthew 28:19), caused scandal and provoked strong resistance and great hostility above all on the part of those who demanded unconditional adherence to the Law of Moses, even by converted pagans. Even Saint Peter was harshly criticized by the community when he entered the house of the pagan centurion Cornelius (cf Acts 10).
The Church's way, from the time of the Council of Jerusalem, has always been that of Jesus: a way of mercy and of integration. This does not mean that we under-value the dangers of allowing wolves into the flock, but that we welcome the repentant prodigal son; healing the wounds of sin with courage and with determination; rolling up our sleeves and not remaining as passive bystanders, watching the sufferings of the world. The path of the Church is that of not eternally condemning anyone; but rather of pouring out the mercy of God toward every person who asks for it with a sincere heart; the path of the Church is truly that of going outside of the four walls in order to go in search of the lost on the existential peripheries of existence; that of adopting fully God's logic; of following the Master who says: It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick; I have not come to call the just, but sinners (Luke 5: 31-32).
By healing the leper, Jesus does no harm to the healthy, but he frees the leper from fear; he does not lead him into danger but gives him a brother; he does not undervalue the Law but instead values a man, for whom God gave the Law. In fact, Jesus frees the healthy from the temptations of the older brother (cf Luke 15:11-32) and from the burden of envy and the grumbling on the part of the labourers who have borne the burden of the day and its heat (cf Matthew 20:1-16).
In a word: charity cannot be neutral, antiseptic, indifferent, tepid or impartial! Charity is infection, it excites, it risks and it engages! For true charity is always unmerited, unconditional and freely given! (cf 1 Cor 13). Charity is creative in finding the right words to speak to all those who are considered incurable and hence untouchable. Finding the right words ... Physical contact is the language of genuine communication, the same endearing language that brought healing to the leper. How much healing can be accomplished and transmitted if we learn this language of contact! Once he was cured, the leper became a messenger of God's love. The gospel says: he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the word (Mark 1:45).
Dear new Cardinals, this is Jesus' reasoning, this is the way of the Church: not only to welcome and to integrate, with evangelical courage, those who knock at our door, but to go out, to go in search of those who are furthest removed from us without prejudice and without fear, freely sharing with them that which we ourselves have freely received. Whoever professes to abiding in Christ should himself walk as Christ walked (cf 1 John 2:6). Total openness to serving others is our defining mark, our only title of honour!
Consider well, during these days in which you have received the title of Cardinal, let us invoke the intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, who personally suffered marginalization due to slander (cf John 8:41) and exile (cf Matthew 2:13-23), so that we might be faithful servants of God. She who is our mother teaches us to not be afraid to tenderly welcome the marginalized; to not be afraid of tenderness. How often we are afraid of tenderness! She teaches us to not be afraid of tenderness and compassion; may she clothe us in patience as we seek to accompany them on their journey, without seeking any benefits of worldly success; may she point out her son Jesus and help us to walk in His ways.
Dear brothers, newly created Cardinals, as we look to Jesus and our Mother, I urge you to serve the Church in such as way that Christians, edified by our witness, may not be tempted to turn toward Jesus without also turning toward those who are marginalized, or becoming a closed-in caste with nothing authentically ecclesial about it. I urge you to serve Jesus crucified in every marginalized person, by whatever means necessary; to see the Lord in every excluded person who is hungry, who is thirsty, who is naked; the Lord who is present also in those who have lost the faith, or those who have been distanced from living their faith; or those who declare themselves to be atheists; see the Lord in those who are imprisoned, in the sick, in those who have no work, in those who are persecuted; see the Lord who is in the leper - in body or in spirit - in those who are discriminated against! We will not find the Lord unless we truly welcome those who are marginalized! Let us always remember the image of Saint Francis who was not afraid to embrace the leper and to welcome those who suffer in any way because they are outcasts. In truth, dear brothers, in the gospel of the marginalized, our credibility is discovered and revealed!
Homily of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
for the Mass celebrated with the
College of Cardinals
Lord, if you want to, you can heal me. Jesus, moved with compassion, took his hand, touched him and said to him: I want to; be healed! (cf Mark 1:40-41). The compassion of Jesus! The suffering with that brought him close to every suffering person. Jesus is generous; indeed, he involves himself in every suffering and in every need that people face, simply because He knows about it and wants to suffer with us, because he has a heart that is never shamed by compassion.
He could never again enter publicly into the city, but remained outside, in deserted places (Mark 1:45). This means that, in addition to healing the leper, Jesus also took upon himself the marginalization that the law of Moses imposed (cf Leviticus 13:1-2, 45-46). Jesus is not afraid to risk taking upon himself the suffering of others, in fact he is willing to pay even the ultimate price (cf Isaiah 53:4).
Compassion causes Jesus to react in concrete ways: to reintegrate the marginalized. These are the three key concepts that the Church presents to us today in the Liturgy of the Word: the compassion of Jesus in the face of marginalization and his willingness to integrate.
Marginalization: Moses: addressing the question of leprosy from a legalistic standpoint, calls for them to be distanced and marginalized by the community, for as long as the effects of evil shall last, and declares them unclean (cf Leviticus 13:1-2, 45-46).
Imagine how much suffering and shame a leper had to face: physically, socially, psychologically and spiritually! Not only were lepers victims of a disease, they also had the feeling of being isolated and guilty, punished for their sins! A living death, as one whose father had spat in his face (cf Numbers 12:14).
In addition, a leper incites fear, disdain, disgust and for this reason, was abandoned even by the members of his or her family, avoided by other people, marginalized by society, in fact it was society itself that would expel the leper and force him or her to live at great distances from those who were healthy, a leper would be excluded. Even to the point that if a healthy individual was to come close to a leper, he or she would be severely punished and even treated from then on as though he or she were a leper.
It's true, the purpose of this law was to save the healthy, to protect the righteous and to guard against any risk: marginalize the danger by treating those who are infected with no mercy. In fact, even the High Priest Caiaphas said: It is better that one man should die for the people, than that the whole nation perish (John 11:50).
Integration: Jesus revolutionalizes and severely shakes up the closed in mentality of fear and self-limitation due to prejudice. However, he did not abolish the Law of Moses, but brought it to fulfillment (cf Matthew 5:17), stating for example the ineffective counterproductivity of the law of retaliation; declaring that God was not satisfied with Sabbath observances that demean or condemn; or when, in the case of the sinful woman, he did not condemn her, but saved her from the blind zeal of those who were prepared to ruthlessly stone her, believing that they were applying the Law of Moses. Jesus also revolutionizes consciences in the Sermon on the Mount (cf Matthew 5), opening new horizons for humanity to fully reveal God's logic. The logic of love which is not based on fear but on freedom, on charity, on healthy zeal and the saving will of God: God, our saviour ... desires that all people be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:3-4). I desire mercy, not sacrifice (Matthew 12:7; Hosea 6:6).
Jesus, the new Moses, wanted to heal the leper, wanted to touch him, wanted to reintegrate him in the community, without being hemmed in by prejudices; without being conformed to the prevailing mindset of the people; without worrying about becoming infected. Jesus responds to the plea of the leper without delay, without waiting to study the situation and all the eventual consequences! For Jesus, what matters most of all is reaching out to save those who have been distanced, taking care of the wounds of those who are sick, reintegrating everyone into the family of God. And this scandalizes some people!
And Jesus is not afraid of this kind of scandal! He doesn't think about closed-minded people who are scandalized even by the work of healing, those who are scandalized by any kind of openness, by any effort that does not fit into their mental and spiritual schemes, by a mere caress or sign of tenderness that does not correspond to their accustomed ways of thinking and their ritual purity. He wanted to reintegrate the outcasts, to save those who were excluded from the encampment (cf John 10).
There are two ways of thinking and of proceeding in faith: we can either be afraid of losing those who have been saved or we can be concerned about saving those who are lost. Even today it happens, sometimes, that we find ourselves at the intersection of these two ways of thinking: that of the doctors of the law, which would have removed the danger by casting out the infected person, and the logic of God who, in his mercy, embraces and welcomes him by reinstating him and transforming evil into good, turning condemnation into salvation and exclusion into proclamation.
These two ways of thinking present throughout the history of the Church: casting off and reintegrating. Saint Paul, who followed the Lord's command to continue the proclamation of the Gospel even to the ends of the earth (cf Matthew 28:19), caused scandal and provoked strong resistance and great hostility above all on the part of those who demanded unconditional adherence to the Law of Moses, even by converted pagans. Even Saint Peter was harshly criticized by the community when he entered the house of the pagan centurion Cornelius (cf Acts 10).
The Church's way, from the time of the Council of Jerusalem, has always been that of Jesus: a way of mercy and of integration. This does not mean that we under-value the dangers of allowing wolves into the flock, but that we welcome the repentant prodigal son; healing the wounds of sin with courage and with determination; rolling up our sleeves and not remaining as passive bystanders, watching the sufferings of the world. The path of the Church is that of not eternally condemning anyone; but rather of pouring out the mercy of God toward every person who asks for it with a sincere heart; the path of the Church is truly that of going outside of the four walls in order to go in search of the lost on the existential peripheries of existence; that of adopting fully God's logic; of following the Master who says: It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick; I have not come to call the just, but sinners (Luke 5: 31-32).
By healing the leper, Jesus does no harm to the healthy, but he frees the leper from fear; he does not lead him into danger but gives him a brother; he does not undervalue the Law but instead values a man, for whom God gave the Law. In fact, Jesus frees the healthy from the temptations of the older brother (cf Luke 15:11-32) and from the burden of envy and the grumbling on the part of the labourers who have borne the burden of the day and its heat (cf Matthew 20:1-16).
In a word: charity cannot be neutral, antiseptic, indifferent, tepid or impartial! Charity is infection, it excites, it risks and it engages! For true charity is always unmerited, unconditional and freely given! (cf 1 Cor 13). Charity is creative in finding the right words to speak to all those who are considered incurable and hence untouchable. Finding the right words ... Physical contact is the language of genuine communication, the same endearing language that brought healing to the leper. How much healing can be accomplished and transmitted if we learn this language of contact! Once he was cured, the leper became a messenger of God's love. The gospel says: he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the word (Mark 1:45).
Dear new Cardinals, this is Jesus' reasoning, this is the way of the Church: not only to welcome and to integrate, with evangelical courage, those who knock at our door, but to go out, to go in search of those who are furthest removed from us without prejudice and without fear, freely sharing with them that which we ourselves have freely received. Whoever professes to abiding in Christ should himself walk as Christ walked (cf 1 John 2:6). Total openness to serving others is our defining mark, our only title of honour!
Consider well, during these days in which you have received the title of Cardinal, let us invoke the intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, who personally suffered marginalization due to slander (cf John 8:41) and exile (cf Matthew 2:13-23), so that we might be faithful servants of God. She who is our mother teaches us to not be afraid to tenderly welcome the marginalized; to not be afraid of tenderness. How often we are afraid of tenderness! She teaches us to not be afraid of tenderness and compassion; may she clothe us in patience as we seek to accompany them on their journey, without seeking any benefits of worldly success; may she point out her son Jesus and help us to walk in His ways.
Dear brothers, newly created Cardinals, as we look to Jesus and our Mother, I urge you to serve the Church in such as way that Christians, edified by our witness, may not be tempted to turn toward Jesus without also turning toward those who are marginalized, or becoming a closed-in caste with nothing authentically ecclesial about it. I urge you to serve Jesus crucified in every marginalized person, by whatever means necessary; to see the Lord in every excluded person who is hungry, who is thirsty, who is naked; the Lord who is present also in those who have lost the faith, or those who have been distanced from living their faith; or those who declare themselves to be atheists; see the Lord in those who are imprisoned, in the sick, in those who have no work, in those who are persecuted; see the Lord who is in the leper - in body or in spirit - in those who are discriminated against! We will not find the Lord unless we truly welcome those who are marginalized! Let us always remember the image of Saint Francis who was not afraid to embrace the leper and to welcome those who suffer in any way because they are outcasts. In truth, dear brothers, in the gospel of the marginalized, our credibility is discovered and revealed!
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