In honor of our Pope’s visit to the U.S., I felt it only right for us to reflect on and give thanks for our Holy Father’s presence this past week. May you find as much inspiration from this small compilation of our Pope’s reflections, both old and new, as I do.
Working for Peace: “Christians (must) live and work together in harmony. This makes it easier to contribute to building relations of respect and peaceful coexistence with those who belong to other religious traditions, and with nonbelievers.” (June 14, 2013)
Keeping Faith: “In the face of unjust and painful situations, faith brings us the light which scatters the darkness...faith makes us open to the quiet presence of God at every moment of our lives, in every person and in every situation. God is present in every one of you, in each one of us.”
(September 24, 2015)
Heal Wounds, Warm the Hearts: “I see clearly that the thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a field hospital after battle. It is useless to ask a seriously injured person if he has high cholesterol and about the level of his blood sugars! You have to heal his wounds. Then we can talk about everything else.”
(September 30, 2013)
Answering the Door: “Jesus keeps knocking on our doors, the doors of our lives. He doesn’t do this by magic, with special effects, with flashing lights and fireworks. Jesus keeps knocking on our door in the faces of our brothers and sisters, in the faces of our neighbors, in the faces of those at our side.” (September 24, 2015)
It’s Just Us Sinners: “The perfect family doesn’t exist, nor is there a perfect husband or a perfect wife, and let’s not talk about the perfect mother-in-law! It’s just us sinners!” (February 14, 2014)
Building a Nation: “We must resolve now to live as nobly and as justly as possible, as we educate new generations not to turn their back on our "neighbors" and everything around us. Building a nation calls us to recognize that we must constantly relate to others, rejecting a mindset of hostility in order to adopt one of reciprocal subsidiarity, in a constant effort to do our best.” (September 24, 2015)
Gays of Good Will: If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge? We shouldn’t marginalize people for this. They must be integrated into society. (July 29, 2013)
Caring for Our World: “It seems clear to me also that climate change is a problem which can no longer be left to a future generation. When it comes to the care of our "common home", we are living at a critical moment of history.” (September 23, 2015)
Let us continue to pray for the Pope’s safe travels, and for his continued strength and wisdom to guide our world to walk in the footsteps of Christ.