Pope Francis Homilies

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Matthew Mark Luke John The Acts Romans 1 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Galatians Ephesians Philippians Colossians 1 Thessalonians 2 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Timothy Titus Philemon Hebrews James 1 Peter 2 Peter 1 John 2 John 3 John Jude Revelation Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy Joshua Judges Ruth 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings 1 Chronicles 2 Chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Tobit Judith Esther 1 Maccabees 2 Maccabees Job Psalms Proverbs Ecclesiastes The Song of Songs The Book of Wisdom Sirach Isaiah Jeremiah Lamentations Baruch Ezekiel Daniel Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi

Pope Leo Regina Caeli 10.05.26

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

In today’s Gospel, we hear some of the words Jesus addressed to his disciples during the Last Supper. As he turns the bread and wine into a living expression of his love, Christ says: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (Jn 14:15). This statement frees us from the misconception that we are loved because we keep the commandments, as if our righteousness were a prerequisite for God’s love. On the contrary, God’s love is the basis for our righteousness. We truly keep the commandments according to God’s will when we recognize his love for us, just as Christ revealed it to the world. Jesus’ words are therefore an invitation to enter into a relationship, not a blackmail or a suspicious ultimatum.

This is why the Lord commands us to love one another as he has loved us (cf. Jn 13:34): it is Jesus’ love that begets love within us. Christ himself is the standard, the measure of true love: the love that is faithful forever, pure and unconditional. The love that knows no “buts” or “maybes;” the love that gives of itself without seeking to possess; the love that gives life without taking anything in return. Because God loved us first, we too can love, and when we truly love God, we truly love one another. It is like life itself: just as only those who have received life can live, so too, only those who have been loved can love. The Lord’s commandments are therefore a way of life that heal us from false loves. They are a spiritual lifestyle that is a path towards salvation.

It is precisely because he loves us that the Lord does not leave us alone in life’s trials; he promises us the Paraclete, that is, the Advocate, the “Spirit of truth” (Jn 14:17). This gift is one that “the world cannot receive” (ibid.), as long as it persists in evil, oppressing the poor, excluding the weak and killing the innocent. Those who respond to Jesus’ love for all, on the other hand, will find in the Holy Spirit an ally who will never fail: “You know him,” says Jesus, “for he dwells with you, and will be in you” (ibid.). We can therefore bear witness to God, who is love, always and everywhere. Love is not an idea of the human mind, but the reality of divine life, through which all things were created out of nothing and redeemed from death.

By offering us true and eternal love, Jesus shares with us his identity as the beloved Son: “I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you” (v. 20). This all-encompassing communion of life refutes the Accuser — the Paraclete’s adversary, the spirit opposed to our defender. In fact, while the Holy Spirit is the power of truth, the Accuser is the “father of lies” (Jn 8:44), who seeks to set humanity against God and people against one another: the very opposite of what Jesus does by saving us from evil and uniting us as a people of brothers and sisters in the Church.

Dear friends, filled with gratitude for this gift, let us entrust ourselves to the intercession of the Virgin Mary, Mother of Divine Love.

Dear brothers and sisters,

I have learned with deep concern of the reports regarding the growing violence in the Sahel region, particularly in Chad and Mali, which have recently suffered terrorist attacks. I offer the assurance of my heartfelt prayers for the victims and my spiritual closeness to all those who are suffering as a result of the tragic events. I fervently hope that every form of violence may cease, and I encourage all efforts aimed at fostering peace and development in that beloved land.

Each year, on 10 May, we celebrate the “Day of Coptic-Catholic Friendship”. I extend my fraternal greetings to His Holiness Pope Tawadros II and assure the entire beloved Coptic Church of my remembrance in prayer. It is my hope that our journey of friendship will lead us to perfect unity in Christ, who has called us “friends” (cf. Jn 15:15).

And now, I cordially welcome all of you, the faithful of Rome and pilgrims from various countries!

In a particular way, I greet the group “Guardie d’Onore al Sacro Cuore di Gesù,” from various cities throughout Italy as well as the “Volontari per l’evangelizzazione” connected with the Radio Maria family. I also warmly greet the volunteers of the association “Komen Italia,” whom I thank for their commitment to breast cancer prevention.

I would like to thank the people of the Canary Islands who, with the hospitality characteristic of them, welcomed the cruise ship Hondius and the passengers infected with the Hantavirus. I look forward to seeing all of you next month during my visit to the Islands.

Today, we especially remember all mothers. Through the intercession of Mary, the Mother of Jesus and our own Mother, let us pray with love and gratitude for every mother, particularly those living in very difficult circumstances. Thank you! May God bless you!

I wish everyone a blessed Sunday.

10.05.26

Pope Leo Regina Caeli 10.05.26

Pope Leo Holy Mass 08.05.26

Pastoral visit to Pompeii

Excerpt below for the full transcript click on the picture link above

Dear brothers and sisters!

“My soul magnifies the Lord.” These words, with which we responded to the First Reading, spring from the heart of the Virgin Mary as she presents to Elizabeth the fruit of her womb, Jesus, the Saviour. After her, Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, and the elderly Simeon will sing in praise of Christ. These three canticles mark the Church’s daily praise in the Liturgy of the Hours. They are the gaze of ancient Israel, which sees its promises fulfilled; they are the gaze of the Church, the Bride, reaching out to her divine Bridegroom; they are, implicitly, the gaze of all humanity, which finds an answer to its longing for salvation.

One hundred and fifty years ago, by laying the foundation stone of this Shrine, on the site where the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 AD had buried the signs of a great civilization under ash, preserving them for centuries, Saint Bartolo Longo, together with his wife Countess Marianna Farnararo De Fusco, laid the foundations not only of a temple, but of an entire Marian city. Thus he expressed his awareness of God’s plan, which Saint John Paul II, speaking in this place of grace on 7 October 2003, at the conclusion of the Year of the Rosary, relaunched for the Third Millennium, in the context of the new evangelization: “Today”, he said, “as in the times of ancient Pompeii, it is vital to proclaim Christ to a society that is drifting away from Christian values and even forgetting about them”.

Exactly one year ago, when I was entrusted with the ministry of the Successor of Peter, it was precisely the day of the Supplication to the Virgin, this beautiful day of the Supplication to Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii! So, I had to come here, to place my service under the protection of the Holy Virgin. My choice of the name Leo places me in the footsteps of Leo XIII, who, among his other merits, also developed an extensive Magisterium on the Holy Rosary. Added to all this is the recent canonization of Saint Bartolo Longo, apostle of the Rosary. This context provides us with a key to reflecting on the Word of God we have just heard.

The Gospel of the Annunciation introduces us to the moment at which the Word of God is incarnated in Mary’s womb. From this womb radiates the Light that gives full meaning to history and to the world. The greeting that the angel Gabriel addresses to the Virgin is an invitation to rejoice: “Hail, full of grace” (Lk 1:28; cf. Zeph 3:14). Yes, the Hail Mary is an invitation to joy: it tells Mary, and through her all of us, that upon the ruins of our humanity, tested by sin and therefore ever prone to oppression, abuse and war, the caress of God has come, the caress of mercy, which takes on a human face in Jesus. Mary thus becomes the Mother of Mercy. A disciple of the Word and an instrument of His Incarnation, she truly reveals herself to be “full of grace”. Everything in her is grace! By offering her own flesh to the Word, she too becomes, as the Second Vatican Council teaches, following Saint Augustine, “the mother of the members of Christ … having cooperated by charity that faithful might be born into the Church, who are members of that Head” (Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 53; cf. Saint Augustine, De S. Virginitate, 6). In Mary’s “Let it be to me”, not only Jesus is born, but also the Church, and Mary becomes both the Mother of God – Theotòkos – and Mother of the Church.

What a great mystery! Everything happens in the power of the Holy Spirit, who overshadows Mary and makes her virginal womb fruitful. This moment in history possesses a tenderness and a power that draw the heart and lift it to that contemplative height where the prayer of the Holy Rosary takes root. A prayer which, having arisen and developed progressively during the second millennium, has its roots in the history of salvation, and finds its prelude precisely in the Angel’s greeting to the Virgin. “Hail Mary”! The repetition of this prayer in the Rosary is like an echo of Gabriel’s greeting, an echo that spans the centuries and guides the believer’s gaze to Jesus, seen through the eyes and heart of His Mother. Jesus adored, contemplated, and assimilated in each of His mysteries, so that with Saint Paul we may say: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:19).

08.05.26

FAMINE

Pope Francis

Hunger

Hunger is an injustice that destroys men and women because they have nothing to eat, even if there is a lot food available in the world. Human exploitation; different forms of slavery; recently I saw a film shot inside a prison where migrants are locked up and tortured to turn them into slaves. This is still happening 70 years after the Declaration of Human Rights. Cultural colonization. This is exactly what the Devil wants, to destroy human dignity – and that is why the Devil is behind all forms of persecution.

01.06.18

Pope Leo General Audience 06.05.26

Excerpt below for the full transcript click on the picture link above

Brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

As we focus today on a section of Chapter VII of the Second Vatican Council’s Constitution on the Church, let us reflect on one of its defining characteristics: its eschatological dimension. The Church, in fact, journeys through this earthly history always looking towards her final destination, which is the heavenly homeland. This is an essential dimension which, however, we often overlook or downplay, because we are too focused on what is immediately visible and on the more concrete dynamics of the life of the Christian community.

The Church is God’s people journeying through history, which has the Kingdom of God as the purpose of all her action (cf. LG, 9). Jesus initiated the Church precisely by proclaiming this Kingdom of love, justice and peace (cf. LG, 5). We are therefore called to consider the community and cosmic dimension of salvation in Christ and to turn our eyes to this final horizon, to measure and evaluate everything from this perspective.

The Church lives in history in the service of the coming of the Kingdom of God in the world. She proclaims the words of this promise to all and always; she receives a pledge of it in the celebration of the Sacraments, particularly the Eucharist; she puts its logic into practice and experiences it in relationships of love and service. Furthermore, she knows that she is the place and the means where union with Christ is realized “more closely” (LG, 48), whilst at the same time recognizing that salvation can be bestowed by God in the Holy Spirit even beyond her visible boundaries.

In this regard, the Constitution Lumen gentium makes an important statement: the Church is the “universal sacrament of salvation” (LG, 48), that is, the sign and instrument of that fullness of life and peace promoted by God. This means that she does not identify perfectly with the Kingdom of God, but is its seed and beginning, for its fulfilment will be granted to humanity and the cosmos only at the end. Believers in Christ, therefore, walk through this earthly history, marked by the maturation of good but also by injustices and sufferings, without being either deluded or despairing; they live guided by the promise received from the One who will “make all things new” (Rev 21:5). Therefore, the Church realizes her mission between the “already” of the beginning of the Kingdom of God in Jesus, and the “not yet” of the promised and anticipated fulfilment. As the guardian of a hope that enlightens the path, she is also invested with the mission of speaking clearly to reject everything that mortifies life and prevents its development, and to take a position in favour of the poor, the exploited, the victims of violence and war, and all those who suffer in body and in spirit (cf. Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, no. 159).

As the sign and sacrament of the Kingdom, the Church is the pilgrim people of God on earth who, drawing precisely on the final promise, reads and interprets the dynamics of history through the Gospel, denouncing evil in all its forms and proclaiming, in word and deed, the salvation that Christ wishes to bring about for all humanity and His Kingdom of justice, love and peace. The Church, therefore, does not proclaim herself; on the contrary, everything within her must point to salvation in Christ.

From this perspective, the Church is called to recognize humbly the human fragility and transience of her own institutions who, despite being at the service of the Kingdom of God, bear the fleeting image of this world (cf. LG, 48). No ecclesial institution can be treated as absolute; indeed, since they exist within history and time, they are called to continual conversion, to the renewal of forms and the reform of structures, to the continual regeneration of relationships, so that they may truly fulfil their mission.

06.05.26

Pope Leo General Audience 06.05.26

Pope Leo Regina Caeli 03.05.26

Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

During the Easter season, like the early Church, we return to the words of Jesus, which reveal their full meaning in the light of his passion, death and resurrection. What once eluded the disciples or caused them distress now comes back to their minds, warms their hearts and fills them with hope.

The Gospel proclaimed this Sunday presents the Master’s dialogue with his disciples during the Last Supper. In particular, we hear a promise that involves us from this moment onwards in the mystery of his Resurrection. Jesus says: “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also” (Jn 14:3). The Apostles thus discover that God has a place for everyone. Two of them had already experienced this during their first encounter with Jesus by the river Jordan. Jesus noticed them following him and invited them that afternoon to visit where he was staying (cf. Jn 1:39). Even now, faced with death, Jesus speaks of a home, but this time a very large one. It is the house of his Father and our Father, where there is room for all. The Son describes himself as the servant who prepares the rooms, so that every brother or sister, upon arriving, may find their own room ready and feel as though they have always been longed for and are at last found.

Dear friends, in the old world in which we are still journeying, what attracts attention are exclusive places, experiences accessible only to a few and the privilege of entering where others cannot. In the new world into which the risen One leads us, however, what is most valuable is within everyone’s reach. Yet this does not make it any less attractive. On the contrary, what is open to all now brings joy. Gratitude takes the place of competition; welcome overcomes exclusion; and abundance no longer entails inequality. Above all, no one is mistaken for someone else, and no one is lost. Death threatens to erase one’s name and memory, but in God everyone is fully themselves. Truly, this is what we spend our whole lives searching for, sometimes willing to do anything just to get a little attention and recognition.

“Have faith,” Jesus tells us. That is the secret! “Have faith in God; have faith also in me” (Jn 14:1). It is precisely this faith that frees our hearts from the anxiety of possessing and acquiring, and from the illusion that we must pursue a position of prestige to have worth. Each person already has infinite worth in the mystery of God, which is the true reality. By loving one another as Jesus has loved us, we impart this awareness to one another. This is the new commandment; in this way, we anticipate heaven on earth and reveal to all that fraternity and peace are our calling. Indeed, through love, amidst a multitude of brothers and sisters, each one discovers that they are uniquely made.

Let us pray, then, to Mary Most Holy, Mother of the Church, that every Christian community may be a home open to all and attentive to each person.

Dear brothers and sisters,

The month of May has begun: throughout the Church, the joy of gathering in the name of Mary, our Mother, is renewed, especially by praying the Rosary together. We relive the experience of those days between Jesus’ Ascension and Pentecost, when the disciples gathered in the upper room to invoke the Holy Spirit. Mary Most Holy remained in their midst, her heart keeping watch over the fire that animated the prayer of all. I entrust my intentions to you, particularly for communion within the Church and for peace in the world.

03.05.26

The Gospel in your pocket

How do we receive the Word of God? The response is clear: As one receives Jesus Christ. The Church tells us that Jesus is present in the Scripture, in His Word.

Always carry a small Gospel with you in your purse, in your pocket, and read a passage from the Gospel during the day. Not so much to learn something, but mostly to find Jesus, because Jesus actually is in His Word, in His Gospel. Every time I read the Gospel, I find Jesus. - Pope Francis 01.09.14

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Thank you, Francis

Every month, you have invited us to pray with you for the challenges of humanity and the mission of the Church, teaching us to learn compassion for others from the heart of Christ. Thank you, Francis, for your life and your witness.

Your Worldwide Prayer Network.

Pope Francis Easter Message and Urbi et Orbi Blessing 20.04.25

Easter Sunday