Newspaper Page Text
Thursday, April 16, 2020
News
Southern Cross, Page 3
message of his holiness pope Francis
Urbi et orbi
D ear brothers and sisters,
Happy Easter.
Today the Church’s
proclamation echoes throughout
the world: “Jesus Christ is risen.”
- “He is truly risen.”.
Like a new flame this Good
News springs up in the night:
the night of a world already
faced with epochal challenges
and now oppressed by a pan
demic severely testing our whole
human family. In this night, the
Church’s voice rings out: “Christ,
my hope, has arisen.” (Easter
Sequence).
This is a dif
ferent “conta
gion”, a message
transmitted from
heart to heart
for every human
heart awaits this
Good News. It is
the contagion of
hope: “Christ, my
hope, is risen.”.
This is no magic
formula that
makes problems
vanish. No, the
resurrection of
Christ is not
that. Instead, it
is the victory of
love over the root
of evil, a victory
that does not
“by-pass” suffering and death,
but passes through them, open
ing a path in the abyss, trans
forming evil into good: this is the
unique hallmark of the power of
God.
The Risen Lord is also the
Crucified One, not someone else.
In his glorious body he bears
indelible wounds: wounds that
have become windows of hope.
Let us turn our gaze to him that
he may heal the wounds of an
afflicted humanity.
Today my thoughts turn in the
first place to the many who have
been directly affected by the
coronavirus: the sick, those who
have died and family members
who mourn the loss of their loved
ones, to whom, in some cases,
they were unable even to bid a
final farewell. May the Lord of
life welcome the departed into
his kingdom and grant comfort
and hope to those still suffering,
especially the elderly and those
who are alone. May he never
withdraw his consolation and
help from those who are espe
cially vulnerable, such as per
sons who work in nursing homes,
or five in barracks and prisons.
For many, this is an Easter of
solitude lived amid the sorrow
and hardship that the pandemic
is causing, from physical suffer
ing to economic difficulties.
This disease has not only
deprived us of human close
ness, but also of the possibility
of receiving in person the con
solation that flows from the
sacraments, particularly the
Eucharist and Reconciliation. In
many countries, it has not been
possible to approach them, but
the Lord has not left us alone.
United in our
prayer, we are
convinced that
he has laid his
hand upon us
(cf. Ps 138:5),
firmly reas
suring us: Do
not be afraid,
“I have risen
and I am with
you still.” (cf.
Roman Missal,
Entrance
Antiphon,
Mass of Easter
Sunday).
May Jesus,
our Passover,
grant strength
and hope to doc
tors and nurses,
who everywhere offer a witness
of care and love for our neigh
bours, to the point of exhaustion
and not infrequently at the
expense of their own health. Our
gratitude and affection go to
them, to all who work diligently
to guarantee the essential ser
vices necessary for civil society,
and to the law enforcement and
military personnel who in many
countries have helped ease peo
ple’s difficulties and sufferings.
In these weeks, the lives of
millions of people have suddenly
changed. For many, remaining
at home has been an opportunity
to reflect, to withdraw from the
frenetic pace of life, stay with
loved ones and enjoy their com
pany. For many, though, this is
also a time of worry about an
uncertain future, about jobs that
are at risk and about other con
sequences of the current crisis.
I encourage political leaders to
work actively for the common
good, to provide the means
and resources needed to enable
everyone to lead a dignified life
and, when circumstances allow,
to assist them in resuming their
normal daily activities.
This is not a time for indiffer
ence, because the whole world is
suffering and needs to be united
in facing the pandemic. May the
risen Jesus grant hope to all
the poor, to those living on the
peripheries, to refugees and the
homeless. May these, the most
vulnerable of our brothers and
sisters living in the cities and
peripheries of every part of the
world, not be abandoned. Let
us ensure that they do not lack
basic necessities (all the more
difficult to find now that many
businesses are closed) such as
medicine and especially the
possibility of adequate health
care. In fight of the present cir
cumstances, may international
sanctions be relaxed, since these
make it difficult for countries on
which they have been imposed
to provide adequate support
to their citizens, and may all
nations be put in a position to
meet the greatest needs of the
moment through the reduction,
if not the forgiveness, of the debt
burdening the balance sheets of
the poorest nations.
This is not a time for self-cen
tredness, because the challenge we
are facing is shared by all, without
distinguishing between persons.
Among the many areas of the
world affected by the coronavirus,
I think in a special way of Europe.
After the Second World War, this
continent was able to rise again,
thanks to a concrete spirit of soli
darity that enabled it to overcome
the rivalries of the past. It is more
urgent than ever, especially in the
present circumstances, that these
rivalries do not regain force, but
that all recognize themselves as
part of a single family and support
one another. The European Union
is presently facing an epochal
challenge, on which will depend
not only its future but that of the
whole world. Let us not lose the
opportunity to give further proof of
solidarity, also by turning to inno
vative solutions. The only alterna
tive is the selfishness of particular
interests and the temptation of a
return to the past, at the risk of
severely damaging the peaceful
coexistence and development of
future generations.
This is not a time for division.
May Christ our peace enlighten
all who have responsibility in
conflicts, that they may have the
courage to support the appeal for
an immediate global ceasefire in
all comers of the world. This is
not a time for continuing to manu
facture and deal in arms, spending
vast amounts of money that ought
to be used to care for others and
save fives. Rather, may this be a
time for finally ending the long
war that has caused such great
bloodshed in beloved Syria, the
conflict in Yemen and the hostili
ties in Iraq and in Lebanon. May
this be the time when Israelis and
Palestinians resume dialogue in
order to find a stable and lasting
solution that will allow both to
five in peace. May the sufferings of
the people who five in the eastern
regions of Ukraine come to an end.
May the terrorist attacks carried
out against so many innocent peo
ple in different African countries
come to an end.
This is not a time for forget
fulness. The crisis we are facing
should not make us forget the
many other crises that bring suf
fering to so many people. May the
Lord of fife be close to all those in
Asia and Africa who are experienc
ing grave humanitarian crises, as
in the Province of Cabo Delgado
in the north of Mozambique. May
he warm the hearts of the many
refugees displaced because of wars,
drought and famine. May he grant
protection to migrants and refu
gees, many of them children, who
are living in unbearable conditions,
especially in Libya and on the bor
der between Greece and Turkey.
And I do not want to forget the
island of Lesvos. In Venezuela,
may he enable concrete and imme
diate solutions to be reached that
can permit international assis
tance to a population suffering
from the grave political, socio-eco
nomic and health situation.
Dear brothers and sisters,
Indifference, self-centredness,
division and forgetfulness are not
words we want to hear at this
time. We want to ban these words
for ever. They seem to prevail
when fear and death overwhelm
us, that is, when we do not let
the Lord Jesus triumph in our
hearts and fives. May Christ, who
has already defeated death and
opened for us the way to eternal
salvation, dispel the darkness of
our suffering humanity and lead
us into the fight of his glorious
day, a day that knows no end.
With these thoughts, I would
like to wish all of you a happy
Easter.
This is not a time
for division. May
Christ our peace
ENLIGHTEN ALL WHO
HAVE RESPONSIBILITY
IN CONFLICTS, THAT
THEY MAY HAVE
THE COURAGE TO
SUPPORT THE APPEAL
FOR AN IMMEDIATE
GLOBAL CEASEFIRE IN
ALL CORNERS OF THE
WORLD.