VATICAN - Pope Francis at the “Congés Misión”: our hope is Christ, and it does not belong to us

Friday, 10 January 2025 pope francis   mission   youth   jubilee  

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Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “Christ is our hope”. And “this hope – it is curious – does not belong to us,” because “hope is not a possession you can put in your pocket. No, it does not belong to us. It is a gift to share, a light to transmit. And if hope is not shared, it falls.”

With these words, Pope Francis has indicated once again the source of hope, the theological virtue that is the guiding thread of the Holy Year 2025 that has just begun. He did so by addressing the leaders of the “Congés Misión”, a network of initiatives - congresses, workshops, conferences, meetings - which was created in France in 2015 with the aim of helping everyone discover how to proclaim the Gospel and become a missionary in the way that best suits their own person and temperament.

In his speech, Pope Francis also recalled the dynamism that unites hope, evangelical joy and missionary zeal. “Joy, dear friends,” the Pontiff said, “is inseparable from hope, and it is also inseparable from mission; a joy that is not reduced to the enthusiasm of the moment, but that is born of the encounter with Christ and directs us towards our brothers and sisters. Being pilgrims means walking together in the Church, but also having the courage to go out, to encounter others”. Going “where men and women live out their joys and their sufferings. This is how you bring hope, both in your communities and in the places where the Church at times seems tired or withdrawn.”

The Pope thanked the leaders of the Congés Misión "for the missionary fraternity you weave patiently and faithfully across France. France, la fille aînée de l’Église. And the enemies of France say, yes, la fille aînée de l’Église, but not the most faithful… this is not true! France has many saints, many saints!"

In another “off the cuff” addition, the Bishop of Rome invited the leaders of “Congés Misión” to “let themselves be shaken by the Holy Spirit,” and to read “the first chapters of the Acts of the Apostles,” where we see that “it is the Spirit who guides the Church, He stirs hearts. And hope is born here. At times, letting oneself be shaken by the Holy Spirit can mean coming out of our habitual mindsets and even accepting to “mess up”. The Holy Spirit is the Master.”

To recall the reality of the Holy Spirit as the protagonist of missionary work, Pope Francis added a personal anecdote: “I remember a Mass for children, when I was a parish priest in the neighbourhood of San Miguel, where almost two hundred children came to Mass every Sunday. One day, it was Pentecost, I said to the children: “Do you know who the Holy Spirit is?”. “Pick me, me, me…!”. “You”. “The paralytic!” [Laughter]. “No! The Paraclite! What does it mean? “Me, me, me…!”. “You”. “The one who makes a mess!”. It is true, the Holy Spirit makes a mess. The Holy Spirit urges creativity!

Pope Francis also invited us to look at the lives of the saints, “all creative, because there is the Spirit within! The Holy Spirit invites us to proclaim the Gospel not only in consolidated structures, but everywhere our brothers and sisters find themselves: proclaiming the Gospel in everyday life, in their joys, in their wounds, in their questions.” He then quoted in this regard the words of a French Blessed, Father Antoine Chevrier, founder of the Work Providence of Prado: “Love for God and neighbour is the principle, it is the lifeblood of everything, which must produce everything in us; when there is this in a soul, there is everything. Charity without exteriority is worth more than an exteriority without charity. Better disorder with love than order without love.”

The “Congés Misión” network will hold its next major gathering in Bercy in November. (GV) (Agenzia Fides, 10/1/2025)


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