The pope reminds people that mercy is God's patience. "If God didn't forgive everything, the world wouldn't exist." The pope cites Card Kasper's book and an elderly Buenos Aires woman's for wisdom. He gives his blessing without chanting, and ends the Angelus, saying, "Have a nice Sunday and a good lunch!"

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Tens, perhaps hundreds, of thousands of faithful filled Saint Peter's Square and nearby streets for the first Angelus by Pope Francis from the window of his studio. Despite a cold wind, many people, alone and in groups representing Catholic movements, parishes and associations arrived in the early hours of the morning, bringing with them banners, posters, pictures and flags from around the world, many from the new pontiff's native Argentina.

"Brothers and sisters. Good Morning!" the pope forcefully said as he addressed the crowd in Italian.

"After our first meeting last Wednesday, I can say again hello to all of you today! I am happy to do it on a Sunday, the Lord's Day! This is something beautiful and important, for us Christians, to meet on a Sunday, say hello, talk to one another like here, in the square, a square that thanks to the media is as big as the world."

Speaking about today's Gospel, which is dedicated to the woman caught in adultery (John, 8:1-11), and reiterating some of the things he said in his homily in the Church of Sant'Anna a few hours earlier, Pope Francis explained that in Jesus' attitude "we do not find words of scorn, words of condemnation, but only words of love and mercy, which invite us to convert. 'Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on, sin no more!'

"Dear brothers and sisters, the face of God is that of a merciful and always patient father! Have you thought about God's patience, the patience that he has with each one of us? That is his mercy. He is always patient. He is patient with us; he understands us; he waits for us. He is never tired of forgiving us if we find our way back to him with a remorseful heart."

To illustrate his point, the pontiff gave two examples. The first one is a book by Card Walter Kasper on mercy, which he recently read ("But don't think I am trying to endorse my cardinals' books, eh!" he said). The second one is a word of wisdom he got from a woman in her 80s in Buenos Aires.

"Card Kasper said that feeling mercy changes everything," the pope explained. "It is the greatest thing we can feel, for it changes the world. A lit of bit of mercy makes the world a little less cold and a little more just. We need to understand God's mercy. God is a merciful father who is very patient . . . . Let us remember the prophet Isaiah who said that 'if our sins are red like scarlet, God will make them white like snow'."

Following the same line of thought, the pope noted, "I remember when in 1992, right after I became bishop, the image of Our Lady of Fatima came to Buenos Aires. A big Mass was said for the sick. I went to confess them. At the end of the Mass, I got ready to leave because I had to a confirmation to do. An elderly woman, very humble, in her eighties, came to me.  I looked at her and spoke to her.

Pope: "Grandma (This is how we address the elderly in Argentina), do you want to confess yourself?"

Elderly woman: "Yes."

Pope: "But if you haven't sinned."

Elderly woman: "We've all sinned."

Pope: "But maybe God won't forgive you."

Elderly woman: "God forgives everyone."

Pope: "How do you know, Ma'am?"

Elderly woman: "If God didn't forgive everything, the world wouldn't exist."

At that point, "I wanted to ask her, 'Have you studied at the Gregorian (University)?' because that is the inner wisdom the Holy Spirit gives!" said the pope.

"Let us not forget that word," the pope said in concluding. "God never gets tired of forgiving us! The problem is that we get tired of asking for forgiveness! He never gets tired of forgiving, but we sometime get tired of asking for forgiveness. Let us not get tired of asking for forgiveness! Let us not get tired of asking for forgiveness! He is the loving Father who always forgives, who has a heart filled with mercy for us all. We too should learn to be merciful towards others. Let us invoke the intercession of Our Lady who held in her arms the Mercy of God made man."

After the Angelus prayer in a break with past practice, Pope Francis gave his blessing in Latin without chanting it. He also did not send his greetings in various languages, but spoke in Italian to thank those present, and ask them to pray for him.

"Thank you for your welcome and prayers. Pray for me! I ask you to. I offer my embrace once more to the faithful of Rome, which I extend to all of you who come from other parts of Italy and the world, and to those who are with us via mass media."

'I chose the name of Italy's patron saint, Saint Francis of Assisi. This reinforces my spiritual connection to this country, in which, as you know, my family has its origins. However, Jesus called upon us to join a new family, the Church, the family of God, to march together on the path of the Gospel. May the Lord bless you! May Our Lady keep you! Forget this not: the Lord never gets tired of forgiving! It is we who get tired of asking for forgiveness."

The pope ended the Angelus in his already familiar tone, saying, "Have a nice Sunday and a good lunch!" With this, the crowd went wild.

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