Vatican City (AsiaNews) - "Educating for peace". Looking out from the window of the study in the Apostolic Palace for the recitation of the Angelus, Pope Francis quoted this morning the words of Father Ibrahim Faltas, Vicar of the Custody of the Holy Land in Jerusalem, pronounced today during the Italian television program A Sua Imagine.
“We must educate for peace,” he said. It is clear that we do not yet have, in all of humanity, such an education as to stop every war. Let us always pray for this grace." Shortly before, the Holy Father had spoken of the war raging in the world as a "crime against humanity".
In the appeals that followed the recitation of the Marian prayer, Bergoglio asked not to forget "those who suffer from the cruelty of war, in many parts of the world," dedicating a special thought to those who suffer in Ukraine, Palestine and Israel.
The Pontiff then recalled that at the beginning of 2024 "we exchanged wishes for peace, but weapons continued to kill and destroy": in fact, during the Angelus on 1 January he invited those listening to be "operators every day of peace"; but the wars present in the world are continuing unabated.
In light of the worsening of the crisis in the Middle East which has lasted for 100 days - which began on 7 October with the Hamas attack - with the growing tension in the Red Sea and the increase in the number of actors involved, today the Pope asked to pray that "those who have power over these conflicts reflect on the fact that war is not the way to resolve them". War is never the solution to controversies, disagreements, "because it sows death among civilians and destroys cities and infrastructures", continued Bergoglio.
Adding in front of the numerous pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square that "the people" and "the world" need peace.
The scene presented by the Gospel of the day, the meeting between Jesus and the first disciples according to John's narration (Jn 1,35-42), "invites us to remember our first meeting with Jesus", stated the Holy Father in introduction to Marian prayer.
This encounter can happen in all phases of life: "as a child, as a teenager, as a young person, as an adult, as an adult", he continued. Bergoglio invited, after dusting off this memory, to ask ourselves what it means to "be disciples of the Lord".
Starting from this suggestion he focused on three verbs suggested by the Word, which help to explain the authentic meaning of following Christ: to seek, to abide, to proclaim.
The first verb, seek, refers to the question that Jesus asks the two disciples of John the Baptist who begin to follow him: "What are you looking for?" (v. 38). With these words he invites them "to look inside themselves", explained Francis.
“The Lord does not want to make proselytes, he does not want to make superficial followers, but people who question themselves and allow themselves to be challenged by his Word”. This is why the first way to be a disciple is to "have an open heart".
In reference to abide, the second verb analysed, the Holy Father explained the intentions of the two, who "were not looking for news or information about God, or signs or miracles, but wanted to meet the Messiah".
For this reason they ask Jesus where he lives (v. 38), receiving the answer: “Come and see” (v. 39). They ask him this question because they want to have the opportunity to “talk to him, be with him, listen to him”. Because faith "is not a theory, but an encounter", he added.
The last verb analyzed is to proclaim. This is what happens after having lived "an experience so strong" that you remember "the time forever": four in the afternoon. After this meeting "their hearts were so full of joy that they immediately felt the need to communicate the gift they had received", explained Pope Francis.
Once again inviting those who attended the Angelus today to "memory our first meeting with the Lord". Asking "Holy Mary, first disciple of Jesus", at the conclusion of the initial comment, for the gift of the desire "to seek him, to be with him and to announce him".
