Pope Francis says "...let us open ourselves to the logic of the Gospel: because, where love and fraternity reign, evil no longer has power!" FULL TEXT + Video
St. Peter's Square
Sunday, March 20, 2022
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Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!
We are at the heart of the Lenten journey and today the Gospel initially presents Jesus commenting on some news stories. While the memory of eighteen people who died under the collapse of a tower was alive, they tell him of some Galileans whom Pilate had killed (cf. Lk 13: 1). And there is a question that seems to accompany this tragic news: who is to blame for these terrible facts? Maybe those people were more guilty than others and God punished them? These are questions that are always relevant; when the crime news oppresses us and we feel powerless in the face of evil, we often ask ourselves: is it perhaps a punishment from God? Is it He who sends a war or a pandemic to punish us for our sins? And why does the Lord not intervene?
We must be careful: when evil oppresses us we risk losing lucidity and, to find an easy answer to what we cannot explain, we end up blaming God. And many times the ugly and bad habit of blasphemies comes from here. How many times do we attribute our misfortunes to him, do we attribute the misfortunes of the world to him who, instead, always leaves us free and therefore never intervenes by imposing himself, only by proposing himself; to him who never uses violence and, indeed, suffers for us and with us! Jesus, in fact, refuses and strongly disputes the idea of imputing our evils to God: those people who had been killed by Pilate and those who died under the tower were no more guilty than others and are not victims of a merciless and vindictive God, who does not exist! Evil can never come from God because He "does not treat us according to our sins" (Ps 103.10), but according to his mercy. It's God's style. He can't treat us otherwise. He always treats us with mercy.
But instead of blaming God, Jesus says, we must look within: it is sin that produces death; it is our selfishness that tears apart relationships; it is our wrong and violent choices that unleash evil. At this point the Lord offers the true solution. Which? Conversion : "If you are not converted - he says - you will all perish in the same way" ( Lk 13: 5). It is an urgent invitation, especially in this time of Lent. Let us welcome him with an open heart. Let us turn from evil, let us renounce that sin that seduces us, let us open ourselves to the logic of the Gospel: because, where love and fraternity reign, evil no longer has power!
However, Jesus knows that converting is not easy, and he wants to help us in this. He knows that many times we fall back into the same errors and the same sins; that we are discouraged and, perhaps, it seems to us that our commitment to good is useless in a world where evil seems to reign. And then, after his appeal to him, he encourages us with a parable that tells of God's patience. We must think of God's patience, the patience that God has towards us. He offers us the consoling image of a fig tree which does not bear fruit in the established period, but which is not cut down: it is given more time, another chance. I like to think that a beautiful name of God would be "the God of another possibility": it always gives us another opportunity, always, always. So is his mercy. This is what the Lord does with us: he does not cut us off from his love for him, he does not lose heart, he never tires of giving us back trust with tenderness. Brothers and sisters, God believes in us! God trusts us and accompanies us with patience, God's patience with us. He is not discouraged, but he always places hope in us. God is Father and he looks at you as a father: like the best of fathers, he does not see the results you have not yet achieved, but the fruits that you will still be able to bear; he does not take into account your shortcomings, but he encourages your possibilities; he doesn't dwell on your past, but he confidently bets on your future. Because God is close to us, He is close to us. God's style - let us not forget -: closeness, he is close, with mercy and tenderness. And so he accompanies us with God: close, merciful and tender. God's patience with us. He is not discouraged, but always places hope in us. God is Father and he looks at you as a father: like the best of fathers, he does not see the results you have not yet achieved, but the fruits that you will still be able to bear; he does not take into account your shortcomings, but he encourages your possibilities; he doesn't dwell on your past, but he confidently bets on your future. Because God is close to us, He is close to us. God's style - let us not forget -: closeness, he is close, with mercy and tenderness. And so God accompanies us: close, merciful and tender. God's patience with us. He is not discouraged, but always places hope in us. God is Father and he looks at you as a father: like the best of fathers, he does not see the results you have not yet achieved, but the fruits that you will still be able to bear; he does not take into account your shortcomings, but he encourages your possibilities; he doesn't dwell on your past, but he confidently bets on your future. Because God is close to us, He is close to us. God's style - let us not forget -: closeness, he is close, with mercy and tenderness. And so God accompanies us: close, merciful and tender. but encourage your chances; it does not dwell on your past, but confidently bets on your future. Because God is close to us, He is close to us. God's style - let us not forget -: closeness, he is close, with mercy and tenderness. And so God accompanies us: close, merciful and tender. but encourage your chances; it does not dwell on your past, but confidently bets on your future. Because God is close to us, He is close to us. God's style - let us not forget -: closeness, he is close, with mercy and tenderness. And so God accompanies us: close, merciful and tender.
Let us therefore ask the Virgin Mary to give us hope and courage, and to kindle in us the desire for conversion.
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After the Angelus
Dear brothers and sisters,
Unfortunately, the violent aggression against Ukraine does not stop, a senseless massacre where havoc and atrocities are repeated every day. There is no justification for this! I plead with all actors in the international community to truly commit themselves to putting an end to this repugnant war.
Also this week missiles and bombs hit civilians, the elderly, children and pregnant mothers. I went to visit the injured children who are here in Rome. One is missing an arm, the other is wounded in the head ... Innocent children. I think of the millions of Ukrainian refugees who have to flee leaving everything behind and I feel great pain for those who do not even have the possibility to escape. Many grandparents, sick and poor, separated from their families, many children and fragile people remain to die under the bombs, without being able to receive help and without finding safety even in air-raid shelters. This is all inhumane! Indeed, it is also sacrilegious, because it goes against the sacredness of human life, especially against defenseless human life, which must be respected and protected, not eliminated, and which comes before any strategy! We do not forget: it is cruelty, inhuman and sacrilegious! Let us pray in silence for those who suffer.
I am consoled to know that the people left under the bombs do not lack the closeness of the Pastors, who in these tragic days are living the Gospel of charity and fraternity. In recent days I have heard some of them on the phone, how close they are to the people of God. Thank you, dear brothers, dear sisters, for this witness and for the concrete support that you are courageously offering to so many desperate people! I also think of the Apostolic Nuncio, just made Nuncio, Monsignor Visvaldas Kulbokas, who has remained in Kyiv together with his collaborators since the beginning of the war and with his presence makes me close every day to the tortured Ukrainian people. Let us be close to this people, let us embrace them with affection and with concrete commitment and with prayer. And please don't get used to war and violence! Let us not tire of welcoming generously, as we are doing: not only now, in the emergency, but also in the weeks and months to come. Because you know that at the first moment, we all do our best to welcome, but then, the habit cools our heart a little and we forget. We think of these women, these children who with time, without work, separated from their husbands, will be sought by the "vultures" of society. Let's protect them, please. they will be sought by the "vultures" of society. Let's protect them, please. they will be sought by the "vultures" of society. Let's protect them, please.
I invite every community and every faithful to join me on Friday 25 March, the Solemnity of the Annunciation, in carrying out a solemn act of consecration of humanity, especially of Russia and Ukraine, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, so that she, the Queen of peace, obtain peace for the world.
I greet all of you, Romans and pilgrims from Italy and from various countries. In particular, I greet the faithful of Madrid, the international group "Agora of the inhabitants of the earth", the doctors and rescuers of the 118 Emergency Service, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal "Charis" - which is the only one officially recognized, "Charis", not others -, and the members of the Focolare Movement. I greet the Small Choir of the Antoniano of Bologna with the band of the State Police, the "Ensemble Vox Cordis" Choir of Fornovo San Giovanni, the "San Vincenzo Grossi" Choir of Pizzighettone, the boys of the profession of faith from Angera, Sesto Calende and Ternate, the pilgrimage of the diocese of Asti and the faithful of Venice and Sassari.
I wish everyone a happy Sunday. Please don't forget to pray for me. Have a good lunch and goodbye.
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