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.
In his speech, the Pope continued his mediation on mercy from the perspective of the bible, focusing on the theme: The tears of the sinner obtain forgiveness (Lk 7:37-38, 44, 47-48).
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. Then, he issued a call for prayers for the Ukrainian people who are being tried by prolonged conflict, inviting support once again for the collection he has proposed, that will take place next Sunday, April 24 throughout all churches in Europe.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, we want to focus on an aspect of mercy that is well represented in the passage from the gospel of Luke that we have just heard. It presents something that happened to Jesus while he was a guest in the house of one of the Pharisees named Simon, who invited Jesus to his home because he had heard good things about him, and that he was a prophet. While they were seated for lunch, a woman who was known to everyone in the city as a sinner came in. Without saying a word, she placed herself at the feet of Jesus and burst into tears; her tears washed over the feet of Jesus and she wiped them away with her hair, then she kissed them and anointed them with some perfumed oil that she had brought with her.
What stands out is a comparison between these two figures: Simon, the zealous servant of the law, and the anonymous sinful woman. While the first judged others on the basis of their appearance, the second, expressed her sincerity through her gestures. Even though he had invited Jesus, Simon neither wanted to compromise nor share his life with the Master; the woman, on the contrary, fully confided herself to him with love and veneration.
The Pharisee could not understand how Jesus could allow himself to be contaminated by this sinner. He thought that if he were really a prophet, he should recognize her and keep her far away from him in order to avoid being infected, as though she were a leper. This attitude is typical of a certain way of understanding religion; it is motivated by the fact that God and sin are radically opposed to each other. But the Word of God teaches us to distinguish between the sin and the sinner: with the sin, there is no need to compromise, whereas with sinners - that is to say all of us! - we are like the sick, who need to be cured, and in order for us to be cured, we need the doctor to be close by, to visit us, to touch us. And of course for someone who is sick to be healed, he must first recognize that he is in need of a doctor!
Between the Pharisee and the sinful woman, Jesus sided with the latter, Jesus, free from any prejudice that might prevent the expression of mercy, leaves her alone. He, the Holy One of God, allows us to touch him without any fear of being contaminated. Jesus is free, because he is close to God who is a merciful Father, and this closeness to God, the merciful Father, gives Jesus freedom. Indeed, entering into a relationship with the sinful woman, Jesus puts an end to the condition of isolation to which the merciless judgement of the Pharisee and of his companions - who had exploited her - had condemned her: Your sins are forgiven (Lk 7:48). Therefore, the woman can now go in peace. The Lord has seen the sincerity of her faith and of her conversion; for this reason, in front of everyone, he proclaims: Your faith has saved you (Lk 7:50). On one hand, we see the hypocrisy of the doctors of the law, on the other hand, we see the sincerity, the humility and the faith of the woman. We are all sinners, but many times we fall into the temptation of hypocrisy, of believing ourselves to be better than others, and we say: Look at your sin ... Instead, we should look at our own sin, our stumbling, our mistakes and we should look to the Lord. This is the way of salvation: the relationship between me, a sinner and the Lord. If I think myself justified, this relationship of salvation cannot exist.
At this point, an even greater sense of wonder overcomes those who are gathered around the table: Who is this, who even forgives sins? (Lk 7:49). Jesus does not give an explicit response, but the conversion of the sinful woman happens right before their eyes and demonstrates that in him, the power of God's mercy shines, and it is capable of transforming hearts.
The sinful woman teaches us the connection between faith, love and gratitude. She has been forgiven many sins and therefore she loves much; whereas he of whom little is forgiven loves little (Lk 7:47). Even Simon himself has to admit that one who as been forgiven more loves more. God has locked it all up in the same mystery of mercy; and from this love, which always precedes us, we all learn how to love. As Saint Paul recalls: In Christ, through his blood, we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins, according to the abundance of his grace. He has poured them out in abundance over us (Eph 1:7-8). In this text, the term grace is particularly synonymous with mercy, and it is called abundance, that is to say beyond our expectations, for it is grace that implements the salvific plan of God for every one of us.
Dear brothers and sisters, we are grateful for the gift of faith, let us thank the Lord for his love that is so great and unmerited! Let us allow the love of Christ to be poured out in us: this is the love which the disciple draws on and on it we are founded; from this love, everyone can be nourished and fed. So, in love we recognize that we in turn pour ourselves out for the good of our brothers and sisters, in our homes, in our families and in society as we proclaim the Lord's mercy to all people.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then summarized in various languages and His Holiness offered greetings to each of the groups of pilgrims in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the pilgrims from Croatia, Norway, Sweden, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, the Philippines and the United States of America. 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!
Immediately prior to imparting the Apostolic Blessing, the Holy Father made the following appeal:
The people of the Ukraine have been suffering for quite some time as a result of armed conflict which has been forgotten by many people. As you know, I have invited the Church in Europe to support the initiative which I proposed to assist with emergency humanitarian efforts. I thank in advance all those who will contribute so generously next Sunday, April 24.
In his speech, the Pope continued his mediation on mercy from the perspective of the bible, focusing on the theme: The tears of the sinner obtain forgiveness (Lk 7:37-38, 44, 47-48).
After having summarized his catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance. Then, he issued a call for prayers for the Ukrainian people who are being tried by prolonged conflict, inviting support once again for the collection he has proposed, that will take place next Sunday, April 24 throughout all churches in Europe.
The General Audience concluded with the chanting of the Pater Noster and the Apostolic Blessing.
Catechesis of His Holiness, Pope Francis
for the General Audience
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, we want to focus on an aspect of mercy that is well represented in the passage from the gospel of Luke that we have just heard. It presents something that happened to Jesus while he was a guest in the house of one of the Pharisees named Simon, who invited Jesus to his home because he had heard good things about him, and that he was a prophet. While they were seated for lunch, a woman who was known to everyone in the city as a sinner came in. Without saying a word, she placed herself at the feet of Jesus and burst into tears; her tears washed over the feet of Jesus and she wiped them away with her hair, then she kissed them and anointed them with some perfumed oil that she had brought with her.
What stands out is a comparison between these two figures: Simon, the zealous servant of the law, and the anonymous sinful woman. While the first judged others on the basis of their appearance, the second, expressed her sincerity through her gestures. Even though he had invited Jesus, Simon neither wanted to compromise nor share his life with the Master; the woman, on the contrary, fully confided herself to him with love and veneration.
The Pharisee could not understand how Jesus could allow himself to be contaminated by this sinner. He thought that if he were really a prophet, he should recognize her and keep her far away from him in order to avoid being infected, as though she were a leper. This attitude is typical of a certain way of understanding religion; it is motivated by the fact that God and sin are radically opposed to each other. But the Word of God teaches us to distinguish between the sin and the sinner: with the sin, there is no need to compromise, whereas with sinners - that is to say all of us! - we are like the sick, who need to be cured, and in order for us to be cured, we need the doctor to be close by, to visit us, to touch us. And of course for someone who is sick to be healed, he must first recognize that he is in need of a doctor!
Between the Pharisee and the sinful woman, Jesus sided with the latter, Jesus, free from any prejudice that might prevent the expression of mercy, leaves her alone. He, the Holy One of God, allows us to touch him without any fear of being contaminated. Jesus is free, because he is close to God who is a merciful Father, and this closeness to God, the merciful Father, gives Jesus freedom. Indeed, entering into a relationship with the sinful woman, Jesus puts an end to the condition of isolation to which the merciless judgement of the Pharisee and of his companions - who had exploited her - had condemned her: Your sins are forgiven (Lk 7:48). Therefore, the woman can now go in peace. The Lord has seen the sincerity of her faith and of her conversion; for this reason, in front of everyone, he proclaims: Your faith has saved you (Lk 7:50). On one hand, we see the hypocrisy of the doctors of the law, on the other hand, we see the sincerity, the humility and the faith of the woman. We are all sinners, but many times we fall into the temptation of hypocrisy, of believing ourselves to be better than others, and we say: Look at your sin ... Instead, we should look at our own sin, our stumbling, our mistakes and we should look to the Lord. This is the way of salvation: the relationship between me, a sinner and the Lord. If I think myself justified, this relationship of salvation cannot exist.
At this point, an even greater sense of wonder overcomes those who are gathered around the table: Who is this, who even forgives sins? (Lk 7:49). Jesus does not give an explicit response, but the conversion of the sinful woman happens right before their eyes and demonstrates that in him, the power of God's mercy shines, and it is capable of transforming hearts.
The sinful woman teaches us the connection between faith, love and gratitude. She has been forgiven many sins and therefore she loves much; whereas he of whom little is forgiven loves little (Lk 7:47). Even Simon himself has to admit that one who as been forgiven more loves more. God has locked it all up in the same mystery of mercy; and from this love, which always precedes us, we all learn how to love. As Saint Paul recalls: In Christ, through his blood, we have redemption, the forgiveness of our sins, according to the abundance of his grace. He has poured them out in abundance over us (Eph 1:7-8). In this text, the term grace is particularly synonymous with mercy, and it is called abundance, that is to say beyond our expectations, for it is grace that implements the salvific plan of God for every one of us.
Dear brothers and sisters, we are grateful for the gift of faith, let us thank the Lord for his love that is so great and unmerited! Let us allow the love of Christ to be poured out in us: this is the love which the disciple draws on and on it we are founded; from this love, everyone can be nourished and fed. So, in love we recognize that we in turn pour ourselves out for the good of our brothers and sisters, in our homes, in our families and in society as we proclaim the Lord's mercy to all people.
The Holy Father's catechesis was then summarized in various languages and His Holiness offered greetings to each of the groups of pilgrims in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the pilgrims from Croatia, Norway, Sweden, Australia, Singapore, Taiwan, the Philippines and the United States of America. 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!
Immediately prior to imparting the Apostolic Blessing, the Holy Father made the following appeal:
The people of the Ukraine have been suffering for quite some time as a result of armed conflict which has been forgotten by many people. As you know, I have invited the Church in Europe to support the initiative which I proposed to assist with emergency humanitarian efforts. I thank in advance all those who will contribute so generously next Sunday, April 24.
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