2nd Anniversary of Pontificate
Please don’t forget to pray for me!
God’s love always comes before our own! He always takes the initiative. >>>
There is so much need of mercy today, and it is important that the lay faithful live it and bring it into different social environments. Go forth! We are living in the age of mercy, this is the age of mercy. >>>
The message that everyone was expecting, that everyone was searching for in the depths of their souls, was none other than the tenderness of God: God who looks upon us with eyes full of love, who accepts our poverty, God who is in love with our smallness. >>>
God is love. And we move towards the light to find the love of God. But is God’s love within us, even in the dark moments? Is the love of God there, hidden away? Yes, always! The love of God never leaves us. It is always with us. Do we trust in this love?
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As Christians and as citizens, we are called to envision, with imagination and wisdom, ways of facing this challenge. A people who does not take care of grandparents, who does not treat them well has no future!
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Trust in the power of Christ’s cross! Welcome its reconciling grace into your own hearts and share that grace with others!
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... we need to see each child as a gift to be welcomed, cherished and protected. And we need to care for our young people, not allowing them to be robbed of hope and condemned to life on the streets.
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In each one of you there is a chest, a box, and inside there’s a treasure. Your job is to open the chest and pull out the treasure, make it grow, give it to others, and receive the treasure of others.
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[…] Christian life is a journey, but being attentive, tireless and courageous.
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The poor are at the center of the Gospel, are at heart of the Gospel, if we take away the poor from the Gospel we can’t understand the whole message of Jesus Christ.
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... this is the Church we all love, this is the Church I love: a mother who has the good of her children at heart and who is able to give her life for them. We must not forget, however, that the Church is not only the priests, or we bishops, no, she is all of us! The Church is all of us!
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How much the world needs tenderness today! The patience of God, the closeness of God, the tenderness of God.
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Mercy first means treating the wounds...
True mercy takes the person into one’s care, listens to him attentively, approaches the situation with respect and truth, and accompanies him on the journey of reconciliation. >>>
The love of God precedes everything. God is always first, He arrives before us, He precedes us. >>>
The Church is the communio sanctorum not only because of her saints, but also because she is a communion in holy things: the love of God revealed to us in Christ and all his gifts.
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Dear young friends, in this generation the Lord is counting on you! He is counting on you! He entered your hearts on the day of your Baptism; he gave you his Spirit on the day of your Confirmation; and he strengthens you constantly by his presence in the Eucharist, so that you can be his witnesses before the world. >>>
The Gospel is the word of life: it does not oppress people, on the contrary, it frees those who are slaves to the many evil spirits of this world: the spirit of vanity, attachment to money, pride, sensuality.... The Gospel changes the heart, changes life, transforms evil inclinations into good intentions. The Gospel is capable of changing people! Therefore it is the task of Christians to spread the redeeming power throughout the world, becoming missionaries and heralds of the Word of God. >>>
You can’t have a family without dreams. Once a family loses the ability to dream, children do not grow, love does not grow, life shrivels up and dies. >>>
Let no one consider themselves to be the “armour” of God while planning and carrying out acts of violence and oppression! May no one use religion as a pretext for actions against human dignity and against the fundamental rights of every man and woman, above all, the right to life and the right of everyone to religious freedom!
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… Our earth needs constant concern and attention. Each of us has a personal responsibility to care for creation, this precious gift which God has entrusted to us.
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The charity of Christ, welcomed with an open heart, changes us, transforms us, renders us capable of loving not according to human measure, always limited, but according to the measure of God. And what is the measure of God? Without measure! The measure of God is without measure. Everything! Everything! Everything! It’s impossible to measure the love of God: it is without measure! >>>
... This mission of giving light to the world is so beautiful! We have this mission, and it is beautiful! It is also beautiful to keep the light we have received from Jesus, protecting it and safeguarding it. The Christian should be a luminous person; one who brings light, who always gives off light! A light that is not his, but a gift from God, a gift from Jesus. >>>
... those few loaves and fish, shared and blessed by God, were enough for everyone. [...] it’s a “sign”: a sign that calls for faith in God, provident Father, who does not let us go without “our daily bread”, if we know how to share it as brothers. >>>
We can experience and savour the tenderness of this love at every stage of life: in times of joy and of sadness, in times of good health and of frailty and those of sickness. >>>
Priestly joy is a priceless treasure, not only for the priest himself but for the entire faithful people of God.
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... our world is a legacy bequeathed to us from past generations, but it is also on loan to us from our children: our children who are weary, worn out by conflicts and yearning for the dawn of peace, our children who plead with us to tear down the walls of enmity and to set out on the path of dialogue and peace, so that love and friendship will prevail.
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Where then, should the starting point be for a healthy economic policy? […]The answer is specific: the dignity of the human being and the common good.
... the joy of being led by the Spirit, never unyielding, never closed, always open to the voice of God that speaks, that opens, that leads us and invites us to go towards the horizon. >>>
“misericordia” [mercy], a Latin word whose etymological meaning is “miseris cor dare”, to “give the heart to the wretched”, those in need, those who are suffering. >>>
Our elders are men and women, fathers and mothers, who came before us on our own road, in our own house, in our daily battle for a worthy life. They are men and women from whom we have received so much. The elder is not an alien. We are that elder: in the near or far future, but inevitably, even if we don’t think it. And if we don’t learn how to treat the elder better, that is how we will be treated. >>>
Motherhood and fatherhood are a gift of God, but to accept the gift, to be astounded by its beauty and to make it shine in society, this is your task. Each of your children is a unique creature that will never be duplicated in the history of humanity. >>>
The Christian’s heart is filled with peace because he knows how to place his joy in the Lord even when going through the difficult moments in life. >>>
How beautiful it is to see young people who embrace the call to dedicate themselves fully to Christ and to the service of his Church! Challenge yourselves, and with a pure heart do not be afraid of what God is asking of you! From your “yes” to the Lord’s call, you will become new seeds of hope in the Church and in society. Never forget: God’s will is our happiness!
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A merciful heart does not mean a weak heart. Anyone who wishes to be merciful must have a strong and steadfast heart, closed to the tempter but open to God.
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[…] our world today needs weeping. The marginalized weep, those who are neglected weep, the scorned weep, but those of us who have relatively comfortable life, we don’t know how to weep. Certain realities of life are seen only with eyes that are cleansed by tears..
So let yourselves be surprised by God! Don’t be afraid of surprises, afraid that they will shake you up. They make us insecure, but they change the direction we are going in. True love makes you “burn life”, even at the risk of coming up empty-handed. >>>
It’s impossible to measure the love of God: it is without measure! And so we become capable of loving even those who do not love us: and this is not easy. >>>
Only if our witness is joyful will we attract men and women to Christ. And this joy is a gift which is nourished by a life of prayer, meditation on the word of God, the celebration of the sacraments and life in community, which is very important. When these are lacking, weaknesses and difficulties will emerge to dampen the joy we knew so well at the beginning of our journey. >>>
There is no limit to divine mercy which is offered to everyone!. The Lord is always ready to remove the tombstone of our sins, which keeping us apart from him, the light of the living.
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The gift of piety means to be truly capable of rejoicing with those who rejoice, of weeping with those who weep, of being close to those who are lonely or in anguish, of correcting those in error, of consoling the afflicted, of welcoming and helping those in need. >>>
The joy of the encounter with Jesus Christ, which we are so afraid of accepting, is contagious and he shouts the news: it is here the Church grows!
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The Good Shepherd enters through the door, and the doors of mercy are the wounds of the Lord: if you do not enter into your ministry through the Lord’s wounds, you will not be good shepherds. >>>
When we exploit creation, we destroy that sign of God’s love. To destroy creation is to say to God: “I don’t care”.
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Women have much to say to us in today’s society. Sometimes we are too “machista”; we don’t make room for women. Women are able to see things differently than men. Women can ask questions that we men just don’t get. >>>
… Creation is a gift, it is a present, it is a marvellous gift given to us by God so that we might care for it and use it, always gratefully and always respectfully, for the benefit of everyone. >>>
Nowadays there is much talk of rights, frequently neglecting duties […] And while we speak of new rights, the hungry are waiting, at the street corner, asking for the right to citizenship, asking for due consideration of their status, to receive a healthy, basic diet. They ask for dignity, not for alms. >>>
… Respect for nature also calls for recognizing that man himself is a fundamental part of it. Along with an environmental ecology, there is also need of that human ecology which consists in respect for the person …
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Today there is no longer doubt that the world is at war. And no one doubts, naturally, that the world is in disagreement. We need, then, to foster a culture of encounter in some way. A culture of integration, of encounter and of bridges… >>>
A great and daily attitude of Christian freedom is necessary in order to have the courage to proclaim, ..., that it is necessary to protect the poor, and not to protect ourselves from the poor, that we must serve the weak and not take advantage of them! >>>
How long will we continue to defend systems of production and consumption which exclude most of the world’s population even from the crumbs which fall from the tables of the rich? The time has come to think and decide, beginning with each person and community rather than from market trends. >>>
To assist the poor is good and necessary, but it is not enough. I encourage you to multiply your efforts in the area of human promotion, so that every man and every woman can know the joy which comes from the dignity of earning their daily bread and supporting their family. >>>
Effective Christian witness is not about bombarding people with religious messages, but about our willingness to be available to others …
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Whoever experiences divine mercy, is impelled to be an architect of mercy among the least and the poor. >>>
[..] a joy already real and tangible now, because Jesus himself is our joy, and with Jesus joy finds its home, as your sign there says: joy is at home in Jesus.
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Today there is need for people to be witnesses to the mercy and tenderness of God, who spurs the resigned, enlivens the disheartened, ignites the fire of hope. He ignites the fire of hope! We don’t.
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Please don’t forget to pray for me!
God bless you!
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