At noon today in Rome (6:00am EDT), the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the faithful and with pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today's gospel passage (cf Mk 3:20-35) shows us two kinds of misunderstandings that Jesus had to face: misunderstandings on the part of the scribes and those on the part of his own friends.
The first misunderstanding. The scribes were men who had been instructed in Sacred Scripture and charged with explaining it to the people. Some of them were sent to Jerusalem in Galilee, where Jesus' fame had begun to spread, in order to discredit him in the eyes of the people: to create the bureau of idle chatter, in order to discredit another, to cut off his authority, such a terrible thing. They had been sent to do that. And these scribes arrived with a precise and terrible accusation - they did not mince words, they went directly to the heart of the matter, saying: He is possessed by Beelzebul and drives out demons by order of the leader of the demons (Mk 3:22). Which is to say, the leader of the demons is the one who leads Him; which is the same as saying, more or less: He is a demoniac. In fact, Jesus had healed many sick people, and they wanted to make people believe that he had done so not with the Spirit of God - as Jesus had done - but with the spirit of the Evil One, with the strength of the devil. Jesus reacted with strong and clear words, he would not put up with that, because those scribes, maybe without even realizing it, were falling into the gravest of sins: that of denying and blaspheming the Love of God which is present and at work in Jesus. And blasphemy, a sin against the Holy Spirit, is the only unforgivable sin - as Jesus said - because it begins in a heart that is already closed off from the mercy of God that is acting in Jesus.
But this story contains a warning for all of us. In fact, it might happen that strong envy for the goodness or for the good works that a person does can drive us to accuse them falsely. This is true deadly poison: the malice with which, in a pre-meditated fashion, someone may want to destroy the good name of another. May God free us from such a terrible temptation! And if, by examining our conscience, we were to realize that this poison grass is growing within us, we should go immediately to confess it in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, before it has a chance to develop and produce its desired evil effects, which are incurable. Be careful, because this attitude can destroy families, friendships, communities and even entire societies.
Today's gospel speaks to us also of another misunderstanding, a very different one, that Jesus had to face: misunderstandings on the part of his friends. These were preoccupied, because their new itinerant life style seemed a bit crazy to them (cf Mk 3:21). In fact, He made himself so available to people, especially those who were sick and to sinners, to the point that he didn't even have enough time to eat. Jesus was like that: first the people, serve the people, help the people, teach the people, healing the people. He was for the people. He had no time to himself, not even to eat. His friends, however, decided to bring him back to Nazareth, back home. They arrived at the place where Jesus was preaching and they sent word to him: Behold, your mother, your brothers and sisters are outside looking for you (Mk 3:32). He responded: Who is my mother and who are my brothers?, and looking around at the people who were gathered around Him, listening to him, he added: These are my mother and my brothers! He who does the will of God, he is a brother, a sister, a mother to me (Mk 3:33-34). Jesus had formed a new family, his natural family ties were no longer enough, but these ties were based on faith in Him, faith in his love that welcomes us and unites us in the Holy Spirit. All those who welcome the word of Jesus are sons of God and brothers to one another. Welcoming the word of God makes us all brothers, it makes us part of the family of Jesus. Talking about others, destroying the reputation of others makes us part of the family of the devil.
Jesus' response is not disrespectful toward his mother and his family members. Indeed, for Mary, it is the greatest form of recognition, because she herself is the perfect disciple who obeyed the will of God in everything. The Virgin Mary helps us to live always in communion with Jesus, to be aware of the work of the Spirit who is acting in Him and in His Church, recreating the world to a new life.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
Once again, I wish to send special thoughts of friendship and prayer to the beloved Korean people. The discussions that will take place in the next few days in Singapore can contribute to the development of a positive outcome, which would assure a future of peace for the Korean peninsula and for the entire world. Let us pray to the Lord for this grace. All together, let us pray to Our Lady, the Queen of Korea, that she may accompany the talks.
Hail Mary ...
Today, in Agen (France), Sister Maria of the Conception, born Adelaide de Batz de Trenquelléon was proclaimed Blessed. She lived between the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries and founded the Daughters of Mary Immaculate, known as the Marianists. Let us praise the Lord for this daughter of His who consecrated her life to Him and to the service of her brothers and sisters. Applause for the new Blessed, everyone, applause.
I greet all of you, dear Romans and pilgrims: the parish groups, the families, the associations. In particular, I greet the faithful who have come from Spain: from Murcia, Pamplona and Logroño. And from Italy: those from Naples, the young people from Mestrino and the alpine sports group fro Legnago.
I wish you all a good Sunday. Please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today's gospel passage (cf Mk 3:20-35) shows us two kinds of misunderstandings that Jesus had to face: misunderstandings on the part of the scribes and those on the part of his own friends.
The first misunderstanding. The scribes were men who had been instructed in Sacred Scripture and charged with explaining it to the people. Some of them were sent to Jerusalem in Galilee, where Jesus' fame had begun to spread, in order to discredit him in the eyes of the people: to create the bureau of idle chatter, in order to discredit another, to cut off his authority, such a terrible thing. They had been sent to do that. And these scribes arrived with a precise and terrible accusation - they did not mince words, they went directly to the heart of the matter, saying: He is possessed by Beelzebul and drives out demons by order of the leader of the demons (Mk 3:22). Which is to say, the leader of the demons is the one who leads Him; which is the same as saying, more or less: He is a demoniac. In fact, Jesus had healed many sick people, and they wanted to make people believe that he had done so not with the Spirit of God - as Jesus had done - but with the spirit of the Evil One, with the strength of the devil. Jesus reacted with strong and clear words, he would not put up with that, because those scribes, maybe without even realizing it, were falling into the gravest of sins: that of denying and blaspheming the Love of God which is present and at work in Jesus. And blasphemy, a sin against the Holy Spirit, is the only unforgivable sin - as Jesus said - because it begins in a heart that is already closed off from the mercy of God that is acting in Jesus.
But this story contains a warning for all of us. In fact, it might happen that strong envy for the goodness or for the good works that a person does can drive us to accuse them falsely. This is true deadly poison: the malice with which, in a pre-meditated fashion, someone may want to destroy the good name of another. May God free us from such a terrible temptation! And if, by examining our conscience, we were to realize that this poison grass is growing within us, we should go immediately to confess it in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, before it has a chance to develop and produce its desired evil effects, which are incurable. Be careful, because this attitude can destroy families, friendships, communities and even entire societies.
Today's gospel speaks to us also of another misunderstanding, a very different one, that Jesus had to face: misunderstandings on the part of his friends. These were preoccupied, because their new itinerant life style seemed a bit crazy to them (cf Mk 3:21). In fact, He made himself so available to people, especially those who were sick and to sinners, to the point that he didn't even have enough time to eat. Jesus was like that: first the people, serve the people, help the people, teach the people, healing the people. He was for the people. He had no time to himself, not even to eat. His friends, however, decided to bring him back to Nazareth, back home. They arrived at the place where Jesus was preaching and they sent word to him: Behold, your mother, your brothers and sisters are outside looking for you (Mk 3:32). He responded: Who is my mother and who are my brothers?, and looking around at the people who were gathered around Him, listening to him, he added: These are my mother and my brothers! He who does the will of God, he is a brother, a sister, a mother to me (Mk 3:33-34). Jesus had formed a new family, his natural family ties were no longer enough, but these ties were based on faith in Him, faith in his love that welcomes us and unites us in the Holy Spirit. All those who welcome the word of Jesus are sons of God and brothers to one another. Welcoming the word of God makes us all brothers, it makes us part of the family of Jesus. Talking about others, destroying the reputation of others makes us part of the family of the devil.
Jesus' response is not disrespectful toward his mother and his family members. Indeed, for Mary, it is the greatest form of recognition, because she herself is the perfect disciple who obeyed the will of God in everything. The Virgin Mary helps us to live always in communion with Jesus, to be aware of the work of the Spirit who is acting in Him and in His Church, recreating the world to a new life.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
Once again, I wish to send special thoughts of friendship and prayer to the beloved Korean people. The discussions that will take place in the next few days in Singapore can contribute to the development of a positive outcome, which would assure a future of peace for the Korean peninsula and for the entire world. Let us pray to the Lord for this grace. All together, let us pray to Our Lady, the Queen of Korea, that she may accompany the talks.
Hail Mary ...
Today, in Agen (France), Sister Maria of the Conception, born Adelaide de Batz de Trenquelléon was proclaimed Blessed. She lived between the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries and founded the Daughters of Mary Immaculate, known as the Marianists. Let us praise the Lord for this daughter of His who consecrated her life to Him and to the service of her brothers and sisters. Applause for the new Blessed, everyone, applause.
I greet all of you, dear Romans and pilgrims: the parish groups, the families, the associations. In particular, I greet the faithful who have come from Spain: from Murcia, Pamplona and Logroño. And from Italy: those from Naples, the young people from Mestrino and the alpine sports group fro Legnago.
I wish you all a good Sunday. Please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
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