Pope Francis' Daily Homilies

[clem456]

Homily 07/02/20013

I love this sermon. It refutes the empty bravado we like to employ in battling sin, and exhorts us to seek God’s help.

 

[simple_soul]

This came over on the VIS email today.
I found it very you touching and moving and thought I would share.

POPE FRANCIS: ENCOUNTER THE LIVING GOD THROUGH CHRIST’S WOUNDS

Vatican City, 3 July 2013 (VIS) – This morning, during Holy Mass at Santa Marta on the feast of St. Thomas Apostle, the Holy Father affirmed that “to encounter the living God it is necessary to tenderly kiss Jesus’ wounds in our hungry, poor, sick and incarcerated brothers and sisters”.

After the Resurrection Jesus appears to the apostles, but Thomas is not there: “He wanted him to wait a week”, said Pope Francis. “The Lord knows why He does such things. And He allows the time He believes best for each of us. He gave Thomas a week. Jesus reveals himself with His wounds: His whole body was clean, beautiful and full of light”, continued the Pope, “but the wounds were and are still there, and when the Lord comes at the end of the world, we will see His wounds. Before he could believe, Thomas wanted to place his fingers in the wounds. He was stubborn. But that was what the Lord wanted - a stubborn person to make us understand something greater. Thomas saw the Lord and was invited to put his finger into the wounds left by the nails; to put his hand in His side. He did not merely say, ‘It’s true: the Lord is risen’. No! He went further. He said: ‘God’. He was the first of the disciples to confess the divinity of Christ after the Resurrection. And he worshipped Him”.

"And so”, continued the Pope, “we understand what the Lord’s intention was when He made him wait: He wanted to take his disbelief and guide him not just to an affirmation of the Resurrection, but an affirmation of His Divinity. The path to our encounter with Jesus-God are his wounds. There is no other. In the history of the Church several mistakes have been made on the path towards God. Some have believed that the Living God, the God of Christians can be found by the path of meditation, and indeed that we can reach higher levels through meditation. That is dangerous! How many are lost on that path, never to return? Yes, perhaps they arrive at a knowledge of God, but not of Jesus Christ, Son of God, the second Person of the Trinity. They do not arrive at that. It is the path of the gnostics, isn’t it? They are good, they work, but they have not found the right path. It is very complicated and does not lead to a safe harbour”.

“Others”, the Pope continued, “have thought that to arrive at God we must mortify ourselves, through austerity and the path of penance - penance and fasting alone. These do not arrive at the Living God, Jesus Christ, either. They are the Pelagians, who believe that they can arrive by their own efforts. But Jesus tells us that the path to encountering Him is to find His wounds. We find Jesus’ wounds in carrying out works of mercy, giving to the body – the body – the soul too, but – I stress - the body of your wounded brother, because he is hungry, because he is thirsty, because he is naked, because he is humiliated, because he is enslaved, because he is incarcerated, because he is in hospital. These are the wounds of Jesus today. And Jesus asks us to take a leap of faith, towards Him, but through these His wounds. ‘Ah, good! Let’s set up a foundation to help these people, to do so many good things to help them’. That is important, but if we remain on this level, we will be merely philanthropists”.

“We need to touch Jesus’ wounds, caress Jesus’ wounds, bind them with tenderness; we must kiss Jesus’ wounds, literally. Just think: what happened to St. Francis, when he embraced the leper? The same thing that happened to Thomas: his life changed. To touch the living God”, Pope Francis concluded, “we do not need to attend a ‘refresher course’ but to enter into the wounds of Jesus, and to do so, all we need to do is go out onto the street. Let us ask of St. Thomas the grace to grant us the courage to enter into the wounds of Jesus with tenderness and thereby we will certainly have the grace to worship the living God

 

[clem456]

Indeed. The most valuable spiritual formation I have received has not been from books, but from doing nursing home visits for the Church, taking communion to the residents of the home and the hospital. This kind of thing does change your life.
Ministering to wounded people heals -you-… another one of those Christian paradoxes.

 

[graciew]

I like when he says all you need is to go out into the streets…

 

[choliks]

I love this homily! I’d like to take it a bit further. The wounded also encounter the living Christ when we reach out and touch them.

 

[JReducation]

I haven’t been around for quite a while, so I don’t really understand the context of this discussion. Can someone clarify for me why the thread is even discussing whether or not the cardinals understand the oath that they make at the conclave?

You folks do know that they have the oath in front of them in their own language and that prior to the conclave, the oath and its parameters is explained to them by the president of the college of cardinals? You do know that he spells out for them what they can and cannot discuss outside the conclave?

They are not going into this blind and they are not required to know Latin, though most have at least a passive knowledge of Latin. There are translators in the Sistine Chapel. They sit in the back of the chapel behind the grill work. They too take an oath of secrecy.

The point is that nothing happens in that chapel that the cardinals do not understand. They have all kinds of translations provided for them. Most of the conclave, except for the prayers and the oath, the rest is in Italian. Italian is the official language of the Holy See not Latin. Latin is the language of the Church, but not of the governance. An election is not a liturgical event. It’s a legal event. There is no need to know a great deal of Latin. The little Latin they use, they have translated in front of them.

I guess my question is, why is this important, since all of this is public knowledge?

 

[AndyP2010]

Brother J
I think you have the wrong thread. We are talking about the Pope’s daily homilies.

 

[graciew]

I haven’t been around for quite a while, so I don’t really understand the context of this discussion. Can someone clarify for me why the thread is even discussing whether or not the cardinals understand the oath that they make at the conclave?

You folks do know that they have the oath in front of them in their own language and that prior to the conclave, the oath and its parameters is explained to them by the president of the college of cardinals? You do know that he spells out for them what they can and cannot discuss outside the conclave?

They are not going into this blind and they are not required to know Latin, though most have at least a passive knowledge of Latin. There are translators in the Sistine Chapel. They sit in the back of the chapel behind the grill work. They too take an oath of secrecy.

The point is that nothing happens in that chapel that the cardinals do not understand. They have all kinds of translations provided for them. Most of the conclave, except for the prayers and the oath, the rest is in Italian. Italian is the official language of the Holy See not Latin. Latin is the language of the Church, but not of the governance. An election is not a liturgical event. It’s a legal event. There is no need to know a great deal of Latin. The little Latin they use, they have translated in front of them.

I guess my question is, why is this important, since all of this is public knowledge?

Brother,now it is me who is lost…

We are not discussing anything,we are sharing his daily homilies,sharing what we like best,helping each other if necessary…and more sharing.

You know,we are truly behaving very well as brothers and sisters in this thread

Great to have you here in the thread! Prayer works!

 

[clem456]

I like when he says all you need is to go out into the streets…

This is an important point. At our men’s bible study we have frequently discuss whether the Church shouldn’t be doing more to help people.

1. Who is the Church?
2. We need to open our eyes and ears when we walk out the door. God places people right in front of us who need our help and the witness of our lives.

 

[simple_soul]

This is an important point. At our men’s bible study we have frequently discuss whether the Church shouldn’t be doing more to help people.

1. Who is the Church?
2. We need to open our eyes and ears when we walk out the door. God places people right in front of us who need our help and the witness of our lives.

I find it particularly challenging because I do not even have to walk outside to kiss Jesus wounds. I have three children’s wounds that I helped to inflict that need so much of Jesus love to come through me to help them heal from. Then there are my husband’s wounds. This alone has helped Jesus heal my wounds so much through my husband and children. I can so relate to the paradox you mentioned in an earlier post. But while we are working on this we do try when we go out side of the house in our daily activities and Church communities. It is amazing to me sometimes how just a knowing smile or hug can change the corse of some poor souls miserable day. Bit I know that this is just the tip of the ice burg and some day I pray we will be strong enough to do more. For right now we just kind of try to carry it over into everything we do. It is a constant struggle…and very challenging. But we keep working at it as a family.

 

[graciew]

news.va/en/news/gods-mercy-at-heart-of-popes-daily-homily

God’s mercy at heart of Pope’s daily homily67 78 Print 2013-07-05 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) The heart of God’s message is mercy: that’s what Pope Francis told staff of the Vatican’s (name removed by moderator)ate gathered for daily mass Friday at the Santa Marta guest house inside the Vatican.

Only a moment in which Matthew says yes, leaves everything and goes with the Lord. It is the moment of mercy received and accepted: ‘Yes I’m coming with you!’ And it is the first moment of the meeting, a profound spiritual experience.”

The second moment comes as a feast. “The Lord feasts with the sinners”: God’s mercy is celebrated. And following these two moments, the stunned encounter and the feast, comes the “daily work” of announcing the Gospel:“This work must be nurtured with the memory of that first encounter, of that feast. And this is not one moment: up to the end of life. Memory. Memory of what? Of those events! Of that encounter with Jesus who has changed my life! Who had mercy! Who was so good to me and who told me also: ‘invite your friends who are sinners so we can have a feast!’ That memory gives Matthew strength and to all of them to forge ahead. ‘The Lord has changed my life! I met the Lord!’ Remember always. It is like blowing on the embers of that memory, no? Blowing to keep the fire alive, always.”

 

[graciew]

This is an important point. At our men’s bible study we have frequently discuss whether the Church shouldn’t be doing more to help people.

1. Who is the Church?
   QUOTE]
   We are the Church,Clem. As you say,what we do not make happen,we can´t blame it on the “abstract”,on the “hierarchy” as if we did not belong or were talking about somebody else´s task.That´s how I see it and I like it.It is our family,with its lights and shadows it is where we belong.I think the needs are endless,we should be giving til it hurts and lovingly.At least,it is how I see it.

 

[AndyP2010]

At Mass today on the island of Lampedusa 7/8/2013
This is the full text today. So much here, he may have just upstaged his own encyclical. A new set of Francis-isms, like soap bubbles and golobalization of indifference.

“Where is your brother?” Who is responsible for this blood? In Spanish literature there is a play by Lope de Vega that tells how the inhabitants of the city of Fuente Ovejuna killed the Governor because he was a tyrant, and did it in such a way that no one knew who had carried out the execution. And when the judge of the king asked “Who killed the Governor?” they all responded, “Fuente Ovejuna, sir.” All and no one! Even today this question comes with force: Who is responsible for the blood of these brothers and sisters? No one! We all respond this way: not me, it has nothing to do with me, there are others, certainly not me. But God asks each one of us: “Where is the blood of your brother that cries out to me?” Today no one in the world feels responsible for this; we have lost the sense of fraternal responsibility; we have fallen into the hypocritical attitude of the priest and of the servant of the altar that Jesus speaks about in the parable of the Good Samaritan: We look upon the brother half dead by the roadside, perhaps we think “poor guy,” and we continue on our way, it’s none of our business; and we feel fine with this. We feel at peace with this, we feel fine! The culture of well-being, that makes us think of ourselves, that makes us insensitive to the cries of others, that makes us live in soap bubbles, that are beautiful but are nothing, are illusions of futility, of the transient, that brings indifference to others, that brings even the globalization of indifference. In this world of globalization we have fallen into a globalization of indifference. We are accustomed to the suffering of others, it doesn’t concern us, it’s none of our business.

The figure of the Unnamed of Manzoni returns. The globalization of indifference makes us all “unnamed,” leaders without names and without faces.

Powerful stuff.

 

[clem456]

wow…
It is worth reading the whole talk, the other parts are very good as well.

 

[Hunho]

Brother,now it is me who is lost…

We are not discussing anything,we are sharing his daily homilies,sharing what we like best,helping each other if necessary…and more sharing.

You know,we are truly behaving very well as brothers and sisters in this thread

Great to have you here in the thread! Prayer works!

I think this post by Brother Jay was meant for another thread that he has been posting on: Re: SSPX seems to indicate a definitive break with the Holy See. Certainly the content fits with the discussion and Brother Jay’s previous post on that thread. graciew, I agree with you that “we are truly behaving very well as brothers and sisters in this thread” and I feel sure that Brother Jay would agree with you too.

 

[Hunho]

I think this post by Brother Jay was meant for another thread that he has been posting on: Re: SSPX seems to indicate a definitive break with the Holy See. Certainly the content fits with the discussion and Brother Jay’s previous post on that thread. graciew, I agree with you that “we are truly behaving very well as brothers and sisters in this thread” and I feel sure that Brother Jay would agree with you too.

 

[clem456]

I have read this homily twice now. This is just a powerhouse of a homily. Andy posted part above, here is another part of it:
news.va/en/news/pope-on-lampedusa-the-globalization-of-indifferenc

Immigrants who died at sea, from that boat that, instead of being a way of hope was a way of death. This is the headline in the papers! When, a few weeks ago, I heard the news – which unfortunately has been repeated so many time – the thought always returns as a thorn in the heart that brings suffering. And then I felt that I ought to come here today to pray, to make a gesture of closeness, but also to reawaken our consciences so that what happened would not be repeated. Not repeated, please!..

This morning, in light of the Word of God that we have heard, I want to say a few words that, above all, provoke the conscience of all, pushing us to reflect and to change certain attitudes in concrete ways.

“Adam, where are you?” This is the first question that God addresses to man after sin. “Where are you Adam?” Adam is disoriented and has lost his place in creation because he thought to become powerful, to dominate everything, to be God. And harmony was broken, the man erred – and this is repeated even in relations with his neighbour, who is no longer a brother to be loved, but simply someone who disturbs my life, my well-being. And God puts the second question: “Cain, where is your brother?” The dream of being powerful, of being as great as God, even of being God, leads to a chain of errors that is a chain of death, leads to shedding the blood of the brother!

These two questions resonate even today, with all their force! So many of us, even including myself, are disoriented, we are no longer attentive to the world in which we live, we don’t care, we don’t protect that which God has created for all, and we are unable to care for one another. And when this disorientation assumes worldwide dimensions, we arrive at tragedies like the one we have seen.

“Where is your brother?” the voice of his blood cries even to me, God says. This is not a question addressed to others: it is a question addressed to me, to you, to each one of us. These our brothers and sisters seek to leave difficult situations in order to find a little serenity and peace, they seek a better place for themselves and for their families – but they found death. How many times to those who seek this not find understanding, do not find welcome, do not find solidarity! And their voices rise up even to God! And once more to you, the residents of Lampedusa, thank you for your solidarity! I recently heard one of these brothers. Before arriving here, he had passed through the hands of traffickers, those who exploit the poverty of others; these people for whom the poverty of others is a source of income. What they have suffered! And some have been unable to arrive!
…
“Adam, where are you?” “Where is your brother?” These are the two questions that God puts at the beginning of the story of humanity, and that He also addresses to the men and women of our time, even to us. But I want to set before us a third question: “Who among us has wept for these things, and things like this?” Who has wept for the deaths of these brothers and sisters? Who has wept for the people who were on the boat? For the young mothers carrying their babies? For these men who wanted something to support their families? We are a society that has forgotten the experience of weeping, of “suffering with”: the globalization of indifference has taken from us the ability to weep! In the Gospel we have heard the cry, the plea, the great lament: “Rachel weeping for her children . . . because they are no more.” Herod sowed death in order to defend his own well-being, his own soap bubble. And this continues to repeat itself. Let us ask the Lord to wipe out [whatever attitude] of Herod remains in our hears; let us ask the Lord for the grace to weep over our indifference, to weep over the cruelty in the world, in ourselves, and even in those who anonymously make socio-economic decisions that open the way to tragedies like this. “Who has wept?” Who in today’s world has wept?
O Lord, in this Liturgy, a Liturgy of repentance, we ask forgiveness for the indifference towards so many brothers and sisters, we ask forgiveness for those who are pleased with themselves, who are closed in on their own well-being in a way that leads to the anaesthesia of the heart, we ask you, Father, for forgiveness for those who with their decisions at the global level have created situations that lead to these tragedies. Forgive us, Lord!
O Lord, even today let us hear your questions: “Adam, where are you?” “Where is the blood of your brother?” Amen.

.

 

[AndyP2010]

Who among us has wept for these things, and things like this?” Who has wept for the deaths of these brothers and sisters? Who has wept for the people who were on the boat?

This homily is Francis at his best. Francis seems determined to change the Church and he is looking to awaken our hearts as well.

 

[clem456]

The Vatican website does not seem to have the full text available now. It is the Vatican radio “paraphrase” version.
Why does someone edit his sermons? That is irritating. They should just print his sermons as he speaks them.

 

[simple_soul]

This came over on the VIS email this morning…

POPE FRANCIS: BE FEARLESS, HUMBLE AND JOYFUL WITNESSES TO THE GOSPEL

Vatican City, 9 July 2013 (VIS) – On the afternoon of Saturday 6 July in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall the Pope met with seminarians, novices and young people discerning their vocations in celebration of the Year of Faith. In a lively environment with profound testimonies and music, the young people awaited the arrival of the Holy Father, who was received with enthusiastic applause. “Now you applaud, and you celebrate, as this is the time of your ‘honeymoon’”, said the Pope, “but when the honeymoon ends, what happens next? I heard a seminarian, a good seminarian, who said he wanted to serve Christ, but for just ten years, after which he would think about starting a new life… This is dangerous! Listen carefully: all of us, even the oldest among us, we too find ourselves under pressure from this culture of the provisional; and this is dangerous, because we no longer commit our lives once and for all. I’ll be married for as long as I’m in love, I’ll become a nun for a little while, and then we’ll see; I’ll become a seminarian to become a priest but I’m not sure how it will turn out. This is not what Jesus wants! … Nowadays, making a definitive choice is very difficult. It was easier in my day, because culturally a definitive choice was preferred, be it for matrimonial life, or consecrated life, or the priestly life. But in the present day a definitive choice is not easy. We are all victims of this culture of the provisional”.

“I would like you to think about this”, the Holy Father continued: “How can be we free of this culture of the provisional? We need to learn how to close the door of our innermost being, from the inside. … but when we always leave a key outside, just in case – that is not enough. We need to learn to close the door from the inside! And if I am not sure, I think, I will take my time, and when I feel sure – in Jesus, you understand, because without Jesus no-one is sure! - when I feel sure, I’ll close the door. Do you understand this? What is the culture of the provisional?”

The Holy Father commented that wherever there are consecrated persons, seminarians, religious and young people, there is joy. “But where does this joy come from? … And on Saturday night, shall I return to going out dancing with my old friends?.. Does joy come from the things I own … from having the most extreme experiences?”. The Pope advised that if is necessary to buy something - a telephone, a scooter or a car, for instance – one should shun ostentatiousness in favour of humbler options, and consider how many children still die of hunger.
**
“True joy is not found in material things”, he continued. “It is born of the encounter and relations with others, from feeling accepted, understood and loved; from accepting, understanding and loving; and not for the sake of a fleeting interest. … Joy is born of the gratification of encountering others, of hearing oneself say ‘You are important to me’, and not necessarily in words. This is beautiful, and this is what God helps us to understand”.

“True joy is contagious, and sustains us. However, when you find a seminarian or a novice who is too serious, too sad, something isn’t right! They do not share in the joy of the Lord. … Sadness is not holiness! St. Teresa said, “A sad nun is a bad nun” … Please, no more sour-faced nuns or priests!” .

Pope Francis repeated that “the root of sadness in pastoral life lies precisely in that lack of paternal or maternal feeling that comes from a poor experience of consecration, which should instead lead to fruitfulness. It is impossible to conceive of a priest or nun who is not fruitful: this is not Catholic! This joy is the beauty of consecration”.

“To be joyful witnesses to the Gospel you need to be authentic and coherent”, he went on. “And this is another word I wish to emphasise to you -authenticity. Jesus fought against hypocrites, against those who, to put it clearly, are two-faced. … This is a responsibility for all adults, all formators. And to those formators present here today, I urge you to give an example of coherence to the young. Do we want coherent young people? Then we must be coherent ourselves! On the contrary, the Lord recounts what the Pharisees said to the people of God: ‘Do what they say, but not what they do!’ Coherence and authenticity!”

The Holy Father urged the young people to be transparent in confession and to tell the truth without fear, as this transparency makes us humble. “Tell the truth without hiding anything,without unclear words, as you are speaking to Jesus through your confessor, and Jesus knows the truth. Only He always forgives!”

The Pope emphasised that, a vocation is based on four pillars: spiritual life, intellectual life, apostolic life and community life”. Here the Holy Father stressed the dangers of gossip, a problem born of community life. “Gossip conceals envy, jealousy, ambition”. He commented that “not speaking ill of others is a good route to holiness!” and reiterated the importance of cultivating friendships to avoid both isolation or profligacy in relationships, as “a priest or other consecrated person can never be an island, but rather must always be willing to encounter others”.**