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".
During the general audience, Francis urged the faithful to experience Advent with prayers, penance and works of charity. He also sent his greeting to Patriarch Bartholomew on the feast day of Saint Andrew. May the intercession of the Apostles grant the Church the chance to fully enjoy unity and peace to the whole world.
At the general audience, the pontiff issued a new call to prayer after the missile attack that caused death and damage to many civilian infrastructures. In his catechesis, Francis spoke of the desolation in our spiritual life that shakes the "aseptic serenity that makes one inhuman". Disquiet as "a response to the objection that the experience of God is a mere projection of our desires".
At the general audience Francis reviews his recent trip, answering the question: why visit a country with a very large Islamic majority? "Dialogue is the oxygen of peace. The Christians of the Gulf invite us to broaden our horizons and dedicate ourselves to getting to know others". Commemoration of the Orthodox Archbishop of Cyprus Chrysostomos, "a far-sighted pastor".
At the general audience, Francis continued his catechesis on discernment with a reflection on the feeling of desolation. Appeal for an end to the violence in the North Kivu region of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a nun was also killed.
Francis continued his catechesis on discernment in today’s general audience in St Peter's Square. In his address, he mentioned World Mission Sunday, urging the faithful to pray for those who, “write with their lives a love story at the service of the Gospel.”
New appeal for peace by Francis at the general audience after the deluge of bombardments in recent hours. The theme of desire at the centre of the catechesis on discernment: "Today's society has reduced it to a momentary desire, thus we do no longer understand what we really want".
In today’s general audience, the pontiff continued his catechesis on discernment, urging the faithful to rediscover this daily practice as handed down by Christian tradition. On the feast day of Saint Faustina Kowalska, he urged people to seek salvation in mercy even in the face Ukraine’s tragic war. Saint Francis is an example of consecration to God, service to men and fraternity with creatures.
Francis at the general audience in St Peter's Square: "The saints teach us to address God with simplicity and familiarity, not by reciting words like a parrot. By being with Him we will recognise what really counts in our lives". Again a thought for the tormented people of Ukraine.
New warning from Francis during the general audience in the face of the news coming from Russia and Ukraine. "Card. Krajewski yesterday told me on the phone the monstrosity of the tortured corpses that were found. Let us unite with the martyred Ukrainian people'. He retraced the stages and meetings of his trip to Kazakhstan. Prayer and appeal for Alzheimer's sufferers and their families to be supported.
At the general audience, Francis' thoughts and prayers for women who grieve for their children, also recalling the many suicides in penal institutions. Continuing the catechesis on discernment begun last week, the pontiff invites us to read the lives of the saints because "their actions speak to our lives and help us understand their meaning".
Francis at the general audience: "Knowing what is good for me here and now requires a filial relationship with God". In his words to Polish pilgrims on the anniversary of the start of World War II, the invitation to continue praying for peace in Ukraine. On the eve of the World Day of Creation the appeal not to leave "the common home at the mercy of consumerist excesses" and to pray that at Cop27 in Sharm el-Sheikh the human family will unite to tackle the climate crisis.
A new heartfelt appeal by Francis at the general audience on the day that marks six months since the beginning of the conflict. A thought also for Darya Dugina, who died in the attack in Moscow, and for the victims of other wars including the Rohingya "who travel the world because of the injustice of being driven out of their land". Concluding the cycle of catechesis on old age, he spoke of preparing for "our destiny which is to rise again".
At the general audience, the pontiff urged the faithful once again to become builders of “unity and peace” in the family, the Church and society. In his catechesis on old age, Francis noted that it is "a promise" and a time to approach with greater wisdom the encounter with God. For him, seeking eternal youth is “delusional”.
During the general audience, Francis turned his thoughts to the families of the victims of Lebanon’s “unprecedented catastrophe”. He also spoke about his recent apostolic journey to Canada, which provided an opportunity for reflection, repentance, and reconciliation. IN his greetings, he urged the faithful to pray for “peace in the world, especially in Ukraine”.
Francis dedicated his homily for the solemnity of the two apostles to the synodal path. He also blessed the pallia of 44 archbishops appointed in the past year. At the Angelus he prayed for the victims of the war in Ukraine hit in the Kremenchuck shopping mall. Yesterday, the logo of the 2025 Jubilee was unveiled with “Pilgrims of hope” as its motto.
The pontiff called for help for the Asian country during this morning’s general audience. Francis also lamented the murder of two Jesuit priests in Mexico. During the catechesis on old age, he focused on the interaction between the Risen Jesus and Peter, urging the faithful to follow Jesus “in health and in sickness”. Citing the World Meeting of Families that starts this evening in Rome, he expressed hope that the elderly "will pass onto young people the values of a happy family life rooted in God”.
The pontiff issued a new appeal during today’s general audience. Continuing the series of catechesis on old age, he said that “Even in old age one can, or rather one must serve the community.” He also noted that “we must listen to the body and accept its limits. We all have them.” The Solemnity of Corpus Christi calls upon us “to go out and bring the Lord into everyday life”.
During today’s general audience, Francis focused again on the consequences of the war in Ukraine, making “a heartfelt appeal that every effort be made to resolve this issue”. During the catechesis, he asked political leaders, “How is it that modern civilisation, so advanced and efficient, is so uncomfortable with sickness and old age?”
During today’s general audience, Francis expressed his sorrow following the latest mass shooting in a Texas elementary school. The pontiff continued his catechesis on old age, urging seniors not to give in to disenchantment. “[I]f the elderly, who have seen it all [. . .], keep intact their passion for justice, then there is hope for love, and also for faith.”
During this morning’s general audience in St Peter’s Square, the pontiff focused on the figure of Job, warning the faithful against the type of religiosity that “explains everything, but” whose “heart remains cold.” Speaking to the men and women religious inspired by Charles de Foucauld, Francis said that his spirituality “helped me so much to overcome crises and to find a way of Christian life that was simpler”.
Francis' appeal at general audience for grave crisis shaking South Asian country: let people's aspirations be heard. "Let us entrust the world's ardent desire for peace to Our Lady of Fatima." Continuing the cycle of catechesis on old age, the pontiff dwelt on the biblical figure of Judith: "The good sown is the best legacy we can leave behind."
In his Wednesday general audience, continuing the cycle on old age, Francis spoke about the relationship between generations in the family, taking his cue from the biblical book of Ruth. "Faith and love can make it possible to overcome common sense prejudices, which generate insuperable fractures."
On the eve of the Easter Triduum in his general audience, Francis warns against the temptation of "a false peace, based on power," while "the peace of Jesus does not overpower others, it is never an armed peace." And to participants in an interfaith pilgrimage in Ukraine, he writes: "War is a shameful surrender, a defeat in the face of the forces of evil."
During the general audience, Francis held up a Ukrainisn flag he received from the city that is the scene of "increasingly horrific cruelty". "In the dominant logic of the most powerful states asserting their interests, we witness the impotence of the UN." From his trip to Malta "which has mission in its DNA" an invitation to the new evangelization.
At the Wednesday general audience, thanks to the Poles who are taking in Ukrainian refugees. "Our prayer and fasting remind us that peace always begins with our personal conversion". In the catechesis a reflection on longevity as a symbol and an opportunity: "The arrogance of the time of the clock must be converted into the beauty of the rhythms of life."
