Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father entered the Basilica of San Petronio where some of the poor, refugees and prisoners were waiting to share a solidarity lunch with him.
At the conclusion of the meal, the Holy Father left the Basilica of San Petronio and went to the Archbishop's residence.
Dear brothers and sisters,
What joy to see so many of you in this house! It is truly like the house of our Mother, the house of mercy, the Church that welcomes everyone, especially those who are in need of a place.
You are at the centre of this house. The Church wants you to be at the centre. She does not prepare any other different place: in the centre and together. The Church is for everyone, especially the poor. We are all invited, only by grace. It is a mystery of the gratuitous love of God that wishes it so, here, not by our own merit, but as a result of his love.
In this house, we normally celebrate the mystery of the Eucharist, the table on which we place bread and wine that become the Body and Blood of Jesus, broken and poured out for the multitudes of men who He loves. How strange God's mathematics is: he multiplies only if we divide! Here, we always find a table of love for those who are in need.
Charity is never uni-directional, it is always circular and everyone both gives and receives something. We all receive and we all know and can give so much. Jesus does not neglect anyone, he does not despise us. He is thirsty and he asks us to give him something to drink because he walks with us and suffers with us. And we are the ones who have the jug, even though it is a bit used, that can provide water, the water that comes from our heart! Our life is always precious and we all have something to give to others.
In the end, you will be given the most precious food, the Gospel, the Word of our God which we all bear in our hearts, who for us Christians has the beautiful face of Jesus. He is for you! He is just for those who are in need! Take it all and bear it as a sign, a personal seal of friendship with God who makes us all pilgrims without a place to prepare a gift for everyone.
We are all travellers, mendicants in search of love and hope, all of us in need of this God who brings us closer and reveals himself in the breaking of bread.
This bread of love which today we share also brings you to others. Gift everyone with your sympathy and friendship. This is the commitment we can all have. There is such great need of this love. You have a particular sensitivity to welcome the human dimension because you know what it means to be fragile, the need for holding out your hands, to help others by putting your own pride aside.
The Our Father which we will recite at the end is truly a prayer of the poor. The search for bread, in fact, expresses our trust in God for the particular needs of our life. When Jesus taught others with this prayer, he expressed and gathered the voices of all those who suffer because of the fragility of their existence, those who lack basic necessities. To the disciples who asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He responded with the words of the poor which are addressed to the one Father in whom everyone is recognized as a brother. The Our Father is a prayer that is expressed in the plural: the bread that we ask for is ours, and therefore it leads us to sharing, participation and common responsibility. In this prayer, everyone recognizes the need to overcome every form of selfishness in order to attain the joy of mutual welcome.
Today, we can share our daily bread. And for this, we all want to thank God.
At the conclusion of the meal, the Holy Father left the Basilica of San Petronio and went to the Archbishop's residence.
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the beginning of the lunchtime meal
Dear brothers and sisters,
What joy to see so many of you in this house! It is truly like the house of our Mother, the house of mercy, the Church that welcomes everyone, especially those who are in need of a place.
You are at the centre of this house. The Church wants you to be at the centre. She does not prepare any other different place: in the centre and together. The Church is for everyone, especially the poor. We are all invited, only by grace. It is a mystery of the gratuitous love of God that wishes it so, here, not by our own merit, but as a result of his love.
In this house, we normally celebrate the mystery of the Eucharist, the table on which we place bread and wine that become the Body and Blood of Jesus, broken and poured out for the multitudes of men who He loves. How strange God's mathematics is: he multiplies only if we divide! Here, we always find a table of love for those who are in need.
Charity is never uni-directional, it is always circular and everyone both gives and receives something. We all receive and we all know and can give so much. Jesus does not neglect anyone, he does not despise us. He is thirsty and he asks us to give him something to drink because he walks with us and suffers with us. And we are the ones who have the jug, even though it is a bit used, that can provide water, the water that comes from our heart! Our life is always precious and we all have something to give to others.
In the end, you will be given the most precious food, the Gospel, the Word of our God which we all bear in our hearts, who for us Christians has the beautiful face of Jesus. He is for you! He is just for those who are in need! Take it all and bear it as a sign, a personal seal of friendship with God who makes us all pilgrims without a place to prepare a gift for everyone.
We are all travellers, mendicants in search of love and hope, all of us in need of this God who brings us closer and reveals himself in the breaking of bread.
This bread of love which today we share also brings you to others. Gift everyone with your sympathy and friendship. This is the commitment we can all have. There is such great need of this love. You have a particular sensitivity to welcome the human dimension because you know what it means to be fragile, the need for holding out your hands, to help others by putting your own pride aside.
The Our Father which we will recite at the end is truly a prayer of the poor. The search for bread, in fact, expresses our trust in God for the particular needs of our life. When Jesus taught others with this prayer, he expressed and gathered the voices of all those who suffer because of the fragility of their existence, those who lack basic necessities. To the disciples who asked Jesus to teach them how to pray, He responded with the words of the poor which are addressed to the one Father in whom everyone is recognized as a brother. The Our Father is a prayer that is expressed in the plural: the bread that we ask for is ours, and therefore it leads us to sharing, participation and common responsibility. In this prayer, everyone recognizes the need to overcome every form of selfishness in order to attain the joy of mutual welcome.
Today, we can share our daily bread. And for this, we all want to thank God.
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