Pope Francis Explains "some important characteristics of the missionary...the humble awareness of being a small instrument in the great hands of God..." FULL TEXT to Pilgrims
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SPEECH OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS
TO PARTICIPANTS IN THE PILGRIMAGE OF THE DIOCESE OF CREMA (ITALY)
Paul VI Hall
Saturday, April 15, 2023
________________________________________
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!
I thank the Bishop, Monsignor Daniele Gianotti, for the words he addressed to me. I greet Archbishop Rosolino Bianchetti, Bishop of Quiché, in Guatemala; the Superior General of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions; the seminarians of the Diocese of Taungngu, in Myanmar; the priests and missionaries present; as well as the President of the Province of Cremona and the Mayors gathered. And I cordially greet all of you who have come in such numbers. Thank you, thank you for your visit!
This meeting of ours was planned some time ago, after the beatification of Father Alfredo Cremonesi, a Crema native, missionary and martyr in Burma, now Myanmar. As you know, this is a troubled land that I carry in my heart and for which I invite you to pray, imploring God for the gift of peace.
So the pandemic forced us to postpone our meeting until today. However, this too is a special year: in fact, it is these months that mark the seventieth anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Alfredo, which took place on February 7, 1953 in Donoku. In that mountain village Father Cremonesi worked for most of his life, and he returned several times, despite a thousand difficulties and dangers, to be close to his people and to build and rebuild what war and violence continued to destroy. What is striking about Father Alfredo is the tenacity with which he exercised his ministry, giving himself without calculation and without saving for the good of the people entrusted to him, believers and non-believers, Catholics and non-Catholics. A universal man, for everyone.
Thus he certainly embodied, in an exemplary way, the solid virtues of his Crema area: robust piety, generous work, simple life and missionary fervor. He sowed communion, knowing how to adapt to a completely new world for him and making it his own, with love. He exercised charity especially towards the neediest, finding himself several times with nothing, forced to beg himself. He devoted himself to the education of young people and did not let himself be intimidated or discouraged by misunderstandings and violent opposition, right up to the burst of machine guns that killed him. But even this extreme violence did not stop his spirit and did not silence his voice. In fact, she has continued to speak through those who have followed in her footsteps: among these missionaries Fr. Andrea Mandonico is present today and, even if he was unable to be here with us, let us not forget Fr. Pierluigi Maccalli, a prisoner of two years in Niger and in Mali, for whose liberation you prayed so much! The missionary voice of Fr. Alfredo, however, is not entrusted only to them: it is entrusted to all of us, to all of you, to your words and above all to your experience as a Christian community.
In the writings left by Father Alfredo there is a very beautiful sentence on the missionary spirit. He says this: «We missionaries are really nothing. Ours is the most mysterious and wonderful work that is given to man, not to do, but to see: seeing souls who get converted is a miracle greater than any miracle". These words summarize some important characteristics of the missionary, on which I invite you to reflect and which I invite you to make your own: the humble awareness of being a small instrument in the great hands of God; the joy of carrying out a "wonderful job" by bringing brothers and sisters together with Jesus; amazement at what the Lord himself does in those who meet and welcome him. Humility, joy and amazement: three beautiful traits of our apostolate, in every condition and state of life.
Dear brothers and sisters, it is truly a gift to have you here: a colorful community of all ages and conditions. Paraphrasing Saint Lawrence, deacon and martyr of the Church of Rome, we can say that this is the treasure of the Church: it is you, it is us, all poor before God and all rich in his infinite love, which is reflected in a unique way in the eyes of each one, and of which we are witnesses and missionaries.
This is why I want to encourage you to continue your community journey with commitment and enthusiasm, in all its dimensions. I urge you to cultivate communion, between people and between communities, in mutual aid, in collaboration, also in opening up to new ways, in a world that is changing ever faster. Don't be afraid to translate ancient values into modern languages, so that they can reach everyone, and so that everyone can taste and enjoy their benefits. Try to always be welcoming and inclusive with those who knock on your door; to take particular care of the education of young people, helping them to "bring out" the best of themselves and to find God's project in their life, making it a mission, with passion. Do not forget the elderly, the weakest, especially the poor and the sick; I invite you to listen to them, because there is so much to learn from those who know what life, fatigue and suffering are. Finally, in a land as rich and beautiful as yours, may you be models of respectful care for creation, of sobriety in using its fruits and of generosity in sharing them.
Dear brothers and sisters, thank you for coming! I entrust you to the intercession of the Virgin Mary and of San Pantaleone. I cordially bless all of you and the entire diocesan community. And please, don't forget to pray for me. Thank you!
TO PARTICIPANTS IN THE PILGRIMAGE OF THE DIOCESE OF CREMA (ITALY)
Paul VI Hall
Saturday, April 15, 2023
________________________________________
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!
I thank the Bishop, Monsignor Daniele Gianotti, for the words he addressed to me. I greet Archbishop Rosolino Bianchetti, Bishop of Quiché, in Guatemala; the Superior General of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions; the seminarians of the Diocese of Taungngu, in Myanmar; the priests and missionaries present; as well as the President of the Province of Cremona and the Mayors gathered. And I cordially greet all of you who have come in such numbers. Thank you, thank you for your visit!
This meeting of ours was planned some time ago, after the beatification of Father Alfredo Cremonesi, a Crema native, missionary and martyr in Burma, now Myanmar. As you know, this is a troubled land that I carry in my heart and for which I invite you to pray, imploring God for the gift of peace.
So the pandemic forced us to postpone our meeting until today. However, this too is a special year: in fact, it is these months that mark the seventieth anniversary of the martyrdom of Blessed Alfredo, which took place on February 7, 1953 in Donoku. In that mountain village Father Cremonesi worked for most of his life, and he returned several times, despite a thousand difficulties and dangers, to be close to his people and to build and rebuild what war and violence continued to destroy. What is striking about Father Alfredo is the tenacity with which he exercised his ministry, giving himself without calculation and without saving for the good of the people entrusted to him, believers and non-believers, Catholics and non-Catholics. A universal man, for everyone.
Thus he certainly embodied, in an exemplary way, the solid virtues of his Crema area: robust piety, generous work, simple life and missionary fervor. He sowed communion, knowing how to adapt to a completely new world for him and making it his own, with love. He exercised charity especially towards the neediest, finding himself several times with nothing, forced to beg himself. He devoted himself to the education of young people and did not let himself be intimidated or discouraged by misunderstandings and violent opposition, right up to the burst of machine guns that killed him. But even this extreme violence did not stop his spirit and did not silence his voice. In fact, she has continued to speak through those who have followed in her footsteps: among these missionaries Fr. Andrea Mandonico is present today and, even if he was unable to be here with us, let us not forget Fr. Pierluigi Maccalli, a prisoner of two years in Niger and in Mali, for whose liberation you prayed so much! The missionary voice of Fr. Alfredo, however, is not entrusted only to them: it is entrusted to all of us, to all of you, to your words and above all to your experience as a Christian community.
In the writings left by Father Alfredo there is a very beautiful sentence on the missionary spirit. He says this: «We missionaries are really nothing. Ours is the most mysterious and wonderful work that is given to man, not to do, but to see: seeing souls who get converted is a miracle greater than any miracle". These words summarize some important characteristics of the missionary, on which I invite you to reflect and which I invite you to make your own: the humble awareness of being a small instrument in the great hands of God; the joy of carrying out a "wonderful job" by bringing brothers and sisters together with Jesus; amazement at what the Lord himself does in those who meet and welcome him. Humility, joy and amazement: three beautiful traits of our apostolate, in every condition and state of life.
Dear brothers and sisters, it is truly a gift to have you here: a colorful community of all ages and conditions. Paraphrasing Saint Lawrence, deacon and martyr of the Church of Rome, we can say that this is the treasure of the Church: it is you, it is us, all poor before God and all rich in his infinite love, which is reflected in a unique way in the eyes of each one, and of which we are witnesses and missionaries.
This is why I want to encourage you to continue your community journey with commitment and enthusiasm, in all its dimensions. I urge you to cultivate communion, between people and between communities, in mutual aid, in collaboration, also in opening up to new ways, in a world that is changing ever faster. Don't be afraid to translate ancient values into modern languages, so that they can reach everyone, and so that everyone can taste and enjoy their benefits. Try to always be welcoming and inclusive with those who knock on your door; to take particular care of the education of young people, helping them to "bring out" the best of themselves and to find God's project in their life, making it a mission, with passion. Do not forget the elderly, the weakest, especially the poor and the sick; I invite you to listen to them, because there is so much to learn from those who know what life, fatigue and suffering are. Finally, in a land as rich and beautiful as yours, may you be models of respectful care for creation, of sobriety in using its fruits and of generosity in sharing them.
Dear brothers and sisters, thank you for coming! I entrust you to the intercession of the Virgin Mary and of San Pantaleone. I cordially bless all of you and the entire diocesan community. And please, don't forget to pray for me. Thank you!
Source: https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/it/bollettino/pubblico/2023/04/15/0276/00596.html
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