In his homily at the Solemn Mass of Pentecost, inside St. Peter's Square, and with red chasubles on the Pope himself and on the celebrants, Pope Francis made a strong appeal to the people to be "the first to be baptized" and "the first to be baptized". appeal Let us build harmony in the Church". "Let us put the Holy Spirit back at the center of the Church, (...), let us put the Spirit at the beginning and at the center of the synodal work".
"Today the Word of God shows us the Holy Spirit at work. We see him at work in three moments: in the world he created, in the Church and in our hearts," the Pope began his homily. And in the second part, saying that "in addition to being present in creation, we see him at work in the Church since the day of Pentecost, he pointed out, among other things, that the Holy Spirit is at work in the world he created, in the Church and in our hearts:
"The Synod that is taking place is - and must be - a journey according to the Spirit; not a parliament to claim rights and needs according to the agenda of the world, not the occasion to go where the wind takes us, but the opportunity to be docile to the breath of the Spirit. Because, in the sea of history, the Church sails only with Him, who is 'the soul of the Church' (St. Paul VI, Address to the Sacred College for the congratulations onomastics, June 21, 1976), the heart of synodality, the motor of evangelization", Pope Francis has called the Holy Spirit.
"Without Him the Church remains inert, faith is a mere doctrine, morals only a duty, pastoral work a simple job," he continued. "Sometimes we listen to so-called thinkers, theologians, who give us cold doctrines, they seem mathematical because inside they lack the Spirit. With Him, instead, faith is life, the love of the Lord conquers us and hope is reborn. Let us put the Holy Spirit at the center of the Church, otherwise our hearts will not be inflamed with love for Jesus, but for ourselves. Let us put the Spirit at the beginning and at the center of the work of the Synod. For it is 'him, above all, whom the Church needs today. Let us say to him every day: Come!' (cf. General Audience, 29 November 1972)".
The Spirit, at the center of the synod's work
He then appealed for harmony and "walking together", basing his meditation on Scripture: "And let us walk together, because the Spirit, as at Pentecost, loves to descend while 'all are gathered together' (cf. Ac 2,1). Yes, in order to show Himself to the world, He chose the time and the place in which were all together. Therefore, the People of God, in order to be filled with the Spirit, must walk together in synod, thus renewing harmony in the Church: walking together with the Spirit at the center. This is how harmony is renewed in the Church: walking together with the Spirit at the center. Brothers and sisters, let us build harmony in the Church!"
Going to Our Lady in Marian sanctuaries
A few minutes later, before praying the Marian prayer for the Regina CaeliFrom the window of the Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father made a specific prayer request for these days: "With the end of the month of May, in Marian shrines throughout the world, moments of prayer are planned to prepare us for the Ordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. Let us ask the Virgin Mary to accompany this important stage of the Synod of Bishops. Synodwith her maternal protection".
And then the war in Ukraine, as she has been doing for some time: "To her we also entrust the desire for peace of so many people throughout the world. Especially, of the martyred Ukraine.
"A lot of division, a lot of discord."
During the Mass, presided over by the Holy Father and concelebrated at the main altar by Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, together with other cardinals, the Pope did not fail to refer to the divisions.
"Today in the world there is much discord, much division," he stressed. "We are all connected and yet we find ourselves disconnected from one another, anesthetized by indifference and oppressed by loneliness. Many wars, many conflicts; it seems unbelievable the evil that man can do! But, in reality, what fuels our hostilities is the spirit of division, the devil, whose name means precisely 'he who divides'. Yes, the one who precedes and exceeds our evil, our disunity, is the evil spirit, the "seducer of the whole world" (Rev 12:9). He rejoices in antagonisms, injustices and slander.
"And, faced with the evil of discord, our efforts to build harmony are not enough," Pope Francis noted. "Behold then that the Lord, at the height of his Passover, at the height of salvation, poured out upon the created world his good Spirit, the Holy Spirit, who opposes the spirit of division because he is harmony; Spirit of unity who brings peace. Let us ask him to come every day into our world!"
"The Spirit creates harmony; he invites us to let his love and his gifts, which are present in others, surprise us. As St. Paul has told us: 'There are varieties of gifts, but they all come from the same Spirit [...] For we were all baptized into one Spirit to form one body' (1 Cor 12:4,13). To see every brother and sister in the faith as part of the same body to which I belong; this is the harmonious gaze of the Spirit, this is the path that he shows us", the Pontiff added.
"Do I forgive, promote reconciliation and create communion?"
Commenting on the third aspect, "the Spirit creates harmony in our hearts," the Holy Father stressed that "we see this in the Gospel, when Jesus, on Easter evening, breathed on his disciples and said: 'Receive the Holy Spirit' (Jn 20:22). He gives it for a specific purpose: to forgive sins, that is, to reconcile souls, to harmonize hearts lacerated by evil, broken by wounds, disintegrated by feelings of guilt. Only the Spirit restores harmony to the heart because He is the One who creates "intimacy with God" (St. Basil, Spir., XIX,49). If we want harmony, let us seek Him, not worldly substitutes. Let us invoke the Holy Spirit every day, let us begin by praying to Him every day, let us be docile to Him!"
"And today, on his feast, let us ask ourselves," he invited. "Am I docile to the harmony of the Spirit or do I follow my projects, my ideas, without allowing myself to be shaped, without allowing myself to be transformed by Him? Am I quick to judge, do I point the finger and slam the door in the face of others, considering myself a victim of everything and everyone? Or, on the contrary, do I draw from His harmonious creative power, the "grace of the whole" that He inspires, His forgiveness that gives peace, and in my turn forgive, promote reconciliation and create communion?
"If the world is divided, if the Church is polarized, if the heart is fragmented, let us not waste time criticizing others and getting angry with ourselves, but let us invoke the Spirit," Francis encouraged, with the following prayer:
"Holy Spirit, Spirit of Jesus and of the Father, inexhaustible source of harmony, we entrust the world to you, we consecrate to you the Church and our hearts. Come, creative Spirit, harmony of humanity, renew the face of the earth. Come, Gift of gifts, harmony of the Church, unite us to You. Come, Spirit of forgiveness, harmony of the heart, transform us as You know how, through the intercession of Mary".
Regina Caeli: do we close in on ourselves".
Before praying the Regina Caeli, which took place after Mass at 12:00 noon, the Pope pointed out in his speech address that "with the gift of the Spirit, Jesus wants to free the disciples from the fear that keeps them locked up in their homes, so that they can go out and become witnesses and proclaimers of the Gospel. Let us dwell, then, on the Spirit who liberates from fear".
At that moment, Francis asked: "How often do we close in on ourselves? How often, because of a difficult situation, a personal or family problem, the suffering we experience or the evil we breathe around us, do we run the risk of gradually losing hope and lacking the courage to move forward? Then, like the apostles, we close in on ourselves, entrenching ourselves in the labyrinth of worries".
"The Holy Spirit delivers from fear"
"Fear blocks, paralyzes. And it isolates: let us think of the fear of the other, of the stranger, of the one who is different, of the one who thinks differently," the Pope reflected. "And there can even be fear of God: that he will punish me, that he will be angry with me... If we give space to these false fears, the doors are closed: those of the heart, those of society, and even the doors of the Church! Where there is fear, there is closed-mindedness. And that is not right," he said forcefully.
"The Gospel, however, offers us the remedy of the Risen One: the Holy Spirit. He frees from the prisons of fear. Upon receiving the Spirit, the apostles - today we celebrate it - leave the Cenacle and go out into the world to forgive sins and proclaim the Good News. Thanks to him, fears are overcome and doors are opened. Because this is what the Spirit does: he makes us feel God's closeness and thus his love casts out fear, illuminates the way, consoles, sustains in adversity," he told the faithful and pilgrims.
"A new Pentecost to chase away fears".
Finally, "in the face of our fears and our closed-mindedness, let us invoke the Holy Spirit for ourselves, for the Church and for the whole world: that a new Pentecost may drive away the fears that assail us and rekindle the fire of God's love. May Mary Most Holy, the first to be filled with the Holy Spirit, intercede for us," the Pope concluded.
After the recitation of the Marian prayer, Pope Francis recalled the 150th anniversary of the death of one of the greatest figures of literature, Alessandro ManzoniThe company has invited to "pray for the populations living on the border between Myanmar and Bangladesh, hard hit by a cycloneI appeal to the people of the Congo: more than 800,000 people, in addition to the many Rohingya who are already living in precarious conditions. As I renew my closeness to these populations, I appeal to the leaders to facilitate access for humanitarian aid, and I appeal to the sense of human and ecclesial solidarity to come to the aid of our brothers and sisters.
