Vatican City, 16 February 2014 (VIS) – The Roman parish of
St. Thomas the Apostle in Infernetto, in the south of the diocese, received a
visit from Pope Francis yesterday afternoon. Upon arrival the Bishop of Rome
met with the children who will receive Communion and Confirmation this year,
and greeted the faithful in the parish square, along with recently baptised
children and their parents, the elderly and sick of the parish and the
Association of families with disabled children, and before the Holy Mass he
confessed a number of penitents.
“Once upon a time, Jesus' disciples ate wheat, because they
were hungry; but it was the Sabbath and on the Sabbath it was not permitted to
eat grain”, said the Pope in his homily. “The Pharisees said, 'Look at what
they are doing! He who does this runs counter to the law and soils his soul,
because he does not obey'. And Jesus answered, 'That which comes from outside
does not soil the soul; it that which comes from inside, from your heart, that
may soil the soul'. And I think it is good for us, nowadays, to think not of
whether or not our souls are pure or unclean, but to ask what there is within
our hearts; what do I have within, that I know I have, and which no-one else
knows. What is in our heart? Is there love? Do I love my parents, my children,
my wife, my husband, the people in my neighbourhood, the sick? Do I love them?
And is there hate in my heart? Do I hate anyone? Because often we find that
there is also hate. 'I love everyone, apart from this one, that one, or the
other ...'. This is hate, isn't it?”
“What do I have in my heart?” he continued. “Is there
forgiveness? Do I have an attitude of forgiveness towards those who have
wronged me, or is there an attitude of revenge? … We must ask ourselves what we
have inside, because what we have inside comes out and causes harm, if it is
bad; if it is good, it comes out and does good. And it is beautiful to be
truthful with ourselves, and to be ashamed of ourselves when we realise we are
in a situation that is not as God would wish”.
The Pope commented that in today's Gospel, Jesus says, “'You
have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill ... But I say
to you, whoever is angry with his brother will be liable to judgement'. And
whoever insults his brother, kills him in his heart; whoever gossips
maliciously about his brother, kills him in his heart. Perhaps we are not aware
of this … we gossip about this and that … and this is what is means to kill
one's brother. To understand one's brother, to understand people, means to
love, and to forgive: it is to understand, to forgive, and to be patient”.
“We must ask the Lord for two graces”, concluded Pope
Francis. “The first is to know what is in our hearts, so as not to be deceived.
The second is to do the good that is in our hearts, and not the ill that lies
therein. And speaking of 'killing', to remember that words may kill. Our
ill-will towards others can also kill. … It often seems that the sins of
slander and defamation have been removed from the Decalogue, and speaking ill
of a person is a sin. … Let us always ask the Lord to help us to love our
neighbours. And if we cannot love a person, why not? They we must pray for that
person, in order that the Lord might help me wish him well. And we must
continue in this way, aware that our live is rendered impure by the ill-will
that comes from our hearts”.
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