Pope Francis warns: Crossing the Holy Door is not a magical act

Pope Francis warned that, during the Jubilee, “crossing the Holy Door is not a magical act,” but a Christian symbol.

During an audience this Thursday with the leaders and staff of the Vatican Public Security Inspectorate, the Holy Father highlighted that during the Jubilee Year “we are called to turn our gaze to Jesus Christ, our hope, who becomes a pilgrim with us.”

In this sense, he invited those in charge of supervising and coordinating security efforts in Vatican City to participate in the Jubilee with their families.

“Crossing the Holy Door is not a magical act, no, it is not, it is a symbol, a Christian symbol: Jesus himself says: ‘I am the door’ (Jn 10:7), a sign that expresses the desire to begin again. , and this is a beautiful wisdom: start over, start over every day. Always take a step forward. The desire to renew oneself and to let oneself be found by God. And whoever does not eventually recognize that they have the gift of faith, should also take advantage of this Jubilee Year to move forward,” said the Pontiff.

Later, Pope Francis thanked them for their work, carried out with “dedication, professionalism and generosity, to guarantee my safety, that of my collaborators and all pilgrims and tourists in the Vatican area.”

The Holy Father affirmed that this “demanding task” requires “promptness and courage,” and must be carried out with discretion and with “care for every detail, patience and willingness to sacrifice.”

“Security, in fact, is an invisible good whose importance we perceive precisely when, for some reason, it is missing, and which is built on the constant and intelligent effort of surveillance, night and day, every day of the year,” he remarked.

He also added that “the human being wounded by sin makes indispensable the work of public forces at the service of the common good of the entire community, who have the appropriate instruments to counteract and stop those who are preparing to commit crimes and crimes.”

“They can be very proud of living and acting in the service of the common good, very much!, and at the same time remain humble, because this allows them to recognize themselves in need of help, of blessing, of redemption, and to keep their hearts open to the grace of God,” he then noted.

Finally, he explained to them that “when on Sundays my secretaries come to visit you to bring you chocolate or something similar, it is a symbolic gesture, but a gesture that expresses my closeness. Thank you very much!” concluded the Holy Father.