Pope Leo XIV receives the editorial staff of the Jesuit review 'La Civiltà Cattolica' (@VATICAN MEDIA)
Pope Leo to La Civiltà Cattolica: Transmit that God is
our hope
Pope Leo XIV invites the Jesuit review La Civiltà
Cattolica's writers and collaborators to embrace their mission of
"perceiving the gaze of Christ upon the world, cultivating it,
communicating it, and bearing witness to it."
By Deborah Castellano Lubov
Addressing the editorial staff of the historic Jesuit review La
Civiltà Cattolica on the occasion of its 175th anniversary, Pope Leo
XIV urged those before him to transmit hope through our Lord.
La Civiltà Cattolica is one of the oldest
magazines still in existence, founded on 6 April 1850 at the behest of Blessed
Pope Pius IX. Since then, it has become an instrument for reading and
interpreting history, politics, culture, science and art in the light of the
Christian faith, in line with the positions of the Pope and the Holy See.
The Pope reminded them that as they report current events,
which often challenge our hope, they must transmit to faithful that Christians
are to keep faith.
In this context, Pope Leo quoted his late predecessor Pope
Benedict XVI, who in his 2007 encyclical Spe salvi underscored, “My
life and the history of the world are not left to chance. Providence does not
cease. It is as if I had a certainty: beyond all failures, I know that my life
is held firm by the power of God’s love. And thus hope remains, even in the
midst of shipwrecks.”
Gratitude to La Civiltà Cattolica
The Holy Father recognized the significance of the journal’s
milestone anniversary, acknowledging its enduring contribution to the Church,
saying he thanked them for their centuries-long faithful and generous
service to the Holy See.
"Your work," he expressed, "has
contributed—and continues to contribute—to making the Church present in the
world of culture, in harmony with the teachings of the Pope and the
orientations of the Holy See.”
Describing the journal as “a window on the world,” the Pope
also marveled at “one of its distinguishing features," namely its ability
"to engage with contemporary events without fear of confronting their
challenges and contradictions.”
Responsibility to educate a better society and world
In his address, Pope Leo proposed three key areas of
reflection for the community: educating people to intelligent and active
engagement in the world, giving voice to the least and the excluded, and being
heralds of hope.
On the first point of educating, Pope Leo emphasized, “What
you write can help your readers better understand the complex society in which
we live, evaluating its strengths and weaknesses.”
By doing so, he said, the review enables its readers to make
meaningful contributions to society, including in the political sphere, on
matters such as social equity, family, education, technological change, and
peace.
Fundamental aspect of the life and mission of every
Christian
The Pope then turned to the second point of being a voice
for the voiceless, and, moreover, "becoming a voice of the poor and the
excluded.”
He called this task “a fundamental aspect of the life and
mission of every Christian,” and quoted Pope Francis who called on society to
remember those who are so often discarded.
To live this mission authentically, Pope Leo XIV said,
requires humble listening and being close to those who suffer.
“Only in this way," he suggested, "is it possible
to become a faithful and prophetic echo of the voice of those in need, breaking
every circle of isolation, loneliness, and deafness.”
'Our ultimate hope in Christ'
Finally, Pope Leo called La Civiltà Cattolica to
be heralds of hope.
“This means," he reaffirmed, "standing against the
indifference of those who remain insensitive to others and to their legitimate
need for a future" and "overcoming the discouragement of those who no
longer believe in the possibility of taking new paths.”
For us, he pointed out, "the ultimate hope is Christ,
our way: ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life’ (Jn 14:6).”
“In Him and with Him," he reflected, "there are no
longer dead ends along our journey, nor are there realities—no matter how
difficult or complex—that can stop us or prevent us from loving God and our
brothers and sisters with trust.”
Christ's gaze on the world
Pope Leo went on to remember two memorable reflections the
late Pope Francis offered to La Civiltà Cattolica.
Pope Francis, Pope Leo XIV recalled, had reminded the
community to continue their work "with joy, through good journalism, which
adheres to no other allegiance than that of the Gospel," and had
underscored that a "a journal is truly ‘Catholic’ only if it has
Christ’s gaze on the world, and if it transmits and bears witness to that
gaze.”
With this sentiment, Pope Leo affirmed, “These words
summarize your mission: to perceive the gaze of Christ upon the world, to
cultivate it, to communicate it, and to bear witness to it.”
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