At noon today local time (6:00am EST), the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, 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 for the usual weekly appointment.
Present in the crowd today, among others, were young people who are part of Catholic Action in the Diocese of Rome who are concluding the month of January with their annual Caravan of Peace. Among the members of Catholic Action, the month of January is usually dedicated to the theme of Peace. This year, the theme for this past month has been: Peace and Service. At the conclusion of the recitation of the Angelus, two young people from two Roman parishes, who had been invited to enter the pontifical apartment, read a message in the name of Catholic Action which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its foundation.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Last Sunday, the liturgy proposed the episode of the synagogue in Nazareth, where Jesus reads a passage from the prophet Isaiah and finally reveals that those words are fulfilled today in him. Jesus presents himself as the one on whom the Spirit of the Lord has been laid, the Holy Spirit who consecrated him and sent him to fulfill the mission of salvation for humanity. Today's Gospel (cf Lk 4:21-30) is the continuation of that story and shows us the amazement of Jesus fellow citizens in seeing that one of their countrymen, the son of Joseph (Lk 4:22), claims to be the Christ, the Father's chosen one.
With his ability to penetrate minds and hearts, Jesus immediately understands what his fellow citizens are thinking. They believe that, since he is one of them, he must demonstrate this strange claim by doing miracles there, in Nazareth, as he did in neighbouring cities and towns (cf Lk 4:23). But Jesus does not want to, and can not accept this logic, because it does not correspond to God's plan: God wants faith, they want miracles, signs; God wants to save everyone, and they want a Messiah who is to their advantage. And in order to explain the logic of God, Jesus uses the example of two great ancient prophets: Elijah and Elisha, whom God had sent to heal and save non-Jewish people, other peoples, but who had trusted his word.
Faced with this invitation to open their hearts to the gratuitousness and universality of salvation, the citizens of Nazareth rebel, and even assume an aggressive attitude, which degenerates to the point that "they got up and drove him out of the city and led him on the edge of the mountain ..., to throw him down (Lk 4:29). The initial admiration has changed into aggression, rebellion against Him.
And this Gospel shows us that the public ministry of Jesus begins with rejection and with a threat of death, paradoxically on the part of his fellow citizens. In living the mission entrusted to him by the Father, Jesus knows that he must face fatigue, rejection, persecution and defeat: a price that, yesterday like today, the authentic prophet is called to pay. However, the harsh rejection does not discourage Jesus, nor does it stop the path and fruitfulness of his prophetic action. He goes on his way (cf Lk 4:30), trusting in the love of the Father.
Even today, the world needs to see in the disciples of the Lord and of the prophets, that is, of the courageous and persevering people in responding to the Christian vocation: people who follow the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who sends them to proclaim hope and salvation to the poor and excluded; people who follow the logic of faith and not of miraculousness; people dedicated to the service of all, without privileges and exclusions. In short: these are people who are open to accepting within themselves the will of the Father, people who are committed to witnessing it faithfully to others.
Let us pray to Mary Most Holy, that we may grow and walk in the same apostolic zeal for the Kingdom of God that animated the mission of Jesus.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
With great concern, I am following the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. The people are exhausted by the long conflict and many children are still suffering from hunger, but it is not possible to access food stores. Brothers and sisters, the cry of these children and their parents rises before God. I appeal to the interested parties and to the international community to urgently encourage compliance with the agreements that have been reached, to ensure the distribution of food and to work for the good of the people. I invite everyone to pray for our brothers in Yemen. Hail Mary .... We pray fervently, because they are children who are hungry, thirsty, who have no medicines and are in danger of death. We bring this thought home with us.
Today throughout Italy, we celebrate the Day for Life. The theme for this day is It's life, it's the future. I associate myself with the message of the Bishops of Italy and I express my encouragement to the ecclesial communities that in many ways promote and sustain life. It becomes increasingly necessary that we procure a concrete commitment to promote births, which involves the institutions and the various cultural and social realities, recognizing the family as the generative womb of society.
On 5 February of this year, in the Far East and in various parts of the world, millions of men and women will celebrate the lunar New Year. I wish to cordially greet them, expressing my wish that in their families they may practice virtues that will help them to live in peace with themselves, with others and with creation. I invite you all to pray for the gift of peace, to welcome and to cultivate this gift with contributions from everyone.
I greet all of you, Romans and pilgrims. In particular, the faithful who have come from Croatia and from Poland; those from Lecce, Potenza, Cerignola, San Benedetto del Tronto and Castelliri. I greet the Pious Sisters, Disciples of the Divine Master and the parish choir from Claut (Pordenone).
With great affection, I greet the young men and women who are part of Catholic Action in the Diocese of Rome. Dear young people, I am happy to welcome you, together with the Cardinal Vicar, the priests who work with you, your parents and your teachers, at the conclusion of your Caravan of Peace. With this initiative, you begin the festivities of the 50th anniversary of the presence of Catholic Action in Rome and the 50th year since the establishment of Catholic Action Rome. I hope and pray that you will be joyous witnesses of peace and fraternity. Now, let us listen together to the message which your friends, who are here beside me, will read.
(Reading of the message)
And now, we will let the doves rise to heaven, a symbol of our prayers for peace in the world.
(Release of the doves)
In less than an hour's time, I will leave for my brief but important visit to the United Arab Emirates. Please, accompany me with your prayers. I wish you all a good Sunday. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
Present in the crowd today, among others, were young people who are part of Catholic Action in the Diocese of Rome who are concluding the month of January with their annual Caravan of Peace. Among the members of Catholic Action, the month of January is usually dedicated to the theme of Peace. This year, the theme for this past month has been: Peace and Service. At the conclusion of the recitation of the Angelus, two young people from two Roman parishes, who had been invited to enter the pontifical apartment, read a message in the name of Catholic Action which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its foundation.
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Last Sunday, the liturgy proposed the episode of the synagogue in Nazareth, where Jesus reads a passage from the prophet Isaiah and finally reveals that those words are fulfilled today in him. Jesus presents himself as the one on whom the Spirit of the Lord has been laid, the Holy Spirit who consecrated him and sent him to fulfill the mission of salvation for humanity. Today's Gospel (cf Lk 4:21-30) is the continuation of that story and shows us the amazement of Jesus fellow citizens in seeing that one of their countrymen, the son of Joseph (Lk 4:22), claims to be the Christ, the Father's chosen one.
With his ability to penetrate minds and hearts, Jesus immediately understands what his fellow citizens are thinking. They believe that, since he is one of them, he must demonstrate this strange claim by doing miracles there, in Nazareth, as he did in neighbouring cities and towns (cf Lk 4:23). But Jesus does not want to, and can not accept this logic, because it does not correspond to God's plan: God wants faith, they want miracles, signs; God wants to save everyone, and they want a Messiah who is to their advantage. And in order to explain the logic of God, Jesus uses the example of two great ancient prophets: Elijah and Elisha, whom God had sent to heal and save non-Jewish people, other peoples, but who had trusted his word.
Faced with this invitation to open their hearts to the gratuitousness and universality of salvation, the citizens of Nazareth rebel, and even assume an aggressive attitude, which degenerates to the point that "they got up and drove him out of the city and led him on the edge of the mountain ..., to throw him down (Lk 4:29). The initial admiration has changed into aggression, rebellion against Him.
And this Gospel shows us that the public ministry of Jesus begins with rejection and with a threat of death, paradoxically on the part of his fellow citizens. In living the mission entrusted to him by the Father, Jesus knows that he must face fatigue, rejection, persecution and defeat: a price that, yesterday like today, the authentic prophet is called to pay. However, the harsh rejection does not discourage Jesus, nor does it stop the path and fruitfulness of his prophetic action. He goes on his way (cf Lk 4:30), trusting in the love of the Father.
Even today, the world needs to see in the disciples of the Lord and of the prophets, that is, of the courageous and persevering people in responding to the Christian vocation: people who follow the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who sends them to proclaim hope and salvation to the poor and excluded; people who follow the logic of faith and not of miraculousness; people dedicated to the service of all, without privileges and exclusions. In short: these are people who are open to accepting within themselves the will of the Father, people who are committed to witnessing it faithfully to others.
Let us pray to Mary Most Holy, that we may grow and walk in the same apostolic zeal for the Kingdom of God that animated the mission of Jesus.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
With great concern, I am following the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. The people are exhausted by the long conflict and many children are still suffering from hunger, but it is not possible to access food stores. Brothers and sisters, the cry of these children and their parents rises before God. I appeal to the interested parties and to the international community to urgently encourage compliance with the agreements that have been reached, to ensure the distribution of food and to work for the good of the people. I invite everyone to pray for our brothers in Yemen. Hail Mary .... We pray fervently, because they are children who are hungry, thirsty, who have no medicines and are in danger of death. We bring this thought home with us.
Today throughout Italy, we celebrate the Day for Life. The theme for this day is It's life, it's the future. I associate myself with the message of the Bishops of Italy and I express my encouragement to the ecclesial communities that in many ways promote and sustain life. It becomes increasingly necessary that we procure a concrete commitment to promote births, which involves the institutions and the various cultural and social realities, recognizing the family as the generative womb of society.
On 5 February of this year, in the Far East and in various parts of the world, millions of men and women will celebrate the lunar New Year. I wish to cordially greet them, expressing my wish that in their families they may practice virtues that will help them to live in peace with themselves, with others and with creation. I invite you all to pray for the gift of peace, to welcome and to cultivate this gift with contributions from everyone.
I greet all of you, Romans and pilgrims. In particular, the faithful who have come from Croatia and from Poland; those from Lecce, Potenza, Cerignola, San Benedetto del Tronto and Castelliri. I greet the Pious Sisters, Disciples of the Divine Master and the parish choir from Claut (Pordenone).
With great affection, I greet the young men and women who are part of Catholic Action in the Diocese of Rome. Dear young people, I am happy to welcome you, together with the Cardinal Vicar, the priests who work with you, your parents and your teachers, at the conclusion of your Caravan of Peace. With this initiative, you begin the festivities of the 50th anniversary of the presence of Catholic Action in Rome and the 50th year since the establishment of Catholic Action Rome. I hope and pray that you will be joyous witnesses of peace and fraternity. Now, let us listen together to the message which your friends, who are here beside me, will read.
(Reading of the message)
And now, we will let the doves rise to heaven, a symbol of our prayers for peace in the world.
(Release of the doves)
In less than an hour's time, I will leave for my brief but important visit to the United Arab Emirates. Please, accompany me with your prayers. I wish you all a good Sunday. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
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