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At General Audience, Pope Shares a Special Prayer He Says at Night by Deborah Castellano Lubov
Curious how Pope Francis ends his day? Well, he shared this personal detail during today’s General Audience.
This morning in St. Peter’s Square, the Holy Father continued his catechesis for the Holy Year of Mercy, turning to Jesus’ healing of the leper (Lk 5:12-14).
Francis recalled that at Jesus’ time, lepers were considered unclean and bound by law to avoid contact with others. Saint Luke tells of one leper, moved by faith, who did not fear to pass among the crowds and beg Jesus to cleanse him.
“All that this man does and says, [this man] who was considered impure, is an expression of his faith!” Francis said, noting he recognizes the power of Jesus, certain of His power to cure him.
“The leper’s supplication,” the Pope explained, “shows that when we present ourselves to Jesus, long speeches are not necessary. A few words suffice, though accompanied by full confidence in His omnipotence and in His goodness. In fact, to entrust ourselves to the will of God means to submit to His infinite mercy.”
The Pope then departed from his text, saying he wanted to share something personal with those present.
“In the evening, before going to bed, I pray this brief prayer: ‘Lord, if you will, you can cleanse me!’ And I pray five ‘Our Fathers,’ one for each wound of Jesus, because Jesus has purified us with His wounds.”
“But if I do this, you can also do it at home,” Francis encouraged, telling them to say: ‘Lord, if you will, you can cleanse me!’ As one does this, Francis said, “Think of Jesus’ wounds and say an Our Father for each one of them, for Jesus always listens to us.”
The Pope, who has never shied away from gestures toward “the excluded,” recalled how Jesus stretched His hand and even touched this leper, rejected by society.
“How many times we meet a poor man who comes to us?!” Francis asked, “We can even be generous, we can have compassion, but usually we do not touch him. We offer him money, we throw it there, but we avoid touching his hand.”
When we keep this distance, the Holy Father underscored, we forget that that person is part of the Body of Christ, for Jesus taught us to not be afraid to touch the poor and excluded.
“To touch a poor man can purify us of hypocrisy and render us concerned for his condition. Touch the excluded,” Francis said, reminding those gathered of the refugees with him on the stage.
Before concluding, the Holy Father urged those present to every night kneel before God and pray: “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean!”
“And do it, do it every evening before going to bed. And now we say together this beautiful prayer: ‘Lord, if you will, you can make me clean!’” Pope Francis said.
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On ZENIT’s Web page:
Full Text: https://zenit.org/articles/general-audience-on-being-made-clean-again/
During General Audience, Pope Francis Has Refugees With Him on Stage by Deborah Castellano Lubov
Christians must not exclude, and are to welcome their suffering brothers and sisters.
Pope Francis stressed this today during his General Audience in St. Peter’s Square, where he was accompanied by a group of at least 14 refugees seated near him on the stage.
As Francis read the catechesis, he departed from his text to refer to these refugees taken to Rome by Caritas of Florence and the European University. According to Italian Vatican-news blog IlSismografo, the group was made up of young people from different countries and continents, including from Africa, Asia, Syria and Iraq.
Acknowledging how many refugees are forced to flee from their countries, Francis urged all faithful to be welcoming toward them.
“So many think that it would have been better if they would have remained in their lands, but they were suffering so much there,” Francis told the faithful.
“So many consider them excluded, please: they are our brothers! A Christian doesn’t exclude anyone,” he said.
GENERAL AUDIENCE: On Being Made Clean Again by ZENIT Staff
Here is a ZENIT translation of the address Pope Francis gave during this morning’s general audience in St. Peter’s Square.
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Dear Brothers and Sisters, good morning!
“Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean,” (Luke 5:12) is the request that we heard addressed to Jesus by a leper. This man does not only ask to be cured, but to be “purified,” that is, to be healed integrally, in body and in heart. In fact, leprosy was considered a sort of curse from God, of profound impurity. The leper had to keep himself far from everyone; he could not access the Temple or any divine service. He was far from God and far from men. Sad lives these people had!
Despite this, that leper was not resigned either to his sickness or to the dispositions that made of him someone excluded. To reach Jesus, he did not fear to infringe the law and to enter the city – something he should not do, he was prohibited to do –, and, when he found Him “he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.” (v. 12). All that this man does and says, who was considered impure, is an expression of his faith! He recognizes the power of Jesus: he is sure He has the power to cure him and that all depends on His will. This faith is the strength that enabled him to break every convention and seek the encounter with Jesus and, kneeling before Him, he calls Him “Lord.” The leper’s supplication shows that when we present ourselves to Jesus long speeches are not necessary. A few words suffice, though accompanied by full confidence in His omnipotence and in His goodness. In fact, to entrust ourselves to the will of God means to submit to His infinite mercy. I will also share something personal with you. In the evening, before going to bed, I pray this brief prayer: “Lord, if you will, you can cleanse me!” And I pray five “Our Fathers,” one for each wound of Jesus, because Jesus has purified us with His wounds. But if I do this, you can also do it at home, and say: “Lord, if you will, you can cleanse me!” –and think of Jesus’ wounds and say an “Our Father for each one of them. And Jesus always listens to us.
Jesus is profoundly affected by this man; Mark’s Gospel underscores that “moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.” (1:41). Jesus’ gesture accompanies His words and renders His teaching more explicit. Against the dispositions of the Law of Moses, which prohibited coming close to a leper (cf. Leviticus 13:45-46), Jesus stretches His hand and even touches him. How many times we meet a poor man who comes to us! We can even be generous, we can have compassion, but usually we do not touch him. We offer him money, we throw it there, but we avoid touching his hand. And we forget that that is the body of Christ! Jesus teaches us not to be afraid to touch the poor and the excluded, because He is in them. To touch a poor man can purify us of hypocrisy and render us anxious for his condition. Touch the excluded. Today, I am accompanied here by these youngsters. Many think that it would have been better for them if they had stayed in their land, but they suffered so much there. They are refugees, but so many consider them excluded: Please, they are our brothers! A Christian does not exclude anyone, but gives a place to everyone, allows everyone to come.
After curing the leper, Jesus sternly charges him not to speak about it with anyone, but says to him: “Go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.” (v. 14). This disposition of Jesus shows at least three things. The first: the grace that acts in us does not seek sensationalism. It usually moves with discretion and without clamor. To medicate our wounds and to guide us on the way of holiness it works molding patiently our heart on the Lord’s Heart, so as to assume increasingly His thoughts and sentiments. The second: by having the healing that happened verified officially by the priests and celebrating an expiatory sacrifice, the leper is readmitted in the community of believers and in social life. His reintegration completes the healing. As he himself had supplicated, now he is completely purified! Finally, by presenting himself to the priests the leper renders them testimony regarding Jesus and His messianic authority. The strength of compassion with which Jesus cured the leper led the faith of this man to open himself to the mission. He was excluded, now he is one of us.
We think of ourselves, of our miseries … Each one has his own. We think with sincerity. How many times we cover them with the hypocrisy of “good manners.” And precisely then, it is necessary to be alone, to kneel before God and pray: “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean!” And do it, do it every evening before going to bed. And now we say together this beautiful prayer: “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean!”[Original text: Italian] [Translation by ZENIT]
Greeting in Italian
A warm greeting to the Italian-speaking pilgrims! I receive with joy the faithful of the dioceses of Alba and Alghero-Bosa, accompanied by their Pastors, Monsignor Brunetti and Monsignor Morfino; the motorcyclists who have come for the Jubilee with the Bishop of Citta di Castello, Monsignor Domenico Cancian; the doctors and volunteers of the “Gemelli” Polyclinic, adherents of the initiative “Give Life with the Heart,” and I thank them for their free cardiological visits to indigents through the mobile ambulatory. Inaugurated in the same hospital last Thursday was the “Small House of Mercy,” a dormitory for persons without a fixed abode, run by Sant’Egidio Community, a concrete work of this Extraordinary Jubilee. Thank you so much!
I greet affectionately the protagonists of the Saracen’s Tournament of Arezzo, dedicated this year to the theme of Mercy, and I express my lively appreciation for their commitment to re-evoke historical events, spreading a message of peace, of dialogue and of encounter between cultures in the name of Saint Francis. Thank you! I greet the UALSI Foundation of Sant’Anastasia; and the members of the Cesare Pozzo Mutual Aid Society. May this meeting with the Successor of Peter be an encouragement in your journey of faith and evangelical testimony.
A special greeting goes to young people, the sick and newlyweds. Dear young people, Jesus calls you to be “ardent hearts”: correspond with generosity to His invitation, each one according to his talent; dear sick, offer your suffering to Christ crucified to cooperate in the redemption of the world; and you, dear newlyweds, be conscious of the irreplaceable mission to which the Sacrament of Marriage commits you.[Original text: Italian] [Translation by ZENIT]
Pope Sends Video Message to Armenia: Tsdesutiun! See You Soon! by ZENIT Staff
Here is a ZENIT translation of the text of a video message from Pope Francis to Armenians, in the lead-up to his visit to their country, which begins Friday.
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Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In a few days I will have the joy of being among you, in Armenia. Already now I invite you to pray for this Apostolic Journey. I come among you with God’s help to carry out, as the motto of the journey says, a “visit to the first Christian country.” I come as a pilgrim, in this Jubilee Year, to draw from the ancient wisdom of your people and to drink deeply from the sources of your faith, rocky as your famous crosses sculptured in stone.
I come to the mystical heights of Armenia as your brother, animated by the desire to see your faces, to pray together with you and to share the gift of friendship. Your history and the events of your beloved people arouse admiration and sorrow in me: admiration because you found in Jesus’ cross and in your genius the strength to always rise again, also from sufferings that are among the most terrible that humanity remembers; sorrow because of the tragedies that your fathers lived in their flesh. Let us not allow painful memories to take possession of our heart, even in the face of evil’s repeated assaults; let us not surrender. Let us do, rather, as Noah did, who after the flood did not tire of looking at the sky and of releasing the dove many times, until once it returned to him carrying a tender olive leaf (Genesis 8:11): it was the sign that life could be taken up again and hope could rise again.
I wish to come to you as servant of the Gospel and messenger of peace, to support your every effort on the way of peace and to share our steps on the path of reconciliation, which generates hope.
May the great Saints of your people, especially the Doctor of the Church Gregory of Narek, bless our meetings, which I await with earnest desire. In particular, I await to embrace again my Brother Karekin and, together with him, to give a renewed impetus to our path towards full unity. Last year, you came from several countries to Rome, and we prayed together at Saint Peter’s tomb. Now I come to your blessed land to reinforce our communion, to advance on the way of reconciliation and to allow ourselves to be animated by hope.
Thank you and see you soon! Tsdesutiun! [we will see each other soon]
[Original text: Italian] [Translation by ZENIT]
Thomas Aquinas and the Art of Making a Public Argument by Bishop Robert Barron
There is, in many quarters, increasing concern about the hyper-charged political correctness that has gripped our campuses and other forums of public conversation. Even great works of literature and philosophy – from Huckleberry Finn and Heart of Darkness to, believe it or not, Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason – are now regularly accompanied by “trigger warnings” that alert prospective readers to the racism, sexism, homophobia, or classism contained therein. And popping up more and more at our colleges and universities are “safe spaces” where exquisitely sensitive students can retreat in the wake of jarring confrontations with points of view with which they don’t sympathize. My favorite example of this was at Brown University where school administrators provided retreat centers with play-doh, crayons, and videos of frolicking puppies to calm the nerves of their students even before a controversial debate commenced! Apparently even the prospect of public argument sent these students to an updated version of daycare. Of course a paradoxical concomitant of this exaggerated sensitivity to giving offense is a proclivity to aggressiveness and verbal violence; for once authentic debate has been ruled out of court, the only recourse contesting parties have is to some form of censorship or bullying.
There is obviously much that can and should be mocked in all of this, but I won’t go down that road. Instead, I would like to revisit a time when people knew how to have a public argument about the most hotly-contested matters. Though it might come as a surprise to many, I’m talking about the High Middle Ages, when the university system was born. And to illustrate the medieval method of disciplined conversation there is no better candidate than St. Thomas Aquinas. The principal means of teaching in the medieval university was not the classroom lecture, which became prominent only in the 19th century German system of education; rather, it was the quaestio disputata (disputed question), which was a lively, sometimes raucous, and very public intellectual exchange. Though the written texts of Aquinas can strike us today as a tad turgid, we have to recall that they are grounded in these disciplined but decidedly energetic conversations.
If we consult Aquinas’s masterpiece, the Summa theologiae, we find that he poses literally thousands of questions and that not even the most sacred issues are off the table, the best evidence of which is article three of question two of the first part of the Summa: “utrum Deus sit?” (whether there is a God). If a Dominican priest is permitted to ask even that question, everything is fair game; nothing is too dangerous to talk about. After stating the issue, Thomas then entertains a series of objections to the position that he will eventually take. In many cases, these represent a distillation of real counter-claims and queries that Aquinas would have heard during quaestiones disputatae. But for our purposes, the point to emphasize is that Thomas presents these objections in their most convincing form, often stating them better and more pithily than their advocates could. In proof of this, we note that during the Enlightenment, rationalist philosophes would sometimes take Thomistic objections and use them to bolster their own anti-religious positions. To give just one example, consider Aquinas’s devastatingly convincing formulation of the argument from evil against the existence of God: “if one of two contraries were infinite, the other would be destroyed…but God is called the infinite good. Therefore, if God exists, there would be no evil.” Thomas indeed provides a telling response, but, as stated, that is a darn good argument. Might I suggest that it would help our public discourse immensely if all parties would be willing to formulate their opponents positions as respectfully and convincingly as possible.
Having articulated the objections, Thomas then offers his own magisterial resolution of the matter: “Respondeo dicendum quod… (I respond that it must be said…). One of the more regrettable marks of the postmodern mind is a tendency endlessly to postpone the answer to a question. Take a look at Jacques Derrida’s work for a master class in this technique. And sadly, many today, who want so desperately to avoid offending anyone, find refuge in just this sort of permanent irresolution. But Thomas knew what Chesterton knew, namely that an open mind is like an open mouth, that is, designed to close finally on something solid and nourishing. Finally, having offered his Respondeo, Aquinas returns to the objections and, in light of his resolution, answers them. It is notable that a typical Thomas technique is to find something right in the objector’s position and to use that to correct what he deems to be errant in it.
Throughout this process, in the objections, Respondeos, and answers to objections, Thomas draws on a wide range of sources: the Bible and the Church Fathers of course, but also the classical philosophers Aristotle, Plato, and Cicero, the Jewish scholar Moses Maimonides, and the Islamic masters Averroes, Avicenna, and Aviceberon. And he consistently invokes these figures with supreme respect, characterizing Aristotle, for example, as simply “the Philosopher” and referring to Maimonides as “Rabbi Moyses.” It is fair to say that, in substantial ways, Thomas Aquinas disagrees with all of these figures, and yet he is more than willing to listen to them, to engage them, to take their arguments seriously.
What this Thomistic method produces is, in its own way, a “safe space” for conversation, but it is a safe space for adults and not timorous children. Might I modestly suggest that it wouldn’t be a bad model for our present discussion of serious things.
Bishop Robert Barron is an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and the founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries.
World Day of Migrants, Refugees to Focus on Children by ZENIT Staff
“Minor migrants, vulnerable and voiceless” will be the theme of the 103rd World Day of Migrants and Refugees, to be held on 15 January 2017, according to a communiqué issued today by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Travelers.
The statement emphasises that migration is a worldwide phenomenon, not only European or Mediterranean. All continents are affected by this situation, which does not exclusively regard those in search of employment or of better living conditions, but also adults and minors who flee from real tragedies.
“It is necessary to guarantee that in every country the migrants who arrive and their families enjoy full recognition of their rights under international law. Indeed, women and children represent the most vulnerable categories within this widespread phenomenon, and minors are the most fragile, often invisible as they are without documents or unaccompanied.
“With the theme ‘Minor migrants, vulnerable and voiceless’, the Holy Father wishes to focus attention on the smallest of the small. Often children arrive alone in the host countries, are unable to make their voice heard, and easily become victims of the most serious human rights violations.
“On the occasion of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees a papal message will be published, as is customary.
The world day originates from the circular letter “The Pain and the Worries” sent by the Consistorial Congregation on 6 December 1914 to Italian diocesan ordinaries, in which for the first time it was proposed to institute an annual day for raising awareness of the phenomenon of migration and also to promote a collection in support of pastoral works for Italian emigrants and for the formation of missionaries of emigration.
As a consequence of this missive, the first World Day of Migrants and Refugees was held on 21 February 1915.
Armenia Is Under 10% Catholic, Has 27 Priests and 69 Seminarians by ZENIT Staff
In view of the Pope’s upcoming apostolic trip to Armenia (24-26 June), the Central Church Statistics Office has published the statistics relating to the Catholic Church in the country.
Armenia has a surface area of 29,800 km2 and a population of 2,914,000 inhabitants, of whom 280,000 are Catholics, equivalent to9.6% of the population. (The vast majority of the country (some 90%) is of the Armenian Apostolic Church, one of the Eastern Orthodox Churches.)
Related: Read text of Pope’s video message in lead-up to trip.
There is one ecclesiastical circumscription, and there are 20 parishes. There are currently three bishops, 27 priests, two men religious and 20 women religious. There are 69 seminarians.
The Church has one centre for Catholic education. With regard to charitable and social centres belonging to the Church or directed by ecclesiastics or religious, in Armenia there are 20 clinics, one hospital, five homes for the elderly or disabled, and three institutions of other types.
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Below is the Vatican released program, detailing Pope Francis’ apostolic visit to Armenia, June 24-26:
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Pope’s Program: June 24-26
- Friday, June 24, 2016
- 09:00: Departure by plane from Rome’s Fiumicino Airport to Yerevan
- 15:00: Arrival at the”Zvartnots” International Airport in Yerevan
- WELCOME CEREMONY at Airport
- 15:35: VISIT OF PRAYER AT THE APOSTOLIC CATHEDRAL in Etchmiadzin
- (Greetings of the Catholicos and Holy Father)
- 18:00: COURTESY VISIT TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC at the Presidential Palace
- 18:30: MEETING with CIVIL AUTHORITIES and the Diplomatic Corps in the Presidential Palace
- (Discourse of the Holy Father)
- 19:30: PERSONAL MEETING WITH THE CATHOLICOS in the Apostolic Palace
- Saturday, June 25, 2016:
- 08:45: VISIT TO THE TZITZERNAKABERD MEMORIAL COMPLEX
- 10:00: Transfer by plane to Gyumri
- 11:00: Holy Mass in Vartanants Square in Gyumri
- (Homily of the Holy Father)
- (Greeting of the Catholicos)
- 16:45: VISIT TO THE ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CATHEDRAL OF THE SEVEN PLAGUES in Gyumri
- 17:15: VISIT TO THE ARMENIAN CATHOLIC CATHEDRAL OF THE MARTYR SAINTS in Gyumri
- 18:00: Transfer by plane to Yerevan
- 19:00: ECUMENICAL MEETING AND PRAYER FOR PEACE in the Republic Square in Yerevan
- (Speeches of the Catholicos and the Holy Father)
- Sunday, June 26, 2016:
- 09:15: MEETING with ARMENIAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS at the Apostolic Palace in Etchmiadzin
- 10:00: Participation in the Divine Liturgy in the Armenian Apostolic Cathedral
- (Homily of the Catholicos) (Holy Father’s Greeting)
- ECUMENICAL LUNCH with the Catholicos, archbishops and bishops of the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Armenian Catholic Bishops, and the Cardinals and Bishops of the Papal Entourage in the Apostolic Palace
- 15:50: MEETING WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC CHURCH AND Benefactors in the Apostolic Palace
- 16:05: SIGNATURE OF JOINT DECLARATION in the Apostolic Palace
- 17:00: PRAYER in Khor Virap Monastery
- 18:15: FAREWELL CEREMONY at Airport
- 18:30: Departure by plane for Rome
- 20:40: Arrival at Rome / Ciampino
- Time zone
- Rome: UTC + 2 hours
- Yerevan: UTC + 4 hours
- Gyumri: UTC + 4 hours[Program Published by the Holy See Press Office]
The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID), on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the document “Christian witness in a multi-religious world: recommendations for conduct,” along with officials from the Roman Curia and the Italian Episcopal Conference, representatives of the World Council of Churches (WCC) and World Evangelical Alliance (WEA), as well as scholars and believers from African traditional religions, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Sikhism, Taoism and Tenrikyo, attended a meeting in Rome on Tuesday.
This document, published on 28 June 2011, was a joint venture by the PCID, the WCC and WEA, with the participation, in its first phase, of believers belonging to other religions as well.
The commemorative event, with the participation of Christians and other believers, was intended to reaffirm important issues of common concern in respect to the document.
The keynote address by Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the PCID, was followed by a video message from Rev. Shanta Premavardhana, currently president of the Seminary Consortium for Urban Pastoral Education, Chicago, USA, and previously a staff member of the WCC, on the history and evolution of the document. Short reports on the implementation of the document were presented by the co-author institutions: Bishop Miguel Àngel Ayuso Guixot for the PCID; Clare Amos and Kyriaki Avtzi for the WCC; and Prof. Thomas K. Johnson for the WEA.
“The document through the eyes of religious neighbours” was the title of the first session during which representatives of African traditional religions, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Sikhism, Taoism and Tenrikyo, presented briefly their vision of the document.
In the next session the officials of the Roman Curia and the Italian Episcopal Conference offered their contribution on “Promoting a culture of dialogue and encounter: relevance of the Christian witness document”.
The final session, “Looking forward: responding together to contemporary global realities”, was aimed at agreeing on some major points emerging from the Workshop. The duty and right of all believers to witness to his/her faith was reaffirmed, as well as the necessity for mutual respect and interreligious dialogue. This implies the freedom of religion, to be respected by all and guaranteed by the states through appropriate laws.
The participants encouraged the organisations responsible for the original document to consider how the “spirit” of the document could be extended to enable interreligious discussions on issues such as the ethics of witness and freedom of religion. They expressed their gratitude to the PCID for organising the event and offered their good wishes to the Muslim participants for Ramadan and ‘Id al-Fitr.
Forum: ‘Making Earthly Life More Heavenly: Marriage Jubilarians’ by Cardinal Donald Wuerl
Below is a reflection of Cardinal Donald Wuerl, Archbishop of Washington, entitled ‘Making Earthly Life More Heavenly: Marriage Jubilarians.’ Published on June 19th, it is from Cardinal Wuerl’s blog:
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Today, it is once again my privilege to celebrate a special Mass for married couples marking a significant jubilee anniversary. It is a day of profound love and thanks for 25, 50, 60 or even 75 years of married life together.
The lives of these couples who have lived many years together are beautiful, but they have also not always been easy. They have had their share of difficulties and struggles. Yet they have arrived, united, to mark this special moment – and they are committed to marking as many more as God will grant. They also offer our world today a greatly-needed witness in faith, hope and love.
Pope Francis, in his recent apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, has provided us beneficial pastoral advice on how all married couples and their families might find and experience that lasting and fruitful love that never gives up. This coming Thursday, June 23, I will give a talk on our Holy Father’s exhortation following the 5:15 p.m. Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and you are invited to attend.
Last year, I also released a small work, “The Marriage God Wants for You: Why the Sacrament Makes All the Difference,” to help people gain a greater understanding of and appreciation for marriage and family. In addition to my humble reflections, in this book are the testimonies of many married couples who, by their personal witness, offer invaluable lessons in the art and practice of married life.
In speaking with couples who have been married for many years, I am struck by how many say that what ultimately meant the most over the years were the small gestures – the quiet, ordinary acts done in love. They tell about the moment of discovery when one spouse suddenly realizes how much the other sacrifices each day, how one secretly scrimps and saves so that the other, or their children, can know a greater joy. Again and again I hear about the unassuming giving of time, attention, consolation and affection for the sake of that special someone else.
What these jubilarian couples have learned is that age-old wisdom that it is the little things that count a great deal – these moments represent true gifts, far more valuable in what is really important than rings and bouquets. These gestures are the summary expressions of a love that cannot be contained by a box, wrapped up in paper, or tied with a bow.
For Christians, marriage has great dignity because of the divine reality that is signifies. Marriage in all its richness signifies the union of Christ with the Church and the unity of the Blessed Trinity, the glory of heaven and the healing of the human family. But it does more than signify. As a sacrament, it brings about what it signifies. It gives husband and wife a share of the life of the Trinity and the divine power to make earthly life more heavenly.
It is easy to stay together in good times – these hardly need a vow. It is the bad times that present the challenge. To help them through the bad to attain the good, in the sacrament they receive God’s grace.
Marriage – your marriage – is a primary concern for the God who created you. If each spouse calls upon that grace, the couple will pull through the difficult times and will emerge stronger. Sadly, I fear many people have lost the habit of making use of this help. As a result, society and especially marriage and family have suffered terribly. However, with personal commitment, as expressed in the marriage vow, together with accepting the help that God offers, a new dawn will follow the dark night.
Staying true in the midst of surprising change and challenge, stress and sorrows – that is the story of couples in strong, loving marriages. They are not “perfect” couples because there is no such thing. But successful husbands and wives are those who learn to live with another’s imperfections and to live in a way that is not oppositional, but complementary. Each learns to be a source of strength for the other, making up for the other’s particular weaknesses, while knowing that the other is doing the same.
More than once, an elderly person has said to me of their long-time spouse, “You know, I love her (or him) more now that I did the day we were married.” It is enough to bring tears to my eyes. These long-married couples testify by their very lives that love can indeed bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, endure all things (see 1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Amoris Laetitia, 89 et seq.).
It is a testament not only of their love, but of God’s. As these spouses each “look upon one who looks back in love,” in the words of Saint Augustine, they experience a taste of heaven itself. It is a beautiful sign of committed love, a public witness for all of us to see.
This blog post draws from passages of my book “The Marriage God Wants for You: Why the Sacrament Makes All the Difference (2015).”
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On the NET:
To the original post on Cardinal Wuerl’s blog: http://cardinalsblog.adw.org/
English Summary of Pope’s General Audience by ZENIT Staff
Here is the Vatican-provided English-language summary of Pope Francis’ General Audience this morning in St. Peter’s Square:
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Speaker: Dear Brothers and Sisters: In our continuing catechesis for this Holy Year of Mercy, we now consider Jesus’ healing of the leper (Lk5:12-14). As we know, lepers were considered unclean and bound by law to avoid contact with others. Saint Luke tells us that one leper, moved by faith, did not fear to pass among the crowds and beg Jesus to cleanse him. If this leper broke the law, Jesus did likewise by touching the man and cleansing him of the disease. The Lord’s example teaches us not to be afraid to reach out and touch the poor and the needy in our midst. Significantly, the encounter does not end there. Jesus tells the healed leper to present himself to the priest to make the prescribed offering, and as a testimony to his healing. In this way, he shows us that his miracles of healing aim at the rehabilitation of sinners and that true faith bears fruit in witness. The Lord invites each of us to feel our own need and to ask for his healing touch. Like the leper, may we turn to Jesus in faith and let our lives proclaim his gifts of mercy, forgiveness and spiritual rebirth.
Speaker: I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Scotland, Sweden, China and the United States of America. In a special way I greet the many student groups present. With prayerful good wishes that the present Jubilee of Mercy will be a moment of grace and spiritual renewal for you and your families, I invoke upon all of you joy and peace in our Lord Jesus Christ.
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