In his pilgrimage to the “capital of forgiveness”, hit in 2009 by a devastating earthquake, Francis expressed his closeness to the population of Pakistan, affected by natural disasters that have already left more than 1,000 dead. He called for “international solidarity to act quickly and generously”.
L’Aquila () – Those who know what it means to lose everything retain the gift of mercy and the ability to understand the suffering of others. It is the message that Pope Francis wanted to spread today on his pilgrimage to L’Aquila, the “capital of forgiveness” for the Celestine Pardon, the first plenary indulgence in history instituted by Celestine V in 1294. From this Italian city that was hit in 2009 by a devastating earthquake, today, during the Angelus, the Pontiff made a strong appeal for Pakistan, where floods have been sowing death and destruction for weeks. The latest balance from the Pakistani authorities confirms that since mid-June there have already been 1,033 dead. The most affected province is Jaiber Pastunjuá (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), on the border with Afghanistan, where there are completely isolated areas, millions of victims and more than 500,000 people living in evacuee camps.
“In this place, which has suffered a severe calamity – said Pope Francis from L’Aquila -, I want to assure my closeness to the people of Pakistan affected by floods of disastrous proportions. I pray for the many victims, the wounded and the evacuees, and for international solidarity to act swiftly and generously”.
In the homily of the mass, which was celebrated in front of the Collemaggio basilica, Pope Francis dwelled on the meaning of the great gift of Celestine V, who despite being remembered in history for the gesture of his resignation “was not the ‘no’ man was the ‘yes’ man.” “He was a brave witness to the Gospel, because no logic of power managed to imprison or manage him,” he commented. “In him we can contemplate a Church free from worldly logic and that bears full witness to that name of God which is mercy”.
For Francis, mercy cannot be understood if misery itself is not understood. “It is the experience of feeling welcomed, restored, strengthened, healed, encouraged. To be forgiven is to experience here and now the closest thing to resurrection.” And citing the dense fog he encountered in the morning before landing, he said: “In the end, the pilot saw a small hole and went through it: he did it, a teacher. And I thought of the misery: the same thing happens. Many times, when we stop to look at what we are, we don’t see anything. But sometimes the Lord makes this little hole to get in.”
“You have suffered a lot because of the earthquake – the Pope said again, addressing the people of L’Aquila – and as a people, you are trying to get up, and stand up again. But those who have suffered must be able to treasure their suffering, they must understand that in the darkness they have experienced, they have also been given the gift of understanding the pain of others. They can treasure the gift of mercy because they know what it means to lose everything, to see what they have built crumble , leave behind what is dearest, feel the tear of the absence of loved ones. They can appreciate mercy because they knew misery. In this experience one can lose everything, but true humility can also be learned. In circumstances like these, one he can let himself be enraged by life, or he can learn meekness.”
Finally – commenting on the Gospel passage that the liturgy proposes for today (Lk 14, 1, 7-14) – the Pope recalled that “the Christian knows that his life is not a race in the manner of this world, but a race in the manner of Christ, who will say that he has come to serve and not to be served. As long as we do not understand that the revolution of the Gospel resides in this type of freedom, we will continue to witness wars, violence and injustice, which are nothing more than the external symptom of a lack of inner freedom”. May the maternal intercession of Mary – he concluded – obtain forgiveness and peace for the whole world. The awareness of one’s own misery and the beauty of mercy.”
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