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Easter - Pasqua - Pâques - Pascua 2014

(Papa Francesco's homily begins at 1 hr 19 mins)

Pope Francis's Homily at the Easter Vigil
St Peter's Basilica, Saturday 20 April 2014 - in Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese & Spanish

"The Gospel of the resurrection of Jesus Christ begins with the journey of the women to the sepulchre at dawn on the day after the Sabbath.  They go to the tomb to honour the body of the Lord, but they find it open and empty.  A mighty angel says to them: “Do not be afraid!” (Mt 28, 5) and orders them to go and tell the disciples: “He has been raised from the dead, and indeed he is going ahead of you to Galilee” (v 7).  The women quickly depart and on the way Jesus himself meets them and says: “Do not fear; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me” (v 10). “Do not be afraid”, “do not fear”:  these are words that encourage us to open our hearts to receive the message.

After the death of the Master, the disciples had scattered; their faith had been utterly shaken, everything seemed over, all their certainties had crumbled and their hopes had died.  But now that message of the women, incredible as it was, came to them like a ray of light in the darkness.  The news spread: Jesus is risen as he said.  And then there was his command to go to Galilee; the women had heard it twice, first from the angel and then from Jesus himself: “Let them go to Galilee; there they will see me”. “Do not fear” and “go to Galilee”.

Galilee is the place where they were first called, where everything began!  To return there, to return to the place where they were originally called.  Jesus had walked along the shores of the lake as the fishermen were casting their nets.  He had called them, and they left everything and followed him (cf Mt 4, 18-22).

To return to Galilee means to re-read everything on the basis of the cross and its victory, fearlessly: “do not be afraid”.  To re-read everything – Jesus’ preaching, his miracles, the new community, the excitement and the defections, even the betrayal – to re-read everything starting from the end, which is a new beginning, from this supreme act of love.

For each of us, too, there is a “Galilee” at the origin of our journey with Jesus.  “To go to Galilee” means something beautiful, it means rediscovering our baptism as a living source, drawing new energy from the sources of our faith and our Christian experience.  To return to Galilee means above all to return to that blazing light with which God’s grace touched me at the start of the journey.  From that flame I can light a fire for today and every day, and bring heat and light to my brothers and sisters.  That flame ignites a humble joy, a joy which sorrow and distress cannot dismay, a good, gentle joy.

In the life of every Christian, after baptism there is also another “Galilee”, a more existential “Galilee”: the experience of a personal encounter with Jesus Christ who called me to follow him and to share in his mission.  In this sense, returning to Galilee means treasuring in my heart the living memory of that call, when Jesus passed my way, gazed at me with mercy and asked me to follow him. To return there means reviving the memory of that moment when his eyes met mine, the moment when he made me realize that he loved me.

Today, tonight, each of us can ask: What is my Galilee?  I need to remind myself, to go back and remember.  Where is my Galilee?  Do I remember it?  Have I forgotten it?  Seek and you will find it! There the Lord is waiting for you.  Have I gone off on roads and paths which made me forget it?  Lord, help me: tell me what my Galilee is; for you know that I want to return there to encounter you and to let myself be embraced by your mercy. Do not be afraid, do not fear, return to Galilee!

The Gospel is very clear: we need to go back there, to see Jesus risen, and to become witnesses of his resurrection.  This is not to go back in time; it is not a kind of nostalgia.  It is returning to our first love, in order to receive the fire which Jesus has kindled in the world and to bring that fire to all people, to the very ends of the earth.  Go back to Galilee, without fear!

“Galilee of the Gentiles” (Mt 4, 15; Is 8, 23)!  Horizon of the Risen Lord, horizon of the Church; intense desire of encounter…  Let us be on our way!"

Pope Francesco's Urbi et Orbi Message
Central loggia of the Vatican Basilica, Sunday 20 April 2014 - in Arabic, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish

"Dear Brothers and Sisters, a Happy and Holy Easter!
The Church throughout the world echoes the angel’s message to the women: “Do not be afraid!  I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified.  He is not here; for he has been raised… Come, see the place where he lay” (Mt 28:5-6).

This is the culmination of the Gospel, it is the Good News par excellence: Jesus, who was crucified, is risen!  This event is the basis of our faith and our hope.  If Christ were not raised, Christianity would lose its very meaning; the whole mission of the Church would lose its impulse, for this is the point from which it first set out and continues to set out ever anew.  The message which Christians bring to the world is this: Jesus, Love incarnate, died on the cross for our sins, but God the Father raised him and made him the Lord of life and death.  In Jesus, love has triumphed over hatred, mercy over sinfulness, goodness over evil, truth over falsehood, life over death.

That is why we tell everyone: “Come and see!”  In every human situation, marked by frailty, sin and death, the Good News is no mere matter of words, but a testimony to unconditional and faithful love: it is about leaving ourselves behind and encountering others, being close to those crushed by life’s troubles, sharing with the needy, standing at the side of the sick, elderly and the outcast…  “Come and see!”: Love is more powerful, love gives life, love makes hope blossom in the wilderness.

With this joyful certainty in our hearts, today we turn to you, risen Lord!

Help us to seek you and to find you, to realize that we have a Father and are not orphans; that we can love and adore you.

Help us to overcome the scourge of hunger, aggravated by conflicts and by the immense wastefulness for which we are often responsible.

Enable us to protect the vulnerable, especially children, women and the elderly, who are at times exploited and abandoned.

Enable us to care for our brothers and sisters struck by the Ebola epidemic in Guinea Conakry, Sierra Leone and Liberia, and to care for those suffering from so many other diseases which are also spread through neglect and dire poverty.

Comfort all those who cannot celebrate this Easter with their loved ones because they have been unjustly torn from their affections, like the many persons, priests and laity, who in various parts of the world have been kidnapped.

Comfort those who have left their own lands to migrate to places offering hope for a better future and the possibility of living their lives in dignity and, not infrequently, of freely professing their faith.

We ask you, Lord Jesus, to put an end to all war and every conflict, whether great or small, ancient or recent.

We pray in a particular way for Syria, beloved Syria, that all those suffering the effects of the conflict can receive needed humanitarian aid and that neither side will again use deadly force, especially against the defenseless civil population, but instead boldly negotiate the peace long awaited and long overdue!

Jesus, Lord of glory, we ask you to comfort the victims of fratricidal acts of violence in Iraq and to sustain the hopes raised by the resumption of negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.

We beg for an end to the conflicts in the Central African Republic and a halt to the brutal terrorist attacks in parts of Nigeria and the acts of violence in South Sudan.

We ask that hearts be turned to reconciliation and fraternal concord in Venezuela.

By your resurrection, which this year we celebrate together with the Churches that follow the Julian calendar, we ask you to enlighten and inspire the initiatives that promote peace in Ukraine so that all those involved, with the support of the international community, will make every effort to prevent violence and, in a spirit of unity and dialogue, chart a path for the country’s future.  On this day, may they be able to proclaim, as brothers and sisters, that Christ is risen, Khrystos voskres!

Lord, we pray to you for all the peoples of the earth: you who have conquered death, grant us your life, grant us your peace!

Dear brothers and sisters, Happy Easter!"

Greetings

"Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I renew my greeting for a happy Easter to all of you who have gathered in this Square from every part of the world. I extend my Easter greetings to all those connected via social communications. To your families and to your communities carry the happy news that Christ, our peace and our hope, is risen!

Thank you for your presence, for your prayer and for your testimony of faith. A special and grateful thought for the gift of the beautiful flowers which come from the Netherlands. Happy Easter to everyone!
"

Catechesis by Pope Francis in Easter Week
“Why do you search among the dead for the One who is alive?"
General Audience, Wednesday 23 April 2014 - in Arabic, Croatian, English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese & Spanish

"Dear Brothers and Sisters, good morning!
This week is the week of joy: we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus. It is a true, profound joy, based on the certainty that the Risen Christ will never die again, but is alive and at work in the Church and in the world. This certainty has lived/abided in the hearts of believers since that Easter morning, when the women went to Jesus’ sepulchre and the angels said to them: “Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive?” (Lk 24, 5). “Why do you
search among the dead for the one who is living?” These words are like a milestone in history; but are also  a “stumbling block” if we do not open ourselves to the Good News, if we think that a dead Jesus gives less hassle/nuisance/is less bothersome than a living Jesus! Instead/Yet how many times, on our daily pathway/journey, do we need to hear it said: “Why are you searching among the dead for the one who is alive?” How many times do we seek life among dead things, among things that cannot give life, among things that are [here] today and are no longer/gone tomorrow, things that pass ... “Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive?”

We need this when we shut ourselves in any form of egoism/selfishness or self-complacency; when we let ourselves tbe seduced by earthly powers and things of this world, forgetting God and our neighbour; when we place our hopes in worldly vanities, in money, in success. Then the Word of God tells us: “Why do you
search among the dead for the one who is alive? Why are you searching there? That thing cannot give you life! Yes, perhaps it will give you cheerfulness for a moment, for a day, for a week, for a month ... and then? “Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive?” This phrase must enter into our hearts and we must repeat it. Let us repeat it together three times? Let us make the effort? All together: “Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive?” [repeated with the crowd]. Today, when we return home, let us say it from the heart, in silence, and let us ask ourselves this question: why do I in life search among the dead for the one who is alive? It will do us good.

It is not easy to be open to Jesus. Nor is it a given that we accept the life of the Risen One and his presence in our midst. The Gospel shows us diverse reactions: that of the Apostle Thomas, that of Mary Magdalen and that of the two disciples of Emmaus: it does us good to compare ourselves with them. Thomas places a condition on faith, he asks to touch the evidence, the wounds; Mary Magdalene weeps, she sees him but does not recognize him, she only realizes that it is Jesus when He calls her by name; the disciples of Emmaus, depressed and feeling defeated, reach/arrive/come to an encounter with Jesus by letting this mysterious traveler/wayfarer accompany them. Each one by different pathways! They were searching among the dead for the one who is alive and it was the Lord himself who corrected the route. And what do I do? What route do I follow to encounter the living Christ? He will always be close to us to correct the route if we have gone wrong.

“Why do you
search among the dead for the one who is alive?” (Lk 24, 5). This question enables us overcome the temptation to look back, to that which was yesterday, and it drives us forward towards the future. Jesus is not in the sepulchre, he is the Risen one! He is the Living One, the One who always renews his body which is the Church and enables it to walk by drawing it towards Himself. “Yesterday” is the tomb of Jesus and the tomb of the Church, the sepulchre of truth and justice; “today” is the perennial resurrection towards which the Holy Spirit impels us, giving/bestowing on us full freedom.

Today also to us is addressed this query. You, why do
you search among the dead for the one who is alive, you who close in on yourself after a failure, and you who no longer have the strength to pray? Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive, you who feel alone, abandoned by friends and perhaps also by God? Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive, you who have lost hope and you who feel imprisoned by your sins? Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive, you who aspire to beauty, to spiritual perfection, to justice, to peace?

We need to hear ourselves repeat and remind ourselves of/remember the admonition of the angel! This admonition: “Why do you
search among the dead for the one who is alive” helps us to leave our spaces of sadness and opens us to the horizons of joy and hope. That hope which removes the stones from the sepulchres and encourages us to announce/proclaim the Good News, capable of generating new life for others. Let us repeat the angel's phrase so as to have/keep it in our hearts and in our memory, and then let each person respond in silence: “Why do you search among the dead for the one who is alive?” Let’s repeat it! [He repeats it with the crowd]. Look/Behold brothers and sisters, He is alive, He is with us! Let us not go to the many sepulchres that today promise you something, beauty, and then give you nothing! He is alive! Let us not not search among the dead for the one who is alive! Thank you."

Greetings:

"Je vous salue cordialement, chers amis de langue française, en particulier les prêtres de Sens, avec Monseigneur Patenôtre, et les pèlerins de Saint Denis, avec Monseigneur Delannoy. Je vous invite à vous laisser rencontrer par le Christ ressuscité et vivant, à vous ouvrir à celui qui donne la vie et la véritable espérance. Joyeuses fêtes de Pâques.

I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims taking part in today’s Audience, including those from Scotland, Sweden, Finland and the United States. I offer a special greeting to the newly-ordained deacons from the Pontifical Irish College, as well as their families and friends. Upon all of you, and upon your families, I invoke the joy and peace of the Risen Lord. God bless you all!

Ein herzliches Willkommen sage ich den Pilgern aus den Ländern deutscher Sprache. Ostern ist ein Fest der Freude, denn der auferstandene Christus ist mit uns. Er ist der Lebendige, der den Tod überwunden hat. Wir wollen auf ihn bauen und uns seiner Füh­rung anvertrauen. Der Auferstandene schenkt uns Hoffnung und Leben. Frohe Ostern!

Saludo con afecto a los peregrinos de lengua española, en particular a los grupos venidos de España, México, Costa Rica, Colombia, Uruguay, Argentina y otros países latinoamericanos. Que en este tiempo de Pascua abramos nuestra vida al encuentro con Cristo resucitado, Cristo vivo, el único que puede dar verdadera esperanza.

Dou as boas-vindas a todos os peregrinos de língua portuguesa, nominalmente aos fiéis de Lisboa e aos diversos grupos do Brasil. Queridos amigos, a fé na Ressurreição nos leva a olhar para o futuro, fortalecidos pela esperança na vitória de Cristo sobre o pecado e a morte. Feliz Páscoa para todos!

أُرحّبُ بالحجّاجِ الناطقينَ باللغةِ العربية، وخاصةً بالقادمينَ من الشرق الأوسط. لنسأل الرب أن يجعلنا مشاركين في قيامته، وقادرين أن نُدرك بأنه الحي الذي يعمل في وسطنا؛ وليعلمنا كل يوم ألاّ نبحث عن الحيّ بين الأموات! ليبارككم الرب!

Pozdrawiam polskich pielgrzymów. Drodzy bracia i siostry, wobec pustego grobu Jezusa Chrystusa, uświadamiamy sobie, że światło zmartwychwstania przenika całe nasze życie, pomaga nam wyjść z naszych przestrzeni smutku i otwiera perspektywy na radość i nadzieję. Niech ta radość i nadzieja napełnia zawsze wasze serca! Niech Bóg wam błogosławi!

* * *

Ieri ho ricevuto un video-appello da parte degli operai della Lucchini di Piombino, inviatomi prima della chiusura dell’altoforno, che mi ha davvero commosso. Sono rimasto triste. Cari operai, cari fratelli, sui vostri volti erano dipinte una profonda tristezza e le preoccupazioni di padri di famiglie che chiedono solo il loro diritto di lavorare per vivere dignitosamente e per poter custodire, nutrire ed educare i propri figli. Siate sicuri della mia vicinanza e della mia preghiera; non scoraggiatevi, il Papa è accanto a voi e prega per voi, affinché quando si spengono le speranze umane, rimanga sempre accesa la speranza divina che non delude mai. Cari operai, cari fratelli, vi abbraccio fraternamente; e a tutti i responsabili chiedo di compiere ogni sforzo di creatività e di generosità per riaccendere la speranza nei cuori di questi nostri fratelli e nel cuore di tutte le persone disoccupate a causa dello spreco e della crisi economica. Per favore, aprite gli occhi e non rimanete con le braccia incrociate!

Nelle scorse settimane mi sono arrivati da ogni parte del mondo tanti messaggi di auguri per la Santa Pasqua. Ricambio questi auguri a tutti. Desidero ringraziare di cuore i bambini, i giovani, gli anziani, le famiglie, le comunità parrocchiali e religiose, le associazioni, i movimenti e i diversi gruppi che hanno voluto manifestarmi affetto e vicinanza. Chiedo a tutti di continuare a pregare per me e per il mio servizio alla Chiesa. Domenica prossima, ad Alba, in Piemonte, verrà proclamato Beato Giuseppe Girotti, sacerdote dell’Ordine dei Frati Predicatori, ucciso in odium fidei nel lager nazista di Dachau. La sua eroica testimonianza cristiana e il suo martirio, possano suscitare in molti il desiderio di aderire sempre più a Gesù e al Vangelo. Do il benvenuto ai pellegrini di lingua italiana! Saluto con gioia i ragazzi della professione di fede di Milano, la Comunità Shalòm, i nuovi diaconi della Compagnia di Gesù e i partecipanti all’evento “Colonna della Libertà 2014”, augurando a tutti che la Visita alla Sede di Pietro ravvivi la speranza e stimoli alla carità. Un pensiero speciale rivolgo ai giovani, agli ammalati e agli sposi novelli. L’annuncio pasquale continui a farci ardere il cuore nel petto, come avvenne per i discepoli di Emmaus: cari giovani, vivete sempre la fede con entusiasmo, convinti che solo il Signore Gesù ci permette di raggiungere la felicità piena e duratura; cari ammalati, non c’è conforto maggiore e consolazione più bella alla vostra sofferenza della certezza che Cristo è risorto; e voi, cari sposi novelli, vivete il vostro matrimonio nella reale adesione a Cristo e agli insegnamenti del Vangelo."

 

 

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