April 23, 2025 Midweek News
On Monday, the world awoke to the news that Pope Francis had passed away. Just one day before – on Easter Sunday – Pope Francis greeted the Catholic faithful at the Vatican, celebrating Resurrection Sunday.
As his legacy is remembered in the coming days, take note of the ways he used his power, authority, and position to lift up those experiencing hardship and draw attention to those the world had forgotten. Last time I checked, I am not a Catholic. But I had great respect for Pope Francis. He eschewed many of the trappings and expensive traditions of his office, and instead chose a simpler ministry that focused on relationships. I image his desire to center the world’s eyes on those who suffer was – in part – a result of his faith journey as one who had suffered. At the age of 21, he suffered life-threatening pneumonia and had to have part of his lung removed with 3 cysts. Like Christ and so many of those who follow Jesus, suffering can be a path to great joy and love if we allow the Spirit to guide us.
In his 2013 Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), Pope Francis encourages God’s people to undertake the communal work of sharing the joy of the Gospel. Here are a few of my favorite quotes, timely as ever:
“All (people who do not know Christ or who have always rejected him) of them have a right to receive the Gospel. Christians have the duty to proclaim the Gospel without excluding anyone. Instead of seeming to impose new obligations, they should appear as people who wish to share their joy, who point to a horizon of beauty and who invite others to a delicious banquet. It is not by proselytizing that the Church grows, but by attraction.”
“The Church which goes forth is a community of missionary disciples who take the first step, who are involved and supportive, who bear fruit and rejoice. An evangelizing community knows that the Lord has taken the initiative, he has loved us first, and therefore we can move forward, boldly take the initiative, go out to others, seek those who have fallen away, stand at the crossroads and welcome the outcast.” (21)
“Evangelization consists mostly of patience and disregard for constraints of time.” (22)
Let us pray for our Catholic neighbors as they enter a time of grief and transition.
Easter blessings,
Pastor Jared