How beautiful on the mountains, are the feet of those, who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation.
(Isaiah, 52:7)
Sometimes prophets come to us wrapped in simplicity and humility, but with the moral authority of giants. These days, Pope Francis walks among us a prophet of our times, a mentor to a generation disillusioned by most institutions and authority figures.
Like the saint of Assisi, he proclaims messages of hope in troubled times, of perseverance in times of turbulence, and of mercy in times of judgement and unforgiveness. He brings a true shepherd’s understanding of his flock, an acute reading of the signs of our times: from war to consumerism, from environmental degradation to the joys and tribulations of post-modern family life, from the loneliness of the elderly, deemed surplus to requirements in throwaway consumer societies, to the defence of life in all its stages.
Francis has spoken eloquently and through powerful symbolic gestures about the pains and losses suffered by many around the world through the pandemic and war. He has remained a champion of the poor and forgotten, and has been forthright in his condemnation of corruption and other forms of power that create inequalities, and new forms of dependency and impoverishment in the world. He has been vociferous in his defence of the environment, our common home. Above all, he speaks of joy, mercy and compassion. Pope Francis is truly a troubadour of God’s love, or in our bishops’ words, a “herald of God’s mercy”.
What does Francis have to say to us? Having him speaking directly to us, we can let his words speak to our hearts personally and as a society. Francis might bring some disquiet to our hearts when he speaks of our culture of care and hospitality. The reference in the official programme to the welcome granted by the Maltese to St Paul and his fellow prisoners, and the contrasting reality of how we integrate migrants today, could lead to a challenge to us by the pope: can the Maltese Church and population be moved to a greater kindness, beyond self-absorption, fear of diversity, or exclusion?
The reference in the official programme to the welcome granted by the Maltese to St Paul and his fellow prisoners, and the contrasting reality of how we integrate migrants today, could lead to a challenge to us by the pope
Pay attention to the little details of the visit, where Francis will preach without words, through simple gestures, actions and choices. Sometimes it is these little impromptu, off-the-cuff moments that show up Francis as the moral giant that he is, a man who walks the talk, even if with pain; a pope who proclaims a Jesus he knows personally, and who has imbued him with a profound sense of compassion for the suffering of all humanity.
The Gospel reading of today, with the meeting of Jesus with the adulteress about to be stoned, fits perfectly with the main theme of Francis’s pontificate – the rediscovery of a God who is merciful. Like Jesus, Pope Francis’s message will challenge us, first of all to receive and be deeply touched by this compassion, so that we are truly and completely freed. From this freedom comes the invitation to extend the hand and heart of compassion to others like Jesus did.