Pope Francis says "Renewing the personal encounter with Jesus every day is the heart of the Christian life." to 25,000 World Youth Day Volunteers - FULL TEXT
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APOSTOLIC JOURNEY OF HIS HOLINESS FRANCIS TO PORTUGAL
ON THE OCCASION OF XXXVII WORLD YOUTH DAY
MEETING WITH WYD VOLUNTEERS
SPEECH OF THE HOLY FATHER
"Passeio marítimo" of Algés on Sunday, August 6, 2023
ON THE OCCASION OF XXXVII WORLD YOUTH DAY
MEETING WITH WYD VOLUNTEERS
SPEECH OF THE HOLY FATHER
"Passeio marítimo" of Algés on Sunday, August 6, 2023
In the final WYD event on his schedule, Pope Francis thanks the 25 thousand World Youth Day volunteers from 150 countries for their wonderful generosity, service and faith.
_______________________________________
Dear friends, good morning! And thanks!
Thanks to the Patriarch of Lisbon for his words, to Archbishop Aguiar and to all of you for having worked so hard and so well: you made these unforgettable days possible! You have struggled for months, in a hidden way, without clamor and without the limelight, so that we could all find ourselves here singing together: "Jesus lives and does not leave us alone: we will never stop loving". Not only that: you set an example because you teamed up to work together! But yours, more than a job, was a service, thank you!
The same service rendered by the Virgin Mary, who "got up and went with haste" (Lk 1:39) to go and serve her cousin Elizabeth, feeling the urgency to share the joy in her service. Sharing joy and service, joy in service. We think of Zacchaeus, who climbed a tree to see Jesus, and hurried down. Something had touched him, he wanted to meet Jesus and welcome him into his home (cf. Lk 19:6); let us think of the women and disciples who at Easter run back and forth from the tomb to the upper room to proclaim that Christ is risen (cf. Jn 20:1-18). Those who love do not sit idly by, those who love serve, those who love run to serve, run to engage in service to others. And you have run, you have run a lot, in these months! I have only been able to see the final moment, these days, observing you as you responded to a thousand needs, sometimes with your face marked by tiredness, other times a little overwhelmed by the urgencies of the moment, but I always noticed one thing: that you had the bright eyes, bright with the joy of service, thank you!
You have made this world youth meeting possible, you have done great things in the smallest gestures, such as offering a bottle of water to a stranger, and this creates friendship. You have run a lot, but not with the frenetic and aimless run that is sometimes that of our world, no, you have run in another way: you have made a run that leads to meet others to serve them in the name of Jesus. You are came to Lisbon to serve and not to be served, thank you, thank you very much!
And now I would like to be your amplifier, so that what the testimonies have told us resonate, the testimonies of Chiara, Francisco and Filipe: all three have spoken to us of a special encounter with Jesus. They have reminded us that the most beautiful encounter, the the engine of all the others, the one that really makes us walk, that keeps life going, is with Jesus. It is the most important encounter of our life. Renewing the personal encounter with Jesus every day is the heart of the Christian life. And it must be renewed every day to keep it fresh, not only in the head but also in the heart. We have experienced that a small "yes" to Jesus can change your life. But even the "yes" said to others are good, when they are for service. In the moment of tiredness, you took courage and went ahead saying "yes" to serve others. Thank you for this.
And you, Francisco, said that here you found something you needed but weren't even looking for. Walking, working and praying with others, you understood that you could not let yourself be imprisoned by the disorder, by the "unmade beds" of the past, nor live with a heart tormented by feelings of incompleteness, but that, with the help of Jesus and your brothers, you were given the opportunity to rearrange "the room of life". This is beautiful: this Day is useful, it helps a lot to put life in order. But why? Thanks to the Day? No, thanks to Jesus, who is here among us and shows himself to us. To put our lives in order, we don't need things, we don't need distractions, we don't need money. It is necessary to dilate the heart. And if you broaden your heart you will bring order to your life. Do not be afraid: dilate your heart!
And finally you, Filipe, among the many beautiful things you shared, said one that I want to underline: you said that you experienced a double encounter here, an encounter with Jesus and an encounter with others. Encounter with Jesus and meet with others. This is very important: the encounter with Jesus is a personal, unique moment that can only be described and recounted up to a certain point, but it always comes thanks to a journey made with others, made through the intercession of others . Encountering Jesus and meeting him in service to others.
Friends, in the end I would like to leave you an image. As many of you know, north of Lisbon there is a place, Nazaré, where you can admire waves that reach up to thirty meters in height and are a worldwide attraction, especially for the surfers who ride them. In these days you too have faced a real wave: not of water, but of young people, young people like you, who have poured into this city. However, with God's help, with so much generosity and mutual support, you have ridden this great wave. You have ridden this great wave: you are really brave! Thank you, dude! I want to tell you: keep going, keep riding the waves of love, the waves of charity, be surfers of love! And this is the task I entrust to you at this moment: that the service you have done on this World Youth Day is the first of many waves of good; each time you will be brought higher, closer to God, and this will allow you to see your path from a better perspective.
Thanks again, everyone. Good walk! And please continue to pray for me! Thank you!
_______________________________________
Dear friends, good morning! And thanks!
Thanks to the Patriarch of Lisbon for his words, to Archbishop Aguiar and to all of you for having worked so hard and so well: you made these unforgettable days possible! You have struggled for months, in a hidden way, without clamor and without the limelight, so that we could all find ourselves here singing together: "Jesus lives and does not leave us alone: we will never stop loving". Not only that: you set an example because you teamed up to work together! But yours, more than a job, was a service, thank you!
The same service rendered by the Virgin Mary, who "got up and went with haste" (Lk 1:39) to go and serve her cousin Elizabeth, feeling the urgency to share the joy in her service. Sharing joy and service, joy in service. We think of Zacchaeus, who climbed a tree to see Jesus, and hurried down. Something had touched him, he wanted to meet Jesus and welcome him into his home (cf. Lk 19:6); let us think of the women and disciples who at Easter run back and forth from the tomb to the upper room to proclaim that Christ is risen (cf. Jn 20:1-18). Those who love do not sit idly by, those who love serve, those who love run to serve, run to engage in service to others. And you have run, you have run a lot, in these months! I have only been able to see the final moment, these days, observing you as you responded to a thousand needs, sometimes with your face marked by tiredness, other times a little overwhelmed by the urgencies of the moment, but I always noticed one thing: that you had the bright eyes, bright with the joy of service, thank you!
You have made this world youth meeting possible, you have done great things in the smallest gestures, such as offering a bottle of water to a stranger, and this creates friendship. You have run a lot, but not with the frenetic and aimless run that is sometimes that of our world, no, you have run in another way: you have made a run that leads to meet others to serve them in the name of Jesus. You are came to Lisbon to serve and not to be served, thank you, thank you very much!
And now I would like to be your amplifier, so that what the testimonies have told us resonate, the testimonies of Chiara, Francisco and Filipe: all three have spoken to us of a special encounter with Jesus. They have reminded us that the most beautiful encounter, the the engine of all the others, the one that really makes us walk, that keeps life going, is with Jesus. It is the most important encounter of our life. Renewing the personal encounter with Jesus every day is the heart of the Christian life. And it must be renewed every day to keep it fresh, not only in the head but also in the heart. We have experienced that a small "yes" to Jesus can change your life. But even the "yes" said to others are good, when they are for service. In the moment of tiredness, you took courage and went ahead saying "yes" to serve others. Thank you for this.
And you, Francisco, said that here you found something you needed but weren't even looking for. Walking, working and praying with others, you understood that you could not let yourself be imprisoned by the disorder, by the "unmade beds" of the past, nor live with a heart tormented by feelings of incompleteness, but that, with the help of Jesus and your brothers, you were given the opportunity to rearrange "the room of life". This is beautiful: this Day is useful, it helps a lot to put life in order. But why? Thanks to the Day? No, thanks to Jesus, who is here among us and shows himself to us. To put our lives in order, we don't need things, we don't need distractions, we don't need money. It is necessary to dilate the heart. And if you broaden your heart you will bring order to your life. Do not be afraid: dilate your heart!
And finally you, Filipe, among the many beautiful things you shared, said one that I want to underline: you said that you experienced a double encounter here, an encounter with Jesus and an encounter with others. Encounter with Jesus and meet with others. This is very important: the encounter with Jesus is a personal, unique moment that can only be described and recounted up to a certain point, but it always comes thanks to a journey made with others, made through the intercession of others . Encountering Jesus and meeting him in service to others.
Friends, in the end I would like to leave you an image. As many of you know, north of Lisbon there is a place, Nazaré, where you can admire waves that reach up to thirty meters in height and are a worldwide attraction, especially for the surfers who ride them. In these days you too have faced a real wave: not of water, but of young people, young people like you, who have poured into this city. However, with God's help, with so much generosity and mutual support, you have ridden this great wave. You have ridden this great wave: you are really brave! Thank you, dude! I want to tell you: keep going, keep riding the waves of love, the waves of charity, be surfers of love! And this is the task I entrust to you at this moment: that the service you have done on this World Youth Day is the first of many waves of good; each time you will be brought higher, closer to God, and this will allow you to see your path from a better perspective.
Thanks again, everyone. Good walk! And please continue to pray for me! Thank you!
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