«Faith does not spare us the possibility of sin, but always offers us a way to get out of it: that of mercy. Jesus does not scandalize before our fragility. He knows well that no friendship is immune to the risk of treason. But continue to trust. He continues to sit at the table with his. It does not give up breaking the bread even for those who betray it. This is the silent strength of God: he never leaves the love table, even when he knows he will be left alone “.
Paul VI’s classroom is crowded for the general hearing of Pope Leone XIV Which, initially, should have encountered the faithful in St. Peter’s Square but, due to the great heat and the high temperatures of these days, it was moved inside the Nervi classroom where, in the front row, they sit very sick.
Before catechesis, Leone greets the faithful in different languages explaining that today the hearing will be held in several places. The faithful who have not found a place here, in fact, follow it through the gangsheres in the Basilica of San Pietro where the Pope, at the end, goes to greet them. «We try to protect ourselves on their own and with an extreme heat“He says on his arm,” Thanks for coming, welcome to all. “
In the greeting to Polish pilgrims, St. Maximilian Maria Kolbe recalls, who offered his life, in the concentration camp of Auschwitz, instead of that of a family father. “I encourage you to take example from his heroic attitude of sacrifice for the other”, The Pontiff says, “by his intercession, beg God to give peace to all the peoples who live the tragedy of war”.
In the greeting to the faithful of the Arabic language, the Pope addressed a thought “In particular to those from Iraq and the Holy Land: the Lord bless you all and always protects you from all evil».
In the catechesis, the pontiff continues the cycle of catechesis on the theme “Jesus Christ our hope” dedicated to this year jubilee and focuses on the episode of the betrayal of Jesus by his disciples during the Last Supper. A scene, the Pope defines it, “intimate, dramatic, but also deeply true”. Jesus, as the Gospel of Mark tells, begins saying: “In truth I say to you: one of you, the one who eats with me, will betray me”. “Strong words,” comments the Pope who explains its meaning: “Jesus does not pronounce them to condemn, but to show how much love, when it is true, cannot do without truth. The upper floor room, where just first it had been carefully prepared, suddenly fills with silent pain, made of questions, suspicions, vulnerability. It is a pain that we know well too, when the shadow of betrayal is insinuated in the most dear relationships. Yet the way Jesus speaks of what is about to happen is surprising. He does not raise his voice, he does not point his finger, he does not pronounce the name of Judah. He speaks in such a way that everyone can question himself. “
And that’s exactly what happens because, the evangelical story continues, the disciples “began to saddened and tell him, one after the other: ‘Is that perhaps me?” “This question -” Is it perhaps me? ” – It is perhaps among the most sincere that we can address to ourselves », underlines the Pope,”It is not the question of the innocent, but of the disciple who turns out to be fragile. It is not the cry of the culprit, but the whisper of those who, although wanting to love, know they can hurt. It is in this awareness that the path of salvation begins. Jesus does not report to humiliate. He says the truth because he wants to save. And to be saved », underlines Leone XIV,” you have to feel: feel that you are involved, feel that you are loved despite everything, feel that evil is real but does not have the last word. Only those who have known the truth of a deep love can also accept the wound of a betrayal».
The Pope then focuses on the reaction of the disciples who, remember, “It is not anger, but sadness. They are not indignant, they are saddened. It is a pain that arises from the real possibility of being involved. And precisely this sadness, if welcomed with sincerity, becomes a place of conversion. The Gospel “, Leone underlines,” does not teach us to deny evil, but to recognize it as a painful opportunity to be reborn “.
The Pope then reflects on another disturbing phrase, pronounced by Jesus who in reference to the traitor says: “Woe to that man, from whom the son of man is betrayed! Better for that man if he had never been born!”. “These are hard words, of course,” admits the Pope, “but they must be understood well: This is not a curse, it is rather a cry of pain. In Greek that “trouble” sounds like a lament, a “alas”, an exclamation of sincere and profound compassion. We are used to judging. God, on the other hand, agrees to suffer. When he sees evil, he does not take revenge, but he pains himself. And that “better if he had never been born” », explains the Pope,” is not a condemnation imposed a priori, but a truth that each of us can recognize: If we deny the love that generated us, if by betraying we become infideli to ourselves, then we really lose the meaning of our being in the world and self -excluding ourselves from salvation. Yet, right there, at the darkest point, the light does not go out. Indeed, he begins to shine ». A new beginning, a rebirth that is possible, recalls the Pope, only “if we recognize our limit, if we let ourselves be touched by the pain of Christ. Faith “, he adds,” does not spare us the possibility of sin, but always offers us a way to get out of it: that of mercy “.
The pontiff concludes his catechesis asking everyone to ask himself “with sincerity:” Is it perhaps me? “. Not to feel accused, but to open a space to the truth in our hearts », he explains,”Salvation begins from here: from the awareness that we could be the one who breaks trust in God, but that we can also be the one who collects it, keeping it, renewing it. After all, this is the hope: to know that, even if we can fail, God never fails. Even if we can betray, he doesn’t stop loving each other. And if we let ourselves be achieved by this love – humble, injured, but always faithful – then we can really be reborn. And to start living no longer from traitors, but always loved children ».
In the afternoon the pontiff moves to Castel Gandolfo For a short rest period after that of July. Several celebrations are scheduled: the mass on Friday 15 for the solemnity of the Assumption and, on Sunday 17, Mass and lunch with the poor and volunteers of the Diocesan Caritas of Albano in the Borgo Laudato Si ‘.
