The
Pope is on the move: today Holguin
(Vatican
Radio) The head of Vatican Radio's English Programme Sean Patrick Lovett is
travelling with Pope Francis in Cuba. As he tells us:"
Yesterday Havana. Today Holguin. Tomorrow Santiago de Cuba". But let's
listen to his report:
The
Pope is on the move. " Yesterday Havana. Today Holguin. Tomorrow
Santiago de Cuba".
And
it was time. Time to change the narrative - from political to pastoral.
Inevitably
the two days spent in the Cuban capital had strong political connotations, both
in terms of who he met, who he didn't meet, what he said, and what he didn't.
But
this visit is so much more than that. It goes beyond dissidents or peace talks
in Colombia, beyond embargoes or even the Castro brothers. It is, first and
foremost, a pilgrimage. And it truly got underway today in Holguin - on the
Feast of the apostle and evangelist Saint Matthew.
There
are no coincidences - certainly not where Pope Francis is concerned. If you
really want to understand his pastor's heart, then read his homily at the Mass
in Plaza de la Revolución in Holguín. In it he recounts the story of the
conversion of St Matthew. But, between the lines, he is telling the story of
his own conversion - the "unlocking" of his own heart that took place
in 1953, on the Feast of St Matthew, when Jorge Bergoglio was 17 years old. In
the homily he speaks about mercy and mission, about joy and service,
transformation, healing and hope (beginning to sound familiar?).
My
favorite line is when he invites us to "...look beyond, not to be
satisfied with appearances or with what is politically correct"...
By
the way, you will also understand why, when he was consecrated Bishop, he chose
the motto he did - the same motto he has kept as Pope: "Miserando atque
eligendo". Usually translated as "Lowly but Chosen", the literal
meaning in Latin reads: "By having mercy, by choosing him". Not many
people know that.
And
the connections don't end there. Why bother flying one and a half hours across
the island from Havana to Holguín just to say Mass? Because no other Pope has,
that's why. Despite it being Cuba's third largest city, it was not on the
itinerary of either John Paul II when he visited in 1998, or Benedict XVI in
2012. And we all know how much Pope Francis loves the peripheries, the
places (and the people) that are left out.
Tomorrow
we'll be in Santiago de Cuba for the culmination of this papal pilgrimage when
Francis will celebrate another Mass and venerate Our Lady of Charity of El
Cobre, and where he will probably...
Oh,
but don't let me spoil the surprise. When you travel with Pope Francis you
really do have to take it one day at a time, trust me.
With
the Pope in Cuba - I'm Seán-Patrick Lovett
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