tribalism and corruption pollute communities

After meeting with victims of violence who knew how to forgive, today Francis asked the young people in Kinshasa to build a better future “with their own hands.” Thanks to the catechists: “Make communities grow with prayer and service”.

Kinshasa () – “What are these hands of mine for? Build or destroy, give or hoard, love or hate?” This is the question that Pope Francis posed this morning in Kinshasa to the young Congolese with whom he met at the Stadium of the Martyrs. A moment still marked by the echo of the meeting yesterday afternoon with the victims of violence in the east of the country, who, placing a machete and a mat at the feet of the pontiff -symbol of the murdered relatives and the violations suffered – expressed their decision to forgive.

Gestures of people who had the courage to break the chain of hatred in a country deeply scarred by war. Gestures with which the Pope, this morning, recalled the challenge of the personal choices of each one, inviting them to look at their own hands. “All hands are similar”, observed the pontiff, “but none is equal to the other; no one has hands equal to yours, for this reason you are a unique, unrepeatable and incomparable wealth”. No one in history can replace you”. And it is precisely from the fingers of each hand that from Kinshasa Francis gave his five “ingredients for the future” to young people.

The thumb, the finger closest to the heart -he explained-, corresponds to prayer, which makes life beat. “Raise your hands towards him every day to praise and bless him”, the Pope recommended, “cry out to him the hopes of your heart, entrust to him the most intimate secrets of life: the person you love, the wounds you carry inside, the dreams you have in the heart. Talk to him about your neighborhood, your neighbors, teachers, classmates, friends and colleagues, about your country. God loves this living, concrete prayer, made from the heart. It allows him to intervene, enter into the folds of the life of a special way. Come with his power of peace.”

Instead, the index finger is the finger of relationships with others. Francis invites us to be careful with “individualistic options”: with drugs “you hide from others, from real life, to feel omnipotent; and in the end you find yourself deprived of everything. But also think about the addiction to the occult and the witchcraft, which lock you in the grip of fear, revenge and anger”. However, one must also beware “of the temptation to point the finger at someone, to exclude the other because they are of a different origin than yours, of regionalism, of tribalism, which seem to reinforce you in your group and instead represent the denial of the community”. He asked the young people: “Have you ever talked to people from other groups or have you always been locked in yours? Have you ever listened to the stories of others, have you been close to their suffering? Do you see someone alone, suffering, abandoned? Get closer to him. Not to show them how good you are, but to give them your smile and offer them your friendship.’

Then, with his middle finger, the Pope associated the call to honesty, to “not let oneself be entangled in the cords of corruption.” “Do not be manipulated by individuals or groups that intend to use you to keep your country in the spiral of violence and instability, in order to continue to control it without regard to anyone. Each of you has a treasure that no one can steal from you These are your choices: don’t let your life be swept away by the polluted current.” He recalled the example of Floribert Bwana Chui, a young man who, fifteen years ago, at only 26, was murdered in Goma for preventing the passage of spoiled food, which would have harmed the health of the population. He could have let it go,” he commented, “they wouldn’t have found out and he would have come out on top.” But, as a Christian, he prayed, thought of others and chose to be honest, saying no to the filth of corruption.”

The ring finger is the weakest, the one that has the hardest time getting up. “It reminds us – the Pope continued – that the great objectives of life, love above all else, go through fragility, hardship and difficulties”. And the force that keeps us standing in these situations is precisely forgiveness, the recurring theme these days in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “To forgive is to change the course of history. It is to lift up those who have fallen. It is to accept the idea that no one is perfect and that not only me, but the whole world, has the right to start over.”

Finally, the little finger, the smallest finger, the icon of the service. From this land, Francis especially thanked the catechists, a vital presence here as in so many other Churches around the world. Make your communities grow -he told them- with the transparency of your prayer and his service. Many mobilize attracted by their own interests; do not be afraid to invest in good, in the proclamation of the Gospel, preparing yourself passionately and adequately, giving life to organized and long-term projects. And don’t be afraid to make your voice heard, because not only the future, but also the present is in your hands: be in the center of the present.”