Pope Francis: our vocation in the world is to put contemplation before possessing

In the General Audience this Wednesday, May 29, Pope Francis began a new cycle of catechesis on “The Spirit and the Bride,” focusing today on the way in which the Spirit “guides the people of God toward Jesus, our hope.” ”.

When addressing the faithful who were listening to him from St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, the Holy Father explained that the “wife” of the Holy Spirit is the Church and specified that during this cycle of catechesis “we will take a journey through the three great stages of salvation history: the Old Testament, the New Testament and the time of the Church.”

“The Holy Spirit is harmony”

Furthermore, he clarified that during the first catechesis on the Holy Spirit, “we will discover that what is given as a promise in the Old Testament has been fully realized in Christ.”

The Pontiff recalled that in the first verses of the Bible, the Spirit of God is presented “as the mysterious power that makes the world go from its initial formless, deserted and gloomy state to its orderly and harmonious state.”

For this reason, he highlighted that “the Spirit creates harmony, harmony in life and harmony in the world. In other words, it is He who makes the world go from chaos to cosmos, that is, from confusion to something beautiful and orderly.”

For his part, the Pontiff explained that in the New Testament, the intervention of the Holy Spirit in the new creation is described “using precisely the images that we read in relation to the origin of the world: the dove that hovers over the waters of the Jordan in the baptism of Jesus.”

“Putting the joy of contemplating before the joy of possessing”

Furthermore, remember that the Apostle Paul “sees the cause of the suffering of creation in the corruption and sin of humanity that has dragged it away from God.”

“This – continued the Pontiff – remains as true today as it was then. We see the havoc that humanity has caused and continues to cause in creation, especially in the part of it that has the greatest capacity to exploit its resources.”

In this way, Pope Francis recalled that “Saint Francis of Assisi shows us a way out to return to the harmony of the Creative Spirit: the path of contemplation and praise.”

In this sense, he stressed that our vocation in the world is “to be praise of his glory: it is about putting the joy of contemplating before the joy of possessing.”

Next, Pope Francis stressed that “the Holy Spirit, who in the beginning transformed chaos into cosmos, is working to carry out this transformation in each person.”

The desires of the flesh and the Spirit

Finally, he pointed out that sometimes “our heart resembles that deserted and dark abyss of the first verses of Genesis. Opposite feelings and desires stir in it: those of the flesh and those of the spirit.”

We are all, according to the Holy Father, that “kingdom divided within itself” that Jesus speaks of in the Gospel. “Around us we can say that there is an external chaos, a social chaos, a political chaos,” but there is also “an internal chaos, within each of us.” “The first cannot be cured if we do not begin to cure the second,” he clarified.

In conclusion, Pope Francis encouraged us to work to make “our inner confusion a clarity of the Holy Spirit, it is the power of God that does this and we open our hearts so that He can do it.”

“Let us ask the Holy Spirit to come to us and make us new people, with the newness of the Spirit,” the Holy Father said finally.

Pray for the victims in Papua Guinea

At the end of his catechesis, during his greeting to pilgrims from different parts of the world, Pope Francis again lamented the strong avalanche that has left more than 600 dead and nearly 2,000 people buried in a town in Papua New Guinea, the Asian country he will visit in September.

Remember the martyr Giuseppe Rossi

Furthermore, he recalled the recent beatification in Italy of Don Giuseppe Rossi, a priest murdered at the age of 32 by fascists who forced him to dig his grave with his own hands.

The Holy Father referred to this martyr as a “parish priest of charity” who did not abandon his flock and encouraged his “heroic testimony to help us face the trials of life.”

Paul VI, “pastor ardent with love for Jesus and the Church”

Likewise, he recalled that today we celebrate Saint Paul VI, “pastor ardent with love for Jesus and the Church.” He invited us to rediscover in him “the joy of being Christians” and also encouraged the faithful to read his letter. proclaiming the Gospel“which is still current.”

Invites you to pray for children in wars

Finally, as usual, Pope Francis remembered the countries at war. Today he asked especially for the children suffering from the war in the “martyred Ukraine” and recalled that many of them have suffered burns and have lost their limbs.

“War is always cruel. These children must begin to walk, to move with artificial arms. They have lost their smile, something very ugly and sad. Let us pray for the Ukrainian children,” she asked.

He also urged not to forget “Palestine and Israel, who suffer so much. Let the war end. Let’s not forget Myanmar and so many countries that are at war. Children in war suffer, let us pray to the Lord so that he is close to everyone and gives us the grace of peace,” the Holy Father said finally.