Vatican City, 29 November 2015 (VIS) –
Yesterday afternoon the Pope met with the young people of Uganda at
the Kololo airstrip, a former airport near Kampala which is currently
used for major events, and which is able to hold around a hundred
thousand people. The young people had followed the Mass celebrated by
Pope Francis a few hours previously at the Catholic Namugongo shrine
via the maxi screens installed in the area. The civil authorities
responsible for education and sport were also present in Kololo along
with, in a special area, 200 young deaf people, refugees, and
chaplains for youth pastoral ministry. On the stage there were
another fifty young people, a couple from each diocese in the country
and a group of orphans.
The Pope set aside his prepared
discourse, which we reproduce below, preferring instead to converse
informally with those present after listening to the testimony of two
young people, Emmanuel Odokonyero and Winnie Nansumba, who told of
their difficult experiences, from sickness and depression to
recruitment and witnessing the torture and murder of their friends.
“As I listened to Winnie and
Emmanuel's testimonies, I asked myself a question: can a negative
experience have a purpose in life? Yes! … Many of us here today
have had negative experiences. There is always the possibility of
opening up a horizon, of opening it up with the strength of Jesus. …
Because Jesus is the Lord. Jesus can do anything. And Jesus suffered
the most negative experience in history: He was insulted, denied and
murdered. And Jesus, through the power of God, rose again. He can do
the same for each one of us, with every negative experience. This is
why Jesus is the Lord.
“I imagine, and together we can all
imagine Emmanuel's suffering, when he saw his companions tortured,
when he saw his companions murdered. But Emmanuel was brave. … He
risked everything, he had faith in Jesus and he escaped. And here he
is today, fourteen years later, qualified in management. There is
always a way! Our life is like a seed, that must die in order to live
again; and at times this means dying physically, like Emmanuel's
companions. To die as Charles Lwanga and the martyrs of Uganda died.
But through this death there is a life, there is life for all. If I
transform a negative into a positive, I am triumphant. But this can
be done only with the grace of Jesus. … Are you willing to
transform in life all those negative things into positive things? Are
you willing to transform war into peace? Be conscious that you are a
people of martyrs. The blood of the martyrs flows in your veins! This
is why you have your faith and life. And this faith and life is so
beautiful, that it is called the 'pearl of Africa'”.
“If you believe that Jesus can change
your life, ask Him for His help. This is prayer. … Pray to Jesus,
because He is the Saviour. Never cease praying. Prayer is the most
powerful weapon a young person has. Jesus loves you. … So, open the
door to your heart and let Him enter. Let Jesus enter into your life.
And when Jesus enters your life, He will help you fight, to fight
against all problems. … To fight against depression, to fight
against AIDS. Ask for help to overcome these situations, and always
to fight. Fight with desire and with prayer”.
“The third thing I would like to say
… We are all in the Church, we all belong to the Church. … And
the Church has a mother. Mary! … Pray to Mary! … When a child
falls and hurts himself, he cries and looks for his mother. When we
have a problem, the best thing we can do is to go to where our Mother
is. To pray to Mary, to pray to our Mother”.
“Three things”, he concluded: “The
first: overcome difficulties. The second: transform the negative into
positive. And the third: prayer. Pray to Jesus, Who is capable of
everything. Jesus, Who enters into our heart and changes our life.
Jesus, Who came to save me and who gave His life for me. Let us pray
to Jesus, because He is the only Lord. And since in the Church we are
not orphans, we have a Mother, let us pray to our Mother”.
The following is the Holy Father's
prepared discourse:
“Dear Young Friends,
I am happy to be here and to share
these moments with you. I greet my brother bishops and the civil
authorities present, and I thank Bishop Paul Ssemogerere for his
words of welcome. The testimonies of Winnie and Emmanuel confirm my
impression that the Church in Uganda is alive with young people who
want a better future. Today, if you will allow me, I want to confirm
you in your faith, encourage you in your love, and in a special way,
strengthen you in your hope.
Christian hope is not simply optimism;
it is much more. It is rooted in the new life we have received in
Jesus Christ. St. Paul tells us that hope will not disappoint us,
because God’s love was poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit at
our baptism. This hope enables us to trust in Christ’s promises, to
trust in the power of His love, His forgiveness, His friendship.
That love opens the door to new life. Whenever you experience a
problem, a setback, a failure, you must anchor your heart in that
love, for it has the power to turn death into life and to banish
every evil.
So this afternoon I would invite you,
first of all, to pray for this gift to grow within you, and for the
grace to become messengers of hope. There are so many people around
us who experience deep anxiety and even despair. Jesus lifts these
clouds, if we allow Him to.
I would also like to share with you a
few thoughts about some of the obstacles which you may encounter on
our journey of hope. All of you want a better future, employment,
health and prosperity. This is good. You want to share your gifts,
your aspirations and your enthusiasm with others, for the good of the
nation and of the Church. This too is very good. But when you see
poverty, when you experience lack of opportunity, when you experience
failure in your lives, sometimes a feeling of despair can grow. You
can be tempted to lose hope.
Have you ever seen a little child who
stops in front of a dirty puddle on the path ahead of him? A puddle
he cannot leap over or go around? He may try but then he stumbles and
gets soaked. Then, after many attempts, he calls out to his father,
who takes his hand and swings him over to the other side. We are like
that child. Life presents us with many dirty puddles. But we don’t
have to overcome all those problems and hurdles on our own. God is
there to take our hand, if only we call on him.
What I am saying is that all of us have
to be like that little child, even the Pope! For it is only when we
are small and humble that we are not afraid to call out to our
Father. If you have experienced his help, you know what I am speaking
about. We need to learn to put our hope in him, knowing that he is
always there for us. He gives us confidence and courage. But – and
this is important – it would be wrong not to share this beautiful
experience with others. It would be wrong for us not to become
messengers of hope for others.
There is one particular puddle which
can be frightening to young people who want to grow in their
friendship with Christ. It is the fear of failing in our commitment
to love, and above all, failing in that great and lofty ideal which
is Christian marriage. You may be afraid of failing to be a good wife
and mother, failing to be a good husband and father. If you are
looking at that puddle, you may even see your weaknesses and fears
reflected back to you. Please, don’t give in to them! Sometimes
these fears come from the devil who does not want you to be happy.
No! Call out to God, extend your hearts to him and he will lift you
in his arms and show you how to love. I ask young couples in
particular to trust that God wants to bless their love and their
lives with his grace in the sacrament of marriage. God’s gift of
love is at the heart of Christian marriage, not the costly parties
which often obscure the deep spiritual meaning of this day of joyful
celebration with family and friends.
Finally, one puddle that we all have to
face is the fear of being different, of going against the grain in a
society which puts increasing pressure on us to embrace models of
gratification and consumption alien to the deepest values of African
culture. Think about it! What would the Uganda martyrs say about the
misuse of our modern means of communication, where young people are
exposed to images and distorted views of sexuality that degrade human
dignity, leading to sadness and emptiness? What would be the Uganda
martyrs’ reaction to the growth of greed and corruption in our
midst? Surely they would appeal to you to be model Christians,
confident that your love of Christ, your fidelity to the Gospel, and
your wise use of your God-given gifts can only enrich, purify and
elevate the life of this country. They continue to show you the way.
Do not be afraid to let the light of your faith shine in your
families, your schools and your places of work. Do not be afraid to
enter into dialogue humbly with others who may see things
differently.
Dear young friends, when I look at your
faces I am filled with hope: hope for you, hope for your country, and
hope for the Church. I ask you to pray that the hope which you have
received from the Holy Spirit will continue to inspire your efforts
to grow in wisdom, generosity and goodness. Don’t forget to be
messengers of that hope! And don’t forget that God will help you to
cross whatever puddles you meet along the way!
Hope in Christ and he will enable you
to find true happiness. And if you find it hard to pray, if you find
it hard to hope, do not be afraid to turn to Mary, for she is our
Mother, the Mother of Hope. Finally, please, do not forget to pray
for me! God bless you all!”.
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