Speech by Pope Francis at his meeting with the Catholic community of Luxembourg

This September 26, Pope Francis held a meeting with the Catholic community of Luxembourg, during which he encouraged the Church to be a Church that does not retreat, but accepts the challenge of going out to evangelize in the midst of a secularized society.

Below are the words of the Holy Father:

Your Royal Highness, Cardinal and Brother Bishops, dear brothers and sisters: I am very happy to be here with you, in this magnificent cathedral. I thank the Grand Duke and his family for their presence; and I thank Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich for his kind words, as well as Diogo, Christine and Sister Maria Perpetua for their testimonies.

Our meeting takes place in conjunction with an important Marian Jubilee, with which the Church of Luxembourg remembers four centuries of devotion to Mary, Console of the afflicted, Patroness of the country. That title fits well with the theme they have chosen for this visit: “To serve.” Consoling and serving, in fact, are two fundamental aspects of the love that Jesus gave us, that he entrusted to us as a mission (cf. Jn 13:13-17) and that he showed us as the only way to full joy (cf. Acts 20). ,35). For this reason, in a few moments, in the opening prayer of the Marian Year, we will ask the Mother of God to help us to be “missionaries, willing to bear witness to the joy of the Gospel”, conforming our hearts to hers “to put ourselves at the service of our brothers.” We can then stop to reflect precisely on these three words: service, mission and joy.

First of all, the service. A moment ago it was said that the Church of Luxembourg wants to be “the Church of Jesus Christ, who did not come to be served, but to serve” (cf. Mt 20:28; Mk 10:45). The image of Saint Francis hugging the leper and healing his wounds was also remembered. I, from the service, would like to entrust you with an aspect that is very urgent today: that of reception. I do it here, among you, in a special way, because your country has and keeps alive, in this field, a secular tradition, as Sister María Perpetua has reminded us, and as it has surfaced several times, also in the other testimonies, in the shout “everyone, everyone, everyone!”, repeated several times. Yes, the spirit of the Gospel is a spirit of welcome, of openness to all, and does not admit any type of exclusion (cf. Ap. Exhort. Evangelii Gaudium, 47). I encourage you, therefore, to remain faithful to this heritage and to continue making your country a welcoming home for all who knock on your door asking for help and hospitality.

It is a duty of justice, even before that of charity, as Saint John Paul II already said when he recalled the Christian roots of European culture. He encouraged the young people of Luxembourg to chart the path of “a Europe not only of goods and merchandise, but of values, of men and of hearts”, in which the Gospel would be shared “in the word of the proclamation and in the signs of the love» (Address to the young people of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, May 16, 1985, 4). I insist because it is important: a Europe and a world in which the Gospel is shared in the word of proclamation united with the signs of love.

And this brings us to the second topic: the mission. Previously, the Cardinal Archbishop spoke of an “evolution of the Luxembourg Church in a secularized society.” I liked this expression: the Church, in a secularized society, progresses, matures, grows. She does not withdraw into herself, sad, resigned, resentful; but accepts the challenge, in fidelity to the values ​​of always, to rediscover and revalue in a new way the paths of evangelization, increasingly moving from a simple proposal of pastoral care to a proposal of missionary proclamation. And in order to achieve this, it is prepared to move forward, for example—as Christine has reminded us—in sharing responsibilities and ministries, walking together as a community that announces and makes synodality “a lasting way of relating” among its members.

And the young friends who, recently, performed some scenes from the musical have given us a very beautiful image of the value of this growth. Praised yes. Magnificent! Thank you for the gift you have given us! Your work, the result of a community effort that has involved many in the Archdiocese, is for us a doubly prophetic sign. Firstly, it reminds us of our responsibility in relation to the “common home”, of which we are custodians and not absolute owners. And it also makes us reflect on how that mission, shared with everyone, is in itself a wonderful choral instrument to announce to others the beauty of the Gospel. And for us, this is important. Because what drives us towards the mission is not the need to “count on numbers,” to “proselytize,” but rather the desire to make the joy of encountering Christ known to as many sisters and brothers as possible.

Beyond any difficulty, this is the living dynamism of the Holy Spirit that acts in us. Love urges us to announce the Gospel by opening ourselves to others, and the challenge of announcing makes us grow as a community, helping us overcome the fear of embarking on new paths, pushing us to gratefully welcome the contribution of others. It is a beautiful, healthy and joyful dynamic, which will do us good to cultivate in ourselves and around us.

Thus we arrive at the third word: joy. Diogo, speaking about his experience at World Youth Day, recalled the happiness he experienced on the eve of the festival, waiting, with his contemporaries from many nations, for the moment to meet; as well as the excitement of waking up the next morning, surrounded by so many friends and, furthermore, the enthusiasm experienced during the preparation they did together in Portugal. And the joy, a year later, when meeting with the others here in Luxembourg. Do you see it? Our faith is like this. It is joyful, “dancing,” because it shows us that we are children of a God who is a friend of man, who wants us happy and united, that nothing makes him happier than our salvation (cf. Lk 15:4-32; St. Gregory the Great , Homilies on the Gospels, 34,3).

In this regard, I would like to conclude by remembering another beautiful tradition of your country, which we have been told about: the spring procession —Jumping procession—, which takes place on Pentecost in Echternach, remembering the tireless missionary work of Saint Willibrord, evangelizer of these lands. The entire city comes out to dance through the streets and squares, along with many pilgrims and visitors who arrive, and the procession becomes a very grand and unique dance. Big and small, everyone is dancing together towards the cathedral – I learned that this year, even in the rain -, giving enthusiastic testimony, in memory of the holy Shepherd, of how beautiful it is to walk together and meet as brothers around the table of our lord.

Dear sisters, dear brothers, how beautiful is the mission that the Lord entrusts to us; the mission to console and serve, with the example and help of Mary. Thank you for the work you do, and also for the generous help you have wanted to share with those in need. I bless you and pray for you. And you too, please pray for me.