Pope to young French pilgrims:
I'm counting on you!
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| Pope Francis with young pilgrims from the Diocese of Aire and Dax |
Young people from the Diocese of Aire and Dax meet with Pope
Francis on Thursday, during a pilgrimage to Rome as part of Youth Days for the
Landes region of France.
By Christopher Wells
Pope Francis told the young people that their pilgrimage to
Rome gave them the opportunity to “revive within themselves the gift of faith”,
as they remembered the Apostles St Peter and St Paul, and the many witnesses
—“including young people” — “who suffered martyrdom for choosing to remain
faithful to Jesus Christ”. Some people, the Pope said, think that it is more
difficult to be Christian and live the faith than it was in the past. But Pope
Francis insisted that being Christian now is different from previous eras, but
not more difficult.
The Holy Father encouraged the French youth to take
advantage of their pilgrimage “to rediscover the Church” to which they belong;
a Church which, for two thousand years “has advanced along her pilgrim way,
sharing ‘the joys and the hopes, the grief and anguish’ of all humanity’.”
“In fact”, he continued, “seeing you I recognize the work of
the Lord Jesus who does not abandon His Church, and that allows her, thanks to
your youth, your enthusiasm, and the talents He has entrusted to you, to renew
herself and to be rejuvenated in the various phases of her long history”.
Pope Francis encouraged them “to remain united to the Lord
Jesus by means of listening to the Word, the practice of the sacraments, the
fraternal life, and through service to others”. In the Church, he said, “you
can recognize the message of Jesus that God wants to offer to the world through
what is unique in your life”.
He called on them to always be “builders of bridges between
people, seeking to advance a ‘culture of encounter and of dialogue, in order to
contribute to the coming of an authentic human fraternity’.” By caring for the
smallest and poorest amongst us, the Pope told them, “you can light stars in
the night of the many who are tried in various ways”.
“I’m counting on you!” Pope Francis said. “The Church needs
your spirit, your intuitions, your faith, your courage!”
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