Pope: ‘Christ is still crucified today,’ above in all “those who are suffering from violence, hatred, and war’
Leo XIV spoke yesterday at Castel Gandolfo, stressing that Holy Week is a "time of peace," yet today there is “so much suffering, so many deaths, even innocent children.” He urged world leaders to “Come back to the table, to dialogue”, to find solutions. On Good Friday, he will carry the cross in the Via Crucis. In today’s audience, he spoke about the role of the laity, saying that, “we are all called to be missionary disciples”.
Vatican City (AsiaNews) – Last night, outside Villa Barberini in Castel Gandolfo, Leo XIV, his white papal cassock ruffled by the wind, spoke briefly with the press.
He said that Holy Week “should be the holiest time of the year. It is a time of peace, a time of reflection.” Instead, “in the world, in many places we are seeing so much suffering, so many deaths, even innocent children”.
Appealing to world leaders to find “multilateral solutions" and seek "justice," not just an Easter truce, he expressed hope that, “Maybe the war ends before Easter."
“Come back to the table, to dialogue,” Leo said, aware, however, how appeals too often fall on deaf ears. “Let's look for solutions to problems,” he said, “let's look for ways to reduce the amount of violence that we're promoting, that peace - especially at Easter - might reign in our hearts.”
Sadly, “many people want to promote hatred and violence, war;” hence, he issued a new appeal, “especially to Christians” to “live these days recognising that Christ is still crucified today, that Christ still suffers today in the innocent, especially those who are suffering from violence, hatred, and war”.
Echoing the words he uttered in his Palm Sunday homily, he called against for prayers for a “new and renewed peace, one that can give new life to all.”
Speaking to reporters about US President Donald Trump, he said: “Hopefully, he's looking for an 'off-ramp'. Hopefully, he's looking for a way to decrease the amount of violence, of bombing, which would be a significant contribution to removing the hatred that's being created and that's increasing constantly -- in the Middle East and elsewhere.”
Turning to his unprecedented decision to carry the cross himself during the Via Crucis in Rome on Good Friday, Leo noted that while it is not customary in "modern times", it was so in the "past".
“I think, it will be an important sign because of what the pope represents: a spiritual leader in today’s world, a voice to say that Christ still suffers,” he said. “I also carry all these sufferings in my prayers.”
He urged “all people of good will, all people of faith, to walk together, to walk with Christ who suffered for us, to give us salvation, and for us also to try to be bearers of peace.”
This morning, at the general audience in Saint Peter's Square, attended by 15,000 people, the pontiff continued his series of catechises on the Documents of the Second Vatican Council.
Reflecting further on the dogmatic constitution Lumen Gentium, he delved into the role of the laity, whom Pope Francis called "the vast majority of the people of God."
Leo noted that the council document “seeks to explain, in positive terms, the nature and mission of the laity, after centuries in which they had been defined simply as those who are not part of the clergy or the consecrated life.” In fact, “the Council affirms the equality of all the baptized.” And “Naturally, the greater the gift, the greater the commitment too.”
Vatican II emphasises both the “dignity” and the “mission” of lay men and women. Thus, “The holy People of God, therefore, is never a formless mass, but the body of Christ,” he said, “or, as Saint Augustine said, the Christus totus; [. . .] a community organically structured”.
“By virtue of Baptism, the lay faithful participate in the very priesthood of Christ,” the pope added, noting that Pope Francis had “relaunched the apostolate of the laity”, while John Paul II had stressed that, “the Council Fathers, re-echoing the call of Christ, have summoned all the lay faithful, both women and men, to labour in the vineyard”.
“The vast field of the lay apostolate is not confined to the Church, but extends to the world,” he said, “wherever they, through their choices, show the beauty of Christian life, which foretells here and now the justice and peace that will be accomplished in the Kingdom of God.”
“It is an invitation to be the ‘outgoing’ Church that Pope Francis spoke to us about: a Church embodied in history, always open to mission, in which we are all called to be missionary disciples, apostles of the Gospel, witnesses of the Kingdom of God, bearers of the joy of Christ whom we have encountered!” he said.
Finally, in greeting Arabic-speaking pilgrims, the pope said: “As the feast of Easter approaches, let us pray for the sick, the poor, and the innocent victims of war, so that Christ, with his Resurrection, may grant peace and consolation to all.”
To the Italian-speaking faithful, he said: “I thank everyone for this meeting, wishing each of you that the days of Holy Week may be a propitious occasion to strengthen your faith and your faithfulness to the Gospel.”
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