St Francis of Assisi, PEI, April Newsletter

Urbi et Orbi Blessing

On March 27, 2020, Pope Francis delivered an extraordinary blessing “To the City and to the World” and prayed for an end to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In his meditation, the Pope reflected on the Gospel of Mark 4:35-41 in which Jesus calms the storm. The analogy to the COVID-19 storm is clear. Pope Francis reflects on the words of Jesus: “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?” The following is an excerpt from his reflection.

          “Why are you afraid? Have you no faith?”

​Lord, your word strikes us and affects us, all of us. In this world, that you love more than we do, we have gone ahead at breakneck speed, feeling powerful and able to do anything. Greedy for profit, we let ourselves get caught up in things, and lured away by haste. We did not stop at your reproach to us, we were not shaken awake by wars or injustice across the world, nor did we listen to the cry of the poor or of our ailing planet.....

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