The Holy Father Francis today, on the Solemnity of the Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, encouraged holy apostles Peter and PaulWe should allow ourselves to be "inspired by their stories, by the apostolic zeal that marked the path of their lives. In their encounter with the Lord, they had a true paschal experience: they were liberated and the doors of a new life opened before them".
And he described them in this way: St. Peter, "the fisherman of Galilee whom Jesus made a fisher of men. St. Paul, "the Pharisee persecutor of the Church transformed by grace into an evangelizer of the Gentiles".
At the solemn Eucharistic celebration in the Vatican Basilica with the cardinals, the new metropolitan archbishops, to whom he presented the pallium, with the bishops, priests and faithful, and with a delegation from the Patriarchate of Constantinople present at the Holy Mass, the Pope referred in his homily to Peter's release from prison, and to the next Jubilee, which will begin in the Church on December 24.
God opens the doors
"The first reading describes the episode of Peter's release from captivity (...). What is narrated to us, then, is a new exodus; God frees his Church, his people, who are in chains, and shows himself once again as the God of mercy who sustains their journey. On that night of liberation it happened that, first of all, the prison doors were miraculously opened. Then of Peter and the angel accompanying him it is said that 'they came to the iron gate leading into the city. The gate opened by itself before them'. It was not they who opened the gate, but it opened by itself."
"It is God who opens the doors," the Pontiff stressed. "It is He who frees and clears the way. To Peter - as we hear in the Gospel - Jesus had entrusted the keys of the Kingdom. But Peter experiences that it is the Lord who opens the doors first, because he always precedes us.
The itinerary of the Apostle Paul is also, first of all, a paschal experience, the Pope pointed out. "He, in fact, was first transformed by the Risen One on the road to Damascus and then, in the unceasing contemplation of Christ crucified, he discovered the grace of weakness; when we are weak, he said, in reality, just then, we are strong because we no longer cling to ourselves, but to Christ. Clinging to the Lord and crucified with him, Paul wrote, 'I no longer live, but Christ lives in me.
The Jubilee and the doors of evangelization
"Let us pause to consider precisely the image of the door. The JubileeIndeed, it will be a time of grace during which we will open the Holy Doorso that all may have the opportunity to cross the threshold of the living sanctuary that is Jesus and, in him, experience the love of God that strengthens hope and renews joy. In the story of Peter and Paul, too, there are doors that open. Let us meditate on this.
"Brothers and sisters, the two Apostles Peter and Paul had this experience of grace," he continued. "They, in the first person, experienced the work of God, who opened to them the doors of their inner prison and also of the royal prisons, where they were imprisoned because of the Gospel. He also opened before them the doors of evangelization, so that they could experience the joy of meeting with the brothers and sisters of the newborn communities and bring the hope of the Gospel to all.
"Therefore, as we prepare to open the Holy Door, this message is also for us. We too need the Lord to open the doors of our hearts - sometimes blocked by fear, closed by selfishness, sealed in indifference or resignation - so that we can open ourselves to an encounter with him," the Pope said. "We too need a gaze capable of recognizing which doors the Lord opens for the proclamation of the Gospel, to rediscover the joy of evangelizing and to overcome the feelings of defeat and pessimism that contaminate pastoral action."
Message when imposing the pallium
In conclusion, Francis referred to the imposition of the pallium "on the metropolitan archbishops appointed during the past year. In communion with Peter and following the example of Christ, the door of the sheep, they are called to be diligent shepherds who open the doors of the Gospel and who, through their ministry, help to build a Church and a society with open doors".
The Pontiff also greeted "with fraternal affection the Delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate: thank you for having come to express the common desire for full communion between our Churches. May Saints Peter and Paul help us to open the door of our lives to the Lord Jesus; may they intercede for us, for the city of Rome and for the whole world. Amen.
Angelus: authority is service, release of prisoners
At noon, the Pope leaned out of the window of the Apostolic Palace and prayed the Angelus with the faithful. In his brief meditation, Francis recalled some ideas from his morning homily and emphasized, in considering Jesus' promise to give Peter the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, that "authority is a service. Otherwise, it is a dictatorship".
He also pointed out that his mission was not to close the doors of the house, but to help everyone find the way in, "everyone, everyone", and that he did not entrust him with the keys because he was not a sinner, but "because he was humble and honest".
Finally, he remembered the families, the elderly alone, the sick, and asked for prayers for those who suffer from wars, for peace in the world, and for the release of all prisoners, while rejoicing in the release of two Greek Catholic priests.
