In his homily for the Chrism Mass, Francis invited priests not to let themselves be frightened by fatigue and weakness and to discover in them their own Easter. Today in the Casal del Marmo juvenile prison, the Mass in Coena Domini with the washing of the feet of the young prisoners.
Vatican City () – “My fulfillment depends on how good I am, the role I get, the compliments I receive, the career I do, the superiors or collaborators I have, the comforts I can guarantee myself, or of the anointing that perfumes my life? This is the question that Pope Francis asked all the priests this morning in his homily for the Chrism Mass, which he presided over in St. Peter’s Basilica on the day the Church commemorates the institution of the priesthood.
In the afternoon, the pontiff will go to the Roman juvenile prison of Casal del Marmo to celebrate mass in Coena Domini, with the washing of the feet of the young prisoners. But as every year, the day began with a solemn celebration with the priests of the diocese of Rome. And the rite of blessing the holy oils became an opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the “anointing” by which each one is sent to live his ministry among his brothers.
Commenting on the words “the spirit of the Lord God is upon me” that Jesus pronounced in the synagogue of Nazareth, the Pope invited the priests to recognize that it is the Spirit who consecrates each one. “For us too there was a first anointing, which began with a call of love that captivated our hearts. Through it we left our moorings and over that genuine enthusiasm came the strength of the Spirit, which anointed us. Then, according to God’s time, comes for each one the paschal stage, which marks the moment of truth. And it is a moment of crisis, which has various forms”.
“Sooner or later, it happens to all of us that we experience disappointments, fatigue and weakness – the Pontiff continued -; the ideal seems to wear out amid the demands of reality. Meanwhile, a certain routine and some tests are imposed that at first were hard to imagine make fidelity seem more uncomfortable than before.” It is a time from which one can get away badly “sliding towards a certain mediocrity, dragging tirelessly towards a ‘normality’ in which three dangerous temptations creep in: that of compromise, whereby one is content with what one can do; that of substitutes, by which one tries to ‘recharge’ with something other than our anointing, that of discouragement, by which one advances by inertia, discontentment.Appearances remain intact, we withdraw into ourselves and live day by day with reluctance”.
But the crisis can also become a turning point in the priesthood, “the last choice between Jesus and the world, between the heroism of charity and mediocrity, between the cross and a certain prosperity, between holiness and honest fidelity.” to religious commitment. Francis defined it as a “second anointing”, in which we welcome the Spirit “not on the enthusiasm of our dreams, but on the fragility of our reality. It is an anointing that makes truth in the depths, which allows the Spirit to anoint our weaknesses , our fatigues, our interior poverty. Then the anointing perfumes again: His, not ours”.
And the consequence of this anointing of the Spirit is harmony: “Building harmony among us – explained the Pontiff – is not so much a good method for the ecclesial structure to proceed better, it is not a question of strategy or courtesy: it is a requirement of the life of the Spirit. One sins against the Spirit, which is communion, when one becomes, even if it be by rashness, an instrument of division, and one plays the game of the enemy, who does not come out into the open and loves rumors and insinuations, fosters factions and alliances, feeds nostalgia for the past, distrust, pessimism, fear”.
“Let us help each other, brothers, to preserve harmony,” Francis exhorted them, “beginning not with others, but each one with himself; asking ourselves: in my words, in my comments, in what I say and write, is the imprint of the Spirit or that of the world? I also think of the goodness of the priest: if people find even in us dissatisfied and discontented people, who criticize and point fingers, where will they see harmony?” And he added: “How many do not come closer to the Church or move away from it? because they do not feel welcomed and loved, but are looked at with mistrust and are judged. In the name of God, let us welcome and forgive, always. And let us remember that being in a bad mood and complaining, in addition to not producing anything good, corrupts the announcement, because it counter-witnesses God, who is communion and harmony”.
Pope Francis concluded by addressing his thanks to all the priests: “Thank you for your testimony and your service; thank you for the hidden good you do, for the forgiveness and consolation you give in the name of God; thank you for your ministry, which often takes place in the midst of so much effort and little recognition.May the Spirit of God, who does not disappoint those who trust in Him, fill you with peace and bring to completion what has begun in you, so that you may be prophets of his anointing and apostles of harmony”.
