Pope:
parish must be 'privileged place' of listening, proclamation
(Vatican
Radio) Faithful from the Diocese of Isernia-Venafro paid a return visit to Pope
Francis on Saturday.
The
Pope received the pilgrims in an audience and recalled the message of
solidarity he shared with them during his pastoral visit last July.
He
also spoke of the call of parishes to be missionary communities.
“Every
parish is called to be a privileged place of listening and of the proclamation
of the Gospel; a house of prayer gathered around the Eucharist; a true school
of communion, where the ardour of charity prevails over the temptation of a
superficial and dry religiosity,” said Pope Francis to pilgrims from the
southern Italian Diocese of Isernia-Venafro.
The
Pope said he hopes the current Jubilee of the Diocese of Isernia-Venafro and
the upcoming Extraordinary Year of Mercy will renew a “vigorous missionary
spirit,” especially in parishes, where the communion of the church finds its
“most immediate and visible expression.”
Speaking
to the pilgrims, the Pope said their local Jubilee is an opportunity to “return
to the Gospel,” to reconcile with one’s neighbour and to renew the desire to
bring love to the marginalized and to those who suffer.
He
noted the many social problems that continue to afflict the southern Italian
region, namely sharp unemployment among youth; the lack of adequate social
services for families, the elderly, or people with illness or disability.
The
Pope said this “worrying situation” requires a “general mobilisation” at all
levels of society, both public and private, adding that “concrete steps” in
creating employment cannot be postponed.
“Christian
hope, founded on the resurrected Christ, and accompanied by a large charitable
effort towards those most in need” is what is most called for “when
difficulties seem to obfuscate… a better future,” he said.
“Problems
are overcome with solidarity,” the pope said, directing his message
specifically to young people and to those present, and noting that he issued
the same message during his pastoral visit last year.
He
concluded, urging the pilgrims to be “witnesses of solidarity” in their cities,
families, and places of work.
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