Vatican City, 21 December 2015 (VIS) –
Missionary and pastoral spirit, idoneity and sagacity, spirituality
and humanity, example and fidelity, reasonableness and gentleness,
innocuousness and determination, diligence and attentiveness, charity
and truth, openness and maturity, respectfulness and humility,
intrepidness and alertness, and finally, accountability and sobriety.
These are the qualities Pope Francis highlighted this morning in his
greetings to the Roman Curia, as a practical aid to embracing the
time of grace of Christmas and the Year of Mercy and ensuring the
fruitfulness of service to the Church. “I would ask the Heads of
Dicasteries and other superiors to ponder this, to add to it and to
complete it”, he said. “It is a list based on an acrostic
analysis of the word 'Misericordia' … with the aim of having it
serve as our guide and beacon”.
During his traditional exchange of
Christmas greetings with the members of the Roman Curia, the Holy
Father addressed the prelates recalling their previous meetings: in
2013, when he stressed “two important and inseparable aspects of
the work of the Curia: professionalism and service”, offering St.
Joseph as a model to be imitated. Then, last year, as a preparation
for the sacrament of Reconciliation, he considered “certain
temptations or maladies – the catalogue of curial diseases …
which could affect any Christian, curia, community, congregation,
parish or ecclesial movement. Diseases which call for prevention,
vigilance, care and, sadly, in some cases, painful and prolonged
interventions”.
“Some of these diseases became
evident in the course of the past year”, he continued, “causing
no small pain to the entire body and harming many souls, also by
scandal. It seems necessary to state what has been – and ever shall
be – the object of sincere reflection and decisive provisions.
Reform will move forward with determination, clarity and firm
resolve, since Ecclesia semper reformanda. Nonetheless, diseases and
even scandals cannot obscure the efficiency of the services rendered
to the Pope and to the entire Church by the Roman Curia, with great
effort, responsibility, commitment and dedication, and this is a real
source of consolation. St. Ignatius taught that 'it is typical of the
evil spirit to instil remorse, sadness and difficulties, and to cause
needless worry so as to prevent us from going forward; instead, it is
typical of the good spirit to instil courage and energy, consolations
and tears, inspirations and serenity, and to lessen and remove every
difficulty so as to make us advance on the path of goodness'”.
Therefore, “it would be a grave
injustice not to express heartfelt gratitude and needed encouragement
to all those good and honest men and women in the Curia who work with
dedication, devotion, fidelity and professionalism, offering to the
Church and the Successor of Peter the assurance of their solidarity
and obedience, as well as their constant prayers. Moreover, cases of
resistance, difficulties and failures on the part of individuals and
ministers are so many lessons and opportunities for growth, and never
for discouragement. They are opportunities for returning to the
essentials, which means being ever more conscious of ourselves, of
God and our neighbours, of the sensus Ecclesiae and the sensus
fidei”.
Francis turned to the central theme of
his discourse: “this return to essentials … just a few days after
the Church’s inauguration of the pilgrimage of the Holy Year of
Mercy, a Year which represents for her and for all of us a pressing
summons to gratitude, conversion, renewal, penance and
reconciliation”. At the time of Christmas, the feast of God’s
infinite mercy, as St. Augustine of Hippo tells us, and in the
context of the Year of Mercy, he presented to the Roman Curia “a
practical aid”, beginning with the theme of missionary and pastoral
spirit.
“Missionary spirit is what makes the
Curia evidently fertile and fruitful; it is proof of the
effectiveness, efficiency and authenticity of our activity. Faith is
a gift, yet the measure of our faith is also seen by the extent to
which we communicate it. All baptised persons are missionaries of the
Good News, above all by their lives, their work and their witness of
joy and conviction. A sound pastoral spirit is an indispensable
virtue for the priest in particular. It is shown in his daily effort
to follow the Good Shepherd who cares for the flock and gives his
life to save the lives of others. It is the yardstick for our curial
and priestly work. Without these two wings we could never take
flight, or even enjoy the happiness of the 'faithful servant'”.
With regard to idoneity and sagacity:
“Idoneity, or suitability, entails personal effort aimed at
acquiring the necessary requisites for exercising as best we can our
tasks and duties with intelligence and insight. It does not
countenance 'recommendations' and payoffs. Sagacity is the readiness
to grasp and confront situations with shrewdness and creativity.
Idoneity and sagacity also represent our human response to divine
grace, when we let ourselves follow the famous dictum: 'Do everything
as if God did not exist and then put it all in God’s hands as if
you did not exist'”.
Spirituality and humanity:
“Spirituality is the backbone of all service in the Church and in
Christian life. It is what nourishes all our activity, sustaining and
protecting it from human frailty and daily temptation. Humanity is
what embodies the truthfulness of our faith; those who renounce their
humanity renounce everything. Humanity is what makes us different
from machines and robots which feel nothing and are never moved. Once
we find it hard to weep seriously or to laugh heartily – these are
just two signs – we have begun our decline and the process of
turning from 'humans' into something else. Humanity is knowing how
to show tenderness and fidelity and courtesy to all. Spirituality and
humanity, while innate qualities, are a potential needing to be
activated fully, attained completely and demonstrated daily”.
Example and fidelity: “Blessed Paul
VI reminded the Curia – in 1963 – of 'its calling to set an
example'. An example of avoiding scandals which harm souls and impair
the credibility of our witness. Fidelity to our consecration, to our
vocation, always mindful of the words of Christ, 'Whoever is faithful
in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest
in a very little is dishonest also in much' and 'If any of you put a
stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it
would be better for you if a great millstone were fastened around
your neck and you were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the
world for stumbling blocks! Occasions for stumbling are bound to
come, but woe to the one by whom the stumbling block comes”.
Reasonableness and gentleness:
“Reasonableness helps avoid emotional excesses, while gentleness
helps avoid an excess of bureaucracy, programmes and planning. These
qualities are necessary for a balanced personality: 'The enemy –
and forgive me for quoting St. Ignatius once again – pays careful
heed to whether a soul is coarse or delicate; if it is delicate, he
finds a way to make it overly delicate, in order to cause it greater
distress and confusion'. Every excess is a symptom of some
imbalance”.
Innocuousness and determination:
“Innocuousness makes us cautious in our judgements and capable of
refraining from impulsive and hasty actions. It is the ability to
bring out the best in ourselves, in others and in all kinds of
situations by acting carefully and attentively. It consists of doing
unto others what we would have them do to us. Determination is acting
with a resolute will, clear vision, obedience to God and solely for
the supreme law of the salus animarum”.
Charity and truth: “Two inseparable
virtues of Christian life, 'speaking the truth in charity and
practising charity in truth'. To the point where charity without
truth becomes a destructive ideology of complaisance and truth
without charity becomes myopic legalism”.
Openness and maturity: “Openness is
honesty and rectitude, consistency and absolute sincerity with regard
both to ourselves and to God. An honest and open person does not act
virtuously only when he or she is being watched; honest persons have
no fear of being caught, since they never betray the trust of others.
An honest person is never domineering like the 'wicked servant', with
regard to the persons or matters entrusted to his or her care.
Honesty is the foundation on which all other qualities rest. Maturity
is the quest to achieve balance and harmony in our physical, mental
and spiritual gifts. It is the goal and outcome of a never-ending
process of development which has nothing to do with age”.
Respectfulness and humility:
“Respectfulness is an endowment of those noble and tactful souls
who always try to show genuine respect for others, for their own
work, for their superiors and subordinates, for dossiers and papers,
for confidentiality and privacy, who can listen carefully and speak
politely. Humility is the virtue of the saints and those godly
persons who become all the more important as they come to realise
that they are nothing, and can do nothing, apart from God’s grace”.
“Diligence and attentiveness: “The
more we trust in God and his providence, the more we grow in
diligence and readiness to give of ourselves, in the knowledge that
the more we give the more we receive. What good would it do to open
all the Holy Doors of all the basilicas in the world if the doors of
our own heart are closed to love, if our hands are closed to giving,
if our homes are closed to hospitality and our churches to welcome
and acceptance. Attentiveness is concern for the little things, for
doing our best and never yielding to our vices and failings. St.
Vincent de Paul used to pray: “Lord, help me to be always aware of
those around me, those who are worried or dismayed, those suffering
in silence, and those who feel alone and abandoned”.
Intrepidness and alertness: “Being
intrepid means fearlessness in the face of troubles, like Daniel in
the den of lions, or David before Goliath. It means acting with
boldness, determination and resolve, 'as a good soldier'. It means
being immediately ready to take the first step, like Abraham, or
Mary. Alertness, on the other hand, is the ability to act freely and
easily, without being attached to fleeting material things. The Psalm
says: 'if riches increase, set not your heart on them'. To be alert
means to be always on the go, and never being burdened by the
accumulation of needless things, caught up in our own concerns and
driven by ambition”.
Accountability and sobriety:
“Accountable and trustworthy persons are those who honour their
commitments with seriousness and responsibility when they are being
observed, but above all when they are alone; they radiate a sense of
tranquillity because they never betray a trust. Sobriety – the last
virtue on this list, but not because it is least important – is the
ability to renounce what is superfluous and to resist the dominant
consumerist mentality. Sobriety is prudence, simplicity,
straightforwardness, balance and temperance. Sobriety is seeing the
world through God’s eyes and from the side of the poor. Sobriety is
a style of life which points to the primacy of others as a
hierarchical principle and is shown in a life of concern and service
towards others. The sober person is consistent and straightforward in
all things, because he or she can reduce, recover, recycle, repair,
and live a life of moderation”.
Following this list of qualities,
Francis went on to remind the prelates that “mercy is no fleeting
sentiment, but rather the synthesis of the joyful Good News, a choice
and decision on the part of all who desire to assume the 'Heart of
Jesus' and to be serious followers of the Lord who has asked us to
'be merciful even as your heavenly Father is merciful'. In the words
of Father Ermes Ronchi, 'Mercy is a scandal for justice, a folly for
intelligence, a consolation for us who are debtors. The debt for
being alive, the debt for being loved is only repayable by mercy'.
“And so”, he emphasised, “may
mercy guide our steps, inspire our reforms and enlighten our
decisions. May it be the basis of all our efforts. May it teach us
when to move forward and when to step back. May it also enable us to
understand the littleness of all that we do in God’s greater plan
of salvation and his majestic and mysterious working”.
To conclude, the Holy Father invited
those present to savour the magnificent prayer, commonly attributed
to Blessed Oscar Arnulfo Romero, but pronounced for the first time by
Cardinal John Dearden:
“Every now and then it helps us to
take a step back
and to see things from a distance.
The Kingdom is not only beyond our
efforts, it is also beyond our visions.
In our lives, we manage to achieve only
a small part
of the marvellous plan that is God’s
work.
Nothing that we do is complete,
which is to say that the Kingdom is
greater than ourselves.
No statement says everything that can
be said.
No prayer completely expresses the
faith.
No Creed brings perfection.
No pastoral visit solves every problem.
No programme fully accomplishes the
mission of the Church.
No goal or purpose ever reaches
completion.
This is what it is about:
We plant seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted,
knowing that others will watch over
them.
We lay the foundations of something
that will develop.
We add the yeast which will multiply
our possibilities.
We cannot do everything,
yet it is liberating to begin.
This gives us the strength to do
something and to do it well.
It may remain incomplete, but it is a
beginning, a step along the way.
It is an opportunity for the grace of
God to enter
and to do the rest.
It may be that we will never see its
completion,
but that is the difference between the
master and the labourer.
We are labourers, not master builders,
servants, not the Messiah.
We are prophets of a future that does
not belong to us”.