Vatican City, 16 February 2014 (VIS) –
The Roman parish of St. Thomas the Apostle in Infernetto, in the
south of the diocese, received a visit from Pope Francis yesterday
afternoon. Upon arrival the Bishop of Rome met with the children who
will receive Communion and Confirmation this year, and greeted the
faithful in the parish square, along with recently baptised children
and their parents, the elderly and sick of the parish and the
Association of families with disabled children, and before the Holy
Mass he confessed a number of penitents.
“Once upon a time, Jesus' disciples
ate wheat, because they were hungry; but it was the sabbath and on
the sabbath it was not permitted to eat grain”, said the Pope in
his homily. “The pharisees said, 'Look at what they are doing! He
who does this runs counter to the law and soils his soul, because he
does not obey'. And Jesus answered, 'That which comes from outside
does not soil the soul; it that which comes from inside, from your
heart, that may soil the soul'. And I think it is good for us,
nowadays, to think not of whether or not our souls are pure or
unclean, but to ask what there is within our hearts; what do I have
within, that I know I have, and which no-one else knows. What is in
our heart? Is there love? Do I love my parents, my children, my wife,
my husband, the people in my neighbourhood, the sick? Do I love them?
And is there hate in my heart? Do I hate anyone? Because often we
find that there is also hate. 'I love everyone, apart from this one,
that one, or the other ...'. This is hate, isn't it?”
“What do I have in my heart?” he
continued. “Is there forgiveness? Do I have an attitude of
forgiveness towards those who have wronged me, or is there an
attitude of revenge? … We must ask ourselves what we have inside,
because what we have inside comes out and causes harm, if it is bad;
if it is good, it comes out and does good. And it is beautiful to be
truthful with ourselves, and to be ashamed of ourselves when we
realise we are in a situation that is not as God would wish”.
The Pope commented that in today's
Gospel, Jesus says, “'You have heard that it was said to your
ancestors, You shall not kill ... But I say to you, whoever is angry
with his brother will be liable to judgement'. And whoever insults
his brother, kills him in his heart; whoever gossips maliciously
about his brother, kills him in his heart. Perhaps we are not aware
of this … we gossip about this and that … and this is what is
means to kill one's brother. To understand one's brother, to
understand people, means to love, and to forgive: it is to
understand, to forgive, and to be patient”.
“We must ask the Lord for two
graces”, concluded Pope Francis. “The first is to know what is in
our hearts, so as not to be deceived. The second is to do the good
that is in our hearts, and not the ill that lies therein. And
speaking of 'killing', to remember that words may kill. Our ill-will
towards others can also kill. … It often seems that the sins of
slander and defamation have been removed from the Decalogue, and
speaking ill of a person is a sin. … Let us always ask the Lord to
help us to love our neighbours. And if we cannot love a person, why
not? They we must pray for that person, in order that the Lord might
help me wish him well. And we must continue in this way, aware that
our live is rendered impure by the ill-will that comes from our
hearts”.
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