1 January 2020 | Angelus

SOLEMNITY OF MARY, THE HOLY MOTHER OF GOD WORLD DAY OF PEACE POPE FRANCIS ANGELUS

Saint Peter's Square

[…] Jesus is the blessing for those who are oppressed by the yoke of slavery;
moral slavery and physical slavery. He frees with his love. To those who have lost
their self esteem, imprisoned in vicious circles, Jesus says: the Father loves you,
he does not abandon you, await his return with unshakable patience (cf. Lk
15:20). To those who are victims of injustice and exploitation and see no way
out, Jesus opens the door of fraternity where one finds welcoming faces, hearts
and hands, where one can share one’s bitterness and despair and regain some
dignity. To those who are gravely ill and feel abandoned and discouraged, Jesus
comes near, he touches their wounds with tenderness, dresses them with the
balm of comfort and turns weakness into strength for the good, to undo the
most tangled knots. To those who are in prison and are tempted to close in on
themselves, Jesus reopens a horizon of hope, starting from a small glimmer of
light. […]