News October 2026

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

In today’s Gospel, the Lord once again leads us to the heart of our faith (cf. Mt 22:34–40). A teacher of the Law, seeking to test Jesus, asks him, “Which commandment in the law is the greatest?” (v. 36). The Teacher responds by quoting a passage from Deuteronomy: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (v.37; cf. Deut 6:5). Christ places love at the very centre of our relationship with God. Indeed, it is not enough to know that God exists, that he is the only God, or that he is the Almighty. The Lord seeks a personal relationship with us: the one true God wants to become our God.

In our encounter with him, the commandment of love is neither an obligation nor an imposition. Indeed, one cannot love “on command.” Love for God is the very essence of human desire, which finds its fulfillment in communion with him. For this reason, our love can be authentic only when it is a response to his love, which always precedes us. From this arises the need for a total commitment that involves the whole person: heart, soul and mind.

To the first commandment, the Lord adds a second: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself” (Mt 22:39). This rule of life springs from the same source; that is why Jesus says that it is similar to the first. Thanks to our close relationship with God, we are able to look at ourselves and our neighbors through the eyes of Christ, from his perspective. In this way, selfishness is overcome and even love for oneself becomes charity: our existence turns toward the other and becomes a gift for those around us.

Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus understood this well: “Love alone,” she wrote, makes “the Church’s members act, and if Love ever became extinct, apostles would not preach the Gospel” (cf. Complete Works, Manuscript B, 3v°, Rome 1997, 223). Indeed, without love, our faith would be deprived of its essence, our good works would be reduced to mere moralism, and our hope would be in vain.

Dear friends, we cannot truly love God unless this love overflows into love for our brothers and sisters. And we cannot truly love our neighbour except as children of the same Father who loved us first in his Son, Jesus.

Let us ask the Lord for the grace of a new heart, capable of embracing and living out the greatest of all commandments. May the Blessed Virgin Mary intercede for us, in whose Immaculate Heart there is nothing but love.

Dear brothers and sisters,

I am following with concern the grave humanitarian situation in Yemen, particularly in the city of Taiz, where the population is suffering from a lack of food, water and medical care. I make a heartfelt appeal for hostilities to cease and for the Yemeni people and all the peoples of the region to be guaranteed the right to live in peace.

My prayers go out to all those who were injured or lost their lives last Friday in the terrorist attack on worshippers at the Orthodox Church of Saint George in Hamoud, Jordan. I express my closeness to the community and the entire country, which is known for its peaceful coexistence and respect between different religions.

Let us continue to pray together for peace. The day after tomorrow, on 27 October, let us join in spirit with the heads of churches and religious leaders who will gather in Assisi to mark the 40th anniversary of the meeting convened by Saint John Paul II. Never before has it been so clear that wars, as well as sowing death and destruction, impoverish and harm the world. May the Lord inspire choices of dialogue and peace!

I greet you all, dear faithful of Rome and pilgrims from various countries!

I welcome the members of the Centro Académico Romano Fundación from Spain; the group from Saint Ciaran’s College in Ballygawley, Ireland; and the group from the “Saint John Paul II” schools of the Diocese of Opole, Poland.

I am pleased to welcome the heads of protocol from a number of Italian ministries and government departments.

I greet the members of the “Solidarietà in Buone Mani” Association from Castiglion Fiorentino, and the group of friends from Concorezzo who have come on a pilgrimage to mark their 70th birthdays.

I wish you all a happy Sunday.

25.10.26

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

The first think I would like to say is thank you!. Thank you for the support of your prayers. Thanks be to God for His generosity. Let us all renew our trust in God’s goodness and mercy.

The pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes (GS) of the Second Vatican Council, having illustrated in the first part the dignity of the person and his or her vocation in the world, goes on to consider, in the second part, “in the light of the Gospel and of human experience”, some of the most pressing contemporary issues (cf. GS, 46). It focuses primarily on marriage and the family, in the conviction that “the well-being of the individual and of human and Christian society is intimately linked with the healthy condition of that community produced by marriage and family” (GS, 47).

To this end, it does not merely reaffirm their values and aims, but proposes a renewed conception of marriage as an “intimate partnership of married life and love” (GS, 48). By incorporating the legal dimension of marriage as a contract, the foundation of this union is recognized in the “conjugal covenant”, understood as the “human act whereby spouses mutually bestow and accept each another” (ibid.). The mutual self-giving of man and woman, such that ‘they are no longer two but one flesh’ (Mt 19:6), underlies the requirement for “total fidelity” and the “unbreakable oneness” of the spouses, finding vivid expression in the procreation and upbringing of children (cf. GS, 48). As a reflection of the Divine Trinity, conjugal and parental love, through the Sacrament of Marriage, is “governed and enriched by Christ’s redeeming power”, so that spouses may love one another “just as He loved the Church and handed Himself over on her behalf” (ibid.).

Having shed light on the reality of marriage in the light of Christ’s love, which is the truth of both human and divine love, Gaudium et Spes turns its attention to conjugal love and marital fruitfulness. Not limited to erotic attraction, which it nonetheless encompasses, conjugal love involves the entire will of the spouses, enlivening the affections of their hearts and expressing itself through sentiments and gestures of tenderness (cf. GS, 49). Embracing the good of the whole person of both man and woman, who are equal in dignity, this love pervades the entire life of the spouses, finding expression in acts proper exclusively to marriage (cf. ibid.). Whilst signifying integral love from person to person, the unique intimacy between the spouses fosters their mutual self-giving and enriches their shared joy (cf. ibid.).

Furthermore, the fruitfulness of conjugal love is expressed in the procreation of children, “the supreme gift of marriage” (GS, 50). By transmitting and educating human life, which must never be rejected, spouses become “cooperators with the love of God the Creator, and are, so to speak, the interpreters of that love” (ibid.). Called to this human and Christian responsibility, they are bound to allow themselves to be guided by a sound judgement regarding their own good and that of their children, whether already born or yet to be born. Such a judgement, which, in the final analysis, the spouses themselves must form before God, requires that their conscience conform to divine law, as interpreted by the Magisterium of the Church in the light of the Gospel (cf. ibid.).

The emphasis on loving communion and procreative fruitfulness within marriage leads the Council to rule out the possibility of there being “a true contradiction … between the divine laws pertaining to the transmission of life, and those pertaining to authentic conjugal love” (GS, 51) and to affirm, instead, that “when there is question of harmonizing conjugal love with the responsible transmission of life”, one must “preserve the full sense of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love” (ibid.). From this it follows both that “from the moment of its conception life must be guarded with the greatest care”, renouncing “abortion and infanticide”; and that “the acts themselves which are proper to conjugal love and which are exercised in accord with genuine human dignity must be honoured with great reverence” (ibid.).

The teaching of Gaudium et Spes on the conjugal and family community thus goes on to highlight the social function of the family, defined as “a school of deeper humanity” and “the foundation of society” (GS, 52), calling upon all those with social responsibilities, especially in the political and cultural spheres, to fulfil their duty to “work efficiently for the welfare of marriage and the family” (ibid.).

Dear friends, this task is more urgent than ever before. The Church is well aware of this, as shown by the pastoral concern of the Popes who have succeeded one another since the last Council, right up to the two Synodal Assemblies convened by Pope Francis, which were addressed again in recent days by the Heads of the Eastern Catholic Churches and the Presidents of the Episcopal Conferences. May the Holy Family of Nazareth enlighten us on our journey and protect families throughout the world.

I extend a warm welcome to all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience. Upon all of you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ.  God bless you all!

21.10.26

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

The Gospel proclaimed in today’s liturgy (Mt 22:15-21) presents us with one of Jesus’ best-known sayings: “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (cf. v. 21).  For this reason, it is important to consider these words in the context in which they were originally spoken.

The evangelist Matthew describes a situation of hostility towards Jesus: the Pharisees gather together to see how they might catch him in his words (cf. v. 15).  They decide to send some people to question him on a controversial matter: “Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” (v. 17).  The Teacher’s response is astute, for it allows him to avoid the trap and exposes the hypocrisy of those who seek to put him to the test.  He asks them to show him the coin used to pay the tax, that is, a denarius.  They hand it to him, and Jesus asks: “Whose head is this, and whose title?”  They reply: “The emperor’s.”  He then declares: “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (vv. 17-21).

In Jesus, we contemplate a God who is not afraid of history but comes instead to dwell within it.  His Kingdom does not abolish human roles and responsibilities.  It does, however, call us to live without compromise, free from selfish ambitions and unjust motives, seeking above all the Kingdom of God and his righteousness (cf. Mt 6:33).  In this regard, it is striking that those same people praise Jesus, even though their intentions are far from good: “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality” (v. 16).

Dear friends, this is precisely what it means to “give to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s”: to be truthful, free from servile fear or hypocrisy, free to do good.  Let us pray to the Lord to help us live in this way.  And let us entrust ourselves to the intercession of the Virgin Mary.

Dear brothers and sisters,

Today we celebrate the 100th World Mission Day.  Let us think of how much missionary history has unfolded over these one hundred years!  Let us pray that the Church may always remain faithful to the mandate of the Risen Lord: “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation” (Mk 16:15).

I would like to thank all those who have prayed for me in recent days.  I have truly sensed your support.  Thank you!

I wish to express my particular gratitude to the doctors, nurses and all the staff of the Gemelli Hospital.

This experience has made me feel particularly close to all those who are living with illness or infirmity.

Now that I have overcome this delicate phase, as you know, I will gradually resume my activities, always with God’s help and your prayers.

Thank you once again. Thank you all! Have a good Sunday!

18.10.26

I will now read the homily prepared by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV.

“The joy of love experienced by families is also the joy of the Church” (Pope Francis, Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia, 19 March 2016, 1).  With these words, ten years ago, Pope Francis began his Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia.

Today, as we celebrate the Eucharist, we offer to the Lord the fruits of the work we have carried out on this document, and we seek to take its riches to heart and put its pastoral guidance into practice.

In this regard, today’s liturgy offers us several points for reflection.  In the first reading, we heard Saint Paul’s “hymn to love” (cf. 1 Cor 12:31–13:13). In Chapter 4 of the Apostolic Exhortation, this same text provides the basis of a rich meditation on the virtues of Christian marriage, a union that is “affective… spiritual and sacrificial” (no. 120), and an icon of God’s love (cf. no. 121).  Through living out these values, and with the help of grace, spouses grow together day by day in the image of the Trinity.  Both spouses mature in their own distinctive ways, and at the same time grow to resemble one another through the “stable commitment to share and shape together the whole of life” (no. 123).  Thus, the true joy of love is a gradual deepening of union, in which each person’s uniqueness blossoms through the gift of self and the presence of the other.

Moreover, the Apostle was addressing a community rich in gifts and charisms (cf. 1 Cor 12:4-11), yet one that needed to mature in love.  He reminded the Corinthians that persons without love, despite all the talents they may have received, are like “a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal” (13:1), like a voice without love, unable to speak to the heart, cut off from others, distant, cold and impenetrable.

We were not made to live that way.  The responsorial Psalm also calls this to mind by calling us the “people” and “flock” of a God whose “steadfast love endures for ever” and whose faithfulness extends “to all generations” (Ps 100:5). He is a Lord who loves without holding back, who never ceases to seek us, place his trust in us and renew his friendship with us.

This is the love that Amoris Laetitia invites us to make the foundation of our families.  This is the true love that, in a particular way, we are urged to teach to young people preparing for marriage, instructing them about “the importance of the virtues,” among which a special place is given to chastity, which is “invaluable for the genuine growth of love between persons” (no. 206). Marriage preparation programs conscientiously developed for this purpose in parishes and pastoral areas are commendable.  Yet such courses alone are insufficient, for they must be preceded and supported by an education in love that accompanies a person’s growth from childhood.  In this regard, Pope Francis observed that “learning to love someone does not happen automatically, nor can it be taught in a workshop just prior to the celebration of marriage” (no. 208).  He explained: “For every couple, marriage preparation begins at birth,” (ibid.) and everything a young person experiences within the family should help to make that person capable of “a full and definitive commitment” (ibid.).

In this way, love lived within the family — with its moments of struggle, mistakes and failures, yet also with the marvel of its unpredictable, everyday life — becomes the first school of human affection, the first precious and irreplaceable apprenticeship in the “joy of love.”  For this reason, we should recognise and support the efforts of so many families who live out their vocation and mission day by day, without fanfare, yet at times with heroic fidelity.  They offer a generous and compelling witness to the words of Jesus we heard in the Gospel: “you did not choose me but I chose you.  And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last” (Jn 15:16). Through the witness of parents, children, grandparents, young people and the elderly, the Gospel’s message of truth and the fullness of life reaches the world.

The Evangelist John handed down to us the simple and clear instruction that Jesus spoke at the end of his earthly life: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 15:12).  Let us put it into practice, so that we may grow as a Church that is a “family of families” (Amoris Laetitia, no. 87), in an atmosphere of reciprocal care that will benefit us all. Thus, young couples will feel encouraged as they begin their married life; parents will find support as they face the demanding challenges of raising their children and managing family life; and older people will be recognized and valued in their role as witnesses to wisdom and virtue, even as their physical strength wanes.  Those who are more vulnerable, or who are experiencing difficult circumstances and moments of crisis, will also find support and encouragement, surrounded by affection and shielded from judgment and prejudice.  Let us remember that “as wounded as the family may be, it can always grow beginning with love” (XIV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Relatio Finalis, 10).

The values of openness to life and respect for life, from conception to natural death, are also rooted in this charity, which is fundamental to our existence and to our life together as human beings.  The family is the foremost guardian of these values, a beacon for the good of humanity.  In this regard, Pope Francis stressed that “no union that is temporary or closed to the transmission of life can ensure the future of society” (Amoris Laetitia, 52).  The world has no future without strong families open to the gift of children and attentive to their education and growth.

I would like to recall another important invitation from Jesus, in the readings we have heard, that we ask the Father “in my name” (Jn 15:16).  These words remind us that the family is a privileged place of prayer.  Sadly, in many parts of the world today, the practice of praying together at home — before meals, at the beginning and end of the day, or on special occasions — has fallen away. Amoris Laetitia reminds us that “emphasis should also be given to the importance of family spirituality, prayer and participation in the Sunday Eucharist” (no. 223).  It likewise recommends that families gather “regularly to promote growth in their spiritual life and solidarity in the concrete demands of life” (ibid.).  Common prayer and the Sacraments play a vital role in family life because they open hearts to the action of God, enabling families to reach together places that they could never reach on their own.  Indeed, they are a solid nourishment and a healing medicine.  I therefore strongly urge everyone to rediscover and encourage these practices.

Dear brothers and sisters, I myself have the honour of presiding over this celebration by special mandate of His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, in order to manifest publicly the ecclesiastical communion he has granted to His Beatitude Paul III Nona, Patriarch of Baghdad of the Chaldeans, who is participating in this Eucharist.

A Patriarch’s communion with the Successor of Peter recalls an ancient practice that affirmed the unity in faith and charity between a patriarchal Church and the See of Rome — and, at that time, among the Churches themselves. This is, therefore not a mere formality, but a living reality that draws its very reason from Eucharistic communion, the source and summit of the Church’s unity in Christ.

Your Beatitude, your presence helps us better understand our identity as the Church, which is a communion in Christ the Lord of the Churches of various rites and traditions, in a unity that is expressed tangibly with the Successor of Peter.  We assure you of the affection and prayers of the entire Catholic Church for the faithful entrusted to your pastoral care, who have long been tested but remain steadfast and often heroic in bearing witness to their faith in Jesus amid many adversities.

Dear brothers and sisters, let us entrust all families and the whole Church to the Holy Family of Nazareth, taking up once more the prayer with which Pope Francis concluded Amoris Laetitia (no. 325):

Holy Family of Nazareth, grant that our families too may be places of communion and prayer, authentic schools of the Gospel and small domestic churches…

May families never again experience violence, rejection and division; may all who have been hurt or scandalised find ready comfort and healing… 

make us once more mindful of the sacredness and inviolability of the family, and its beauty in God’s plan. Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

Graciously hear our prayer.  Amen.

14.10.26

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus speaks of the wedding feast prepared by a king for his son (cf. Mt 22:1–14).

A son’s wedding is a special occasion for any family, and this happy father wants to share his joy with everyone.  He prepares a banquet and invites many people.  Saint Thomas Aquinas says that goodness, by its very nature, tends to spread: “Bonum dicitur diffusivum sui” (Summa Theologiae, I, q. 5, a. 4, ad 2).  The image in the narrative expresses this idea in the context of our lived experience.  When something good happens, it kindles a light that leads us to share our happiness with others.

In response to such a gracious invitation, however, instead of coming to the feast, the guests turn away and prefer to continue going about their business.  Some are annoyed, insult the king’s messengers and even kill them.  Unfortunately, this can happen to us, too, for the good we offer to do is not always understood, recognized or appreciated.  Indeed, at times, it is willfully misinterpreted and rejected.  Yet this must not discourage us.  When faced with rejection, the king does not call off the wedding or cancel the celebrations.  On the contrary, he extends his invitation to an even greater number of people, sending his servants out into the streets to call them so that the bride and groom’s joy may be a gift for all.

At this point, we can ask ourselves whom the main characters in this story represent.  Saint Jerome identifies the king as the Heavenly Father, the bridegroom as Jesus, and the bride as the Church (cf. Commentary on Matthew, Book III, ch. 22).  We are among the main characters as well, chosen by the Lord to share our lives with him and to be bearers of life with him.  The wedding feast is ours, and the banquet hall is our churches and homes, the places where we live and where the King’s Son, Jesus Christ, continues to declare his love for us and await our “yes.”  We encounter him there, and are clothed like a bride in the white garment of Baptism and adorned with the jewels of good works, which draw us closer to God and to one another.

The joy we proclaim, therefore, is not artificial; it is profound, concrete and real.  It is as beautiful as the faces of the people we meet.  It is as genuine as the work, the smiles, the tears, the handshakes, and the acts of kindness that fill our days.  It is a gift of God for the salvation of the world.

Therefore, let us ask Mary, the Mother of the Lord, to help us grow in this joy.  Even when it is not understood, let us proclaim this joy always and everywhere, with generosity, courage and faith.

Yesterday, in Mantua, Sister Maria Ignazia Isacchi, the foundress of the Congregation of the Ursuline Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, was beatified.  Between the end of 19th century and the early decades of the 20th century, she devoted herself with courageous charity to the needy and the disadvantaged.  May her example rekindle in all of us the desire to be witnesses in the world of the love of the Gospel toward everyone.

The war in tormented Ukraine continues to cause suffering far beyond its borders, especially in the poorest countries, where so many people depend on grain imports.  I make a heartfelt appeal to the parties to the conflict to allow for the safe transport of grain through the Black Sea.  The daily bread of millions of people cannot be held hostage by the war.

Today in Italy marks the Day for Victims of Workplace Accidents. I extend my greetings to the National Association of Workers with Work-Related Injuries and Disabilities and encourage efforts toward prevention.

I extend a warm welcome to all of you, Romans and pilgrims alike!

I greet the members of the Hermandad del Señor de los Milagros in Rome and all those who took part in the procession with the venerated Icon of the Crucified Christ.  Thank you for your prayers for the pastoral visit I will make to Peru.

I joyfully welcome the faithful of the Greek Catholic Eparchy of Mukachevo in Ukraine, accompanied by their Bishop; the Asociación de fieles Hakuna; the las Antiguas Alumnas Jesús Maria España; the choir and choral school of the Cathedral of Haarlem in the Netherlands; and the faithful from Vienna.

I extend my greetings to the young people of the Chiaravalle vicariate in the Diocese of Senigallia; the members of the Belluno provincial chapter of AIDO; the Ars Enotria group from Cosenza and the women’s soccer team from the Biella Hospital.

Dear friends, during some recent medical examinations, the doctors found a small, localized nodule in my lung.  It was detected at a very early stage and is well-localized.  The doctors believe that it is best to intervene, so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to remove it.  The operation is already scheduled to take place in the coming days.  I thank you for your spiritual closeness and entrust myself to your prayers.

Thank you, and happy Sunday!

11.10.26

Brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

Resuming our reflection on the Conciliar Constitution Gaudium et Spes (GS), today we will consider the fourth chapter of the first part, dedicated to the Church’s mission in the contemporary world.

First of all, the Council recalls that the Church is not “above” or “beside” the world, but is, as it were, grafted into it. “Mundus reconciliatus Ecclesia”, wrote Saint Augustine (Sermon 96): the Church is the world already reconciled with God; we are pilgrims on earth and share in this world’s fragility and beauty (cf. GS, 40).

Just as the Son of God was incarnated to give life to the world and to reconcile it with the Father, so the Church dwells in the world as a sign of the incarnation of God, in order to manifest His plan to make us all His children in one great human family. Therefore, the Church journeys through history in the midst of peoples and cultures, and “this involvement in people’s lives helps the Church understand ever more clearly that her mission has a historical scope and entails a responsibility for the way in which social relations are built” (Encyclical Letter Magnifica Humanitas, 19).

The first mission of the Church is to help people be attentive to the profound questions of life: those concerning our origin and our destiny, as well as those concerning the meaning of love and suffering (cf. GS, 41). The logic of profit at all costs and the manipulation of information risk exerting undue pressure on people to conform to a lifestyle centred on the consumption of material goods, but our hearts are made to look upwards.

The Council Fathers remind us that the Church’s mission is fulfilled also in contributing to the construction of the earthly city. However, her methods and aims are not primarily of a political order; rather, they consist in bearing witness to faith and charity, together with commitment for justice, peace, and fraternity. By worshipping Christ, the Righteous One who died for the unrighteous, the believer cannot accept the oppression of the weak and the poor, nor the unjust structures that perpetuate conditions of dependence and injustice. The social doctrine of the Church guides the actions of Christians, who collaborate with all people of good will in promoting the common good. The Church, therefore, “has no fiercer desire than that in pursuit of the welfare of all she may be able to develop herself freely under any kind of government which grants recognition to the basic rights of person and family, to the demands of the common good” (GS, 42).

To fulfil the Gospel mission effectively, it is necessary for every baptised person to commit to cooperating with the grace of the Holy Spirit, so that their faith may be living and expressed in consistent behaviour. Indeed, as the Council Fathers reiterate, the discrepancy between professed faith and daily life “deserves to be counted among the more serious errors of our age” (GS, 43).

Gaudium et Spes reserves special mention (cf. ibid.) for the mission of the lay faithful who, by virtue of their Baptism, are called to enliven the world with the Christian spirit and the vision of the Gospel. The principal settings for this activity, which may well be described as priestly, are undoubtedly the family and the workplace, but it extends to every sphere of life.

Finally, the Church is always attentive to what is taking place and developing in society (cf. GS, 44). It is the task of the whole People of God, especially pastors and theologians, to discern what in the cultures of our time is worthy of consideration, always taking the Word of God and the Tradition of the Church as the supreme criteria for discernment. This requires a balanced mind, free from cultural trends, capable of viewing the world in a positive light whilst remaining steadfast in preserving and presenting the Gospel message in its entirety. Indeed, “it is certainly not by watering down the content or softening the demands that Christianity can be made attractive” (Address to the Plenary Assembly of the Dicastery for Evangelization – Section on Fundamental Questions regarding Evangelization in the World, 28 May 2026).

Dear friends, as she journeys through history, “the Church has a single intention: that God’s kingdom may come, and that the salvation of the whole human race may come to pass” (GS, 45). She strives towards this end above all through personal holiness and fraternal love. Saint Paul VI wrote: “Without this mark of holiness, our word will have difficulty in touching the heart of modern man. It risks being vain and sterile” (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi, 76). Let us therefore be open to the action of the Holy Spirit, that He may help us to live in holiness and charity, so that the world may believe and hope.

I extend a warm welcome to all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, especially those from England, Scotland, Ireland, Uganda, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Canada and the United States of America. Upon each of you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you all!

07.10.26

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

The Gospel parable proclaimed in this Sunday’s Liturgy speaks of Jesus’ life and sheds light on the meaning of his mission (cf. Mt 21:33-43).  He is the Son of God sent into the world, yet he is rejected by the very people who should have welcomed him with open arms.  The One who came to bring salvation is condemned; the One who wishes to give life is put to death.  While this leads us to reflect on the many cruelties that plague the world and the history of peoples, Christ’s teaching reveals the ever-greater mercy of his Father.

Indeed, the violent rejection does not thwart God’s will; in his infinite justice, he transforms evil into redemption: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone” (Mt 21:42; cf. Ps 118:22).  Jesus himself recalls these words from the Psalm, which celebrates the marvelous work done by the Lord: it is precisely what was cast aside that becomes the foundation that sustains everything.  This is how the Almighty guides history, coming to our aid in all our falls: God never discards our lives!

According to the image used in the parable, the vineyard to be cultivated with justice is the Church, which we build up or damage through our choices.  In this regard, today — on the eighth centenary of his death — I wish to recall a labourer who worked with great fruitfulness in the Lord’s vineyard: Saint Francis of Assisi, whom Jesus himself asked to repair his Church.  Inspired by the Crucified One, Francis first and foremost built his own life upon the foundation of Christ, sharing in his poverty, joy and sufferings, even to the point of receiving the mystical sign of the stigmata.  A man of fervent prayer, full of charity toward all, he was an example to the first friars who shared his asceticism as an authentic condition for the reform of the Church.  Saint Francis repaired the Church by virtue of his faith in the Lord Jesus, healing the rifts of discord through the witness of fraternal love.

Dear friends, the charism of Saint Francis continues to bear fruit even today, after eight centuries.  This is attested to, not only by the great and vibrant Franciscan family but also by the many gifts that his spiritual legacy bestows upon the People of God.  As we celebrate the Franciscan Jubilee Year, therefore, let us perseveringly ask for the gift of peace and sincerely commit ourselves to building harmony among peoples.

May the intercession of Mary Most Holy, our Mother, always accompany us in this work.  To her we now turn, spiritually united with the faithful gathered at the Shrine of Pompeii to offer the Supplication to the Virgin of the Holy Rosary.

Dear brothers and sisters,

Last Sunday, in Lourdes, I invited everyone to pray the Rosary during this month of October, with the special intention that wars may cease and peace may be built.  Among the first to do so were the children, and they are continuing to do so: from 1 to 7 October, “Aid to the Church in Need” is promoting “A Million Children Praying the Rosary” initiative for peace and unity in the world.  I wholeheartedly thank all the boys and girls who are joining in this prayer in so many parts of the world.  Let us all follow their example, invoking the intercession of the Virgin Mary so that peoples may be freed from the scourge of war.  In particular, let us pray for the Holy Land and for the innocent victims of violence.

In the coming days, on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia, a meeting will take place in the Vatican for which I have convoked the Heads of the Eastern Catholic Churches and the Presidents of the world’s Episcopal Conferences.  It will be a time of synodal discernment for identifying the steps to be taken in order to proclaim the Gospel today among families and the younger generations.  I entrust this task to your prayers and, above all, the families who, with God’s help, are a sign of hope and an inestimable treasure for the Church and for society.

I am pleased by the many initiatives celebrating the eighth centenary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi.  In particular, I recall those that took place in Assisi, attended by the highest authorities of the Italian State.  I also greet the amateur radio operators of Assisi and Foligno who spread Saint Francis’ message of peace.

Now, I extend my greetings to all of you who are present today in Saint Peter’s Square.

I welcome the participants in the International Week of Sacred Music, organized by the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music; as well as the faithful from Puente Alto in Santiago, Chile, and the teachers and students of the Gymnasium Sankt Bonaventura in Dillingen, Germany.

I greet the confirmandi from Pinerolo; the faithful from Fasana Polesine; the young people from Val Brembana who have walked the Via Francigena from Viterbo to Rome; the FIABA Association, which promotes campaigns to improve accessibility in public places; the “Mothers who give a smile” group from Taranto; and the “Students with Stars” association from Lurago d’Erba.

I cordially bless the faithful who, today, from this Square, will set out on a pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of the Revelation on the Via Laurentina, continuing the tradition begun by Pope Pius XII.

I wish everyone a happy Sunday.

04.10.26