Recalling the example of the Venezuelan Blessed Hernández Cisneros, the "doctor of the poor", Francis invites us "not to stop at words, but to get our hands dirty on the great social, economic and political issues" of our time. The appeal for prayer and solidarity for the flood victims in Libya.
At the general audience, Francis reviewed the meetings of his apostolic journey to Mongolia. "Why did the Pope go so far from a small flock? Because the Lord does not seek the centre of the stage, but the simple heart of those who desire and love him. Let us widen the boundaries of our gaze to widen also those of the heart".
The pontiff's announcement today at the end of the general audience: a new exhortation on the feast of Saint Francis. “Let us stand alongside the victims of environmental and climate injustices”. In catechesis, the missionary example of Kateri Tekakwitha, the first native North American saint.
At the general audience, resuming his catechesis on evangelical zeal, Pope Francis reflects on the figure of Juan Diego, the Indian of the Guadalupe apparitions. "To inculturate the Gospel requires perseverance and patience, I think of a country where Christians are persecuted and cannot practice their faith in peace"
Francis speaks about his “dear Ukraine", warning against "certain halls" where war “is planned". The pontiff offered his prayers to the victims of natural disasters in Slovenia and Georgia and their families. He expressed a final thought for the presidents of the countries of the Amazon region, reiterating his “commitment to the care of creation and sustainable development”.
In his last general audience before the summer break, Francis recalled the missionary zeal of St. Mary MacKillop, who spent her life educating the poor in rural Australia. "May Saints Peter and Paul sustain us in following Christ and intercede for peace in Ukraine."
Before he was admitted to the Gemelli Polyclinic for surgery, Francis welcomed the relics of the Carmelite patroness of missions, in St. Peter's Square. On the 150th anniversary of her birth, which falls this year, he announced his intention to write an Apostolic Letter dedicated to her. For the feast of Corpus Christi, he urged the faithful to reach out, “frequently and with devotion, to Jesus, the Bread of Life”.
Francis dedicated today's general audience in St Peter's Square entirely to the Jesuit apostle of China. May the example of the young people from Ukraine and Russia living together as brothers and sisters in the Italian citadel of Rondine "arouse intentions of peace also in those who have political responsibilities".
Speaking to the faithful in St Peter's Square, the pontiff cites the first Korean martyr and the many lay Koreans as examples of zeal in evangelisation. “No matter how difficult the situation may be [. . .] we must not give up and we must not forsake” proclaiming the Gospel.
At the general audience, the pontiff retraced "the restlessness to always go further" that marked the life of the Jesuit patron of the missions and great apostle of Asia. "Even today there are many courageous missionaries, I am thinking for example of those in Papua New Guinea". Francis Xavier's gaze on China and his death on Sancian Island, at the gates of this great country, "a symbol also for today's time".
During the general audience, Francis talked about his trip to Hungary. He urged the faithful in the Marian month of May to follow Our Lady’s call to the shepherds of Fatima to pray the rosary every day for peace in the world and for an end to war. Participants in the first meeting between Christians and Hindus living in Europe promoted by the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue were also present in St Peter's Square.
At the general audience, Francis spoke of the profound bond between cloistered life and the proclamation of the Gospel. "The heart of the nuns and monks is like an antenna that picks up what is happening in the world and thus prays interceding". He recalls the Armenian people "who, clinging to the cross of Christ, have suffered so much throughout history".
At the general audience, Francis recalled the "luminous witness" of the Missionaries of Charity who died in Yemen while serving the last in the context of a war. "There are many martyrs today and they are not heroes, but the ripe fruits of the vineyard of the Lord". In a message to the French Church in view of the 2024 Olympics, the invitation to the world of sport not to forget those on the margins.
At the general audience Francis warns against the dangers of a false zeal, the child of one's own vainglory. Recalling the 60th anniversary of John XXIII's encyclical "Pacem in Terris", the pontiff emphasises its relevance, also inviting government leaders to draw inspiration from it.
At the audience in St Peter's Square a reflection on the "Cross, source of hope". Thoughts for the mothers of Ukrainian and Russian soldiers killed in the war who are "like Mary at the foot of the cross".
St Paul's conversion at the centre of today's general audience in St Peter's Square. "Becoming a Christian is not a make-up job, which only changes your face". Francis' prayer for the migrants who died in a fire in a detention centre in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.
An appeal to mark an international conference on this "primary good" which opens in New York at the general audience. One year after the consecration of the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, the invitation to repeat the gesture singularly on the solemnity of the Annunciation. In the catechesis the relevance of Paul VI's words on Christian witness in "Evangelii Nuntiandi".
Francis' appeal at the general audience for the Russian Orthodox nuns who are the object of political contention in the conflict in Ukraine: "Consecrated persons are a support for the people of God". In the catechesis, the pontiff dwelt on the meaning of being apostles today. "The relationships between us are also decisive for evangelisation".
Francis speaks about International Women's Day at the end of the general audience in St Peter's Square. In his catechesis, he referred to the ecclesial dimension of evangelisation, citing the decree "Ad Gentes" issued by the Second Vatican Council. Anyone who “believes himself to be a master [. . .] is not an evangeliser,” he said.
One year after the start of the war, Francis' warning at the general audience: 'There can be no victory over rubble'. On the first day of Lent the invitation to the faithful: 'Let us intensify during this period prayer, meditation on the word of God and service to our brothers and sisters'. Today the rite of ashes in Santa Sabina.
Continuing the cycle of catechesis on evangelisation at the general audience, Francis addressed the theme of the first proclamation. New appeal: 'Let the cruel suffering of the Ukrainian population come to an end soon'. And from Russia, the president of the Old Believers says: he would like to go to Moscow to negotiate a peaceful solution for Europe.
The Pope calls for solidarity with those suffering from the devastating calamity during his general audience. In his address to the faithful, the pontiff retraced the stages of his peace journey to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan, with a new warning about the "shame of those who say they give aid and sell arms". "God places his hope not in the great and powerful, but in the small and humble".
Before the general audience the Pope met with the Pan-Ukrainian Council of Religious Organisations on the closing day of the Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity. In the catechesis the reflection on Jesus as master of proclamation. A few days before the International Day of Remembrance the warning: "The Holocaust can neither be forgotten nor denied".
During the general audience, Francis urges the faithful to pray for the priest burnt alive in Nigeria and for the victims of last Saturday's missile attack in Ukraine. As the Week for Christian Unity starts, he calls on “all believers in Christ” to join “the journey toward full communion“ and commit to peace.
Francis begins a reflection on mission as the "oxygen of Christian life" that will mark the next general audiences. "We must not wait until we are perfect to witness to Jesus; let us begin today, where we live". In front of a statue of Our Lady of Belarus, a prayer for all those who suffer because of the war.
At the beginning of the general audience Francis refelcted on the Pope Emeritus, who faithful continue to render homage in St Peter's. A reflection on spiritual accompaniment concluded the cycle of catechesis on the theme of discernment. "He or she who accompanies does not replace the Lord, but walks at alongside".
The invitation to the faithful at the end of the general audience: "May the Lord comfort and sustain him in this witness of love for the Church until the end." Vatican Press Office: "The condition of the pope emeritus has worsened. Situation currently under control." On the fourth centenary of the death of St. Francis de Sales, the apostolic letter "Everything Pertains to Love" on the relevance of the spirituality of the great bishop of Geneva is released today.
Francis' new appeal to pray for peace "on this feast of God who becomes a child". In the General Audience catechesis an invitation to confront the Word of God and the doctrine of the Church that "help us read what is moving in our hearts".
At the end of today's general audience, Francis called on the faithful to pick “humbler gifts” and devote the savings to solidarity. In his catechesis he addressed the topic of vigilance: “When we trust too much in ourselves and not in God’s grace, then the Evil One finds the door open.”
At the general audience Francis warns against possessiveness in relationships. Addressing Polish pilgrims, he compares Operation Reinhardt - one of the black pages of the Shoah - to today's massacres in Ukraine. "We ask the Immaculate Conception to be a comfort to those who are tried by the brutality of war".
