José Antonio Ruiz: "The Holy Land is the map of salvation".An intense appeal by Pope Francis to prayer and fasting for the Holy Land, and pleas for the release of hostages, for the war not to affect civilians, and for the opening of humanitarian corridors in Gaza, were the main messages at the Angelus on Sunday, October 15, at St. Peter's, the memorial of St. Teresa of Jesus.
"Prayer is the holy strength to oppose terrorism and war. I invite all believers to join the Church in the Holy Land on Tuesday, October 17, to prayer and fasting," added the Pope, who then prayed at length a Hail Mary to Our Lady.
Earlier, he had revealed that "I follow with a lot of pain what happens in Israel and PalestineI am thinking especially of the little ones and the elderly. Brothers and sisters, so many people have already died. Please, let no more innocent blood be shed in the Holy Land or in Ukraine or anywhere else. Wars are always a failure.
The Pontiff has thus echoed the request of the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, who has invited Christians to unite to a day of prayer and fasting for peace at Holy LandThe bishops from all over the world are joining in, such as the bishops of the Spanish prelates.
"Making room for God".
Before the Angelusthe Pope meditated on the gospel parable St. Matthew tells about the king who was celebrating his son's wedding, and he sent servants to summon those invited to the wedding, but they did not want to go. So they went out into the streets to invite everyone they could find, and the hall was filled with guests.
The Pope pointed out that "God calls us to be with him", not in a relationship of submission, "but of fatherhood and filiation". And he quoted the well-known expression of St. Augustine: "God, who created you without you, cannot save you without you" (Sermo CLXIX, 13). And certainly not because he lacks capacity - he is omnipotent! - but because, being love, he respects our freedom to the utmost. God proposes himself, he never imposes himself".
Then, the Holy Father said with a certain solemnity: "the drama of history is the no to God", The guests were busy with their own things. Jesus invites us to make room for God. "It is worthwhile, because it is good to be with the Lord, to make room for him. Where? At Mass, in listening to the Word, in prayer and also in charity, because helping those who are weak or poor, keeping company to those who are alone, listening to those who ask for attention, consoling those who suffer, we are with the Lord, who is present in those who are in need".
"Let us ask ourselves," Francis continued, "how do I respond to God's invitations? What space do I give Him in my days? Does the quality of my life depend on my business and my free time, or rather on my love for the Lord and my brothers and sisters, especially those most in need?"
"May Mary, who with a "yes" made room for God, help us not to be deaf to his invitations," the Pope concluded before praying the Angelus and giving his blessing.
Therese of the Child Jesus: great saint and doctor of the Church
All recent Popes have extolled the figure of St. Therese of the Child Jesus, also known as St. Therese of Lisieux (France). This Sunday, October 15, the memorial of St. Teresa of Avila, Pope Francis has done so once again. catechesis in the cycle on the passion for evangelization.
"Today was published the Apostolic Exhortation about St. Therese, entitled C'est la confiance. Indeed, this great saint and doctor of the Church is characterized by her love and trust in the heart of Jesus and his Gospel," the Pope told the Roman pilgrims and faithful from all over the world before concluding.
"C'est la confiance et rien que la confiance qui doit nous conduire à l'Amour." "Trust, and nothing but trust, can lead us to Love." writes the Pope at the beginning of the exhortation. It is the first and central idea of his 53-point text on St. Teresa of the Child Jesus, Discalced Carmelite, patroness of the missions, doctor of the Church, like the saint of Avila, and "one of the best known and most beloved saints throughout the world," the Pope writes.
"These very forceful words of St. Teresa of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face say it all," adds the Roman Pontiff, "summarize the genius of her spirituality and would suffice to justify her being declared a Doctor of the Church. Trust alone, nothing else, there is no other way by which we can be led to the Love that gives everything. With trust, the wellspring of grace overflows in our lives, the Gospel becomes flesh in us and turns us into channels of mercy for our brothers and sisters".
"It will do us good to deepen our understanding of his message as we commemorate the 150th anniversary of his birth, which took place in Alençon on January 2, 1873, and the centenary of his beatification. But I have not wished to make this Exhortation public on one of these dates, or on the day of his memory," Francis adds, "so that this message may go beyond that celebration and be assumed as part of the spiritual treasure of the Church. The date of this publication, in memory of Saint Teresa of JesusThe aim is to present St. Teresa of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face as the mature fruit of the Carmelite reform and the spirituality of the great Spanish saint".
The Holy Father also recalls that "the Church quickly recognized the extraordinary value of her figure and the originality of her evangelical spirituality"; he cites some occasions on which recent Popes have dealt with this French saint of Carmel, and evokes that "I had the joy of canonizing her parents Louis and Celia in 2015, during the Synod on the family, and recently I dedicated a catechesis to her in the cycle on apostolic zeal."
Caucasus crisis
The Pope also said at the Angelus that "my concern about the crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh does not diminish," in the CaucasusThe Pope made an "appeal for the protection of the monasteries of this region", that they "be respected and protected as part of the local culture, as an expression of faith".
The Holy Father also expressed his "closeness to the Jewish community of Rome," which tomorrow will remember the moment when the Nazis took them from their homes, and praised the work of more than 400 young missionaries of New Horizons, and other associations and communities, who since yesterday have been engaged in a mission in the streets of Rome.
