Pope Francis: “Let us not forget the poor”
“I say this to the Church, to Governments and to International Organizations. I say to everyone: please, let us not forget the poor.” This appeal concluded Pope Francis’ homily for the World Day of the Poor, which he celebrated in St Peter’s Basilica, followed by a lunch with 1,300 poor people in Paul VI Hall. “On this World Day of the Poor, I would like to share a warning from Cardinal Martini”, the Pope said, quoting the late Cardinal: “He insisted that we must avoid considering the Church as separate from the poor as if the Church existed as an independent reality that must then care for the poor. The reality is that
we become the Church of Jesus to the extent that we serve the poor,
because only in this way ‘does the Church ‘become’ herself, that is, the Church becomes a house open to all, a place of God’s compassion for the life of every individual.”
“In the very hour of darkness and desolation, just when everything seems to collapse, God comes, God draws near, God gathers us together to save us”, assured the Holy Father, focusing on two contrasting attitudes: anguish and hope. “Jesus invites us to take a deeper look, to have eyes capable of ‘reading within’ the events of history. In this way, we discover that even in the anguish of our hearts and of our times, an unshakable hope shines forth”, Francis said. The Holy Father went on to note that feelings of anguish “are widespread in our age, given that social media amplifies problems and wounds, making the world more insecure and the future more uncertain.
If we limit our gaze to the narrative of events, we allow anguish to gain the upper hand.”
“Indeed, even today we see the ‘sun darken’ and the ‘moon fade’,
when we contemplate the famine that afflicts so many of our brothers and sisters who have no food to eat, and when we see the horrors of war or see the death of the innocent. Faced with this scenario, we run the risk of falling into despondency and failing to recognise the presence of God within the drama of history.
In so doing, we condemn ourselves to powerlessness. We witness the growing anguish around us brought about by the suffering of the poor, but we slip into the resigned way of thinking of those who, moved by convenience or laziness, think ‘that’s life’ and ‘there is nothing I can do about it’. Thus, Christian faith itself is reduced to a harmless devotion that does not disturb the powers that be and is incapable of generating a serious commitment to charity.”
“While one part of the world is condemned to live in the slums of history, while inequalities grow and the economy punishes the weakest, while society devotes itself to the idolatry of money and consumption, it so happens that the poor and marginalised have no choice but to continue to wait”,
Francis denounced. “Yet it is precisely here, in the midst of that apocalyptic scene, that Jesus kindles hope”, Francis assured drawing on the Gospel: “He opens up the horizon, widens our gaze, so that even in the precariousness and pain of the world, we may learn to grasp the presence of God’s love, which comes close to us, does not abandon us, and acts for our salvation.” “On Calvary the sun will fade and night will descend upon the world”, the words on Jesus’ death: “In that very moment, however, the Son of Man will be seen upon the clouds, for the power of his resurrection will break the chains of death, the eternal life of God will rise from the darkness and a new world will be born from the rubble of a history ravaged by evil. This is the hope that Jesus wants to give us.” “We too are called to interpret the signs of our life here on earth”, the Pope’s invitation: “where there seems to be only injustice, pain and poverty – in the very drama of that moment – the Lord draws near to free us from slavery and in order to make life shine. We, in turn, as his disciples, can sow hope in this world through the power of the Holy Spirit.”
“Christian hope, fulfilled in Jesus and realized in his kingdom, needs us and our commitment, it needs our faith expressed in works of charity, and it needs Christians who do not look the other way”,
was the Pope’s exhortation to the faithful. “Do I feel the same compassion as the Lord before the poor, before those who have no work, who have no food, who are marginalized by society?”, Francis asked off-text: “Let us ask ourselves: do I look the other way when I see the poverty, the needs, or the pain of others?”, “We can and must
enkindle lights of justice and solidarity even as the shadows of our closed world deepen”,
the Pope said: “We are the ones that must make his grace shine forth through lives steeped in compassion and charity that become signs of the Lord’s presence, always close to the suffering of the poor in order to heal their wounds and transform their fortune.” For Francis, there is need for “a mysticism with open eyes”, “not a spirituality that flees from the world but – on the contrary – a faith that opens its eyes to the sufferings of the world and the unhappiness of the poor in order to show Christ’s compassion. We must look not only at the great problems of world poverty, but at the small things all of us can do each day by our lifestyle; by our attention to and caring for the environment in which we live; by the tenacious pursuit of justice; by sharing our goods with those who are poorer; by a social and political engagement in order to improve the world that surrounds us. It may seem a small thing to us, but the small things that we do will be like the first leaves sprouting on the fig tree, our little actions will be a foretaste of the summer that is near.”
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