Pope Francis says "the sacrament of Reconciliation: it is not just a devotional exercise, but the foundation of Christian existence" and Hears Confession at a Service
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"24 HOURS FOR THE LORD" - HOMILY OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS
Parish church of San Pio V in Rome - Friday, March 8, 2024
"We can walk in a new life" (Rom 6:4): this is what the apostle Paul wrote to the first Christians of this Church of Rome. But what is the new life he talks about? It is the life that is born from Baptism, which immerses us in the death and resurrection of Jesus and makes us children of God forever, children of the resurrection destined for eternal life, oriented towards the things above. It is the life that carries us forward in our truest identity, that of being beloved children of the Father, so that every sadness and obstacle, every effort and tribulation cannot prevail over this wonderful reality that grounds us: we are children of the good God.
We have heard that Saint Paul associates a verb with new life: walking. Therefore the new life, begun in Baptism, is a journey. And there is no pension in this! Nobody on this path retires, we always move forward. And after many steps along the way, perhaps we have lost sight of the holy life that flows within us: day after day, immersed in a repetitive rhythm, caught up in a thousand things, dazed by so many messages, we look everywhere for satisfaction and novelty, stimuli and sensations positive, but we forget that there is already a new life that flows within us and that, like embers under the ashes, waits to blaze up and shed light on everything. When we are busy with so many things, do we think about the Holy Spirit who is within us and carries us? It happens to me many times that I don't think about it, and it's bad. Being like this, caught up in so many travails, makes us forget the true path we are taking in our new life.
We must look for the embers under the ashes, that ash that has settled on the heart and hides the beauty of our soul from view, hides it. Then God, who in the new life is our Father, appears to us as a master; instead of relying on Him, we contract with Him; instead of loving him, we fear him. And the others, instead of being brothers and sisters, as children of the same Father, seem to us obstacles and adversaries. There is a bad habit: that of transforming our traveling companions into adversaries. And many times we do it. Our neighbor's defects seem exaggerated and their merits hidden; how often are we inflexible with others and indulgent with ourselves! We feel an unstoppable force to do the evil we would like to avoid. A problem for everyone, if even Saint Paul writes, again to the community of Rome: "I do not do the good that I want, but the evil that I do not want" (7,19). He too was a sinner, and we too often do evil that we don't want. In short, with the face of God clouded, those of our brothers clouded, the greatness we carry within us blurred, we remain on the path, but we need new signs, we need a change of pace, a direction that helps us find the via Baptism, that is, to renew our original beauty that is there under the ashes, to renew the sense of moving forward. And how many times do we get tired of walking and lose the sense of moving forward? Let us remain calm, or not even calm, but firm.
Brothers, sisters, what is the way to resume the path of new life? For this Lent and to resume the journey, what is the way? It is God's way of forgiveness. Put this in your mind and heart: God never tires of forgiving. Have you heard? Are you able to repeat it with me? Together, everyone: [everyone] God never tires of forgiving. To be sure, one more time: [all] God never tires of forgiving. But what's the drama? That we are the ones who get tired of asking for forgiveness! But He never tires of forgiving. Let's not forget this. And divine forgiveness does just this: it makes us new again, as if we had just been baptized. He cleans us inside, making us return to the condition of baptismal rebirth: he makes the fresh waters of grace flow again in the heart, dried up by sadness and dusty by sins. The Lord removes the ash from the embers of the soul, cleanses those internal stains that prevent us from trusting in God, from embracing our brothers, from loving ourselves. He forgives everything. “Oh Father, I have a sin that is surely unforgivable.” Listen: God forgives everything, because He never tires of forgiving. God's forgiveness transforms us inside: it gives us back life and new sight. It is no coincidence that in the Gospel we heard, Jesus proclaims: "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God" (Mt 5:8). He prepares our eyes to see God. We only see God if the heart is purified: purify the heart to see God. But who can do this purification? Our commitment is necessary, but not enough; it's not enough, we are weak, we can't; only God knows and heals the heart.
Put this good in your mind: only God is capable of knowing and healing the heart, only He can free it from evil. For this to happen we need to bring our open and contrite hearts to him; imitate the leper in the Gospel, who prays like this: "If you want, you can purify me!" (Mk 1.40). This is beautiful! “If you want, you can change me inside, you can purify me”. This is a beautiful prayer, and we can repeat it together, here, everyone. Together: “Lord, if you want, you can purify me”. Another time: [all] “Lord, if you want, you can purify me”. And now, in silence, everyone say it to the Lord, looking at their own sins. Look at the sins, look at the bad things you have inside and that you have done; silently say to the Lord: “Lord, if you want, you can purify me”. And He can. Someone thinks: “But this sin is too bad, the Lord won't be able to…”. The Lord forgives everything, the Lord never tires of forgiving. Do you remember? Repeat it: “The Lord never tires of forgiving”. All together: [all] “The Lord never tires of forgiving”.
The Lord wants this, because he wants us renewed, free, light inside, happy and on the move, not parked on the roads of life. He knows how easy it is for us to stumble, fall, and stay down, and he wants to get us back up. I saw a beautiful painting, where the Lord bends down to lift us up. And this the Lord does every time we approach Confession. Let us not sadden him, let us not postpone the encounter with his forgiveness, because only if put back on our feet by Him can we resume the journey and see the defeat of our sin, canceled forever. Because sin is always a defeat, but He conquers sin, He is the victory. Furthermore, «at the same moment in which the sinner is forgiven, seized by God and restored by grace, sin – wonder of wonders! – becomes the place where God comes into contact with man. […] Thus God makes himself known by forgiving" (A. Louf, Sotto l'guidazione dello Spirito, Magnano 1990, 68-69). “I know God by studying catechesis…”. But you don't know him only with the mind: only when the heart is repentant and you go to Him, showing your dirty heart, there you will know God who forgives. “Go in peace, your sins are forgiven.” God makes himself known by forgiving. And "the sinner, peering into the abyss of his own sin, discovers on his part the infinity of mercy" (ibid.) And this is the restart of new life: begun in Baptism, it starts again from forgiveness.
Let us not renounce God's forgiveness, the sacrament of Reconciliation: it is not just an exercise of devotion, but the foundation of Christian existence; it is not a question of knowing how to express sins well, but of recognizing ourselves as sinners and throwing ourselves into the arms of Jesus crucified to be freed; it is not a moralistic gesture, but the resurrection of the heart. The risen Lord resurrects us, all of us. Let us therefore go and receive God's forgiveness and we, who administer it, feel like dispensers of the joy of the Father who finds his lost son; we feel that our hands, placed on the heads of the faithful, are those pierced with the mercy of Jesus, who transforms the wounds of sin into channels of mercy. And we who act as confessors feel that "the forgiveness and peace" that we proclaim are the caress of the Holy Spirit on the hearts of the faithful. Dear brothers, let us forgive! Dear brother priests, let us forgive, let us always forgive like God who never tires of forgiving, and we will find ourselves again. We always grant forgiveness to those who ask for it and help those who feel fear to approach the sacrament of healing and joy with confidence. Let's put God's forgiveness back at the center of the Church! And you, dear brother priests, do not ask too much: let them say, and you forgive everything. Don't go and investigate, no.
And now, let's prepare to welcome new life, let's confess to the Lord that there is so much old in us, ugly things... The leprosy of sin has stained our beauty and so we say: Jesus, if you want, you can purify me! All together: [all] “Jesus, if you want, you can purify me”. From thinking that I don't need you every day: [all] Jesus, if you want, you can purify me! From living peacefully with my duplicity, without seeking the path to freedom in your forgiveness: [all] Jesus, if you want, you can purify me! When good intentions are not followed by facts, when I postpone prayer and meeting you: [everyone] Jesus, if you want, you can purify me! When I come to terms with evil, with dishonesty, with falsehood, when I judge others, I despise them and speak ill of them, complaining about everyone and everything: [everyone] Jesus, if you want, you can purify me! And when I am content with not doing evil, but I do not do good by serving in the Church and in society: [all] Jesus, if you want, you can purify me! Yes, Jesus, I believe you can cleanse me, I believe I need your forgiveness. Jesus, renew me and I will walk again in a new life. [all] Jesus, if you want, you can purify me.
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