Pope: many Christians are persecuted and killed because they are Christians, regardless of their confession
Rome (AsiaNews) - The martyrs of today are persecuted because they are Christians, "many Christians are persecuted and killed without distinction of confession. This is the "ecumenism of blood "evoked today by Pope Francis in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the walls, during the second Vespers of the Conversion of St. Paul, to terminate the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. "Unity will not be the fruit of subtle theoretical discussions in which each party tries to convince the other of the soundness of their opinions ", but "seeking instead to grasp more fully what unites us, namely, our call to share in the mystery of the Father's love revealed to us by the Son through the Holy Spirit ".
In the basilica
dedicated to the Apostle of the Gentiles, Pope Francis was joined by Metropolitan
Gennadios, representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and Bishop David Moxon,
personal representative of the Archbishop of Canterbury in Rome, as well as representatives
of other Christian communities.
The Pope's homily is centered on the need to try to overcome divisions and contrasts
the fruits of the past, " we need to encounter
one another and to challenge one another under the guidance of the Holy Spirit,
who harmonizes diversities and overcomes conflicts " because it is the common duty to announce
and the Gospel "in the call to be evangelizers, all the
Churches and Ecclesial Communities discover a privileged setting for closer
cooperation".
Francis commented
on the Gospel passage in which Jesus, traveling from Judea to Galilee, passed
through Samaria. "He has no problem dealing with Samaritans, who
were considered by the Jews to be heretics, schismatics, separated. His
attitude tells us that encounter with those who are different from ourselves
can make us grow. Weary from his journey, Jesus does not hesitate to ask the
Samaritan woman for something to drink. His thirst, however, is much more
than physical: it is also a thirst for encounter, a desire to enter into
dialogue with that woman and to invite her to make a journey of interior
conversion. Jesus is patient, respectful of the person before him, and
gradually reveals himself to her. His example encourages us to seek a
serene encounter with others. To understand one another, and to grow in
charity and truth, we need to pause, to accept and listen to one another.
In this way, we already begin to experience unity".
" The woman of Sychar asks Jesus about the
place where God is truly worshiped. Jesus does not side with the mountain
or the temple, but goes to the heart of the matter, breaking down every wall of
division. He speaks instead of the meaning of true worship: "God is
spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth" (Jn
4:24). So many past controversies between Christians can be overcome when
we put aside all polemical or apologetic approaches, and seek instead to grasp
more fully what unites us, namely, our call to share in the mystery of the Father's
love revealed to us by the Son through the Holy Spirit. Christian unity
will not be the fruit of subtle theoretical discussions in which each party
tries to convince the other of the soundness of their opinions. We need
to realize that, to plumb the depths of the mystery of God, we need one
another, we need to encounter one another and to challenge one another under
the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who harmonizes diversities and overcomes
conflicts. He reconciles differences".
"Gradually the Samaritan woman comes to realize that the one who
has asked her for a drink is able to slake her own thirst. Jesus in
effect tells her that he is the source of living water which can satisfy her
thirst for ever (cf. Jn 4:13-14). Our human existence is marked by
boundless aspirations: we seek truth, we thirst for love, justice and
freedom. These desires can only be partially satisfied, for from the
depths of our being we are prompted to seek "something more", something capable
of fully quenching our thirst. The response to these aspirations is given
by God in Jesus Christ, in his paschal mystery. From the pierced side of
Jesus there flowed blood and water (cf. Jn 19:34). He is the brimming
fount of the water of the Holy Spirit, "the love of God poured into our hearts
(Rom 5:5) on the day of our baptism. By the working of the Holy Spirit,
we have become one in Christ, sons in the Son, true worshipers of the
Father. This mystery of love is the deepest ground of the unity which
binds all Christians and is much greater than their historical divisions.
To the extent that we humbly advance towards the Lord, then, we also draw
nearer to one another".
" Her encounter with Jesus made the Samaritan
women a missionary. Having received a greater and more important gift
than mere water from a well, she leaves her jar behind (cf. Jn 4:28) and runs
back to tell her townspeople that she has met the Christ (cf. Jn 4:29).
Her encounter with Jesus restored meaning and joy to her life, and she felt the
desire to share this with others. Today there are so many men and women
around us who are weary and thirsting, and who ask us Christians to give them
something to drink. It is a request which we cannot evade. In the
call to be evangelizers, all the Churches and Ecclesial Communities discover a
privileged setting for closer cooperation. For this to be effective, we
need to stop being self-enclosed, exclusive, and bent on imposing a uniformity
based on merely human calculations (cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 131). Our
shared commitment to proclaiming the Gospel enables us to overcome proselytism
and competition in all their forms. All of us are at the service of the
one Gospel!".
The Pope then greeted the representatives of other Churches and ecclesial
communities present as well
as the members of
the Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the
Orthodox Churches, to whom he wished "a fruitful work for the plenary
session that will take place in
the next few days in Rome".
" Also present today - he added - are men and women religious from various
Churches and Ecclesial Communities who have taken part in an ecumenical meeting
organized by the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and for
Societies of Apostolic Life, in conjunction with the Pontifical Council for
Promoting Christian Unity, to mark the Year for Consecrated Life.
Religious life, as prophetic sign of the world to come, is called to offer in
our time a witness to that communion in Christ which transcends all differences
and finds expression in concrete gestures of acceptance and dialogue. The
pursuit of Christian unity cannot be the sole prerogative of individuals or
religious communities particularly concerned with this issue. A shared
knowledge of the different traditions of consecrated life, and a fruitful
exchange of experiences, can prove beneficial for the vitality of all forms of
religious life in the different Churches and Ecclesial Communities".
"Dear brothers and sisters - concluded the Pope - today all of us
who thirst for peace and fraternity trustingly implore from our heavenly
Father, through Jesus Christ the one Priest, and through the intercession of
the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Apostle Paul and all the saints, the gift of full
communion between all Christians, so that "the sacred mystery of the unity of
the Church" (Unitatis Redintegratio, 2) may shine forth as the sign and
instrument of reconciliation for the whole world".
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