Vatican
City, 31 January 2014
(VIS) – Yesterday, Pope Francis received prelates of the Austrian
Bishops' Conference at the end of their "ad limina" visit,
delivering the speech that the extracts below are taken from. In his
speech the Holy Father recalled the kindness of the Austrian Church
for the Successor of Peter that was concretely expressed in the
cordial reception given to Pope Benedict XVI on his visit to the
Shrine of Mariazell in 2007, despite the difficult years for the
Church in following years, a difficulty marked, among other factors,
by the decline in the number of Catholics. He writes, however, that
this trend “should not find us inactive, but should encourage our
efforts for the new evangelization that is always needed.”
Pope
Francis affirmed that being the Church “doesn't mean
administration, but going out, being missionaries, bringing people
the light of faith and the joy of the Gospel. Let us not forget that
the momentum of our commitment as Christians in the world is not a
philanthropic idea, not a vague humanism, but a gift from God, that
is, the gift of being sons and daughters that we have received in
Baptism. This gift is, at the same time, a task. God's children do
not hide; rather they bring their joy as children of God to the
world.”
“The
Church,” the Pope continued, quoting the Second Vatican Council,
“'embraces in its bosom sinners'. But the council says in the same
passage that we should not resign ourselves to sin, that is … the
holy Church is always in need of being purified. That means that we
must always be committed to our purification, in the sacrament of
Reconciliation. … As pastors of the Church we want to assist the
faithful with tenderness and understanding in this wonderful
sacrament, to make them feel the Good Shepherd's love precisely in
this gift. I ask you, therefore, not to tire of inviting people to
encounter Christ in the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation.”
“An
important area of our work as shepherds,” the Pope noted, “is the
family. It is located at the heart of the evangelizing Church. …
The foundation upon which you can develop harmonious family life is
mainly marital fidelity. Unfortunately, in our times we see that the
family and marriage, in countries in the Western world, have suffered
an profound interior crisis. … Globalization and post-modern
individualism promote a lifestyle that makes the development and
stability of interpersonal relationships much more difficult and that
is not conducive to promoting a culture of the family. Here a new
missionary area is opened to the Church, for example, in family
groups that create space for relationships between persons and with
God where true communion, which welcomes each equally without
confining them in elite groups, can grow.”
“The
Church's concern for the family begins with good preparation and
proper accompaniment of the bride and groom, as well as a faithful
and clear presentation of Church doctrine on marriage and the
family. As a sacrament, Marriage is a gift from God and, at the same
time, a commitment.”
From
the family, the Pope moved on to the parish, “the large field that
the Lord has entrusted to us to make fruitful with our pastoral work.
Priests, pastors should always be aware that their task of governing
is a deeply spiritual service. It is always the pastor who leads the
parish community, relying on the help and valuable contribution of
the various co-workers and of all the faithful laity. … Each is
called; each is sent out. It is not a given, however, that the place
of the call be just the parish centre … God's call can reach us …
in the places of our everyday lives.”
“Speaking
about God,” he concluded, “bringing people the message of God's
love and salvation in Jesus Christ, [a message] for all people, is
the duty of every baptized person. This duty includes not only
speaking with words, but with our whole way of acting and doing. …
It is precisely in our time, when we seem to become the 'little
flock', that we car called, as disciples of the Lord, to live as a
community that is 'salt of the earth' and 'light of the world'.”
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