Pope in Sweden: Blessed are those who pray and work for full communion between Christians

In his first and only public Mass in Sweden, Pope Francis gives an updated list of the beatitudes and extols the one about meekness, which “is a way of living and acting that draws us close to Jesus and to one another.” And “The saints bring about change through meekness of heart.” He thanks the president and General Secretary of the Lutheran World Federation. The saints of everyday life are “those mothers and fathers who sacrifice for their families”. At the end, a prayer for Our Lady is recited.

Malmö (AsiaNews) – Pope Francis this morning celebrated Mass at the Swedbank Stadion in Malmö. “Blessed are those who pray and work for full communion between Christians,” he proposed as a new beatitude, which is the enactment of traditional beatitudes, in his first and only public Mass during his Swedish trip characterised by a desire for ecumenism and a commitment to seeking Christian unity, especially with the Lutherans. At the end of the Mass, the pontiff thanked the president and general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation who were present at the service.

Following today's Gospel (Matthew 5:1-12) on the beatitudes, the Holy Father said that they “are in some sense the Christian’s identity card. They identify us as followers of Jesus. We are called to be blessed, to be followers of Jesus, to confront the troubles and anxieties of our age with the spirit and love of Jesus.”

In view of this, Francis listed how the beatitudes can be enacted. “Blessed are those who remain faithful while enduring evils inflicted on them by others, and forgive them from their heart. Blessed are those who look into the eyes of the abandoned and marginalized, and show them their closeness. Blessed are those who see God in every person, and strive to make others also discover him. Blessed are those who protect and care for our common home. Blessed are those who renounce their own comfort in order to help others. Blessed are those who pray and work for full communion between Christians. All these are messengers of God’s mercy and tenderness, and surely they will receive from him their merited reward.”

“The Beatitudes are the image of Christ,” he stressed, especially “Blessed are the meek” for “Meekness is a way of living and acting that draws us close to Jesus and to one another. It enables us to set aside everything that divides and estranges us, and to find ever new ways to advance along the path of unity. So it was with sons and daughters of this land, including Saint Mary Elizabeth Hesselblad, recently canonized, and Saint Bridget, Birgitta of Vadstena, co-patron of Europe. They prayed and worked to create bonds of unity and fellowship between Christians. One very eloquent sign of this is that here in your country, marked as it is by the coexistence of quite different peoples, we are jointly commemorating the fifth centenary of the Reformation. The saints bring about change through meekness of heart.”

“Ours, then, is a celebration of holiness. A holiness that is seen not so much in great deeds and extraordinary events, but rather in daily fidelity to the demands of our baptism. A holiness that consists in the love of God and the love of our brothers and sisters. A love that remains faithful to the point of self-renunciation and complete devotion to others. We think of the lives of all those mothers and fathers who sacrifice for their families and are prepared to forego – though it is not always easy – so many things, so many personal plans and projects.”

Finally, “we ourselves need one another if we are to become saints,” the pontiff said. Without political fears, he urged those present to turn “To our heavenly Mother, Queen of All Saints, [to whom] we entrust our intentions and the dialogue aimed at the full communion of all Christians, so that we may be blessed in our efforts and may attain holiness in unity.”

After the celebration before the final blessing, Pope Francis once again called for unity among Christians. “I thank God that I was able to visit this land and to meet with you, many of whom have come from all over the world. As Catholics, we are part of a great family and are sustained in the same communion. I encourage you to express your faith in prayer, in the sacraments, and in generous service to those who are suffering and in need. I urge you to be salt and light, wherever you find yourselves, through the way you live and act as followers of Jesus, and to show great respect and solidarity with our brothers and sisters of other churches and Christian communities, and with all people of good will.

As he introduced the Angelus prayer, the pope entrusted again the work of ecumenism to the Virgin Mary. “In our life, we are not alone; we have the constant help and companionship of the Virgin Mary. Today she stands before us as first among the saints, the first disciple of the Lord. We flee to her protection and to her we present our sorrows and our joys, our fears and our aspirations. We put everything under her protection, in the sure knowledge that she watches over us and cares for us with a mother’s love. Dear brothers and sisters, I ask you to keep me in your prayers. I keep you all very present in my own. Now, together, let us turn to Our Lady and pray the Angelus.”

• vatican
• sweden
• malmö
• pope francis
• lutherans
• ecumenism
• protestant reformation
• 500 years