At noon today (6:00am EDT), the Solemnity of the Apostles Peter and Paul, the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace to recite the Angelus with the pilgrims and faithful gathered in Saint Peter's Square.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, the Church, who is a pilgrim here in Rome and throughout the entire world, goes to the roots of her faith and celebrates the Apostles Peter and Paul. Their mortal remains, which are kept in the two Basilicas which are dedicated to them, are very dear to Romans and to many pilgrims who come from everywhere across the globe to venerate them.
I want to focus on the gospel (cf Mt 16:13-19) that the liturgy proposes for this feast. In it, we hear an account that is fundamental for our journey in faith. It consists of a dialogue in which Jesus poses a question about identity to his disciples. First, he asks: Who do people say the Son of Man is? (Mt 16:13). And then he asks them directly: You, who do you say that I am? (Mt 16:15). With these two questions, Jesus seems to say that it is one thing to follow the current opinions, and another thing to meet Him and to open ourselves to his mystery: it is there that we discover the truth. The common opinion contains a response that is true but partial; Peter, and along with him the Church of yesterday, today and forever, responds, by the grace of God, with the truth: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt 16:16).
Throughout the centuries, the world has defined Jesus in various ways: a great prophet of justice and love; a wise teacher in the ways of life, a revolutionary; a dreamer of God's dreams .. and so on. Many beautiful things. In the midst of these and other hypotheses, Simon's confession - the one who is called Peter, a humble man who is filled with faith - rings out loud and clear: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt 16:16). Jesus is the Son of God: therefore he is eternally alive just as the Father is eternally alive. This is the novelty that grace ignites in the hearts of those who open themselves to the mystery of Jesus: the non-mathematical certainty, but even stronger, the interior experience of having met the Source of Life, life itself made flesh, visible and tangible among us. This is the experience of all Christians, and it is not based on our own merit, not based on any merit on the part of us Christians; it is not based our merit, but it comes from God, it is a grace of God, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. All this is contained in a seed, found in Peter's answer: You are the Christ, the son of the living God.
And then, Jesus' answer is filled with light: You are Peter and on this rock, I will build my Church, and the gates of hades will not be able to overcome it (Mk 16:18). This is the first time that Jesus pronounces the word Church: and he does so while expressing all his love toward her, which he defines as my Church. It is the new community of the Covenant, no longer based on its connection to the Law, but rather on faith in Him, in Jesus, the Face of God. This faith, Blessed Paul VI expressed with a prayer while he was still Archbishop of Milan. He used to say:
O Christ, our only mediator, we need You:
in order to live in communion with God our Father;
in order to become with you, who are the only Son and our Lord,
his adopted children;
in order to be reborn in the Holy Spirit (Pastoral Letter, 1955).
Through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Queen of the Apostles, may the Lord grant the Church, Rome and the entire world, the grace to be always faithful to the gospel, to whose service the Saints Peter and Paul consecrated their lives.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
This morning, here in Saint Peter's Square, I celebrated the Eucharist with the new Cardinals who were created during yesterday's Consistory; I blessed the Palliums for the Metropolitan Archbishops who have been named during the past year, who are now found in various countries. I renew my greetings and my wishes to them and to all those who are accompanying them in these festal circumstances. May they always live their service to the gospel and to the Church with enthusiasm and generosity.
During that same celebration, I warmly welcomed the delegation that was sent to Rome in the name of the Ecumenical Patriarch, my beloved brother Bartholomew. This presence is another sign of the journey toward communion and fraternity that - thank God - characterizes our Churches.
I offer a special greeting to all of you, families, parish groups, associations and single faithful who have come from Italy and from many other parts of the world, especially from the Czech Republic, from Pakistan, from China and from the United States of America. And I see the Spanish flag: also from Spain ... and from many other countries.
Today, my greetings are offered especially for you, the faithful of Rome, on the feast day of the Patron saints of our city! For this occasion, the Roman Pro Loco has promoted the traditional floral arrangements which I see from here, put together by various artists and by many associations and voluntary organizations. Thank you for this beautiful initiative and for the beautiful floral decorations!
I wish you all a good feast day. And 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, the Church, who is a pilgrim here in Rome and throughout the entire world, goes to the roots of her faith and celebrates the Apostles Peter and Paul. Their mortal remains, which are kept in the two Basilicas which are dedicated to them, are very dear to Romans and to many pilgrims who come from everywhere across the globe to venerate them.
I want to focus on the gospel (cf Mt 16:13-19) that the liturgy proposes for this feast. In it, we hear an account that is fundamental for our journey in faith. It consists of a dialogue in which Jesus poses a question about identity to his disciples. First, he asks: Who do people say the Son of Man is? (Mt 16:13). And then he asks them directly: You, who do you say that I am? (Mt 16:15). With these two questions, Jesus seems to say that it is one thing to follow the current opinions, and another thing to meet Him and to open ourselves to his mystery: it is there that we discover the truth. The common opinion contains a response that is true but partial; Peter, and along with him the Church of yesterday, today and forever, responds, by the grace of God, with the truth: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt 16:16).
Throughout the centuries, the world has defined Jesus in various ways: a great prophet of justice and love; a wise teacher in the ways of life, a revolutionary; a dreamer of God's dreams .. and so on. Many beautiful things. In the midst of these and other hypotheses, Simon's confession - the one who is called Peter, a humble man who is filled with faith - rings out loud and clear: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God (Mt 16:16). Jesus is the Son of God: therefore he is eternally alive just as the Father is eternally alive. This is the novelty that grace ignites in the hearts of those who open themselves to the mystery of Jesus: the non-mathematical certainty, but even stronger, the interior experience of having met the Source of Life, life itself made flesh, visible and tangible among us. This is the experience of all Christians, and it is not based on our own merit, not based on any merit on the part of us Christians; it is not based our merit, but it comes from God, it is a grace of God, Father and Son and Holy Spirit. All this is contained in a seed, found in Peter's answer: You are the Christ, the son of the living God.
And then, Jesus' answer is filled with light: You are Peter and on this rock, I will build my Church, and the gates of hades will not be able to overcome it (Mk 16:18). This is the first time that Jesus pronounces the word Church: and he does so while expressing all his love toward her, which he defines as my Church. It is the new community of the Covenant, no longer based on its connection to the Law, but rather on faith in Him, in Jesus, the Face of God. This faith, Blessed Paul VI expressed with a prayer while he was still Archbishop of Milan. He used to say:
O Christ, our only mediator, we need You:
in order to live in communion with God our Father;
in order to become with you, who are the only Son and our Lord,
his adopted children;
in order to be reborn in the Holy Spirit (Pastoral Letter, 1955).
Through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Queen of the Apostles, may the Lord grant the Church, Rome and the entire world, the grace to be always faithful to the gospel, to whose service the Saints Peter and Paul consecrated their lives.
After the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
This morning, here in Saint Peter's Square, I celebrated the Eucharist with the new Cardinals who were created during yesterday's Consistory; I blessed the Palliums for the Metropolitan Archbishops who have been named during the past year, who are now found in various countries. I renew my greetings and my wishes to them and to all those who are accompanying them in these festal circumstances. May they always live their service to the gospel and to the Church with enthusiasm and generosity.
During that same celebration, I warmly welcomed the delegation that was sent to Rome in the name of the Ecumenical Patriarch, my beloved brother Bartholomew. This presence is another sign of the journey toward communion and fraternity that - thank God - characterizes our Churches.
I offer a special greeting to all of you, families, parish groups, associations and single faithful who have come from Italy and from many other parts of the world, especially from the Czech Republic, from Pakistan, from China and from the United States of America. And I see the Spanish flag: also from Spain ... and from many other countries.
Today, my greetings are offered especially for you, the faithful of Rome, on the feast day of the Patron saints of our city! For this occasion, the Roman Pro Loco has promoted the traditional floral arrangements which I see from here, put together by various artists and by many associations and voluntary organizations. Thank you for this beautiful initiative and for the beautiful floral decorations!
I wish you all a good feast day. And please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
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