Pope in Naples: "Today is the first day of spring. Pray for young people, for their future, for hope."
Naples
(AsiaNews) - "Today is the first day of spring. Pray for young people, for
their future, for hope." An invitation to hope, in the certainty that God
is watching over us. This was Pope Francis' parting message to Naples before a
hundred thousand young people gathered on the waterfront for the last event of
the day in which he addressed all the realities of a difficult city, from
prisoners to the sick , passing through the inhabitants of a violent neighborhood
until recently the realm of drug barons, as well as priests and religious.
The last meeting of the day, where he was greeted by Neapolitan songs, gave
Francis the opportunity to condemn a society that "discards" young
and old, and sees euthanasia as a solution to the ills of old age. Not only
"technical euthanasia" administered with an injection, but a
"hidden euthanasia", when the elderly are denied medicine, food,
family affection. "Solitude is the great poison of the old." He called
on all those who have elderly parents to examine their conscience, to think
when was the last time they phoned or visited them.
Francis also spoke of hope and conversion with inmates in Poggioreale prison
where he also had lunch with a group of detainees. "At times - he told
them -you may feel disappointed, discouraged, abandoned by all, but God
does not forget his children, He never abandons them!" he said. "He is always
at our side, especially in times of trial; He is a Father who is "rich in
mercy", who always turns towards us his serene and benevolent gaze, always
waiting for us with open arms. This
is a certainty that gives comfort and hope, especially in difficult and sad times.
Even if we went wrong in life, the Lord never ceases to show us the way back
home to an encounter with Him. Jesus 'love for each of us is a source of
consolation and hope. It is a fundamental certainty for us: nothing can
separate us from God! Not even the bars of a prison. The only thing that can
separate us from Him is our sin; but if we acknowledge and confess with sincere
repentance, that very sin becomes a place of encounter with Him, because He is
mercy". "Love - he said later - can always transform the human
person. And then a place of marginalization, such as a prison may be in a
negative sense, can become a place of inclusion and stimulus for all society, so
it may become more just and, more attentive to people".
"I invite you - he concluded - to live every day, every moment in the
presence of God, to whom the future of the world and man belongs. That is the
Christian hope: the future is in God's hands! Even in the midst
of so many problems, even serious ones, let us not lose our hope in the
infinite mercy of God and in His providence. With this sure hope, let us prepare for Easter now,
definitely directing our lives to the Lord and keeping the flame of His love
alive in us".
In the cathedral, meeting shortly after with clergy and religious, Francis advised
them that "in a demanding reality like Naples, with its old and new
challenges, many may feel the need to jump in headlong to meet the needs of so
many brothers and sisters, at the risk of becoming totally absorbed ", instead
the ordained and consecrated must always find time to "stand before the Tabernacle,
stand there in silence, to feel Christ's gaze upon us, which renews and revives
us". "The path of consecrated life - he continued - is in following
Jesus; even the consecrated life in general, even for priests, we must follow Jesus
and with a desire to work for the Lord."
He then warned against the gossip, that "destroys". "Those who
gossip are like terrorists who detonate bombs, destroying themselves and
everything else". The devil, he added, "always tempts us with jealousy, envy,
infighting, dislikes," things "that do not help us to foster true
brotherhood", but instead "witness to division". If a vocation
means leaving or choosing not to have family, children, experiencing married
love, to end up fighting with the bishop, with brother priests, with the
faithful, "is not witnessing".
Pope Francis also had words of encouragement for a large group of patients, gathered
in the Gesù Nuovo Basilica. He spoke to them firstly of "the humanization
of medicine" which was as the heart of the work of Neapolitan doctor
Giuseppe Moscati, proclaimed a saint by Pope John Paul II. He then asked the
sick and suffering not to turn in on themselves, but "in turn to be close
to each other, to help others who are perhaps in greater difficult, more
discouraged. Carry each other's burdens: this is also part of the experience of
being sick, through Christ's mercy for us. He enables us to live the love of
God and neighbor even in sorrow, in sickness and in suffering. Love can
transform everything. And it is important , the People of God need the prayers
of the sick! They are powerful. Pray for the needs of the people, pray for
peace, pray for the Church ... ".
Pope Francis arrived at his meeting with young people, confessing that he was
"tired". But he did not recoil from responding openly and extemporaneously
to the questions he was posed. He denounced ideological attacks on the family, saying:
"The family is in crisis It's true, but it is nothing new."
"Marriage and family life is not like learning a language ... Eight
lessons and you're fluent. It takes time. And should be well prepared". "Engagement
- he continued - has lost the sacred sense of respect: engagement and
cohabitation today it is almost one in the same. But it is not right, love has
its times: like the first fruit that is bitter but if not plucked in time goes bad.
"And after the initial period "even marriage matures and dishes fly,
better plastic , they are safer and do not break. "In any case," never
end a day without making peace. There is no need to kneel. Just a caress. Make
peace the same day, the next day it is much more difficult. And - he added - ask
your spouse whether they like or dislike a thing", because "what I
want has no place in a marriage. A joy shared in two brings three times more joy.
A trouble shared is a trouble halved". And finally," if you see someone
you like and you think why you didn't meet them before, stop: They arrived too
late for you, close the door straight away".
Above all, he concluded, we need the witness of married couples, who can teach
young people how to face and resolve problems together.
.png)
