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26 Nov DISCORSO DEL SANTO PADRE FRANCESCO AI COMPONENTI DELLA DIREZIONE CENTRALE ANTICRIMINE

Posted at 14:57h in by

[…] Cari amici, come vi dicevo, vi sono grato perché il nostro incontro attira
l’attenzione sulla Giornata internazionale di quest’anno, che chiama ad unirsi per
combattere insieme ogni forma di violenza contro le donne. In effetti, per vincere
questa battaglia non basta un corpo specializzato, per quanto efficiente; non
bastano l’opera di contrasto e le necessarie azioni repressive. Bisogna unirsi,
collaborare, fare rete: e non solo una rete difensiva, ma soprattutto una rete
preventiva! Questo è sempre decisivo quando si cerca di eliminare una piaga sociale
che è legata anche ad atteggiamenti culturali, a mentalità e pregiudizi radicati.
Dunque voi, con la vostra presenza, che può diventare a volte una testimonianza,
fungete anche da stimolo nel corpo sociale: uno stimolo a reagire, a non
rassegnarsi, ad agire. È un’azione – dicevamo – anzitutto di prevenzione. Pensiamo
alle famiglie. Abbiamo visto che la pandemia, con l’isolamento forzato, ha purtroppo
esasperato certe dinamiche all’interno delle mura domestiche. Le ha esasperate,
non create: si tratta infatti di tensioni spesso latenti, che si possono risolvere
preventivamente a livello educativo. Questa, direi, è la parola-chiave: educazione. E
qui la famiglia non può essere lasciata sola. Se sulle famiglie ricadono in massima
parte gli effetti della crisi economica e sociale, ed esse non sono adeguatamente
sostenute, non possiamo meravigliarci che lì, nell’ambiente domestico, chiuso, con
tanti problemi, esplodano certe tensioni. E su questo punto ci vuole prevenzione.
Un altro aspetto decisivo: se nei mass-media si propongono in continuazione
messaggi che alimentano una cultura edonistica e consumistica, dove i modelli, sia
maschili sia femminili, obbediscono ai criteri del successo, dell’autoaffermazione,
della competizione, del potere di attrarre l’altro e dominarlo, anche qui, non
possiamo poi, in modo ipocrita, stracciarci le vesti di fronte a certi fatti di cronaca.
Questo tipo di condizionamento culturale si contrasta con un’azione educativa che
ponga al centro la persona, con la sua dignità. Mi viene in mente una Santa dei
nostri tempi: Santa Giuseppina Bakhita. Sapete che a lei è intitolata l’opera
ecclesiale che lavora accanto alle donne vittime della tratta. Suor Giuseppina
Bakhita ha subito nella sua infanzia e giovinezza pesanti violenze; si è riscattata
pienamente accogliendo il Vangelo dell’amore di Dio ed è diventata testimone della
sua forza liberatrice e risanatrice. Ma non è l’unica: ci sono tante donne, alcune

sono “sante della porta accanto”, che sono state guarite dalla misericordia, dalla
tenerezza di Cristo, e con la loro vita testimoniano che non bisogna rassegnarsi, che
l’amore, la vicinanza, la solidarietà delle sorelle e dei fratelli può salvare dalla
schiavitù. Per questo dico: alle ragazze e ai ragazzi di oggi, proponiamo queste
testimonianze. Nelle scuole, nei gruppi sportivi, negli oratori, nelle associazioni,
presentiamo storie vere di liberazione e di guarigione, storie di donne che sono
uscite dal tunnel della violenza e possono aiutare ad aprire gli occhi sulle insidie,
sulle trappole, sui pericoli nascosti dietro i falsi modelli di successo.
Cari amici, il mio duplice “grazie” lo accompagno con la preghiera per voi e per il
vostro lavoro. Intercedano per voi la Vergine Maria e Santa Bakhita. Di cuore
benedico tutti voi e le vostre famiglie. E vi chiedo per favore di pregare per me.
Grazie.

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10 Oct ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO THE PILGRIMAGE OF YOUNG PEOPLE FROM BELGIUM

Posted at 13:22h in by

[…] As ambassadors of Belgian youth for the preparation of World Youth Day 2023
in Portugal, I invite you to cultivate closeness to all young people, especially those
who live in precarious situations, young migrants and refugees, young people on
the street, without forgetting others, especially those who experience a life of
loneliness and sadness. […]

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10 Oct ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO THE PILGRIMS GATHERED FOR THE CANONIZATION OF BLESSED GIOVANNI BATTISTA SCALABRINI

Posted at 13:20h in by

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!
You are all celebrating, aren’t you? I thank Fr Chiarello for his words of greeting and
presentation. I am pleased to be able to spend some time with you, who
participated yesterday in the Eucharistic celebration and in the Canonization of
Blessed John Baptist Scalabrini. You are a very diverse group — this is good! There
are missionaries, missionary sisters, secular missionaries and lay Scalabrinians;
there are faithful from the dioceses of Como and Piacenza; and then there are
migrants from many countries: a good mix, and this is good. In this way, you
represent well the breadth of the work of Bishop Scalabrini, the openness of his
heart, for which, so to speak, one diocese was not enough.
His apostolate in support of Italian emigrants was of great relevance. In that time,
thousands left for the Americas. Bishop Scalabrini viewed them with the gaze of
Christ, of which the Gospel speaks; for example, Matthew writes: “When he saw the
crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless,
like sheep without a shepherd” (Mt 9:36). And he took care, with great charity and
pastoral intelligence, to guarantee them adequate material and spiritual assistance.
Today, too, migration constitutes a very important challenge. It highlights the
urgent need to put fraternity before rejection, solidarity before indifference. Today,
every baptized person is called upon to reflect God’s gaze towards migrant and
refugee brothers and sisters — there are many of them — to let his gaze broaden
our own gaze, thanks to the encounter with humanity on the move, through
tangible closeness, following the example of Bishop Scalabrini.
We are called today to live out and spread the culture of encounter, an encounter
on an equal footing between migrants and the people of the host country. It is an
enriching experience, inasmuch as it reveals the beauty of diversity. And it is also
fruitful, because the faith, hope and tenacity of migrants can be an example and a
spur for those who want to commit themselves to building a world of peace and
well-being for all. And for it to be for everyone, as you well know, we must start

from the last: if we don’t start out from the last, it isn’t for everyone. As in
mountain hikes: if the ones in front run, the group breaks up, and the first ones
after a while burst out; if instead you keep pace with the last ones, you all go
together. This is a rule of wisdom. When we walk, when we go on a pilgrimage, we
always need to walk at the pace of the least.
To make fraternity and social friendship grow, we are all called upon to be creative,
to think “outside the box”. We are required to open up new spaces where art, music
and being together become tools for intercultural dynamics, where the richness of
the encounter with diversity can be savoured.
Therefore, I urge you, Scalabrinian missionaries, to always let yourselves be
inspired by your founder Saint, father of migrants, of all migrants. May his charism
renew in you the joy of being with migrants, of being at their service, and of doing
so with faith, inspired by the Holy Spirit, in the conviction that in each one of them
we encounter the Lord Jesus. And this will help you have the style of generous
giving, of sparing no physical and economic resources to support migrants in an
integral way; and it will also help you to work in communion of purpose, as a
family, united in diversity.
Dear brothers and sisters, may the holiness of John Baptist Scalabrini “infect” us
with the desire to be holy, each one in an original, unique way, as God’s infinite
imagination has made us and wants us to be. And may his intercession give us the
joy, and give us the hope to walk together towards the new Jerusalem, which is a
symphony of faces and peoples, towards the kingdom of justice, fraternity and
peace.
Thank you for coming to share your celebration! From my heart I bless you and
your travelling companions there where you live. And please, do not forget to pray
for me. Thank you!

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09 Oct HOMILY OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS

Posted at 13:18h in by

As Jesus was walking along, ten lepers met him and cried out: “Have mercy on us!”
(Lk 17:13). All ten were healed, yet only one of them returned to thank Jesus. He
was a Samaritan, a kind of heretic for the Jewish people. At the beginning, they
were walking together, but then the Samaritan left the others and turned back,
“praising God with a loud voice” (v. 15). Let us stop and reflect on these two
aspects of today’s Gospel: walking together and giving thanks.
First, walking together. At the beginning of the account, there is no difference
between the Samaritan and the other nine. We only hear that they are lepers, who
together, as a group, approach Jesus. Leprosy, as we know, was not only a physical
affliction, one which even today we must make every effort to eliminate, but also a
“social disease”, since in those days, for fear of contagion, lepers had to remain
apart from the community (cf. Lev 13:46). Hence, they could not enter villages;
they were kept at a distance, isolated and relegated to the margins of social and
even religious life. By walking together, these lepers indicted a society that
excluded them. We should also note that the Samaritan, although considered a
heretic, “a foreigner”, is part of their group. Brothers and sisters, whenever disease
and fragility are shared, barriers fall and exclusion is overcome.
This image is also meaningful for us: when we are honest with ourselves, we realize
that we are all sick at heart, all sinners in need of the Father’s mercy. Then we stop
creating divisions on the basis of merit, social position or some other superficial
criterion; our interior barriers and prejudices likewise fall. In the end, we realize
once more that we are brothers and sisters. Even Naaman the Syrian, as the first
reading reminded us, for all his wealth and power, could only be healed by doing
something simple: wash in the river in which everyone else was bathing. First of all,
he had to remove his armour and his robes (cf. 2 Kings 5). We would do well to set
aside our own outer armour, our defensive barriers, and take a good bath of
humility, mindful that all of us are vulnerable within and in need of healing. All of us
are brothers and sisters. Let us remember this: the Christian faith always asks us to
walk alongside others, never to be solitary wayfarers. Faith always urges us to
move beyond ourselves and towards God and our brothers and sisters, never to

remain enclosed within ourselves. Faith invites us to acknowledge constantly that
we are in need of healing and forgiveness, and to share in the frailty of those who
are near to us, without feeling ourselves superior.
Brothers and sisters, let us reflect and see if in our lives, in our families, in the
places where we daily work and spend our time, we are capable of walking together
with others, listening to them, resisting the temptation to lock ourselves up in
self-absorption and to think only of our own needs. To walk together – to be
“synodal” – is also the vocation of the Church. Let us ask ourselves if we are really
communities truly open and inclusive of all; if we cooperate, as priests and laity, in
the service of the Gospel; and if we show ourselves welcoming, not only in words
but with concrete gestures, to those both near and far, and all those buffeted by the
ups and downs of life. Do we make them feel a part of the community? Or do we
exclude them? I am troubled when I see Christian communities that divide the
world into the good and the bad, saints and sinners: this makes them feel superior
to others and exclude so many people that God wants to embrace. Please, always
be inclusive: in the Church and in society, which is still marred by many forms of
inequality and marginalization. Always be inclusive. Today, the day in which Bishop
Scalabrini becomes a saint, I think of emigrants. The exclusion of emigrants is
scandalous. Actually, the exclusion of emigrants is criminal. They are dying right in
front of us, as the Mediterranean is the largest cemetery in the world. The exclusion
of emigrants is revolting, sinful and criminal. Not opening doors to those in need –
“No, we do not exclude them, we send them away” to camps, where they are
exploited and sold like slaves. Brothers and sisters, today let us call to mind these
emigrants, especially those who are dying. And those who are able to enter, do we
welcome them as brothers and sisters or do we exploit them? I simply pose the
question.
The second thing is giving thanks. In the group of the ten lepers, there was only
one who, realizing that he was cured, turned back to praise God and to show
gratitude to Jesus. The other nine were healed, but then went their own way,
forgetting the one who had healed them. They forgot the graces given to them by
God. The Samaritan, on the other hand, makes the gift he received the first step of
a new journey: he returns to the one who healed him; he goes back to Jesus in
order to know him better; he enters into a relationship with the Lord. His grateful
attitude, then, is no mere act of courtesy, but the start of a journey of
thanksgiving: he falls at Jesus’ feet (cf. Lk 17:16) and worships him. He recognizes
that Jesus is the Lord, that Jesus is more important than the healing he received.
This is a great lesson also for us, brothers and sisters, who daily benefit from the
gifts of God, yet so often go our own way, failing to cultivate a living and real
relationship with him. This is a nasty spiritual disease: we take everything for
granted, including faith, including our relationship with God, to the point where we

become Christians no longer able to be amazed or to give thanks, lacking in
gratitude and incapable of seeing the wonders of the Lord. A woman I know used to
say, “They are rose-water Christians”. We end up thinking that all the gifts we
receive each day are natural and due to us. Gratitude, the ability to give thanks,
makes us appreciate instead the presence in our lives of the God who is love. And
to recognize the importance of others, overcoming the dissatisfaction and
indifference that disfigure our hearts. It is essential to know how to say “thank
you”. To thank the Lord each day and to thank one another. In our families, for the
little gifts we receive daily and so often do not even think about. In the places we
spend our days, for the many services which we enjoy and for all those people who
support us. In our Christian communities, for the love of God that we experience in
the closeness of our brothers and sisters who, often silently, pray, sacrifice, suffer
and journey with us. So please, let us not forget to say these key words: thank
you!
The two saints canonized today remind us of the importance of walking together
and being able to give thanks. Bishop Scalabrini, who founded two Congregations –
one male and one female – for the care of emigrants, used to say that in the shared
journeying of emigrants we should see not only problems, but also a providential
plan. In his words: “Precisely because of the migrations imposed by persecutions,
the Church pressed beyond the confines of Jerusalem and of Israel, and became
‘catholic’; thanks to the migrations of our own days, the Church will be an
instrument of peace and of communion among peoples” (L’emigrazione degli operai
italiani, Ferrara, 1899). The emigration currently taking place in Europe is causing
great suffering and forcing us to open our hearts – that is the emigration of
Ukrainians who are fleeing from war. Let us not forget war-torn Ukraine. With great
vision, Scalabrini looked forward to a world and a Church without barriers, where no
one was a foreigner. For his part, the Salesian Brother Artemide Zatti – with his
bicycle – was a living example of gratitude. Cured of tuberculosis, he devoted his
entire life to serving others, caring for the infirm with tender love. He was said to
have carried on his shoulders the dead body of one of his patients. Filled with
gratitude for all that he had received, he wanted to say his own “thank you” by
taking upon himself the wounds of others.
Let us pray that these Saints, our brothers, may help us to walk together, without
walls of division; and to cultivate that nobility of soul, so pleasing to God, which is
gratitude.

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08 Oct ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO THE SALESIANS GATHERED FOR THE CANONIZATION OF THE BLESSED ARTEMIDE ZATTI

Posted at 13:14h in by

Dear Salesian brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!
I thank the Major Rector for his presentation, and I greet the members of the
General Council, the Salesian cardinals and bishops – there are many of them! I am
pleased to welcome the pilgrims from Boretto, the birthplace of Artemide Zatti, and
those from Argentina and the Philippines; I greet the members of the Salesian
family from numerous countries throughout the world, and especially the Salesian
coadjutors. And a special greeting to the person who received the grace of healing
through the intercession of the Blessed, whom I will have the joy of canonizing
tomorrow. I would like to recall him from four perspectives.
Firstly, as a migrant. The Salesians arrived in Argentina in 1875 and initially carried
out their apostolate, in Buenos Aires. In Buenos Aires they did not go to the most
important areas, they went to Boca, where there were communists, socialists,
where they eat priests alive! The Salesians went there, and other places, especially
in support of Italian emigrants. Artemide got to know the Salesians in Bahía Blanca,
where he and his family had come from Italy in 1897. Unfortunately, many
migrants lost the values of faith, all absorbed in work and the problems they
encountered. But the Zatti family, thanks be to God, were an exception. They never
failed to participate in the life of the Christian community, maintain cordial relations
with the priests, pray together at home, and partake of the sacraments. Artemide
grew up in an excellent Christian environment and, thanks to the guidance of Fr.
Carlo Cavalli, developed his choice of Salesian life.
A second aspect: his “kinship”: he was “kin to all the poor”, this was Zatti’s kinship.
The tuberculosis that afflicted him at the age of twenty seemed to crush all his
dreams, but thanks to the recovery obtained through the intercession of Mary Help
of Christians, Artemis dedicated his entire life to the sick, especially the poorest,
the abandoned and the discarded. The hospitals of San José and Sant’Isidro were a
precious and unique health resource for caring especially for the poor of Viedma
and the Rio Negro region: Zatti’s heroism made them places where God’s love
irradiated, where health care became an experience of salvation. In that patch of

Patagonian land, where our Blessed led his life, a page of the Gospel was rewritten:
the Good Samaritan found in him heart, hands and passion, above all for the little
ones, the poor, the sinners, the last. Thus, a hospital has become the “Inn of the
Father”, a sign of a Church that endeavours to be rich in gifts of humanity and
Grace, a dwelling place for the commandment of love of God and brother, a place of
health as a pledge of salvation. It is also true that this enters into the Salesian
vocation: the Salesians are the great educators of the heart, of love, of affections,
of social life; great educators of the heart.
The hospital and the houses of the poor, visited night and day getting round by
bicycle, were the frontiers of his mission. He lived full self-giving to God and the
consecration of all his efforts for the good of his neighbour. His intense work and
tireless availability for the needs of the poor were inspired by a profound union with
the Lord: constant prayer, prolonged Eucharistic adoration, praying the Rosary.
Artemide was a man of communion, who knew how to work with others: religious
sisters, doctors, nurses; and with his example and his counsel he formed people,
shaped consciences, converted hearts.
Thirdly, we see him as a Salesian coadjutor. Let us recall the beautiful witness he
bore in 1915 in Viedma, on the occasion of the inauguration of a monument in
memory of Father Evasio Garrone, a Salesian missionary considered a distinguished
benefactor by Artemis. On that occasion he made the following statement: “If I am
well, healthy and in a position to do some good to my sick neighbour, I owe it to
Father Garrone, doctor, who, seeing my health worsening day by day, as I was
suffering from tuberculosis with frequent haemoptysis, told me decisively that, if I
did not want to end up like many others, I should make a promise to Mary Help of
Christians to always remain at her side, helping her in the care of the sick, that he,
trusting in Mary, would cure me. I BELIEVED, because I knew by reputation that
Mary Help of Christians helped him in a visible way. PROMISED, because it was
always my desire to be of help in something to my neighbour. And, God having
listened to his servant, HEALED. I believed, I promised, I was healed. Three words
written there.
This recovered life was no longer his property: he felt that it was all for the poor.
The three verbs “believed, promised, healed” express the blessing and consolation
that touched Artemide’s life. He lived this mission in communion with his Salesian
confreres: he was the first to be present at community events, and he inspired the
fraternity with his joy and good nature.
The fourth and final trait I would like to highlight: he is an intercessor for vocations.
And I have experienced this. I will tell you about a personal experience. When I was
provincial of the Jesuits of Argentina, I knew the story of Artemide Zatti, read his
biography and entrusted to him the request to the Lord for holy vocations to the lay

consecrated life for the Society of Jesus. Since we began to pray through his
intercession, the number of young coadjutors increased significantly; and they were
persevering and very committed. And so I bore witness to this grace we received.
[…]

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03 Oct ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO PARTICIPANTS IN THE GENERAL CHAPTER OF THE MISSIONARY OBLATES OF MARY IMMACULATE

Posted at 13:10h in by

Dear brothers, good morning and welcome!
I am pleased to meet you, on the occasion of your General Chapter. I thank the
Superior General — poor thing, taken from the desert and brought here to Rome! —
for his introduction, and I wish serene and fruitful work to him and the new Council.
And let us thank the Superior and the Counsellors who have concluded their
service.
You are a religious family dedicated to evangelization, and you are gathered to
discern together the future of your mission in the Church and in the world. You
have chosen, for this Chapter, a demanding theme, very similar to what has been
chosen for the Church’s next Jubilee: “Pilgrims of Hope in Communion ”. It is a
theme that sums up your identity on the streets of the world, to which, as disciples
of Jesus and followers of your founder Saint Eugène de Mazenod, you are called to
bring the Gospel of hope, joy and peace. It is a world that, on the one hand seems
to have reached seemingly unreachable goals, yet on the other is still enslaved by
selfishness and full of contradictions and divisions. The cry of the earth and that of
the poor, wars and conflicts that shed blood on human history, the distressing
situation of millions of migrants and refugees, an economy that makes the rich ever
richer and the poor ever poorer, are some aspects of a scenario where only the
Gospel can keep the light of hope burning.
You have chosen to be pilgrims, to rediscover and live your condition as wayfarers
in this world, beside the men and women, the poor and the least of the earth, to
whom the Lord sends you to announce his Kingdom. Your founder too was a
wayfarer, at the origins of your religious family, when he would go walking with his
first companions in the villages of his native Provence, preaching the popular
missions and restoring to the faith the poor who had turned away from it, and that
even the ministers of the Church had abandoned. It is a tragedy when the ministers
of the Church abandon the poor.

Pilgrims and wayfarers, always ready to set out, like Jesus with his disciples in the
Gospel. As a missionary Congregation, you are at the service of the Church in 70
countries throughout the world. To this Church, which the Founder taught you to
love as a mother, you offer your missionary zeal and your life, participating in her
exodus towards the peripheries of the world beloved by God, and living a charism
that leads you towards the furthest, the poorest, those whom no one reaches.
Walking this road with love and fidelity, you, dear brothers, render a great service
to the Church.
You have heard the call to rediscover your identity as priests and brothers united by
the bonds of religious consecration. Pilgrims of hope, you walk with the holy people
of God, living in fidelity your missionary vocation, together with laypersons and
young people who share in the Church the charism of your holy Founder, and who
wish to play an active part in your mission. Saint Eugène taught you to look at the
world with the eyes of the crucified Saviour, this world for whose salvation Christ
died on the cross.
You have already dedicated one of your preceding General Chapters to the theme of
hope, when you heard a particular call to be witnesses to this virtue in a world that
seems to have lost it, and that seeks elsewhere the source of its happiness. Being
missionaries of hope means knowing how to read the signs of its hidden presence in
the daily life of the people. Learning to recognize hope among the poor to whom
you have been sent, who often succeed in finding it amid the most difficult
situations. Letting yourselves be evangelized by the poor you evangelize: they
teach you the way of hope, for the Church and for the world.
In addition, you wish to be witnesses of hope in communion. Communion today is a
challenge on which the future of our world, the Church and consecrated life may
depend. To be missionaries of communion, it is necessary first of all to live it among
ourselves, in our communities and in mutual relations, and then to cultivate it with
everyone, without exception. You frequently referred, during your Chapter, to the
ecclesial pathway of this time, which is rediscovering the beauty and the
importance of “walking together”. I urge you to be promoters of communion
through expressions of solidarity, closeness, synodality and fraternity with all. May
the Good Samaritan of the Gospel be an example and a stimulus to make you close
to every person, with the love and tenderness that impelled him to take care of the
robbed and wounded man (cf. Lk 10:29-37). To make yourself a neighbour is a
daily job, because selfishness pulls you in, pulls you down; to make yourself
neighbour is to go out.
In this Chapter, you have also often evoked your commitment to the common
home, seeking to translate it into concrete decisions and actions. I encourage you
to continue to work in this direction. Our mother earth nourishes us without asking
for anything in exchange; it is up to us to understand that she cannot continue to
do so if we do not also take care of her. They are all aspects of that conversion to
which the Lord calls us continually. Returning to the common Father, returning to
the source, returning to the first love that prompted you to leave everything in
order to follow Jesus: this is the soul of consecration and mission!
May your Founder, the charism he transmitted to you, and his missionary vision be
and remain points of reference for your life and your work; to stay rooted in your
missionary vocation, above all by living the testament of your Founder, in mutual
love among yourselves and in zeal for the salvation of souls. It is the heart of your
mission and the secret of your life, and this is why the Church still needs you. In
the immense field of mission that is the entire world, may Jesus always be your
model, as he was for Saint Eugène. Before the crucified Saviour, he decided one day
to offer his own life so that everyone, especially the poor, might be able to
experience the same love of God that had restored him to the path of faith.
This year you celebrated the memorial of a special grace that Saint Eugène received
two centuries ago, before the statue of Our Lady Immaculate in the church of the
mission in Aix-en-Provence. This renews to you the invitation to take Mary as your
travelling companion, so that she may always accompany you on your pilgrimage.
Mary the pilgrim, Mary journeying, Mary who arose in haste to go and serve. After
saying her “yes” to God through the archangel Gabriel, she departed in haste to go
to her cousin Elizabeth, to share the gift and to place herself at her service. In this
too, may Mary be an example to you, for your life and for your mission.
Dear brothers, I wish you a good conclusion to your Chapter, and I accompany you
with prayer. From the heart, I bless all of you and your confrères, especially those
who are sick and frail, and those who are in difficulty at this time. And you too,
please, pray for me. Thank you!

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29 Sep ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS TO PARTICIPANTS IN THE MEETING ON REFUGEES PROMOTED BY THE PONTIFICAL GREGORIAN UNIVERSITY

Posted at 13:02h in by

Dear brothers and sisters,
I welcome you at the conclusion of your Conference on “Initiatives in Refugee and
Migrant Education”. I thank Professor Cernera for his introduction to this meeting.
Your Conference has been planned as a moment of reflection grounded in the needs
of our migrant brothers and sisters, with particular attention to children and young
people. You have heard their desire to pursue their education even though they
have been uprooted from their native lands. I want to encourage you and to
emphasize the importance of your contribution in three areas pertaining to your
competence: the areas of research, teaching and social promotion. For it is not
enough simply to welcome migrants, they must be welcomed, accompanied,
promoted and integrated. Four steps: welcomed, accompanied, promoted and
integrated.
As for research, I see the need for further studies on the so-called “right not to
emigrate”. It is important to reflect on the causes of migratory movements and on
the forms of violence that lead people to depart for other countries. Naturally, I am
referring to the conflicts that are ravaging so many regions of our world. At the
same time, though, I would like to point to another kind of violence, namely, the
abuse of our common home. The earth has been devastated by the excessive
exploitation of its resources and by decades of pollution. As a result, more and
more people are forced to leave their lands, which have become uninhabitable.
Academia – and Catholic academia in particular – is called to play a primary role in
providing answers to ecological problems and challenges. Based on scientific data,
you are in a position to help in guiding and informing the decisions of government
leaders in support of an effective care for our common home.
As for the area of teaching, I express my appreciation for your commitment to
establishing educational programmes that benefit refugees. Much has already been
accomplished, yet much more remains to be done. In this regard, priority must
continue to be given to the most disadvantaged. One effective way of doing this is
to offer courses that respond to their needs, the organization of programmes of
distance learning, and the provision of scholarships to permit their resettlement. By
drawing upon the resources of the international network of academic institutions,
universities can also facilitate the recognition of the degrees and professional
qualifications of migrants and refugees, for the good of the latter and that of the
societies that receive them.
Schools and universities are privileged environments not only for instruction but
also for encounter and integration. “We can grow in our common humanity and
build together an ever greater sense of togetherness. Openness to one another
creates spaces of fruitful exchange between different visions and traditions, and
opens minds to new horizons” (Message for the 2022 World Day of Migrants and
Refugees). In order to respond adequately to the new challenges posed by
migration, there is a need to offer specific professional training to the personnel and
teachers who work with migrants and refugees. Catholic institutions of higher
learning are called to educate their own students, who will be tomorrow’s
administrators, entrepreneurs and cultural leaders, to a clearer understanding of
the phenomenon of migration, within a perspective of justice, global responsibility
and communion in diversity. Opportunities for meaningful encounters are to be
promoted, so that teachers and students can have an opportunity to hear the
stories of those men and women who are migrants, refugees, displaced persons or
victims of trafficking.
In the area of social promotion, universities represent an institution that interacts
with the social context in which they happen to operate. They can help to identify
and indicate the foundations for the construction of an intercultural society, in which
ethnic, linguistic and religious diversity is seen as a source of enrichment and not
an obstacle for the common future. In addition, universities represent a privileged
setting for encouraging young people to engage in volunteer work on behalf of
refugees, asylum seekers and the more vulnerable migrants.
On the occasion of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, celebrated last Sunday,
I encouraged everyone to work together with migrants to build a better future.
Indeed, “history teaches us that the contribution of migrants and refugees has been
fundamental to the social and economic growth of our societies. This continues to
be true in our own day. Their work, their youth, their enthusiasm and their
willingness to sacrifice enrich the communities that receive them. Yet this
contribution could be all the greater if it were optimized and supported by carefully
developed programmes and initiatives. Enormous potential exists, ready to be
harnessed, if only it is given the chance” (ibid.).
Dear friends, the work that you are carrying out in these three great areas –
research, teaching and social promotion – can be guided by the four words that
encapsulate the Church’s efforts on behalf of migrants and refugees: welcome,
protect or accompany, promote and integrate. Every educational institution is
called to be a place of welcome, protection or accompaniment, promotion and
integration for all, to the exclusion of none.
I thank you for your work and I encourage you to persevere in your efforts. From
the heart, I bless each of you and all your co-workers. And I ask you, please, to
pray for me. Thank you.

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25 Sep PASTORAL VISIT TO MATERA FOR THE CONCLUSION OF THE 27th NATIONAL EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS

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At the end of this celebration, I would like to thank all of you who have taken part,
representing the holy People of God in Italy. And I am grateful to Cardinal Zuppi,
who acted as its spokesperson. I congratulate the diocesan community of
Matera-Irsina for the organizational and welcoming effort, and I thank everyone
who collaborated in this Eucharistic Congress.
Now, before concluding, let us turn to the Virgin Mary, Eucharistic Woman. We
entrust to her the journey of the Church in Italy, so that in every community the
fragrance of Christ the living Bread descended from Heaven may be felt. Today I
would dare to ask for Italy: more births, more children. And we invoke her maternal
intercession for the world’s most urgent needs.
I think, in particular, of Myanmar. For more than two years that noble country has
been martyred by serious armed clashes and violence, which have caused many
victims and displaced persons. This week I heard the cry of grief at the death of
children in a bombed school. We see that in today’s world there is a trend of
bombing schools. May the cry of these little ones not go unheard! These tragedies
must not happen!
Mary, Queen of Peace, comfort the martyred Ukrainian people and obtain from the
heads of Nations the will power to immediately find effective initiatives to bring the
war to an end.
I join in the appeal of the bishops of Cameroon for the liberation of some people
kidnapped in the Diocese of Mamfe, including five priests and a religious sister. I
pray for them and for the populations of the ecclesiastical province of Bamenda:
may the Lord give peace to hearts and to the social life of that dear country.
Today, this Sunday, the Church celebrates World Day of Migrants and Refugees, on
the theme: “Building the future with migrants and refugees”. Let us renew our
commitment to building the future in accordance with God’s plan: a future in which
every person may find his or her place and be respected; in which migrants,
refugees, displaced persons and the victims of human trafficking may live in peace
and with dignity. Because the Kingdom of God is fulfilled with them, without
exclusion. It is also thanks to those brothers and sisters that communities can grow
on a social, economic, cultural and spiritual level; and the sharing of diverse
traditions enriches the People of God. Let us all work together to build a more
inclusive and fraternal future! Migrants must be welcomed, accompanied, supported
and integrated.

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25 Sep MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS FOR THE 108th WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES 2022

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“Here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.” (Heb 13:14)
Dear brothers and sisters!
The ultimate meaning of our “journey” in this world is the search for our true
homeland, the Kingdom of God inaugurated by Jesus Christ, which will find its full
realization when he comes in glory. His Kingdom has not yet been brought to
fulfilment, though it is already present in those who have accepted the salvation he
offers us. “God’s Kingdom is in us. Even though it is still eschatological, in the
future of the world and of humanity, at the same time it is found in us.” (Saint John
Paul II, Address during the Visit to the Roman Parish of Saints Francis of Assisi and
Catherine of Siena, Patrons of Italy, 26 November 1989).
The city yet to come is a “city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is
God” (Heb 11:10). His plan calls for an intense work of construction, in which all of
us must be personally involved. It involves a meticulous effort aimed at personal
conversion and the transformation of reality, so that it can correspond ever more
fully to the divine plan. The tragedies of history remind us how far we are from
arriving at our goal, the new Jerusalem, “the dwelling place of God with men” (Rev
21:3). Yet this does not mean that we should lose heart. In the light of what we
have learned in the tribulations of recent times, we are called to renew our
commitment to building a future that conforms ever more fully to God’s plan of a
world in which everyone can live in peace and dignity.
“We wait for new heavens and a new earth, where righteousness is at home” (2 Pet
3:13). Righteousness is one of the building blocks of God’s Kingdom. In our daily
efforts to do the Lord’s will, justice needs to be built up with patience, sacrifice, and
determination, so that all those who hunger and thirst for it may be satisfied (cf. Mt
5:6). The righteousness of the Kingdom must be understood as the fulfilment of
God’s harmonious plan, whereby in Christ, who died and rose from the dead, all
creation returns to its original goodness, and humanity becomes once more “very
good” (cf. Gen 1:1-31). But for this wondrous harmony to reign, we must accept
Christ’s salvation, his Gospel of love, so that the many forms of inequality and
discrimination in the present world may be eliminated.
No one must be excluded. God’s plan is essentially inclusive and gives priority to
those living on the existential peripheries. Among them are many migrants and
refugees, displaced persons, and victims of trafficking. The Kingdom of God is to be
built with them, for without them it would not be the Kingdom that God wants. The
inclusion of those most vulnerable is the necessary condition for full citizenship in
God’s Kingdom. Indeed, the Lord says, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father.
Inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was
hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, a stranger
and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, sick and you took care of me, in
prison and you visited me” (Mt 25:34-36).
Building the future with migrants and refugees also means recognizing and valuing
how much each of them can contribute to the process of construction. I like to see
this approach to migration reflected in a prophetic vision of Isaiah, which considers
foreigners not invaders or destroyers, but willing labourers who rebuild the walls of
the new Jerusalem, that Jerusalem whose gates are open to all peoples (cf. Is
60:10-11).
In Isaiah’s prophecy, the arrival of foreigners is presented as a source of
enrichment: “The abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, and the wealth of
the nations shall come to you” (Is 60:5). Indeed, history teaches us that the
contribution of migrants and refugees has been fundamental to the social and
economic growth of our societies. This continues to be true in our own day. Their
work, their youth, their enthusiasm and their willingness to sacrifice enrich the
communities that receive them. Yet this contribution could be all the greater were it
optimized and supported by carefully developed programs and initiatives. Enormous
potential exists, ready to be harnessed, if only it is given a chance.
In Isaiah’s prophecy, the inhabitants of the new Jerusalem always keep the gates of
the city wide open, so that foreigners may come in, bringing their gifts: “Your gates
shall always be open; day and night they shall not be shut, so that nations shall
bring you their wealth” (Is 60:11). The presence of migrants and refugees
represents a great challenge, but at the same time an immense opportunity for the
cultural and spiritual growth of everyone. Thanks to them, we have the chance to
know better our world and its beautiful diversity. We can grow in our common
humanity and build together an ever greater sense of togetherness. Openness to
one another creates spaces of fruitful exchange between different visions and
traditions, and opens minds to new horizons. It also leads to a discovery of the
richness present in other religions and forms of spirituality unfamiliar to us, and this
helps us to deepen our own convictions.
In the new Jerusalem of all peoples, the temple of the Lord is made more beautiful
by the offerings that come from foreign lands: “All the flocks of Kedar shall be
gathered to you, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister to you, they shall be
acceptable on my altar, and I will glorify my glorious house” (Is 60:7). As we have
seen, the arrival of Catholic migrants and refugees can energize the ecclesial life of
the communities that welcome them. Often they bring an enthusiasm that can
revitalize our communities and enliven our celebrations. Sharing different
expressions of faith and devotions offers us a privileged opportunity for
experiencing more fully the catholicity of the People of God.
Dear brothers and sisters, and, in a special way, young people! If we want to
cooperate with our heavenly Father in building the future, let us do so together with
our brothers and sisters who are migrants and refugees. Let us build the future
today! For the future begins today and it begins with each of us. We cannot leave to
future generations the burden of responsibility for decisions that need to be made
now, so that God’s plan for the world may be realized and his Kingdom of justice,
fraternity, and peace may come.
Prayer
Lord, make us bearers of hope,
so that where there is darkness,
your light may shine,
and where there is discouragement,
confidence in the future may be reborn.
Lord, make us instruments of your justice,
so that where there is exclusion, fraternity may flourish,
and where there is greed, a spirit of sharing may grow.
Lord, make us builders of your Kingdom,
together with migrants and refugees
and with all who dwell on the peripheries.
Lord, let us learn how beautiful it is
to live together as brothers and sisters. Amen.
Rome, Saint John Lateran, 9 May 2022

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14 Sep OPENING AND PLENARY SESSION OF THE “VII CONGRESS OF LEADERS OF WORLD AND TRADITIONAL RELIGIONS”

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[…] In addition to the challenges of the pandemic and of peace, let us now turn to
a third challenge, that of fraternal acceptance. Today we find it hard to accept the
human being. Each day children, born and unborn, migrants and elderly persons,
are cast aside, discarded. There exists a throwaway culture. Many of our brothers
and sisters die sacrificed on the altar of profit, amid clouds of the sacrilegious
incense of indifference. Yet every human being is sacred. “Homo sacra res homini”,
the ancients said (cf. SENECA, Epistulae Morales ad Lucilium, 95, 33). It is above all
our task, the task of the religions, to remind the world of this. Now, as never
before, we are witnessing massive displacements of peoples due to war, poverty,
climate change and the pursuit of a prosperity that our globalized world advertises,
yet is often difficult to attain. A great exodus is taking place, as people from the
most poverty-stricken areas of our world struggle to reach those that are more
prosperous. We see this every day, in different migration movements in our world.
This is not just another item on the daily news; it is an historic event demanding
concordant and farsighted solutions. To be sure, we instinctively defend our own
hard-won securities and close our doors out of fear; it is easier to suspect
strangers, to accuse them and condemn them, than it is to get to know and
understand them. Yet it is our duty to be mindful that the Creator, who watches
over each of his creatures, exhorts us to regard others as he does, and in them to
see the face of a brother or a sister. Our migrant brothers and sisters need to be
accepted, accompanied, promoted and integrated. […]