You will gather others into the people of God through Baptism, and you will forgive sins in the name of Christ and the Church in the sacrament of Penance.  Today I ask you in the name of Christ and the Church, never tire of being merciful.  You will comfort the sick and the elderly with holy oil: do not hesitate to show tenderness towards the elderly. When you celebrate the sacred rites, when you offer prayers of praise and thanks to God throughout the hours of the day, not only for the people of God but for the world—remember then that you are taken from among men and appointed on their behalf for those things that pertain to God. Therefore, carry out the ministry of Christ the Priest with constant joy and genuine love, attending not to your own concerns but to those of Jesus Christ.  You are pastors, not functionaries.  Be mediators, not intermediaries.

 

Finally, dear sons, exercising for your part the office of Christ, Head and Shepherd, while united with the Bishop and subject to him, strive to bring the faithful together into one family, so that you may lead them to God the Father through Christ in the Holy Spirit. Keep always before your eyes the example of the Good Shepherd who came not to be served but to serve, and who came to seek out and save what was lost.

 

 

Acknowledgment: We thank the Vatican Publisher for allowing us to publish the Homily of Pope Francis I, so that it could be accessed by more people all over the world; as a source of God’s encouragements to all of us.     

27 April 2013

Extracted from the holy Gospel according to John 13:31-33,34-35:

 

When Judas had gone Jesus said:

‘Now has the Son of Man been glorified, and in him God has been glorified.

If God has been glorified in him, God will in turn glorify him in himself,

and will glorify him very soon.

 

‘My little children,

I shall not be with you much longer. You will look for me,

And, as I told the Jews, where I am going, you cannot come.

 

I give you a new commandment:

love one another; just as I have loved you,

you also must love one another.

By this love you have for one another, everyone will know that you are my disciples.’

 

 

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4 May 2013

 

Extracted from the Acts of the Apostles 14:21-27:

 

Paul and Barnabas went back through Lystra and Iconium to Antioch. They put fresh heart into the disciples, encouraging them to persevere in the faith. ‘We all have to experience many hardships’ they said ‘before we enter the kingdom of God.’ In each of these churches they appointed elders, and with prayer and fasting they commended them to the Lord in whom they had come to believe.

 

              They passed through Pisidia and reached Pamphylia. Then after proclaiming the word at Perga they went down to Attalia and from there sailed for Antioch, where they had originally been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.

 

              On their arrival they assembled the church and gave an account of all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith to the pagans.

Psalm 145:8-13

I will bless your name for ever, O God my King.

or

Alleluia!

 

The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love.

How good is the Lord to all, compassionate to all his creatures.

 

All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord, and your friends shall repeat their blessing.

They shall speak of the glory of your reign and declare your might, O God,

to make known to men your mighty deeds and the glorious splendour of your reign.

 

Yours is an everlasting kingdom; your rule lasts from age to age.

Extracted from the book of Revelations 21:1-5:

 

I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth; the first heaven and the first earth had disappeared now, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the holy city, and the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, as beautiful as a bride all dressed for her husband.

 

Then I heard a loud voice call from the throne, ‘You see this city? Here God lives among men. He will make his home among them; they shall be his people, and he will be their God; his name is God-with-them. He will wipe away all tears from their eyes; there will be no more death, and no more mourning or sadness. The world of the past has gone.’

 

              Then the One sitting on the throne spoke: ‘Now I am making the whole of creation new’ he said. ‘Write this: that what I am saying is sure and will come true.’