Here is a ZENIT translation of the address Pope Francis gave today, before and after praying the midday Regina Coeli with those gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
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Before the Regina Coeli:
Dear Brothers and Sisters, good morning!
The Gospel of this Sixth Sunday of Easter offers us a passage of Jesus’ address to the Apostles during the Last Supper (Cf. John 14:23-29). He speaks of the work of the Holy Spirit and makes a promise: “The Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (v. 26). As the moment of the cross draws near, Jesus reassures the Apostles that they will not remain alone: the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, will always be with them, who will sustain them in the mission to take the Gospel to the whole world. In the original Greek language, the word “Paraclete” means to be next to, to sustain and console. Jesus returns to the Father, but He continues to instruct and encourage His disciples through the action of the Holy Spirit.
Of what does the Holy Spirit’s mission consist, which Jesus promises as a gift? He himself says it: “He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” In the course of His earthly life, Jesus transmitted all that He wished to entrust to the Apostles: He brought the divine Revelation to fulfillment, namely, all that the Father willed to say to humanity with the Incarnation of the Son. The task of the Holy Spirit is to make one remember, namely, to understand fully and to induce one to carry out concretely Jesus’ teachings. And this is, in fact, the mission of the Church, she does so through a precise style of life, characterized by some exigencies: faith in the Lord and observance of His Word; docility to the action of the Holy Spirit, who renders the risen Lord continually alive and present; the reception of His peace and the witness of it in an attitude of openness and of encounter with the other.
To realize all this, the Church cannot remain static but, with the participation of each of the baptized, she is called to act as a community on the way, encouraged and supported by the light and the strength of the Holy Spirit, who makes all things new. It’s about being freed from worldly ties, represented by our views, by our strategies, by our objectives, which often weigh down the journey of faith, and putting ourselves in docile listening to the Word of the Lord. Thus, it’s the Spirit of God that guides us and guides the Church, so that her authentic, beautiful and luminous face shines, as willed by Christ.
The Lord invites us today to open our heart to the gift of the Holy Spirit so that He will guide us on the paths of history. He educates us day by day to the logic of the Gospel, the logic of welcoming love, “teaching us all things” and “reminding us of all that the Lord has said to us.”
May Mary, who in this month of May we venerate and pray to with special devotion as our heavenly Mother, always protect the Church and the whole of humanity. May She, who with humble and courageous faith cooperated fully with the Holy Spirit for the Incarnation of the Son of God, help us also to allow ourselves to be instructed and guided by the Paraclete, so that we may receive the Word of God and witness it with our life.
[Original text: Italian] [ZENIT’s translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
© Libreria Editrice Vatican
After the Regina Coeli
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
I greet you all, Romans and pilgrims: the families, parish groups, and Associations. In particular, I greet the faithful from Malta and Madrid, the “504 Youth Band” of Honduras and the Kolping Work of Germany.
I greet the Confirmation youngsters of Genoa, the pupils of “Catherine of Saint Rose” school of Rome, the children and youngsters of Torre Gaia and the faithful of Berchiddeddu with the “Laudato Si’” choir.
I send a greeting and blessing to the Polish pilgrims, taking part in the great pilgrimage to the Marian Shrine of Piekari Slaskie. On the occasion of the “Day of Relief,” a special thought goes to all those gathered at the Gemelli Polyclinic to promote initiatives of fraternity with the sick.
I wish you all a happy Sunday. Please, don’t forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch and goodbye!
[Original text: Italian] [ZENIT’s translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
© Libreria Editrice Vatican
