Pope Francis invited us to think about “those crucified in today’s history: men, women, children, and the elderly” victims of injustice, and asked “not to forget the poor.” because “they will be the ones who will open the door to heaven for you.”
The Holy Father continued this morning with his cycle of catechesis on evangelization and apostolic zeal. Before the thousands of pilgrims who listened to him from St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, he recalled the figure of Saint Daniel Camboni, “an apostle full of zeal for Africa.”
Pope Francis referred to this missionary as “in love with God and the brothers he served on mission” in a context characterized by the “horror of slavery.”
For the Pontiff, “God made man has elevated the dignity of each human being and has unmasked the falsehood of slavery.”
In that sense, he assured that “as Christians, we are called to fight against all forms of slavery,” including political and economic colonialism.
He highlighted that the holy missionary decided to stay in Africa and not abandon those in need despite the danger of diseases, which for the Holy Father was a “new path of evangelization” that helped renew missionary commitment: “Evangelized people do not “They were only ‘objects’ but ‘subjects’ of the mission.” The Holy Father was speaking to the General Audience on 20 September, Wednesday.
Next, he highlighted that Saint Daniel promoted the lay service of catechism and stated that “catechists are a treasure of the Church who carry out evangelization.”
“How important, today too, to advance faith and human development from within the contexts of mission, instead of transplanting external models or limiting ourselves to a sterile welfare approach. Neither external models nor assistanceism,” he stressed.
Likewise, recalling the words of the saint, Pope Francis recalled the drama of clericalism, “which all Christians, and also lay people, lead to become clericalized and transformed into subjects ‘with a crooked neck, full of themselves.’ “This is the plague of clericalism,” he warned.
He insisted that “the source of missionary capacity, for Comboni, is therefore charity, in particular zeal in making the sufferings of others one’s own.”
“Saint Daniel,” he continued, “witnesses the love of the good Shepherd, who goes to look for those who are lost and gives his life for the flock. His zeal was born energetic and prophetic in opposing indifference and exclusion.”
As the Holy Father explained, “Comboni’s dream is a Church that makes common cause with the crucified of history, to experience the Resurrection with them.”
In this sense, he invited the faithful to think “about those crucified today: men, women, children, the elderly, everyone, who are crucified for stories of injustice, of domination. Let us think of them and pray.”
Finally, he asked “not to forget the poor,” because “they will be the ones who will open the door to heaven for you.”
During his greeting to the faithful, the Holy Father recalled that this September 20 we celebrate the memory of Saint Andrew Kim, Paul Chông and other Korean martyrs. “May his heroic example be a source of support for all of you when making difficult decisions and a comfort in difficult times,” he urged.