Vatican City, May 31, 2020 / 05:15 am (CNA).- Here is the full text of Pope Francis’ Pentecost Sunday homily, delivered May 31, 2020, at the Basilica of St. Peter, and checked against delivery.
“There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:4), as the Apostle Paul writes to the Corinthians. He continues: “There are different forms of service, but the same Lord; there are different workings but the same God who produces all of them in everyone” (vv. 5- 6). Diversity and unity: St. Paul puts together two words that seem contradictory. He wants to tell us that the Holy Spirit is the one who brings together the many; and that the Church was born this way: we are all different, yet united by the same Holy Spirit.
Let us go back to the origin of the Church, to the day of Pentecost. Let us look at the Apostles: some of them were fishermen, simple people accustomed to living by the work of their hands, but there were also others, like Matthew, who was an educated tax collector. They were from different backgrounds and social contexts, and they had Hebrew and Greek names. In terms of character, some were meek and others were excitable; they all had different ideas and sensibilities. They were all different. Jesus did not change them; he did not make them into a set of pre-packaged models. He left their differences and now he unites them by anointing them with the Holy Spirit. The union comes with the anointing. At Pentecost, the Apostles understand the unifying power of the Spirit. They see it with their own eyes when everyone, though speaking in different languages, comes together as one people: the people of God, shaped by the Spirit, who weaves unity from diversity and bestows harmony because there is harmony in the Spirit. He himself is harmony.
Let us now focus on ourselves, the Church of today. We can ask ourselves: “What is it that unites us, what is the basis of our unity?” We too have our differences, for example: of opinions, choices, sensibilities. But the temptation is always fiercely to defend our ideas, believing them to be good for everybody and agreeing only with those who think as we do. And that’s a bad temptation that divides. But this is a faith created in our own image; it is not what the Spirit wants. We might think that what unite us are our beliefs and our morality. But there is much more: our principle of unity is the Holy Spirit. He reminds us that first of all we are God’s beloved children, all the same, in this, and all different. The Spirit comes to us, in our differences and difficulties, to tell us that we have one Lord — Jesus — and one Father, and that for this reason we are brothers and sisters! Let us begin anew from here; let us look at the Church with the eyes of the Spirit and not as the world does. The world sees us only as on the right or left, with this ideology, with that one; the Spirit sees us as sons and daughters of the Father and brothers and sisters of Jesus. The world sees conservatives and progressives; the Spirit sees children of God. A worldly gaze sees structures to be made more efficient; a spiritual gaze sees brothers and sisters pleading for mercy. The Spirit loves us and knows everyone’s place in the grand scheme of things: for him, we are not bits of confetti blown about by the wind, rather we are irreplaceable fragments in his mosaic.
If we go back to the day of Pentecost, we discover that the first task of the Church is proclamation. Yet we see that the Apostles do not prepare a strategy; when they were shut in there, in the Upper Room, they did not make a strategy, no, they do not prepare a pastoral plan. They could have divided people into groups according to their roots, speaking first to those close by and then to those far away… They could have also waited a while before beginning their preaching in order to understand more deeply the teachings of Jesus, so as to avoid risks… No. The Spirit does not want the memory of the Master to be cultivated in small groups locked in upper rooms where it is easy to “nest.” And this is a bad disease that can come to the Church: the Church not as a community, not as a family, not as a mother, but as a nest. He opens doors and pushes us to press beyond what has already been said and done, beyond the precincts of a timid and wary faith. In the world, unless there is tight organization and a clear strategy, things fall apart. In the Church, however, the Spirit guarantees unity to those who proclaim the message. The Apostles set off: unprepared, yet putting their lives on the line. One thing kept them going: the desire to give what they received. The beginning of the First Letter of John is beautiful: “What we have seen and heard we proclaim now to you” (1 John 1:3).
Here we come to understand what the secret of unity is, the secret of the Spirit. It is gift. For the Spirit himself is gift: he lives by giving himself and in this way he keeps us together, making us sharers in the same gift. It is important to believe that God is gift, that he acts not by taking away, but by giving. Why is this important? Because our way of being believers depends on how we understand God. If we have in mind a God who takes away and imposes himself, we too will want to take away and impose ourselves: occupying spaces, demanding recognition, seeking power. But if we have in our hearts a God who is gift, everything changes. If we realize that what we are is his gift, free and unmerited, then we too will want to make our lives a gift. By loving humbly, serving freely and joyfully, we will offer to the world the true image of God. The Spirit, the living memory of the Church, reminds us that we are born from a gift and that we grow by giving: not by holding on but by giving of ourselves.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us look within and ask ourselves what prevents us from giving ourselves. There are, let us say, three enemies of the gift — the main ones, three — always lurking at the door of our hearts: narcissism, victimhood and pessimism. Narcissism makes us idolize ourselves, to be concerned only with what is good for us. The narcissist thinks: “Life is good if I profit from it.” So he or she ends up saying: “Why should I give myself to others?” In this time of pandemic, how wrong narcissism is: the tendency to think only of our own needs, to be indifferent to those of others, and not to admit our own frailties and mistakes. But the second enemy, victimhood, is equally dangerous. Victims complain every day about their neighbour: “No one understands me, no one helps me, no one loves me, everyone has it in for me!” The victim’s heart is closed, as he or she asks, “Why aren’t others concerned about me?” In the crisis we are experiencing, how ugly victimhood is! Thinking that no one understands us and experiences what we experience. Finally, there is pessimism. Here the unending complaint is: “Nothing is going well, society, politics, the Church…” The pessimist gets angry with the world, but sits back and does nothing, thinking: “What good is giving? That is useless.” At this moment, in the great effort of beginning anew, how damaging is pessimism, the tendency to see everything in the worst light and to keep saying that nothing will return as before! When someone thinks this way, the one thing that certainly does not return is hope. In these three — the narcissistic idol of the mirror, the ‘mirror-god;’ ‘I feel like a person with grievances;’ and the ‘god-negativity,’ ‘everything is black, everything is dark’ — we find ourselves in the famine of hope and we need to appreciate the gift of life, the gift that each of us is. Therefore we need the Holy Spirit, God’s gift that heals us from narcissism, victimhood and pessimism, heals us from the mirror, from grievances and darkness.
Brothers and sister, let us pray to him: Holy Spirit, memory of God, revive in us the memory of the gift received. Free us from the paralysis of selfishness and awaken in us the desire to serve, to do good. Even worse than this crisis is the tragedy of squandering it by closing in on ourselves. Come, Holy Spirit: you are harmony; make us builders of unity. You always give yourself; grant us the courage to go out of ourselves, to love and help each other, in order to become one family. Amen.
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Catholic faithful welcome the strong words, although many do not perceive actions that support such strenuous condemnation. Many of us remain unconvinced. For example, real, live hitmen, Mafia members, in fact all Mafia members were excommunicated by Pope Francis. Then why the withholding of excommunication from Catholic politicians who applaud and legalize government legislation and financial support for abortion, the support for hitmen Planned Parenthood and the like? Why does the Pontiff discourage Catholic prelates who do wish to sanction these politicians? And approve of Archbishop Paglia’s appointment of pro abortion Anglican theologian Nigel Biggar to the Pontifical Academy for Life?. A policy of words sans action that obviously encourages the Catholic laity to vote largely in favor of pro abortion Catholic politicians? If we measure the crime by numbers the aborted infants are infinitely more the victims of murder than Mafia victims. Parity in words doesn’t equate parity in belief, if belief really means to live exactly as we say we believe. Otherwise it’s a lie.
Hope and pray that the Pope’s strong words will further lead him to follow-up with the required strong action in his administration to clean up the Church.
Finally, the Pope is speaking more and more against abortion, and ever more vigorously.
Would that he had done that in the first years of his papacy!!!
The Pope has condemned abortion quite often over the years. I believe that in the early years he might have had a lot of learning to do as a new Pope who had moved in from Argentina.
Mal, re remained silent during the Irish Referendum citing non-interference in internal country affairs. The result was that Catholics perceived he tacitly approved. Then during the US election he openly supported pro-abortion Joe over… interfering and this time with non-tacit approval. Does this resemble honest behavior from a pope, or double-speak from a Free Mason who has a public program but a “hidden” agenda?
Can you prove that our Pope, who is a faithful Catholic and disciple of our Lord, was a freemason? I have seen many such obviously false accusations being made against Pope Francis, and even the Popes before him, and these accusations are kept alive by those who hate Pope Francis.
Catholic faithful welcome the strong words, although many do not perceive actions that support condemnation. Many of us remain unconvinced. For example, Mafia hitmen, indeed all Mafia members were excommunicated by Pope Francis. Then why withhold instruction of the latae sententiae applicability of canon 915 to all Catholic politicians who support even seek to extend abortion? Why does the Pontiff discourage Catholic prelates who do wish to sanction these politicians? And approve of Archbishop Paglia’s appointment of pro abortion Anglican theologian Nigel Biggar to the Pontifical Academy for Life?. A policy of words and no follow-up, except actions that seem to support abortion policy encourage Catholic laity to dismiss doctrine and vote largely in favor of pro abortion Catholic politicians. Parity in words doesn’t equate parity in belief, if belief really means to live exactly as we say we believe.
Pray for wisdom for our Pope that he sees and performs the necessary action to be consistent with his words, and rids the Church of all elements and politicians who support abortion. Give them a chance to renounce abortion and repent. If they do not repent, then they are not Catholics in communion with the Church and, therefore, are not worthy of the Eucharist.
Agreed Ron. I do pray for a just resolution that benefits all.
This second like comment was meant to replace the one above. Ah well, double for the effort. On topic is the challenge of aging and death. Aging is not for the faint of heart (from Thurman Ray Plumlee who wrote Growing Old is Not for the Faint of Heart). Elective euthanasia the easy way out except for judgment and more suffering. Although the pontiff sounds good on the air here, he doesn’t on paper elsewhere. Amoris Laetitia provides the rationale for political expediency based on difficult concrete situations and the primacy of conscience. Moderation, the mitigation of religious rules for sake of societal pluralism. If adultery can be moderately assessed as acceptable why not abortion for the Catholic politician? There is in this an enticing fallacy that subverts [all] revealed moral truth, a religious faux pas. An indiscretion that omits reference to grace, also identified by others in Ch 8. Grace given by Christ exactly to remain faithful within life’s difficult concrete situations. As to growing old I like to look at it other than the cliché a soul trapped in a dying body. Rather an increasingly fine, aging wine ready to be decanted.
It would be interesting to see this latest declaration from the Pope put side by side with another papal soundbite: “I have never refused the Eucharist to anyone.” Let’s wait for the USCCB document coming out this November and check on which one of these statements they will focus their spotlight on or will they give weigh to both? I can’t wait. Even CWR, the rest of the rightist conservative Catholic media, and their constituents, can be weighed in this aspect of their coverage and emphasis of papal tweetable statements to determine their Catholicity, biases, and partisanship.
This is very good news.
(Why is it that with this prelate I am always waiting for the other shoe to drop?)
Those throwaway parts did not go to waste but were in fact essential in the development of the covax
Also euthanasia may one day be our best protection against covid and therefore at that time an ‘act of love’
It’s all coming up roses
Thin gruel.
“treating human life like waste…” Just as Bergoglio did by selling out the Chinese Catholics to their tormentors. Just like he continues to do in embracing the leftist politics of the Democrats Party, globalists, environmentalists, and those who pay homage to the blood stained idol of Pachamama.
Abortion is murder. Murder is evil. Paragraph # 1753 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that the end does not justify the means. So, if abortion is murder, and murder is evil, how can an abortion produce the means of a good vaccine for a pandemic? Just asking.
Mal, he remained silent during the Irish Referendum citing non-interference in internal country affairs. The result was that Catholics perceived he tacitly approved. Then during the US election he openly supported pro-abortion Joe over… interfering and this time with non-tacit approval. Does this resemble honest behavior from a pope, or double-speak from a Free Mason who has a public program but a “hidden” agenda? He speaks like a Pope, when there is political gain to be had. In this instance, there are no Stakes at Stake: the referendum passed, Joe was elected.
Dear Pope Francis, your words are encouraging, but they can’t be heard over the din of your, and your hierarchy’s ACTIONS! Don’t expect us to listen to your words and ignore your actions.
Good thing Pope Francis isn’t trying out for Catholic chaplain in a public university.
Are you kidding? Secularists love this guy. Just ask them. A wide range of people hostile to the Catholic faith and to the Gospel LOVE Pope Francis. They are especially good at recognizing double speak and hypocrisy, because they use it themselves.
My allusion escaped you, Timothy.
Timothy – National Catholic Register – English University Accepts Catholic Chaplain Who Tweeted About Abortion.
Cheers.
I am thankful that Pope Francis has spoken out strongly and clearly against the evil that is abortion, and the evil of euthanasia.
Amen. Now that the Pope has once again condemned abortion and euthanasia and declaring that they have excommunicated themselves, it is up to the Bishops and priests to deal with these people as they see fit.
And once again, Francis has taken the easy route by making a public statement that is binding on NO Catholics. In October, he will have a smiling meeting with Biden, and at that time he will say nothing at all about abortion. The emptiness of this papacy is wider and deeper than the Grand Canyon.
Binding on no Catholics? He has made a very clear statement proclaiming that they are EXCOMMINCATED. Just as Jesus called the doctrine-abiding “religious” Pharisees HPOCRITES, without naming a single individual. In fact, our Lord who ate with sinners and drunkards, did not ever condemn a single individual. Why would he? His mission was to SAVE them.
I agree Jesus came to save us sinners. But that doesn’t mean withholding sanctions when needed. As any parent knows, sometimes the most loving thing she can do is discipline her child and/or say “no.” Jesus did give St. Peter and his successors the power to bind. Why give a power if He did not intend it to be used. After N.O. Archbishop Rummel excommunicated local political figures and one mobster for racism, most repented and returned, chastised, to full communion with the Church. He was brave and, IMHO, right. So would be Pope Francis. Not holding my breath, however.