Pope: encountering Jesus is like a school of hope

The pontiff released his weekly catechesis from the Gemelli Hospital, with a commentary on the Gospel passage about Nicodemus, opening a new chapter in his reflections on Jesus Christ our hope. In his message for World Day of Prayer for Vocation, he urges young people to make their life a “gift of love”.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) – On the 12th anniversary of the inaugural Mass of his pontificate, Francis began a new chapter of cycle of Jubilee catechesis dedicated to Jesus Christ our hope, which focuses on His meetings with some people mentioned in the Gospels.

The papal text was released for today’s Wednesday general audience while the pontiff continues his slow recovery from bilateral pneumonia at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital. In it, Francis said that there “are encounters that enlighten life and bring hope”.

The first person Francis focused his attention today is Nicodemus, from chapter 3 in the Gospel of John. “I will start with this episode”, writes the pontiff, “because Nicodemus is a man who, with his history, shows that it is possible to emerge from darkness and find the courage to follow Christ.”

This encounter, in fact, took place at night, probably has as its main character a man who finds himself “in the darkness of doubt, in that darkness that we experience when we no longer understand what is happening in our lives and do not see clearly the way forward.”

“He is a man with a well-defined personality; he has a public role, he is one of the leaders of the Jews,” the pope says. “But probably something no longer adds up for him. Nicodemus senses that something no longer works in his life. He feels the need to change, but he does not know where to begin.”

This is something we all experience many times. “If we do not accept to change, if we close ourselves up in inflexibility, in habits or our ways of thinking, we risk dying. Life resides in the capacity to change to find a new way to love. Indeed, Jesus speaks to Nicodemus of a new birth, which is not only possible, but even necessary at certain moments in our journey.”

Nicodemus does not understand at first, but we know that in the end he does.  Thus, he appears again in the Gospel of John among those who go to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus.

“Nicodemus has finally come to the light, he is reborn, and he no longer needs to stay in the night.” He, “like all of us, can look at the Crucified One: the One who defeated death, the root of all our fears. Let us also lift our gaze to the One they pierced, let us also be met by Jesus. In Him we find the hope to face the changes in our lives and be born again.”

Today the Holy Father also released his message for the 62nd World Day of Prayer for Vocations that the Church celebrates on 11 May. The theme chosen - also connected to the Jubilee journey - is “Pilgrims of hope: the gift of life”.

“Nowadays, many young people feel dismayed as they look to the future. Often they experience insecurity about their prospects of employment and a profound identity crisis, a crisis of meaning and values, which the confused messages of the digital world only aggravate. The unjust treatment of the poor and vulnerable, the indifference of a complacent and self-centred society, and the brutality of war all threaten the hopes for a fulfilling life that young people cherish in their hearts.

“Yet the Lord, who knows the human heart, does not abandon us in our uncertainty. He wants us to know that we are loved, called and sent as pilgrims of hope.” Hence, the pontiff invites everyone, “We, the adult members of the Church, and priests in particular, [. . .] to acknowledge, discern and accompany the young on their vocational path. You, young people, for your part, are called to set out on that path, together with the Holy Spirit, who awakens in you the desire to make your lives a gift of love.

“Those who heed God’s call cannot turn a deaf ear to the cry of so many of our brothers and sisters who feel excluded, wounded and abandoned. Every vocation confirms us in our mission of being Christ’s presence wherever light and consolation are most needed. In a particular way, the lay faithful are called to be the ‘salt, light and leaven’ of the Kingdom of God through their social and professional commitments.”

Image: Christ talking with Nicodemus at night.

• vatican
• pope francis
• nicodemus
• vocations
• general audience
• gemelli hospital