Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!<\/p>\n\n
I am pleased to meet you and, with \nyou, to say \u2018thank you\u2019! Thank you to God and also to you, especially to \nthose who have travelled a long way to be here. Thank you for your \n\u2018yes\u2019, for having welcomed the Lord\u2019s call to live the\n Gospel and to evangelize. And a big thank-you also goes to \nthose who began the Neocatechumenal Way 50 years ago.<\/p>\n\n
Fifty is an important number in \nScripture: on the 50th day the Spirit of the Risen One descended\n upon the Apostles and manifested the Church to the world. Earlier still, God \nhad blessed the 50th year: \u201cA jubilee shall that fiftieth year \nbe to you\u201d (Lev 25:11). A holy year, in which the \nchosen people would touch by hand new realities, such as the liberation and the return \nhome of the oppressed: \u201cyou shall … proclaim liberty throughout the land to all \nits inhabitants\u201d, said the Lord. \u201ceach of you shall return to \nhis property and each of you shall return to his family\u201d (v. 10). Thus, after \n50 years of the Way it would be nice for each of you \nto say: \u201cThank you, Lord, because you have truly freed me; because I have \nfound my family in the Church; because in your Baptism \nold things have passed away and I enjoy a new life\u201d (cf. 2 Cor 5:17); \nbecause through the Way you have indicated the path for me to discover your \ntender, Fatherly love\u201d.<\/p>\n\n
Dear brothers and sisters, at the end \nyou will sing the \u201cTe Deum of thanksgiving for God\u2019s love and\n faithfulness\u201d. This is very beautiful: to thank God for his love and for \nhis faithfulness. We often thank him for his gifts, for what he gives us, and\n it is good to do so. But it is even better to thank him for what he is, \nbecause he is the God who is faithful in love. His goodness does not depend on us. \nWhatever we do, God continues to love us faithfully. This is the \nsource of our faith, the great consolation of life. So \ntake courage; never be saddened! And when the clouds of problems \nseem to thicken heavily over your days, remember that the faithful love\n of God always shines, like a sun that does not set. Remember his goodness, \nstronger than all evil, and the gentle memory of God\u2019s love\n will help you in anguish.<\/p>\n\n
An important thank-you is still missing: to \nthose who are about to go on mission. I would like to tell you something \nheartfelt precisely regarding mission, on evangelization, which is \nthe Church\u2019s priority today. Because mission is giving voice to the faithful\n love of God; it is proclaiming that the Lord loves us and that he will never tire of me, of you,\n of us and of this world of ours, of which perhaps \nwe tire. Mission is giving what we have received. Mission is fulfilling \nJesus\u2019 mandate which we have heard and on which I would like \nto focus with you: \u201cGo therefore and make disciples of \nall peoples\u201d (cf. Mt 28:19).<\/p>\n\n
Go. Mission calls for departure. But in \nlife there is a strong temptation to linger, to avoid risks, to \nbe content to have the situation under control. It is easier to stay \nhome, surrounded by those who love us, but this is not \nJesus\u2019 way. He sends forth: \u201cGo\u201d. He does not use half measures He does not authorize short \ntransfers or reimbursed travel, but tells his disciples, all \nhis disciples just one word: \u201cGo!\u201d. Go: a powerful call \nthat resonates in every cranny of Christian life; a clear invitation to \nalways go out, pilgrims in the world in search of the brother or sister who\n does not yet know the joy of God\u2019s love.<\/p>\n\n
But what can you do in order to go? You need to be \nagile; you cannot bring all your home furnishings. The Bible teaches this: \nwhen God freed the chosen people, he sent them into the desert\n with only the baggage of trust in him. And by becoming man, he\n himself journeyed in poverty, with nowhere to lay his head \n(cf. Lk 9:58). He asks the same manner of his own. Going requires being \nlight. To announce you must renounce. Only a Church that renounces \nthe world announces the Lord well. Only a Church free from power and \nmoney, free from triumphalism and clericalism bears witness in a credible \nway that Christ frees mankind. And those who, through his love, learn to \nrenounce passing things, embrace this great treasure: freedom. \nThey are no longer bridled by their own attachments, which always demand something more but\n never bring peace; and they feel their heart expand, without concerns, \nopen for God and for brothers and sisters.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cGo\u201d is the verb of mission and \nit tells us one more thing: that it is conjugated in the plural. The Lord does not say \u201cyou go, \nthen you, then you…\u201d, but rather, a collective \u201cgo\u201d, together! Being fully missionary \ndoes not mean one who goes alone, but those who journey together. Journeying together is \nan art to be learned, always, every day. One must be careful \n, for example, not to dictate the pace to others. Rather, it is important to \naccompany and wait, remembering that the other person\u2019s journey is not identical to\n mine. As in life no one has exactly the same pace as another, \nso it is in faith and in mission: we go forward together, without closing off and \nwithout imposing our own direction; we go forward united, as a Church,\n with the Pastors, with all brothers and sisters, without fleeing ahead and \nwithout complaining about those who have a slower pace. We are pilgrims who, \naccompanied by brethren, accompany other brethren, and it is good \nto do so personally, with care and respect for each one\u2019s journey and\n without forcing anyone\u2019s growth, because the response to God only matures \nin authentic and sincere freedom.<\/p>\n\n
The Risen Jesus says: \u201cmake \ndisciples\u201d. This is the mission. He does not say: conquer, capture, but rather, \u201cmake\n disciples\u201d, that is, share with others the gift you \nhave received, the encounter of love that has changed your life. It is the heart\n of the mission: to bear witness that God loves us and that with him true love is possible, the \nlove which leads to the offering of life everywhere, in the \nfamily, at work, by consecrated and married people. Mission \nis becoming disciples once again with Jesus\u2019 new disciples. It is \nrediscovering oneself part of a Church that is a disciple. Of course, the Church is\n a teacher, but she cannot be a teacher if she is not first a disciple, just as \nshe cannot be a mother if she is not first a daughter. This is our Mother: \na humble Church, daughter of the Father and disciple of the Teacher, happy to \nbe sister of humanity. And this dynamic of discipleship \u2014 the \ndisciple who creates disciples \u2014 is totally different from the dynamic \nof proselytism.<\/p>\n\n
Herein lies the strength of the message, so \nthe world may believe. What counts is not arguments that convince but life\n that attracts; not the capacity to impose but the courage to serve. And \nyou have it in your \u2018dna\u2019, this vocation to proclaim by living as \nfamily, after the example of the Holy Family: in humility, \nsimplicity and praise. You carry this familial atmosphere in many places \nthat are desolate and devoid of love. Make yourselves known as friends of Jesus. \nCall everyone friends and be a friend to everyone.<\/p>\n\n
\u201cGo and make disciples of all \npeoples\u201d. And when Jesus says all, he apparently wishes to emphasize that there \nis room for all people in his heart. No one is excluded. As children \nfor a father and mother: even if there are many, big ones and little ones, \neach one of them is loved wholeheartedly. Because by giving oneself, love does not \ndiminish; it grows. And it is always hopeful. Like\n parents, who see first and foremost not all the defects and shortcomings of their \nchildren, but the children themselves, and in this light they accept their \nproblems and their difficulties, as do missionaries with the \npeoples beloved by God. They do not put the negative aspects\n and things to be changed at the forefront, but \u201csee with the heart\u201d, with a gaze\n that appreciates, an approach that respects, a faith that waits patiently.\n Go on mission in this way, with the idea of \u201cplaying on home turf\u201d. Because the Lord is \nat home with each people and his Spirit has already sown the seeds before your \narrival. And thinking of our Father, who so loves the world \n(cf. John 3:16), may you be inspired by humanity, working together \nfor the joy of all (cf. 2 Cor 1:24), respected because you are neighbours, listened to\n because you are close. May you love the cultures and traditions of the peoples, \nwithout applying pre-established models. Do not begin from theories and strategies, but \nfrom concrete situations: thus the Spirit will shape the message \naccording to his times and his ways. And the Church will grow in his \nimage: united in the diversity of peoples, of gifts and \nof charisms.<\/p>\n\n
Dear brothers and sisters, your \ncharism is a great gift of God for the Church of our time. Let us \nthank the Lord for these 50 years: a round of applause for 50\n years! And looking to his paternal, fraternal and loving faithfulness, never lose \nfaith: he will protect you, spurring you at the same time to go, \nas beloved disciples, to all peoples, with humble simplicity. \nI accompany and encourage you: Go forth! And please, do not forget to pray \nfor me, who remain here!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning! I am pleased to meet you and, with you, to say \u2018thank you\u2019! Thank you to God and also to you, especially to those who have travelled a long way to be here. Thank you for your \u2018yes\u2019, for having welcomed the Lord\u2019s call to live the Gospel and to evangelize. And a big thank-you also goes to those who began the Neocatechumenal Way<\/p>\n