UNIV'23: The search for true happiness, a challenge for young peopleHow St. Peter's Basilica and St. Peter's Square look during Holy WeekThree or four messages of Pope Francis have perhaps prevailed in a special way in the General Audience of this Holy Wednesday of 2023.
One of prayer for "all the victims of war crimes, and "looking at Mary, the Mother, before the Cross", for "the mothers of Ukrainian and Russian soldiers who have fallen in the war. They are mothers of dead sons". An invitation that he accompanied, as usual, with the request: "let us not forget to pray for the tormented Ukraine"before praying the Lord's Prayer in Latin and giving the final Blessing.
Another typical of Holy Week, which focused his speech in the Audience. "Jesus crucified is wounded, stripped of everything. Yet, loving and forgiving those who hurt him, he turns evil into good, and pain into love. He transforms his wounds into a source of hope for all," the Holy Father said.
Turning wounds into hope
"In the intense spiritual climate of Holy Week, I invite everyone to contemplate the mystery of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of the Lord, to draw from it the strength to translate into life the demands of the Gospel," added the Pope, who also referred to the sadness in so many people on the streets, and the suicide of young people.
"The point is not to be wounded a little or a lot by life, but what to do with these wounds, the small ones, the big ones. I can let them become infected with bitterness and sadness or I can unite them to those of Jesus, so that my wounds may also become luminous". There are "so many young people who seek salvation in suicide, who prefer to go further with drugs, with oblivion, think about them, what is your drug to cover the wounds?
He went on to note: "Our wounds can become sources of hope when, instead of feeling sorry for ourselves, we wipe away the tears of others; when, instead of holding grudges for what is taken from us, we care for what is lacking in others; when, instead of digging into ourselves, we reach out to those who suffer; when, instead of thirsting for love for ourselves, we satiate those who need us."
Joy of UNIV 2023 youths
The third papal message is twofold. On the one hand, sportsmen and women, who today celebrate the World Day of Sport for Peace and Development, with the wish that "sport may contribute to solidarity and friendship among peoples".
On the other hand, Pope Francis addressed the young participants in the international meeting UNIV 2023. "I cordially greet the many Spanish-speaking pilgrims; in particular, I greet the young people who are taking part in the international meeting UNIV 2023", The young people have responded by waving flags and with shouts of 'Long live the Pope', the same as happened when he mentioned English, Portuguese or German speaking people this morning, for example.
"In these holy days, let us draw close to Jesus crucified," the Pontiff told the young people: "Contemplating him, wounded, stripped of everything, let us recognize our own truth. Let us present to him all that we are, and let us allow him to renew in us the hope of a new life.
"Very many pilgrims from Latin America, from Spain, present at this General Audience with Pope Francis, and it is noticeable by the festive atmosphere in St. Peter's Square, after the Pope's greeting in Spanish," Vatican News noted in the transmission.
The UNIV meetings, which have been held for 55 years with the participation of more than 100,000 university students, combine, in addition to cultural and intellectual formation, attendance at the liturgical ceremonies of Holy Week and audiences with the Holy Father, and a catechetical meeting with the prelate of Opus Dei, Fernando Ocáriz. This year, students from more than a hundred universities around the world are reflecting on 'True Happiness', and will financially support Caritas to support families affected by the earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
"The Crucified One, source of hope".
On the eve of the Easter Triduum, the Pope focused his meditation on the theme: "The Crucified One, Source of Hope" (Reading: 1 Pet 2:21-24). The Holy Father noted that in last Sunday's Passion narrative, "which ends with the burial of Jesus, for the disciples, the stone that sealed the tomb signified the end of hope. Today, too, it seems that hope is often buried under the weight of suffering and distrust.
"But even in the darkest moments, when it seems that everything is over, God makes the hope of a new beginning rise in us," the Pope encouraged. "It is always possible to begin. This death and resurrection of hope can be seen in contemplating the Cross. Jesus crucified is wounded, stripped of everything. Yet, loving and forgiving those who hurt him, he turns evil into good, and pain into love. He transforms his wounds into a source of hope for all. We too can transform our wounds by uniting them to those of Jesus, forgetting ourselves, and entrusting our lives into the merciful hands of God the Father".
"To be healed from sadness."
"Deep thoughts and feelings of frustration are also condensed in us: why so much indifference towards God? Why so much evil in the world? Why do inequalities continue to grow and the longed-for peace does not come? And in the hearts of each one of us, how many dashed expectations, how many disappointments! And also, that feeling that times past were better and that, in the world, perhaps also in the Church, things are not going as before... In short, even today hope sometimes seems sealed under the stone of mistrust", added the Roman Pontiff.
However, "today we look to the tree of the cross so that hope may spring up in us: so that we may be healed of the sadness with which we are sick". (...) "Today, when everything is complex and there is a risk of losing the thread, we need simplicity, to rediscover the value of sobriety, of renunciation, of cleansing what contaminates the heart and saddens. (...)".
"In these holy days let us draw near to the Crucified One. Let us place ourselves before Him, stripped naked, to tell the truth about ourselves, removing the superfluous. Let us look at Him wounded, and let us place our wounds in His wounds. Let us allow Jesus to regenerate hope in us", concluded the Holy Father Francis.
