Please share with others. We ALL have to read the "whole thing" and be prepared to defend (with visible Love) our Father, The Church, and the Truth!!
7/31/2013
Pope's homily on 7/31/2013. He mentions IHS
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The Pope's homily on World Youth Day
To the millions of young people gathered to be with him, Pope Francis offered three simple ideas: “Go, do not be afraid, and serve”.
Go – he said – during these days here in Rio you have enjoyed a wonderful experience, meeting Jesus with others and sensing the joy of faith. But this experience – he said – must not remain locked up in your life or community, it must be shared and passed on so that everyone may know, love and confess Jesus.
And he pointed out that Jesus’ message of love is not just for some, it is for everyone, and he urged the young people not to be afraid of bringing Christ into every area of life, to the fringes of society, even to those who seem most indifferent.
Pope Francis galvanized the young people by telling them that Christ’s proclamation is entrusted to them so that it may resound with fresh power. The Church needs you – he said – your enthusiasm, your creativity and the joy that is so characteristic of you. Do not be afraid – he repeated – Jesus never leaves you alone!
And finally: Serve. Just as St. Paul made himself a slave to all – the Pope explained – “evangelizing means bearing personal witness to the love of God, it is overcoming our selfishness, it is serving by bending down to wash the feet of our brethren as Jesus did.”
If you follow these three ideas – Pope Francis concluded – you will experience the joy of faith. So: “go home and do not be afraid to be generous with Christ. He is counting on you! The Church is counting on you! The Pope is counting on you!”
Please find the full text of his homily below:
Brother Bishops and Priests,
Dear Young Friends,
“Go and make disciples of all nations”. With these words, Jesus is speaking to each one of us, saying: “It was wonderful to take part in World Youth Day, to live the faith together with young people from the four corners of the earth, but now you must go, now you must pass on this experience to others.” Jesus is calling you to be a disciple with a mission! Today, in the light of the word of God that we have heard, what is the Lord saying to us? Three simple ideas: Go, do not be afraid, and serve.
1. Go. During these days here in Rio, you have been able to enjoy the wonderful experience of meeting Jesus, meeting him together with others, and you have sensed the joy of faith. But the experience of this encounter must not remain locked up in your life or in the small group of your parish, your movement, or your community. That would be like withholding oxygen from a flame that was burning strongly. Faith is a flame that grows stronger the more it is shared and passed on, so that everyone may know, love and confess Jesus Christ, the Lord of life and history (cf. Rom 10:9).
Careful, though! Jesus did not say: “if you would like to, if you have the time”, but: “Go and make disciples of all nations.” Sharing the experience of faith, bearing witness to the faith, proclaiming the Gospel: this is a command that the Lord entrusts to the whole Church, and that includes you; but it is a command that is born not from a desire for domination or power but from the force of love, from the fact that Jesus first came into our midst and gave us, not a part of himself, but the whole of himself, he gave his life in order to save us and to show us the love and mercy of God. Jesus does not treat us as slaves, but as free men, as friends, as brothers and sisters; and he not only sends us, he accompanies us, he is always beside us in our mission of love.
Where does Jesus send us? There are no borders, no limits: he sends us to everyone. The Gospel is for everyone, not just for some. It is not only for those who seem closer to us, more receptive, more welcoming. It is for everyone. Do not be afraid to go and to bring Christ into every area of life, to the fringes of society, even to those who seem farthest away, most indifferent. The Lord seeks all, he wants everyone to feel the warmth of his mercy and his love.
In particular, I would like Christ’s command: “Go” to resonate in you young people from the Church in Latin America, engaged in the continental mission promoted by the Bishops. Brazil, Latin America, the whole world needs Christ! Saint Paul says: “Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel!” (1 Cor 9:16). This continent has received the proclamation of the Gospel which has marked its history and borne much fruit. Now this proclamation is entrusted also to you, that it may resound with fresh power. The Church needs you, your enthusiasm, your creativity and the joy that is so characteristic of you. A great Apostle of Brazil, Blessed José de Anchieta, set off on the mission when he was only nineteen years old. Do you know what the best tool is for evangelizing the young? Another young person. This is the path to follow!
2. Do not be afraid. Some people might think: “I have no particular preparation, how can I go and proclaim the Gospel?” My dear friend, your fear is not so very different from that of Jeremiah, a young man like you, when he was called by God to be a prophet. We have just heard his words: “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth”. God says the same thing to you as he said to Jeremiah: “Be not afraid ... for I am with you to deliver you” (Jer 1:7,8). He is with us!
“Do not be afraid!” When we go to proclaim Christ, it is he himself who goes before us and guides us. When he sent his disciples on mission, he promised: “I am with you always” (Mt 28:20). And this is also true for us! Jesus does not leave us alone, he never leaves you alone! He always accompanies you.
And then, Jesus did not say: “One of you go”, but “All of you go”: we are sent together. Dear young friends, be aware of the companionship of the whole Church and also the communion of the saints on this mission. When we face challenges together, then we are strong, we discover resources we did not know we had. Jesus did not call the Apostles to live in isolation, he called them to form a group, a community. I would like to address you, dear priests concelebrating with me at this Eucharist: you have come to accompany your young people, and this is wonderful, to share this experience of faith with them! But it is a stage on the journey. Please continue to accompany them with generosity and joy, help them to become actively engaged in the Church; never let them feel alone! And at this point I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to theYouth Ministery groups, to the Movements and the new Communities that accompany the young people in their experience of being Church. They are so creative, so audacious. Carry on and do not be afraid!
3. The final word: serve. The opening words of the psalm that we proclaimed are: “Sing to the Lord a new song” (Psalm 95:1). What is this new song? It does not consist of words, it is not a melody, it is the song of your life, it is allowing our life to be identified with that of Jesus, it is sharing his sentiments, his thoughts, his actions. And the life of Jesus is a life for others. It is a life of service.
In our Second Reading today, Saint Paul says: “I have made myself a slave to all, that I might win the more” (1 Cor 9:19). In order to proclaim Jesus, Paul made himself “a slave to all”. Evangelizing means bearing personal witness to the love of God, it is overcoming our selfishness, it is serving by bending down to wash the feet of our brethren, as Jesus did.
Three words: Go, do not be afraid, and serve. Follow these three words: Go, do not be afraid, and serve. If you follow these three ideas, you will experience that the one who evangelizes is evangelized, the one who transmits the joy of faith receives joy. Dear young friends, as you return to your homes, do not be afraid to be generous with Christ, to bear witness to his Gospel. In the first Reading, when God sends the prophet Jeremiah, he gives him the power to “pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant” (1:10). It is the same for you. Bringing the Gospel is bringing God’s power to pluck up and break down evil and violence, to destroy and overthrow the barriers of selfishness, intolerance and hatred, so as to build a new world. Jesus Christ is counting on you! The Church is counting on you! The Pope is counting on you! May Mary, Mother of Jesus and our Mother, always accompany you with her tenderness: “Go and make disciples of all nations”. Amen.
Pope Francis: Next WYD in Krakòw, Poland 2016!
Text from page http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/07/28/pope_francis:_next_wyd_in_krak%C3%B2w,_poland_2016/en1-714684
of the Vatican Radio website
Text from page http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/07/28/pope_francis:_go,_do_not_be_afraid,_and_serve_/en1-714699
of the Vatican Radio website
Pope Francis' guide to avoiding a 'throwaway culture'
Pope Francis' guide to avoiding a 'throwaway culture'
The pontiff has challenged us to shun the quest for more, more, more in favor of solidarity
By Mary DeTurris Poust - OSV Newsweekly, 9/1/2013
Culture of solidarity
“We must never allow the throwaway culture to enter our hearts, because we are brothers and sisters. No one is disposable!”
Reviewing Our Gifts
Writer Linda Perrone Rooney offers several suggestions for putting Pope Francis’ words about using our God-given gifts into practice: “Admit that all is gift, it’s not a result of our own genius or hard work. God is the gift-giver and what we have is gift to us. Thinking in this way begins to deepen a sense of gratitude as well as a surrender of our sense of entitlement and/or poss- essiveness. It decreases the false idol of less is less and opens a way for us to embrace the idea of abundance,” she said, explaining that “Step 2” is to do a “life review” and give serious thought to our resources and gifts — financial, intellectual and spiritual.
“What is practical will vary with each individual and family … I think of stewardship as the way in which I engage the resources at my disposal with gratitude and praise to the Creator so that they benefit not just me and my family; but also, others around me and ultimately the world at large.”
Those words and similar statements on caring for the poor have made headlines because they sound so radical to our modern ears. But they take us right back to the Gospel, to the words of Jesus, to St. Francis of Assisi and other great saints and sages over the centuries who stood in the public square and reminded us of our duties as Christians — right up to our modern-day popes who have challenged us to do the same. In American culture, there is a move toward “down-sizing” and “decluttering,” simplifying and getting “back to basics.”
And while that’s all well and good, what Pope Francis is saying is that those things don’t really hold, don’t really transform unless they are linked to solidarity with others — with a concern for humanity and the planet that is rooted in God, not in a cleaner house or a smaller credit card bill.
“The culture of selfishness and individualism that often prevails in our society is not ... what builds up and leads to a more habitable world: rather, it is the culture of solidarity that does so,” Pope Francis said on a visit to the Varginha favela in Brazil on July 25. “We must never allow the throwaway culture to enter our hearts, because we are brothers and sisters. No one is disposable! Let us always remember this: Only when we are able to share do we become truly rich; everything that is shared is multiplied!”
In Rome on Aug. 4, in an Angelus address after his return from World Youth Day, Pope Francis spoke about the need for all people — but particularly young people — to turn away from the materialism that is rampant in the culture and to embrace a life grounded in something deeper.
“The encounter with the living Christ in his great family, which is the Church, fills hearts with joy, for it fills them with true life, with a profound goodness that endures, that does not tarnish,” Pope Francis said, warning against the “poison of emptiness which creeps into our society based on profit and possession and on consumerism which deceives young people.”
True wealth, Pope Francis continued, is not found in things devoid of real meaning and value but in the love of God shared with others.
In American culture, especially, where people find status in the things they own, that message can be tough to hear. Does it mean you can’t have an iPhone or a new car or nice clothes? Is that attempting to “serve two masters,” as Scripture warns is impossible?
It’s not the smartphone that’s inherently bad, however, but rather the obsessive need to have the best and latest version of it and to never have it far from reach. You can own a smartphone — or whatever “luxury” item is your particular poison — as long as it doesn’t own you. And, of course, the same holds true for the many other things that have a basis in materialism even if they don’t break the bank: an addiction to the daily Starbucks latte, for example, or the need to buy copious lottery tickets or to book one vacation after another.
Chances are, even if those things aren’t costing too much in dollars and cents, they may be costing us in other ways. These ways may pull us away from Christ and away from a connection to the joys and sufferings of others people who perhaps could use some of our time, attention and, yes, money.
Life in balance
“Do not bury your talents! Set your stakes on great ideals, the ideals that enlarge the heart, the ideals of service that make your talents fruitful.”
Materialism can come into play not just in what we buy, but in how we use our time, especially in a world where endless media and electronic entertainment threatens to distract us from more serious pursuits.
mobile phones
A teen uses his mobile phone on a break from Vacation Bible School this summer. CNS photo by Mike Crupi
We hardly have to be serious all the time, but we do have to consider where we’re putting most of our time and energy. Are we staring at a screen for hours on end, ignoring real-life encounters with family and friends in favor of texting or Facebooking? Or are we wandering the local mall in pursuit of something to make us feel complete or fulfilled? We’re called to live life in balance.
When Pope Francis returned to Rome from World Youth Day, the first thing he did was visit the Basilica of St. Mary Major to offer a prayer to the Blessed Mother. He also placed a beach ball and T-shirt on the altar, giving the world a beautiful image of what joyful Catholic faith looks like. Yes, we need to make time for prayer, we need to give back a portion of our time and energy to God, but we can do so with a childlike sense of gratitude and enthusiasm that is infectious. Prayer, service, work, family, play — it’s all good, all necessary, as long as there is a healthy balance with God always at the center.
By stepping outside our own lives — our household chores, our Facebook friends, our favorite TV shows and magazines — for a little while and perhaps finding a way to serve others, we enter more fully into the human experience and see our own blessings and sorrows in relation to those of other people. That goes a long way toward building that solidarity that the pope keeps talking about.
During his April 24 general audience, Pope Francis spoke to young people in St. Peter’s Square, asking them, as they set off on their journey through life, to reflect on the talents and gifts God has given them.
“Have you thought of how you can put them at the service of others?” he asked. “Do not bury your talents! Set your stakes on great ideals, the ideals that enlarge the heart, the ideals of service that make your talents fruitful.”
Discipleship, said Puerta Edson, is a conscious decision. Over time, she added, stewardship affects our choices and how we behave toward others.
New pamphlet coming soon
“Pope Francis: A New Call to Stewardship” (Our Sunday Visitor, $15.95 for a package of 50).
“I think it increases your awareness that you are part of a universal Church and have a responsibility to all of God’s creation,” she said. “We begin with prayer and listening to what God wants for us and not what we want God to want for us.
“We start in our families as the basic unit of the Church,” she added. “We grow to our parish and community.”
Since this is his guide, it’s only fitting to let Pope Francis have the last word on stewardship. Though more from his speech to the youths April 24, they hold meaning for us all as we embark on a life more devoted to the cares of others.
“Life is not given to us to be jealously guarded for ourselves, but is given to us so that we may give it in turn,” he said. “Dear young people, have a deep spirit! Do not be afraid to dream of great things!”
Mary DeTurris Poust is the author of “Everyday Divine: A Catholic Guide to Active Spirituality” (Ave Maria Press, $14.95).
Newsletter Subscriptions
If you liked this article, you can sign up to receive free weekly newsletters.
Tags:environment, Pope Francis, poverty, social issues, Stewardship
Return to OSV Newsweekly September 01, 2013 list
The pontiff has challenged us to shun the quest for more, more, more in favor of solidarity
By Mary DeTurris Poust - OSV Newsweekly, 9/1/2013
Culture of solidarity
“We must never allow the throwaway culture to enter our hearts, because we are brothers and sisters. No one is disposable!”
Reviewing Our Gifts
Writer Linda Perrone Rooney offers several suggestions for putting Pope Francis’ words about using our God-given gifts into practice: “Admit that all is gift, it’s not a result of our own genius or hard work. God is the gift-giver and what we have is gift to us. Thinking in this way begins to deepen a sense of gratitude as well as a surrender of our sense of entitlement and/or poss- essiveness. It decreases the false idol of less is less and opens a way for us to embrace the idea of abundance,” she said, explaining that “Step 2” is to do a “life review” and give serious thought to our resources and gifts — financial, intellectual and spiritual.
“What is practical will vary with each individual and family … I think of stewardship as the way in which I engage the resources at my disposal with gratitude and praise to the Creator so that they benefit not just me and my family; but also, others around me and ultimately the world at large.”
Those words and similar statements on caring for the poor have made headlines because they sound so radical to our modern ears. But they take us right back to the Gospel, to the words of Jesus, to St. Francis of Assisi and other great saints and sages over the centuries who stood in the public square and reminded us of our duties as Christians — right up to our modern-day popes who have challenged us to do the same. In American culture, there is a move toward “down-sizing” and “decluttering,” simplifying and getting “back to basics.”
And while that’s all well and good, what Pope Francis is saying is that those things don’t really hold, don’t really transform unless they are linked to solidarity with others — with a concern for humanity and the planet that is rooted in God, not in a cleaner house or a smaller credit card bill.
“The culture of selfishness and individualism that often prevails in our society is not ... what builds up and leads to a more habitable world: rather, it is the culture of solidarity that does so,” Pope Francis said on a visit to the Varginha favela in Brazil on July 25. “We must never allow the throwaway culture to enter our hearts, because we are brothers and sisters. No one is disposable! Let us always remember this: Only when we are able to share do we become truly rich; everything that is shared is multiplied!”
In Rome on Aug. 4, in an Angelus address after his return from World Youth Day, Pope Francis spoke about the need for all people — but particularly young people — to turn away from the materialism that is rampant in the culture and to embrace a life grounded in something deeper.
“The encounter with the living Christ in his great family, which is the Church, fills hearts with joy, for it fills them with true life, with a profound goodness that endures, that does not tarnish,” Pope Francis said, warning against the “poison of emptiness which creeps into our society based on profit and possession and on consumerism which deceives young people.”
True wealth, Pope Francis continued, is not found in things devoid of real meaning and value but in the love of God shared with others.
In American culture, especially, where people find status in the things they own, that message can be tough to hear. Does it mean you can’t have an iPhone or a new car or nice clothes? Is that attempting to “serve two masters,” as Scripture warns is impossible?
It’s not the smartphone that’s inherently bad, however, but rather the obsessive need to have the best and latest version of it and to never have it far from reach. You can own a smartphone — or whatever “luxury” item is your particular poison — as long as it doesn’t own you. And, of course, the same holds true for the many other things that have a basis in materialism even if they don’t break the bank: an addiction to the daily Starbucks latte, for example, or the need to buy copious lottery tickets or to book one vacation after another.
Chances are, even if those things aren’t costing too much in dollars and cents, they may be costing us in other ways. These ways may pull us away from Christ and away from a connection to the joys and sufferings of others people who perhaps could use some of our time, attention and, yes, money.
Life in balance
“Do not bury your talents! Set your stakes on great ideals, the ideals that enlarge the heart, the ideals of service that make your talents fruitful.”
Materialism can come into play not just in what we buy, but in how we use our time, especially in a world where endless media and electronic entertainment threatens to distract us from more serious pursuits.
mobile phones
A teen uses his mobile phone on a break from Vacation Bible School this summer. CNS photo by Mike Crupi
We hardly have to be serious all the time, but we do have to consider where we’re putting most of our time and energy. Are we staring at a screen for hours on end, ignoring real-life encounters with family and friends in favor of texting or Facebooking? Or are we wandering the local mall in pursuit of something to make us feel complete or fulfilled? We’re called to live life in balance.
When Pope Francis returned to Rome from World Youth Day, the first thing he did was visit the Basilica of St. Mary Major to offer a prayer to the Blessed Mother. He also placed a beach ball and T-shirt on the altar, giving the world a beautiful image of what joyful Catholic faith looks like. Yes, we need to make time for prayer, we need to give back a portion of our time and energy to God, but we can do so with a childlike sense of gratitude and enthusiasm that is infectious. Prayer, service, work, family, play — it’s all good, all necessary, as long as there is a healthy balance with God always at the center.
By stepping outside our own lives — our household chores, our Facebook friends, our favorite TV shows and magazines — for a little while and perhaps finding a way to serve others, we enter more fully into the human experience and see our own blessings and sorrows in relation to those of other people. That goes a long way toward building that solidarity that the pope keeps talking about.
During his April 24 general audience, Pope Francis spoke to young people in St. Peter’s Square, asking them, as they set off on their journey through life, to reflect on the talents and gifts God has given them.
“Have you thought of how you can put them at the service of others?” he asked. “Do not bury your talents! Set your stakes on great ideals, the ideals that enlarge the heart, the ideals of service that make your talents fruitful.”
Discipleship, said Puerta Edson, is a conscious decision. Over time, she added, stewardship affects our choices and how we behave toward others.
New pamphlet coming soon
“Pope Francis: A New Call to Stewardship” (Our Sunday Visitor, $15.95 for a package of 50).
“I think it increases your awareness that you are part of a universal Church and have a responsibility to all of God’s creation,” she said. “We begin with prayer and listening to what God wants for us and not what we want God to want for us.
“We start in our families as the basic unit of the Church,” she added. “We grow to our parish and community.”
Since this is his guide, it’s only fitting to let Pope Francis have the last word on stewardship. Though more from his speech to the youths April 24, they hold meaning for us all as we embark on a life more devoted to the cares of others.
“Life is not given to us to be jealously guarded for ourselves, but is given to us so that we may give it in turn,” he said. “Dear young people, have a deep spirit! Do not be afraid to dream of great things!”
Mary DeTurris Poust is the author of “Everyday Divine: A Catholic Guide to Active Spirituality” (Ave Maria Press, $14.95).
Newsletter Subscriptions
If you liked this article, you can sign up to receive free weekly newsletters.
Tags:environment, Pope Francis, poverty, social issues, Stewardship
Return to OSV Newsweekly September 01, 2013 list
Pope Francis has a new encyclical out! Lumen Fidei.
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