At 10:00am today, in Saint Peter's Square, the Holy Father, Pope Francis celebrated the Mass of Canonization for Blessed Jeanne Emile de Villeneuve (1811-1854), a Religious who founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception of Castres; Blessed Maria Maria Cristina of the Immaculate Conception (1856-1906), a Religious who founded the Sisters, Expiatory Victims of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament; Blessed Marie Alphonsine Danil Ghattas (1843-1927), a Religious who founded the Congregation of the Sisters of the Rosary of Jerusalem; and Blessed Maria of Jesus Crucified (born Miriam Baouardy, 1846-1878), a professed monk who belonged to the Order of Discalced Carmelites.
The Acts of the Apostles have set before us the early Church as she elects the man whom God called to take the place of Judas in the college of the Apostles. It has to do not with a job, but with service. Indeed, Matthias, on whom the choice falls, receives a mission which Peter defines in these words: One of these men... must become a witness with us to his resurrection, the resurrection of Christ (Acts 1:21-23). In this way Peter sums up what it means to be part of the Twelve: it means to be a witness to Jesus’ resurrection. The fact that he says with us brings us to realize that the mission of proclaiming the risen Christ is not an individual undertaking: it is to be carried out in common, with the apostolic college and with the community. The Apostles had a direct and overwhelming experience of the resurrection; they were eyewitnesses to that event. Thanks to their authoritative testimony, many people came to believe; from faith in the risen Lord, Christian communities were born and are born continually. We too, today, base our faith in the risen Lord on the witness of the Apostles, which has come down to us through the mission of the Church. Our faith is firmly linked to their testimony, as to an unbroken chain which spans the centuries, made up not only by the successors of the Apostles, but also by succeeding generations of Christians. Like the Apostles, each one of Christ’s followers is called to become a witness to his resurrection, above all in those human settings where forgetfulness of God and human disorientation are most evident.
If this is to happen, we need to remain in the risen Christ and in his love, as the First Letter of Saint John has reminded us: He who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him (1 Jn 4:16). Jesus had repeated insistently to his disciples: Abide in me… Abide in my love (Jn 15:4, 9). This is the secret of the saints: abiding in Christ, joined to him like branches to the vine, in order to bear much fruit (cf Jn 15:1-8). And this fruit is none other than love. This love shines forth in the testimony of Sister Jeanne Émilie de Villeneuve, who consecrated her life to God and to the poor, the sick, the imprisoned and the exploited, becoming for them and for all a concrete sign of the Lord’s merciful love.
A relationship with the risen Jesus is – so to speak – the atmosphere in which Christians live, and in which they find the strength to remain faithful to the Gospel, even amid obstacles and misunderstandings. Abiding in love: this is what Sister Maria Cristina Brando also did. She was completely given over to ardent love for the Lord. From prayer and her intimate encounter with the risen Jesus present in the Eucharist, she received strength to endure suffering and to give herself, as bread which is broken, to many people who had wandered far from God and yet hungered for authentic love.
An essential aspect of witness to the risen Lord is unity among ourselves, his disciples, in the image of his own unity with the Father. Today too, in the Gospel, we heard Jesus’ prayer on the eve of his passion: that they may be one, even as we are one (Jn 17:11). From this eternal love between the Father and the Son, poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (cf Rom 5:5), our mission and our fraternal communion draw strength; this love is the ever-flowing source of our joy in following the Lord along the path of his poverty, his virginity and his obedience; and this same love calls us to cultivate contemplative prayer. Sister Mariam Baouardy experienced this in an outstanding way. Poor and uneducated, she was able to counsel others and provide theological explanations with extreme clarity, the fruit of her constant converse with the Holy Spirit. Her docility to the Holy Spirit made her also a means of encounter and fellowship with the Muslim world. So too, Sister Marie Alphonsine Danil Ghattas came to understand clearly what it means to radiate the love of God in the apostolate, and to be a witness to meekness and unity. She shows us the importance of becoming responsible for one another, of living lives of service one to another.
To abide in God and in his love, and thus to proclaim by our words and our lives the resurrection of Jesus, to live in unity with one another and with charity towards all. This is what the four women Saints canonized today did. Their luminous example challenges us in our lives as Christians. How do I bear witness to the risen Christ? This is a question we have to ask ourselves. How do I abide in him? How do I dwell in his love? Am I capable of sowing in my family, in my workplace and in my community, the seed of that unity which he has bestowed on us by giving us a share in the life of the Trinity?
When we return home today, let us take with us the joy of this encounter with the risen Lord. Let us cultivate in our hearts the commitment to abide in God’s love. Let us remain united to him and among ourselves, and follow in the footsteps of these four women, models of sanctity whom the Church invites us to imitate.
At the conclusion of this celebration, I wish to greet all of you who have come to render homage to the new Saints, especially the official Delegations from Palestine, France, Italy, Israel and Jordan. I affectionately greet the Cardinals, the Bishops and the priests, including the spiritual sons of the four Saints. Through their intercession, may the Lord grant new missionary energy to their respective countries of origin. Inspired by their example of mercy, of charity and of reconciliation, may Christians of their native lands look hopefully toward the future, continuing along the road of solidarity and of fraternal existence.
I extend my greetings to all the families, the parish groups, the associations and the schools who are present, especially those who were recently Confirmed in the Archdiocese of Genoa. A special thought goes out to the faithful of the Czech Republic, gathered at the Shrine of Svaty Kopećek, near Olomuc, who are remembering today the twentieth anniversary of the visit there by Pope John Paul II.
Yesterday, in Venice, Father Luigi Caburlotto, a priest, a teacher and the founder of the Sons of Saint Joseph was Beatified. Let us give thanks to God for this exemplary pastor, who led an especially spiritual and apostolic life, completely focused on doing good for souls.
I also want to invite you to pray for the dear people of Burundi who are living a particularly delicate moment at the present time: may the Lord help them all to bring an end to the violence and to act responsibly for the good of their country.
With filial love, let us now address our prayer to the Virgin Mary, the Mother of the Church, Queen of the Saints and model for all Christians.
Regina Caeli ...
Homily of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
for the Mass of Canonization
The Acts of the Apostles have set before us the early Church as she elects the man whom God called to take the place of Judas in the college of the Apostles. It has to do not with a job, but with service. Indeed, Matthias, on whom the choice falls, receives a mission which Peter defines in these words: One of these men... must become a witness with us to his resurrection, the resurrection of Christ (Acts 1:21-23). In this way Peter sums up what it means to be part of the Twelve: it means to be a witness to Jesus’ resurrection. The fact that he says with us brings us to realize that the mission of proclaiming the risen Christ is not an individual undertaking: it is to be carried out in common, with the apostolic college and with the community. The Apostles had a direct and overwhelming experience of the resurrection; they were eyewitnesses to that event. Thanks to their authoritative testimony, many people came to believe; from faith in the risen Lord, Christian communities were born and are born continually. We too, today, base our faith in the risen Lord on the witness of the Apostles, which has come down to us through the mission of the Church. Our faith is firmly linked to their testimony, as to an unbroken chain which spans the centuries, made up not only by the successors of the Apostles, but also by succeeding generations of Christians. Like the Apostles, each one of Christ’s followers is called to become a witness to his resurrection, above all in those human settings where forgetfulness of God and human disorientation are most evident.
If this is to happen, we need to remain in the risen Christ and in his love, as the First Letter of Saint John has reminded us: He who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him (1 Jn 4:16). Jesus had repeated insistently to his disciples: Abide in me… Abide in my love (Jn 15:4, 9). This is the secret of the saints: abiding in Christ, joined to him like branches to the vine, in order to bear much fruit (cf Jn 15:1-8). And this fruit is none other than love. This love shines forth in the testimony of Sister Jeanne Émilie de Villeneuve, who consecrated her life to God and to the poor, the sick, the imprisoned and the exploited, becoming for them and for all a concrete sign of the Lord’s merciful love.
A relationship with the risen Jesus is – so to speak – the atmosphere in which Christians live, and in which they find the strength to remain faithful to the Gospel, even amid obstacles and misunderstandings. Abiding in love: this is what Sister Maria Cristina Brando also did. She was completely given over to ardent love for the Lord. From prayer and her intimate encounter with the risen Jesus present in the Eucharist, she received strength to endure suffering and to give herself, as bread which is broken, to many people who had wandered far from God and yet hungered for authentic love.
An essential aspect of witness to the risen Lord is unity among ourselves, his disciples, in the image of his own unity with the Father. Today too, in the Gospel, we heard Jesus’ prayer on the eve of his passion: that they may be one, even as we are one (Jn 17:11). From this eternal love between the Father and the Son, poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (cf Rom 5:5), our mission and our fraternal communion draw strength; this love is the ever-flowing source of our joy in following the Lord along the path of his poverty, his virginity and his obedience; and this same love calls us to cultivate contemplative prayer. Sister Mariam Baouardy experienced this in an outstanding way. Poor and uneducated, she was able to counsel others and provide theological explanations with extreme clarity, the fruit of her constant converse with the Holy Spirit. Her docility to the Holy Spirit made her also a means of encounter and fellowship with the Muslim world. So too, Sister Marie Alphonsine Danil Ghattas came to understand clearly what it means to radiate the love of God in the apostolate, and to be a witness to meekness and unity. She shows us the importance of becoming responsible for one another, of living lives of service one to another.
To abide in God and in his love, and thus to proclaim by our words and our lives the resurrection of Jesus, to live in unity with one another and with charity towards all. This is what the four women Saints canonized today did. Their luminous example challenges us in our lives as Christians. How do I bear witness to the risen Christ? This is a question we have to ask ourselves. How do I abide in him? How do I dwell in his love? Am I capable of sowing in my family, in my workplace and in my community, the seed of that unity which he has bestowed on us by giving us a share in the life of the Trinity?
When we return home today, let us take with us the joy of this encounter with the risen Lord. Let us cultivate in our hearts the commitment to abide in God’s love. Let us remain united to him and among ourselves, and follow in the footsteps of these four women, models of sanctity whom the Church invites us to imitate.
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Regina Caeli
At the conclusion of this celebration, I wish to greet all of you who have come to render homage to the new Saints, especially the official Delegations from Palestine, France, Italy, Israel and Jordan. I affectionately greet the Cardinals, the Bishops and the priests, including the spiritual sons of the four Saints. Through their intercession, may the Lord grant new missionary energy to their respective countries of origin. Inspired by their example of mercy, of charity and of reconciliation, may Christians of their native lands look hopefully toward the future, continuing along the road of solidarity and of fraternal existence.
I extend my greetings to all the families, the parish groups, the associations and the schools who are present, especially those who were recently Confirmed in the Archdiocese of Genoa. A special thought goes out to the faithful of the Czech Republic, gathered at the Shrine of Svaty Kopećek, near Olomuc, who are remembering today the twentieth anniversary of the visit there by Pope John Paul II.
Yesterday, in Venice, Father Luigi Caburlotto, a priest, a teacher and the founder of the Sons of Saint Joseph was Beatified. Let us give thanks to God for this exemplary pastor, who led an especially spiritual and apostolic life, completely focused on doing good for souls.
I also want to invite you to pray for the dear people of Burundi who are living a particularly delicate moment at the present time: may the Lord help them all to bring an end to the violence and to act responsibly for the good of their country.
With filial love, let us now address our prayer to the Virgin Mary, the Mother of the Church, Queen of the Saints and model for all Christians.
Regina Caeli ...
No comments:
Post a Comment