This morning's General Audience began at 10:00am in Saint Peter's Square where the Holy Father, Pope Francis met with groups of pilgrims and the faithful from Italy and from every corner of the world.
During his speech, the Pope focused his mediation on Psalm 51 (50), the Mercy psalm, thus concluding his catecheses on mercy in the Old Testament.
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, we conclude the catecheses on mercy in the Old Testament, and we do so by meditating on Psalm 51, the Mercy psalm. It is a penitential prayer in which the richness of forgiveness is preceded by a confession of guilt and in which the person who is praying, allows himself to be purified by the love of the Lord, and thus he becomes a new creation, capable of obedience, of firmness of spirit and sincere praise.
The title that the ancient Hebrew tradition has accorded to this Psalm refers to king David and to his sin committed with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite. We know the story well. King David, called by God to nourish His people and to guide their journey in obedience to the divine Law, betrays his own mission and, after having committed adultery with Bathsheba, has her husband killed. This is a terrible sin! The prophet Nathan makes him aware of his guilt and helps him to recognize it. At that moment, he is reconciled with God, in the confession of his sin, and here, David is humbled; he is made great!
As we pray this Psalm, we too are invited to have the same sentiments of penitence and trust in God that David had when he prayed these words and, even though he was a king, was humbled without being afraid to confess his guilt and to demonstrate his own suffering to the Lord; instead he was convinced of the certainty of His mercy. This was not just a little sin, a little lie, that he told: he committed adultery and he killed someone!
The Psalm begins with these words of supplication:
Have pity on me, O God, in your love;
in your great mercy, forgive my iniquity.
Wash me more and more from my guilt,
purify me of all my sins (Ps 51:3-4)
This invocation is addressed to the God of mercy since, having demonstrated great mercy like that of a father or a mother, he has pity, that is to say he gives grace and shows his favour with benevolence and understanding. This is an impassioned plea addressed to God, the only one who can free us from our sins. The images that are used are very vivid: wipe away, wash me, make me pure. In this prayer, we see the true need of every man: the only thing that we truly need for our life is to be forgiven, freed from evil and from its consequence of death. Unfortunately, life finds us in many different situations; above all, we must trues in the gift of mercy. God is greater than our sins. Let us never forget this: God is greater than our sins! Father, I don't know how to say it, I've committed many serious sins! God is greater than all the sins that we could ever commit. God is greater than our sins. Can we say that together? All together: God is greater than our sins! Once more: God is greater than our sins! And his love is an ocean in which we can immerse ourselves without fear of ever being overcome: to be forgiven by God means to be assured that He will never abandon us. No matter how much we might reproach ourselves, He is forever and always greater than everything else (cf 1 Jn 3:20), for God is greater than our sins.
In this sense, anyone who prays with this Psalm seeks forgiveness, confesses his or her guilt, but also recognizes and celebrates the justice and the holiness of God ... and asks for grace and mercy. The psalmist confides himself to the goodness of God and knows that divine forgiveness is most effective because it creates that which it proclaims. It does not hide sin; it destroys and cancels it; eradicates it at the root, not like they do at the cleaners when you bring them a suit and they remove a stain. No! God cancels our sins right at the root, everything! For this reason, the penitent becomes pure again, every stain is eliminated and he is now whiter than fresh-fallen snow. We are all sinners. Is that true? If someone of you doesn't think that you are a sinner, raise your hand ... No one! We are all sinners.
Through this forgiveness, we sinners become new creations, filled up with the spirit and filled with joy. Now, a new reality begins for us: a new heart, a new spirit, a new life. We, forgiven sinners, who have experienced divine grace, can in turn teach others not to sin any more. But Father, I am weak, I fall, I fall ... If you fall, get up! Get up! When a baby falls, what does he do? He raises a hand toward his mother or his father so that they can help him to get up again. Let us do the same! If you fall due to the weakness of sin, raise your hand: the Lord will take your hand and help you to get up. This is the dignity of God's forgiveness! The dignity that God's forgiveness gives us is the ability to get up, to stand again on our two feet, because He has created men and women to stand on our two feet.
The Psalmist says:
Create in me, a pure heart O God,
renew in me a steadfast spirit ...
I will teach transgressors your ways
and sinners will return to you (Ps 51:12, 15).
Dear brothers and sisters, God's forgiveness is what we all need, and it is the greatest sign of his mercy - a gift that every forgiven sinner is called to share with every brother and sister that we encounter. All those who the Lord places on our path: family members, friends, colleagues, fellow parishioners ... all of them, like us, are in need of God's mercy. It is good to be forgiven, but even you, if you are forgiven, must in turn forgive others. Forgive! May the Lord grant us, through the intercession of Mary, the Mother of mercy, to be witnesses of his forgiveness, that this gift may purify our hearts and transform our lives. Thank you.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then repeated in summary in various languages, and He offered particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from England, Ireland, Norway, Nigeria, Australia, Indonesia, Pakistan and the United States. In the joy of the Risen Lord, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!
During his speech, the Pope focused his mediation on Psalm 51 (50), the Mercy psalm, thus concluding his catecheses on mercy in the Old Testament.
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.
Catechesis of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
for the General Audience
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, we conclude the catecheses on mercy in the Old Testament, and we do so by meditating on Psalm 51, the Mercy psalm. It is a penitential prayer in which the richness of forgiveness is preceded by a confession of guilt and in which the person who is praying, allows himself to be purified by the love of the Lord, and thus he becomes a new creation, capable of obedience, of firmness of spirit and sincere praise.
The title that the ancient Hebrew tradition has accorded to this Psalm refers to king David and to his sin committed with Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite. We know the story well. King David, called by God to nourish His people and to guide their journey in obedience to the divine Law, betrays his own mission and, after having committed adultery with Bathsheba, has her husband killed. This is a terrible sin! The prophet Nathan makes him aware of his guilt and helps him to recognize it. At that moment, he is reconciled with God, in the confession of his sin, and here, David is humbled; he is made great!
As we pray this Psalm, we too are invited to have the same sentiments of penitence and trust in God that David had when he prayed these words and, even though he was a king, was humbled without being afraid to confess his guilt and to demonstrate his own suffering to the Lord; instead he was convinced of the certainty of His mercy. This was not just a little sin, a little lie, that he told: he committed adultery and he killed someone!
The Psalm begins with these words of supplication:
Have pity on me, O God, in your love;
in your great mercy, forgive my iniquity.
Wash me more and more from my guilt,
purify me of all my sins (Ps 51:3-4)
This invocation is addressed to the God of mercy since, having demonstrated great mercy like that of a father or a mother, he has pity, that is to say he gives grace and shows his favour with benevolence and understanding. This is an impassioned plea addressed to God, the only one who can free us from our sins. The images that are used are very vivid: wipe away, wash me, make me pure. In this prayer, we see the true need of every man: the only thing that we truly need for our life is to be forgiven, freed from evil and from its consequence of death. Unfortunately, life finds us in many different situations; above all, we must trues in the gift of mercy. God is greater than our sins. Let us never forget this: God is greater than our sins! Father, I don't know how to say it, I've committed many serious sins! God is greater than all the sins that we could ever commit. God is greater than our sins. Can we say that together? All together: God is greater than our sins! Once more: God is greater than our sins! And his love is an ocean in which we can immerse ourselves without fear of ever being overcome: to be forgiven by God means to be assured that He will never abandon us. No matter how much we might reproach ourselves, He is forever and always greater than everything else (cf 1 Jn 3:20), for God is greater than our sins.
In this sense, anyone who prays with this Psalm seeks forgiveness, confesses his or her guilt, but also recognizes and celebrates the justice and the holiness of God ... and asks for grace and mercy. The psalmist confides himself to the goodness of God and knows that divine forgiveness is most effective because it creates that which it proclaims. It does not hide sin; it destroys and cancels it; eradicates it at the root, not like they do at the cleaners when you bring them a suit and they remove a stain. No! God cancels our sins right at the root, everything! For this reason, the penitent becomes pure again, every stain is eliminated and he is now whiter than fresh-fallen snow. We are all sinners. Is that true? If someone of you doesn't think that you are a sinner, raise your hand ... No one! We are all sinners.
Through this forgiveness, we sinners become new creations, filled up with the spirit and filled with joy. Now, a new reality begins for us: a new heart, a new spirit, a new life. We, forgiven sinners, who have experienced divine grace, can in turn teach others not to sin any more. But Father, I am weak, I fall, I fall ... If you fall, get up! Get up! When a baby falls, what does he do? He raises a hand toward his mother or his father so that they can help him to get up again. Let us do the same! If you fall due to the weakness of sin, raise your hand: the Lord will take your hand and help you to get up. This is the dignity of God's forgiveness! The dignity that God's forgiveness gives us is the ability to get up, to stand again on our two feet, because He has created men and women to stand on our two feet.
The Psalmist says:
Create in me, a pure heart O God,
renew in me a steadfast spirit ...
I will teach transgressors your ways
and sinners will return to you (Ps 51:12, 15).
Dear brothers and sisters, God's forgiveness is what we all need, and it is the greatest sign of his mercy - a gift that every forgiven sinner is called to share with every brother and sister that we encounter. All those who the Lord places on our path: family members, friends, colleagues, fellow parishioners ... all of them, like us, are in need of God's mercy. It is good to be forgiven, but even you, if you are forgiven, must in turn forgive others. Forgive! May the Lord grant us, through the intercession of Mary, the Mother of mercy, to be witnesses of his forgiveness, that this gift may purify our hearts and transform our lives. Thank you.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then repeated in summary in various languages, and He offered particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from England, Ireland, Norway, Nigeria, Australia, Indonesia, Pakistan and the United States. In the joy of the Risen Lord, I invoke upon you and your families the loving mercy of God our Father. May the Lord bless you all!
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