Pope Francis: We are called to show compassion and mercy

Source: Vatican News

Recovering from flu-like symptoms, Pope Francis led the Angelus on Sunday from his residence at Casa Santa Marta instead of the usual window of the Apostolic Palace overlooking Saint Peter's Square on what was a chilly autumn day. Mgr Paolo Braida, Head of Office at the Secretariat of State, read the Pope's reflections before the Angelus and his additional message following the prayer.

Pilgrims and visitors who had gathered in the square participated in the Angelus via the large video screens broadcasting the event. On Saturday the Pope cancelled his scheduled events due to "flu-like" symptoms. In the afternoon he visited a nearby hospital for a scan of his lungs that yielded negative results for any risk of pulmonary complications.

In his prepared remarks, the Pope recalled Sunday's Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe - the last Sunday of the liturgical year - when the Gospel speaks to us about the final judgement, telling us it will be based on our care for one another through charity and mercy.

Recalling the scene described in the Gospel of a great hall where Jesus is seated on a throne and all the peoples of the world are gathered at His feet, he said "the blessed" are shown to be the friends of the king. They are the ones who fed the hungry, took care of the sick and needy, and visited prisoners. This stands in stark contrast, the Pope observed, to the empty "criteria of the world" which would value those seeking personal advantage through increasing the king's power, wealth, fame, and being feared and envied.

The "criteria of Jesus" places importance on those serving the needy, the weakest, those who need our help.

"This is because the Son of man is a completely different King, who calls the poor 'brethren', who identifies with the hungry, the thirsty, the outsiders, the sick, the imprisoned, and says: 'As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.'"

The Lord, our King, is concerned about the hungry, the homeless, the sick, and the imprisoned, the Pope observed. And these are realities that are all too present today: the poor crowd our streets, as the Lord remembers the sick and those in prison paying the consequences of their mistakes.

The Gospel stresses that the "blessed" are those who show loving mercy through their service to people needing our help and companionship, by not ignoring them or turning them away, but by providing food, drink, clothing, shelter, and accompaniment. They are the friends of the King, as they distinguish themselves by following His example through "compassion, mercy, tenderness."

"And this is because Jesus, our King, who calls himself the Son of Man, finds His favourite sisters and brothers in the most fragile women and men. His "royal court" is held where there are those who suffer and need help."

The Pope in his reflections recommended we examine our own lives and how much we recognize and believe in the centrality of mercy, the power of love, how charity is indispensable for believers, and if we are a "friend of the King" in being "personally involved in the needs of the suffering people I find on my path."

"May Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth, help us to love Jesus our King in the least of his brethren."

Watch Sunday's Angelus with Pope Francis oh the Vatican Youtube channel: www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-11/pope-at-angelus-we-are-called-to-show-compassion-and-mercy.html