Cardinal Erdő: "We Catholics in Hungary await the Pope with great affection".Hungary welcomes Pope Francis once againOn this third Sunday of Easter, Pope Francis commented on the Regina Caeli prayer "the encounter of the Risen Jesus with the disciples of Emmaus," as narrated in the Gospel. And in order to imitate them in this "dialogue with Jesus" and in the request that "at sunset He stay with us", "there is a good way to do this. It consists in dedicating a moment each evening to a brief examination of conscience. It is precisely a matter of rereading my day, opening my heart, bringing to him the people, the things that have happened, so as to gradually learn to look at things with different eyes, with his eyes, and not only with our own.
This was the Holy Father's proposal this Sunday, before about forty thousand Romans and pilgrims present in St. Peter's Square. The proposal includes an immediate beginning. "We can begin today," he said, "by dedicating this evening to a moment of prayer during which we ask ourselves: How was my day? What happened? What was the day like? What were its pearls, perhaps hidden, for which to give thanks? Was there a little love in what I did? And what are the sadnesses, the doubts, the fears, that I should bring to Jesus? So that he may open up new lives for me, comfort me and encourage me".
Following the recitation of the Marian prayer of the Regina caeliwhich replaces the Angelus during this time of Easter, the Holy Father announced that "from next Friday, the Angelus will be celebrated on the following Friday. I will travel to Budapest, Hungarywhere I will be three days to complete the trip that I made in 2021 on the occasion of the International Eucharistic Congress. It will be an opportunity to embrace again a Church and a people very dear to us".
"It will also be a journey to the center of Europe, over which the icy winds of war continue to blow, while the displacement of so many people puts urgent humanitarian issues on the agenda," the Pope added. "But now I wish to address you with affection, my Hungarian brothers and sisters, as I look forward to visiting you as a pilgrim, friend and brother to all, and to greet, among others, your authorities, bishops, priests, consecrated persons, young people, university students and the poor. I know that you are preparing my visit with great effort: I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I ask all of you to accompany me with prayer during this travel".
"And let us not forget our Ukrainian brothers, still afflicted by this war," and to pray for "an end to the violence in Sudan and to embark on the path of dialogue." he added.
It should be recalled that Omnes published in 2021 a comprehensive interview with Cardinal Péter Erdő, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest and Primate of Hungary, on the occasion of the trip that Pope Francis actually made in September of that year to the Hungarian country. You can see here the second delivery.
"Rereading our history with Jesus."
Before the Regina caeli, as noted, the Holy Father summed up the desolation of the disciples of Emmaus, as described in the Gospel of today's Sunday Mass. "It is about two disciples who, resigned to the death of the Master, on Easter Day decide to leave Jerusalem and return home. As they walk along sadly talking about what has happened, Jesus approaches them, but they do not recognize him. He asks them why they are so sad, and they exclaim, 'Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know what happened in these days? And they tell him the whole story. As they walk along, Jesus helps them to reread the events in a different way, in the light of the Word of God. Rereading is what Jesus does with them".
Pope Francis dwelt on this aspect. "For us too, it is important, in fact, to reread our history, the history of our life with Jesus, of our journeys, with disappointments and hopes. We too, like those disciples, can find ourselves lost in the midst of events. Alone and without certainties, with many questions and worries",
"Another light for what seems fatiguing."
"Today's Gospel invites us to tell Jesus everything, with sincerity, without being afraid of saying the wrong things, without being ashamed of what we find difficult to understand," the Holy Father suggested. "The Lord is pleased when we open ourselves to him. Only in this way can he take us by the hand, accompany us, and make our hearts burn again."
We too, like the disciples of EmmausThe Pope added, "We are called to dialogue with Jesus, so that in the evening he will stay with us. There is a good way to do this. And today I would like to propose it to you". It is here that he proposed the brief daily examination of conscience every evening, as mentioned at the beginning.
The Pope then reviewed some challenges that can often happen to us, and which can be helped by the time of the examen: "In this way we can relive the experience of those two disciples. Before the love of Christ, even what seems difficult can appear in a different light. The cross that is difficult to embrace, the choice to forgive an offense, a victory not achieved, the weariness of work, the sincerity that is difficult, the trials of family life, will appear to us in a new light, that of the Risen Crucified One who knows how to transform every fall into a step forward.
"But to do this it is important to remove our defenses, to leave time and space to Jesus, not to hide anything from him, to bring him our miseries, to allow ourselves to be wounded by his truth, to allow our hearts to vibrate with the breath of his word," he added. "May Mary, the wise Virgin, help us to recognize Jesus, who walks with us, and to reread before him every day of our life," he concluded.
Beatification in Paris
Along with the reference to his apostolic journey to Hungary, the Holy Father recalled that "yesterday, in Paris, Henry Planchat, a priest of the Congregation of St. Vincent de Paul, and Ladislaus Radigue and three fellow priests of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary were beatified. Pastors animated by apostolic zeal, they are united in the witness of the faith until their martyrdom, which they suffered in Paris in 1871 during the so-called Paris Commune. Let us applaud the new Blesseds.
Yesterday was celebrated World Earth Day, around which the Pope asked "that the commitment to creation always go hand in hand with an effective solidarity with the poor". The Pontiff also recalled the 99th anniversary of the Catholic University of Sacro Cuore in Milan. "I wish the largest Italian Catholic Athenaeum to face this challenge with the spirit of the founders, especially of the young Armida BarelliShe was proclaimed blessed a year ago," he said.
