Pope Francis receives the participants in the “Holy Today” seminar at the Vatican on 6 October. The Pope stressed that living the Gospel fully is not only possible, but beautiful.
(Vatican News Network)Pope Francis receives all the participants in the “Holy Today” seminar at the Vatican on 6 October. The 3-day seminar, sponsored by the Congregation for the Congregation of the Holy See, brought together some fifty experts and scholars from around the world to discuss the contemporary meaning of heroic holiness and the reputation of holiness in the digital age.
The Pope began by emphasizing that the theme chosen for this seminar echoes the Apostolic Exhortation “Rejoice and rejoice”, reaffirming the need to respond in a concrete way to the call to sanctification of our time (cf. Rejoice and Rejoice Apostolic Exhortation, n. 2 ). The call to the sanctification of all is at the heart of the teaching of the Second Vatican Council. The Pope stressed the importance of “discovering the holiness of the moment” in the daily life of the “holy people of God”.
The Pope went on to speak of what he often calls the “saint next door” (cf. Apostolic Exhortation “Rejoice and rejoice”, n. 7). Among the holy people of God, the beatified and the anointed are “models, intercessors and teachers”, reminding us that living the Gospel fully is not only possible, but beautiful.
The Pope went on to underline that holiness “is first of all the experience that we are loved by God and that we freely receive his love and mercy”. This divine grace leads to the gratitude and joy that characterize the lives of saints such as John Paul I, Charles Acutis and Francis of Assisi.
The Pope stressed that holiness emerges in the concrete life of the Christian community, and that saints in every situation carry out God’s will without fear. “The people of God know how to recognize a model of holiness and an exceptional witness to the Gospel by having a special ‘innate intuition’ “. The fame of this holiness is an important factor in recognizing the holiness of future saints.
The Pope continued: “In any case it is necessary to verify that the prestige of this holiness is natural, stable and lasting, and widespread in the majority of the Christian community”. “Furthermore, an element that testifies to the reputation of holiness are the miracles obtained through intercession. When the faithful believe in the holiness of a certain Christian, they earnestly implore this famous man to intercede for themselves in heaven.
The Pope stressed that “saints are treasures, eternal and relevant” and “never lose their importance”. The Pope hopes that “the example of the saints will enlighten the souls of the men and women of our time, restore faith, kindle hope and charity, so that everyone can be attracted by the beauty of the Gospel and not get lost in senselessness and in despair. in the haze. “
Finally, the Pope expressed his most sincere wishes to all the participants in the “Holy Today”, saying: “I hope that the ideas and suggestions of your seminar will help the Church and society as a whole to realize that the Lord does not he never stopped arousing the Holy Spirit. signs of virtue. These signs sometimes appear in even the most unimaginable ways. “
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