Pope: young people, your dreams are those of the Gospel

On the feast of Christ the King, Francis opened the path towards WYD Lisbon 2023 by calling two young people to his side at the Angelus. The kingship of Jesus shows us the way to overcome our duplicity.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - On the liturgical feast of Christ the King, the Church today celebrates World Youth Day. And with young people today Pope Francis wanted to live this appointment that opens the way to their world meeting scheduled to take place in Lisbon in 2023. He did so by celebrating Mass with them in St Peter's Basilica and then calling two of their representatives - Lucrezia and Stefano, two 19-year-olds from the diocese of Rome - to appear with him at the window of his study for the Angelus prayer.

Speaking to the young people and to all the faithful present in the square, Francis pointed to the horizon of Christ's kingship which "does not come to dominate but to serve". In his homily at Mass, the pontiff dwelt on the image announced by the prophet Daniel of the glorious coming of Jesus at the end of history. "The Lord," the pope commented, "comes from above and never sets, he is the One who resists what passes, he is our eternal unshakable trust. And it is a prophecy of hope that "illuminates our nights as if to say: 'I will not leave you alone when your life is shrouded in dark clouds'".

Francis continued "we all knows these moments. There is a need to recognise it in the night visions". And to do this it is necessary "to lift our gaze from the ground, upwards, not to flee, but to overcome the temptation to remain lying on the floors of our fears. Not to remain shut up in our thoughts and feel sorry for ourselves".

Addressing the young people, the Pope added "this is the fascinating task entrusted to you: to stand when everything seems to be falling apart; to be sentinels who know how to see the light in the night visions; to be builders in the midst of rubble; to be able to dream. Thank you," said Francis to the young people, "when you are able to carry your dreams forward with courage, when you do not stop believing in the light even in the nights of life, when you commit yourselves with passion to make our world more beautiful and human. Thank you for cultivating the dream of fraternity, for caring for the wounds of creation, fighting for the dignity of the weakest and spreading the spirit of solidarity and sharing. And above all, thank you because in a world that, flattened by the gains of the present, tends to stifle the great ideals, you do not lose the ability to dream".

Pope FRancis said the Church is also in need of this because 'we need the enthusiasm, we need the ardour of young people to be witnesses of God who is always young'. And 'many of your dreams correspond to those of the Gospel. Fraternity, solidarity, justice, peace: these are the same dreams of Jesus for humanity. Do not be afraid to open yourselves up to an encounter with Him: He loves your dreams and helps you to realise them". But it is in front of Pilate, at the moment of the Passion, that the nature of Jesus' kingship is shown in its fullness. He does not hide his identity," the Pope observed, "he does not disguise his intentions, he does not take advantage of a glimmer of salvation that Pilate also left open".

Instead, he takes "responsibility for his life", he came "without duplicity, to proclaim with his life that his Kingdom is different from those of the world, that God does not reign to increase his power and crush others; he does not reign with armies and with force. His is the Kingdom of love". It is the freedom of Jesus that attracts the hearts of young people.

"Let us allow it to vibrate within us," said the Pope, "to shake us, to arouse in us the courage of the truth". "We need to put ourselves before Jesus to make the truth in us. We need to adore him in order to be free within, to shed light on life and not be deceived by the fashions of the moment, by the fireworks of consumerism that dazzle and paralyse".

In Jesus the Christian also finds the courage to go against the tide. "Not against someone, as the victimists and conspirators do, who always put the blame on others; no, against the unhealthy current of our egoistic, closed and rigid self, which often seeks out groups to survive. To go against the tide to put ourselves in the wake of Jesus. He teaches us to go against evil with only the meek and humble strength of goodness. Without shortcuts, without falsehoods, without duplicity. Our world, wounded by so many evils, does not need any more ambiguous compromises. Please, be afraid to be young equilibrists. Be free, be authentic, be a critical conscience of society. So many of you are criticising, for example, against environmental pollution. We need this."

 "Dear young people," the Pope concluded, "I wish that each of you may feel the joy of saying: 'With Jesus I too am king'. I am king: I am a living sign of God's love, of his compassion and tenderness". At the end of the Angelus prayer, Francis recalled today's World Fisheries Day, addressing a thought to "those who live in difficult conditions, or at times, unfortunately, of forced labour". Finally, he again encouraged "the initiatives underway at the United Nations to achieve greater control over the arms trade".