This morning's General Audience began at 9:30am local time (3:30am EDT) in Saint Peter's Square, where the Holy Father, Pope Francis met with groups of pilgrims and the faithful from Italy and from other parts of the world.
In his speech, the Pope continued the cycle of catecheses on the Commandments, adding his meditation on Do not kill according to Jesus (Gospel passage: Matthew 5:21-24).
After having summarized His catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, I want to continue the catecheses on the Fifth Word of the Decalogue: Thou shalt not kill. We have already pointed out how this Commandment reveals the fact that in the eyes of God human life is precious, sacred and inviolable. No one can despise the life of others or their own; in fact, man carries within himself the image of God and is the object of His infinite love, whatever the condition in which he was called into existence.
In the gospel passage that we have just heard, Jesus reveals to us an even more profound sense of this Commandment. He states that, before God's court, even anger against a brother is a form of murder. This is why the Apostle John wrote: Whoever hates his brother is a murderer (1 Jn 3:15). But Jesus does not stop at this; in in the same line of logic he adds that insult and contempt can also kill. And we are used to insulting, it's true. Insulting can be done as easily as breathing. And Jesus tells us: Stop, because the insult hurts, kills. There can be contempt. But I ... these people, I despise him. And this is a form of killing the dignity of a person. It would be nice if this teaching of Jesus entered the mind and the heart, and each of us would say: I will never insult anyone. It would be a beautiful thing, because Jesus tells us: Look, if you despise, if you insult, if you hate, this is murder.
No human code equates such different acts by assigning them the same degree of judgment. And coherently Jesus even invites us to interrupt the offering of the sacrifice in the temple if we remember that a brother is offended against us, to go and look for him and be reconciled with him. We too, when we go to Mass, should have this attitude of reconciliation with the people we have had problems with. Even if we thought badly about them, if we have insulted them. But many times, while we are waiting for the priest to say Mass, we talk a bit and we talk badly about the others. But this should not be done. Think of the gravity of the insult, of contempt, of hatred: Jesus puts them on the same line as killing.
What does Jesus mean by extending the field of the Fifth Word to this point? Mankind has a noble, very sensitive life, and possesses a hidden self no less important than his physical being. In fact, to offend the innocence of a child, it is enough to use an inappropriate sentence. A gesture of coldness is enough to hurt a woman. To break the heart of a young person, it is enough to deny him trust. To annihilate a man, just ignore him. Indifference kills. It is like saying to the other person: You are a dead man for me, because in doing so, you have killed him in your heart. Not to love is the first step toward kill; and not killing is the first step toward loving.
At the beginning of the Bible, we read that terrible words that came out of the mouth of the first murderer: Cain, after the Lord asked him where his brother was to be found. Cain replied: I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? (Gen 4,9)*. This is the way that killers speak: it does not concern me, they are yours, and similar things. Let's try to answer this question: are we the guardians of our brothers? Yes, we are! We are custodians of each other! And this is the path of life, it is the path of non-killing.
Human life needs love. And what is authentic love? It is what Christ showed us, that is to say: mercy. The love we can not do without is the love that forgives, that welcomes those who have harmed us. None of us can survive without mercy, we all need forgiveness. So, if killing means destroying, suppressing, eliminating someone, then not killing will mean curing, valuing, including everyone. And also forgiving them.
No one can deceive himself by thinking, I'm fine because I do not do anything wrong. A mineral or a plant has this kind of existence, but a man does not. A person - a man or a woman - no. More is required of a man or a woman. There is good to do, prepared for each of us, each of us has his own good to do, which makes us ourselves to the very end. Do not kill is an appeal to love and to mercy, it is a call to live according to the Lord Jesus, who gave his life for us and who rose for us. At least once, we have all repeated the words of a saint in this regard, right here in the Square: Perhaps it will help us to speak them again: To do no harm is good. But not doing good is not good. We always have to do good. Go beyond merely that which is required of us.
He, the Lord, who was made incarnate, has sanctified our existence; He, with his blood, has made it priceless; He, the author of life (Acts 3:15), thanks to whom everyone is a gift from the Father. In him, in his love which is stronger than death, and through the power of the Spirit that the Father gives us, we can accept the Word Do not kill! as the most important and essential appeal: that is to say that not killing is a call to love .
__
* cf Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2259: In the account of Abel's murder by his brother Cain, Scripture reveals the presence of anger and envy in man, consequences of original sin, from the beginning of human history. Man has become the enemy of his fellow man. God declares the wickedness of this fratricide: What have you done? the voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. and now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand (Gen 4:10-11)
(Original text in Italian)
The Holy Father's catechesis was then summarized in various languages and His Holiness offered greetings to each group of the faithful who were in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Scotland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Indonesia, Canada and the United States of America. In this month dedicated to praying the rosary, may Our Lady of the Rosary accompany you, and upon all of you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you!
In his speech, the Pope continued the cycle of catecheses on the Commandments, adding his meditation on Do not kill according to Jesus (Gospel passage: Matthew 5:21-24).
After having summarized His catechesis in various languages, the Holy Father addressed particular greetings to each group of the faithful in attendance.
Catechesis of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
for the General Audience
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today, I want to continue the catecheses on the Fifth Word of the Decalogue: Thou shalt not kill. We have already pointed out how this Commandment reveals the fact that in the eyes of God human life is precious, sacred and inviolable. No one can despise the life of others or their own; in fact, man carries within himself the image of God and is the object of His infinite love, whatever the condition in which he was called into existence.
In the gospel passage that we have just heard, Jesus reveals to us an even more profound sense of this Commandment. He states that, before God's court, even anger against a brother is a form of murder. This is why the Apostle John wrote: Whoever hates his brother is a murderer (1 Jn 3:15). But Jesus does not stop at this; in in the same line of logic he adds that insult and contempt can also kill. And we are used to insulting, it's true. Insulting can be done as easily as breathing. And Jesus tells us: Stop, because the insult hurts, kills. There can be contempt. But I ... these people, I despise him. And this is a form of killing the dignity of a person. It would be nice if this teaching of Jesus entered the mind and the heart, and each of us would say: I will never insult anyone. It would be a beautiful thing, because Jesus tells us: Look, if you despise, if you insult, if you hate, this is murder.
No human code equates such different acts by assigning them the same degree of judgment. And coherently Jesus even invites us to interrupt the offering of the sacrifice in the temple if we remember that a brother is offended against us, to go and look for him and be reconciled with him. We too, when we go to Mass, should have this attitude of reconciliation with the people we have had problems with. Even if we thought badly about them, if we have insulted them. But many times, while we are waiting for the priest to say Mass, we talk a bit and we talk badly about the others. But this should not be done. Think of the gravity of the insult, of contempt, of hatred: Jesus puts them on the same line as killing.
What does Jesus mean by extending the field of the Fifth Word to this point? Mankind has a noble, very sensitive life, and possesses a hidden self no less important than his physical being. In fact, to offend the innocence of a child, it is enough to use an inappropriate sentence. A gesture of coldness is enough to hurt a woman. To break the heart of a young person, it is enough to deny him trust. To annihilate a man, just ignore him. Indifference kills. It is like saying to the other person: You are a dead man for me, because in doing so, you have killed him in your heart. Not to love is the first step toward kill; and not killing is the first step toward loving.
At the beginning of the Bible, we read that terrible words that came out of the mouth of the first murderer: Cain, after the Lord asked him where his brother was to be found. Cain replied: I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper? (Gen 4,9)*. This is the way that killers speak: it does not concern me, they are yours, and similar things. Let's try to answer this question: are we the guardians of our brothers? Yes, we are! We are custodians of each other! And this is the path of life, it is the path of non-killing.
Human life needs love. And what is authentic love? It is what Christ showed us, that is to say: mercy. The love we can not do without is the love that forgives, that welcomes those who have harmed us. None of us can survive without mercy, we all need forgiveness. So, if killing means destroying, suppressing, eliminating someone, then not killing will mean curing, valuing, including everyone. And also forgiving them.
No one can deceive himself by thinking, I'm fine because I do not do anything wrong. A mineral or a plant has this kind of existence, but a man does not. A person - a man or a woman - no. More is required of a man or a woman. There is good to do, prepared for each of us, each of us has his own good to do, which makes us ourselves to the very end. Do not kill is an appeal to love and to mercy, it is a call to live according to the Lord Jesus, who gave his life for us and who rose for us. At least once, we have all repeated the words of a saint in this regard, right here in the Square: Perhaps it will help us to speak them again: To do no harm is good. But not doing good is not good. We always have to do good. Go beyond merely that which is required of us.
He, the Lord, who was made incarnate, has sanctified our existence; He, with his blood, has made it priceless; He, the author of life (Acts 3:15), thanks to whom everyone is a gift from the Father. In him, in his love which is stronger than death, and through the power of the Spirit that the Father gives us, we can accept the Word Do not kill! as the most important and essential appeal: that is to say that not killing is a call to love .
__
* cf Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2259: In the account of Abel's murder by his brother Cain, Scripture reveals the presence of anger and envy in man, consequences of original sin, from the beginning of human history. Man has become the enemy of his fellow man. God declares the wickedness of this fratricide: What have you done? the voice of your brother's blood is crying to me from the ground. and now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand (Gen 4:10-11)
(Original text in Italian)
The Holy Father's catechesis was then summarized in various languages and His Holiness offered greetings to each group of the faithful who were in attendance. To English-speaking pilgrims, he said:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Scotland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, Indonesia, Canada and the United States of America. In this month dedicated to praying the rosary, may Our Lady of the Rosary accompany you, and upon all of you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you!
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