At noon today in Rome (6:00am EDT), the Holy Father, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study inside 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!
In today's gospel passage (cf Lk 12: 32-48), Jesus calls his disciples to constant vigilance. Why? To grasp the passage of God in one's life, because God continually passes through our lives. This passage indicates the ways to live this vigilance well: Be ready, be dressed for action and have your lamps lit (Lk 12:35). This is the mode. First of all, be dressed for action, an image that recalls the attitude of the pilgrim, ready to set out. It is a matter of not taking root in comfortable and reassuring dwellings, but of abandoning oneself, of being open with simplicity and trust to the passage of God in our life, to the will of God, which guides us towards the next goal. The Lord always walks with us and often takes us by the hand to guide us, so that we do not make mistakes on this difficult journey. In fact, those who trust in God know well that the life of faith is not something static; instead, it is dynamic! The life of faith is a continuous journey, to head towards ever new stages, which the Lord himself indicates day after day, because He is the Lord of surprises, the Lord of novelties, but of truly new things.
And then - the first mode was be dressed for action - then we are required to keep the lamps lit, to be able to light up the darkness of the night. We are invited to live an authentic and mature faith, capable of illuminating the many nights of life. We know what this is like, we have all had days that were true spiritual nights. The lamp of faith needs to be continuously fed, with heart to heart meetings with Jesus in prayer and in listening to his Word. Here, I take up something I have told you many times: always carry a small copy of the gospel in your pocket, in your bag, so that you can read it. This is an encounter with Jesus, with the Word of Jesus. This lamp of the encounter with Jesus in prayer and in his Word is entrusted to us for the good of all people: therefore, no one can retreat intimately into the certainty of his own salvation, disinterested in others. It is a fantasy to believe that one can enlighten themselves from inside. No, this is a fantasy. True faith opens our hearts to others and spurs us towards concrete communion with our brothers and sisters, especially those in need.
And Jesus, to make us understand this attitude, tells the parable of the servants who await the return of the master when he returns from the wedding feast (Lk 12:36-40), thus presenting another aspect of vigilance: to be ready for the final and definitive meeting with the Lord. Each of us will meet Him, we will eventually find ourselves on that day of meeting. Each of us has his or her own date for this final meeting. The Lord says: "Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he returns; ... And, if you arrive in the middle of the night or before dawn, and you find them like this, lucky them! (Lk 12:37-38). With these words, the Lord reminds us that life is a journey towards eternity; therefore, we are called to make all the talents we have bear fruit, without ever forgetting that we do not have the stable city here, but we go in search of the future (Heb 13:14). In this perspective, every moment becomes precious, so it is necessary to live and act on this earth while having a longing for heaven: feet on earth, walking on earth, working on earth, doing good on earth, and with hearts that are nostalgic for heaven.
We cannot really understand what this supreme joy consists of, yet Jesus makes us guess with the similitude of the master that by finding the servants still awake on his return: he will gird up his own robes, he will sit them at the table and serve them (Lk 12:37). In this way, the eternal joy of heaven is manifested: the situation will turn upside down, and the servants, that is, us, we will no longer serve God, but God himself will put himself at our service. And this is what Jesus does right now: Jesus prays for us, Jesus looks at us and prays to the Father for us, Jesus serves us now, he is our servant. And this will be the definitive fulfillment of joy. The thought of the final encounter with the Father, who is rich in mercy, fills us with hope, and stimulates us to a constant commitment to our sanctification and to build a more just and fraternal world.
May the Virgin Mary, with her maternal intercession, support our commitment to this effort.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
Tomorrow marks the 70th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, important international legal instruments that impose limits on the use of force; they are aimed at protecting civilians and prisoners in time of war. May this recurrence make states increasingly aware of the indispensable need to protect the life and dignity of victims of armed conflicts. All people are required to observe the limits imposed by international humanitarian law, protecting unarmed populations and civil structures, especially hospitals, schools, places of worship and refugee camps. And let's not forget that war and terrorism are always a serious loss for all of humanity.
These are great human challenges!
I greet all of you, Romans and pilgrims from various countries: families, parish groups and associations.
Also present today are many children and young people. I greet you all affectionately! In particular, the teenagers from Saccolongo and also those from Creola; and the group of youth from Verona; and the young people from Cittadella.
I wish you all a good Sunday. Please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
Testo orginale nella lingua italiana
Greetings of the Holy Father, Pope Francis
prior to the recitation of the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In today's gospel passage (cf Lk 12: 32-48), Jesus calls his disciples to constant vigilance. Why? To grasp the passage of God in one's life, because God continually passes through our lives. This passage indicates the ways to live this vigilance well: Be ready, be dressed for action and have your lamps lit (Lk 12:35). This is the mode. First of all, be dressed for action, an image that recalls the attitude of the pilgrim, ready to set out. It is a matter of not taking root in comfortable and reassuring dwellings, but of abandoning oneself, of being open with simplicity and trust to the passage of God in our life, to the will of God, which guides us towards the next goal. The Lord always walks with us and often takes us by the hand to guide us, so that we do not make mistakes on this difficult journey. In fact, those who trust in God know well that the life of faith is not something static; instead, it is dynamic! The life of faith is a continuous journey, to head towards ever new stages, which the Lord himself indicates day after day, because He is the Lord of surprises, the Lord of novelties, but of truly new things.
And then - the first mode was be dressed for action - then we are required to keep the lamps lit, to be able to light up the darkness of the night. We are invited to live an authentic and mature faith, capable of illuminating the many nights of life. We know what this is like, we have all had days that were true spiritual nights. The lamp of faith needs to be continuously fed, with heart to heart meetings with Jesus in prayer and in listening to his Word. Here, I take up something I have told you many times: always carry a small copy of the gospel in your pocket, in your bag, so that you can read it. This is an encounter with Jesus, with the Word of Jesus. This lamp of the encounter with Jesus in prayer and in his Word is entrusted to us for the good of all people: therefore, no one can retreat intimately into the certainty of his own salvation, disinterested in others. It is a fantasy to believe that one can enlighten themselves from inside. No, this is a fantasy. True faith opens our hearts to others and spurs us towards concrete communion with our brothers and sisters, especially those in need.
And Jesus, to make us understand this attitude, tells the parable of the servants who await the return of the master when he returns from the wedding feast (Lk 12:36-40), thus presenting another aspect of vigilance: to be ready for the final and definitive meeting with the Lord. Each of us will meet Him, we will eventually find ourselves on that day of meeting. Each of us has his or her own date for this final meeting. The Lord says: "Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he returns; ... And, if you arrive in the middle of the night or before dawn, and you find them like this, lucky them! (Lk 12:37-38). With these words, the Lord reminds us that life is a journey towards eternity; therefore, we are called to make all the talents we have bear fruit, without ever forgetting that we do not have the stable city here, but we go in search of the future (Heb 13:14). In this perspective, every moment becomes precious, so it is necessary to live and act on this earth while having a longing for heaven: feet on earth, walking on earth, working on earth, doing good on earth, and with hearts that are nostalgic for heaven.
We cannot really understand what this supreme joy consists of, yet Jesus makes us guess with the similitude of the master that by finding the servants still awake on his return: he will gird up his own robes, he will sit them at the table and serve them (Lk 12:37). In this way, the eternal joy of heaven is manifested: the situation will turn upside down, and the servants, that is, us, we will no longer serve God, but God himself will put himself at our service. And this is what Jesus does right now: Jesus prays for us, Jesus looks at us and prays to the Father for us, Jesus serves us now, he is our servant. And this will be the definitive fulfillment of joy. The thought of the final encounter with the Father, who is rich in mercy, fills us with hope, and stimulates us to a constant commitment to our sanctification and to build a more just and fraternal world.
May the Virgin Mary, with her maternal intercession, support our commitment to this effort.
Following the recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father continued:
Dear brothers and sisters,
Tomorrow marks the 70th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, important international legal instruments that impose limits on the use of force; they are aimed at protecting civilians and prisoners in time of war. May this recurrence make states increasingly aware of the indispensable need to protect the life and dignity of victims of armed conflicts. All people are required to observe the limits imposed by international humanitarian law, protecting unarmed populations and civil structures, especially hospitals, schools, places of worship and refugee camps. And let's not forget that war and terrorism are always a serious loss for all of humanity.
These are great human challenges!
I greet all of you, Romans and pilgrims from various countries: families, parish groups and associations.
Also present today are many children and young people. I greet you all affectionately! In particular, the teenagers from Saccolongo and also those from Creola; and the group of youth from Verona; and the young people from Cittadella.
I wish you all a good Sunday. Please, don't forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and good bye!
Testo orginale nella lingua italiana
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