Pope Francis' smile before praying the Angelus, and after the final Blessing, and his thanks to so many people for their "human and spiritual closeness" in the days before the Angelus, and after the final Blessing. hospitalized at the Gemelli was the best news today, Sunday, in San Pedro.
"This closeness has been of great help to me, comforting. Thank you all, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart," said the Holy Father before beginning his customary meditation before the prayer of the Angelus with Romans and pilgrims from various countries, from the window of the Apostolic Palace in St. Peter's Square.
Closeness was precisely the theme of his initial reflection before praying the Angelus. The Pope referred to the closeness of God. "Today, in the Gospel, Jesus calls by name and sends the twelve Apostles," the Holy Father said. "In sending them out, he asks them to proclaim only one thing: 'Go and proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand' (Mt 10:7). It is the same proclamation with which Jesus began his preaching: the kingdom of God, that is, his lordship of love, has come near, it is coming in our midst. And this is not one piece of news among others, but the fundamental reality of life: the nearness of God, the nearness of Jesus.
"God is my father, our Father."
"In fact, if the God of heaven is near, we are not alone on earth and in difficulties we do not lose faith either," the Pope pointed out. "This is the first thing to tell people: God is not distant, but he is Father, he knows you and loves you; he wants to take you by the hand, also when you go down steep and difficult paths, also when you fall and find it hard to get up and get back on your feet. He knows the way, he is with you, he is your Father! "He is my Father! He is our Father!" he reiterated with emphasis.
Francis then turned to the image of the trusting and confident child with his father. "We remain with this image, because to proclaim God close to us is to invite us to think like a child who walks hand in hand with his father: everything seems different to him. The world, big and mysterious, becomes familiar and safe, because the child knows he is protected. He is not afraid and learns to open himself: he meets other people, finds new friends, learns with joy things he did not know and then returns home and tells everyone what he has seen, while the desire grows in him to grow up and do the things he has seen his father do".
And he continued in his brief message: "This is why Jesus starts from here, because the closeness of God is the first proclamation: being close to God we overcome fear, we open ourselves to love, we grow in goodness and we feel the need and the joy of proclaiming.
If we want to be good apostles, we must be like children: sit "on God's knees" and from there look at the world with trust and love, to witness that God is Father, that He alone transforms our hearts and gives us that joy and peace that we ourselves cannot attain".
Then he asked: "Proclaim that God is near, but how can we do it?" and he answered: with witness, with gestures, without many words. "In the Gospel, Jesus advises us not to say many words, but to make many gestures of love and hope in the name of the Lord: "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received it: freely give it" (Mt 10:8). This is the heart of the proclamation: gratuitous witness, service".
A little examination
In closing, the Pope returned to the questions, as he usually does, and to the Virgin Mary. "Having arrived at this point, let us ask ourselves some questions: we, who believe in the God who is near, do we trust in Him? Do we know how to look ahead with confidence, like a child who knows he is carried in the arms of the Father? Do we know how to sit on the Father's knees with prayer, with listening to the Word, approaching the Sacraments?"
"And finally, close to Him, do we know how to instill courage in others, to be close to those who suffer and are alone, to those who are far away and also to those who are hostile to us? In recent days I have received much closeness and for this I bless God and I am grateful to all of you: thank you from the bottom of my heart! Now let us pray to Mary, that she may help us to feel loved and to transmit trust and closeness to one another".
Uganda, Ukraine, victims at sea
In his concluding remarks, the Pope recalled the recent wreck on the Greek coasts and its prayer for the victims, and implored "that everything possible be done to prevent similar tragedies", recalling that next Tuesday, June 20, is World Refugee Day, promoted by the United Nations".
He also recalled "the brutal attack that took place in Uganda"He prayed for the young students. "This struggle, this war on all sides...", he pointed out. He has also prayed that "let us persevere in prayer for the martyred Ukraine, which suffers so much." "Let us pray for peace"was the request of Pope Francis.
