Papal Intentions For October

This month, Pope Francis asks us to pray that, “the Lord may grant peace to those parts of the world most battered by war and violence.” He also asks us to pray that, “World Mission Day may rekindle in every believer zeal for carrying the Gospel into all the world.”

Let us pray with the Holy Father this October, for peace throughout the world and for World Mission Day.

No Peace Without Forgiveness

With the current state of turmoil in the Middle East, we thought it would be a good time to reflect on St. John Paul II’s 2002 message for the World Day of Peace. This message was written right after the September 11 attacks, so in it the late Holy Father reflects on the nature of terrorism and the necessity of hope.

In the face of evils such as terrorism, the Church must continue to testify to her hope, John Paul II writes. This hope is “that, by the grace of God, a world in which the power of evil seems once again to have taken the upper hand will in fact be transformed into a world in which the noblest aspirations of the human heart will triumph, a world in which true peace will prevail (1).” 

The late Holy Father quotes St. Augustine, who wrote that peace is built on “the tranquility of order” (3).  This order can only be restored through a combination of justice and forgiveness, for the “pillars of true peace are justice and that form of love which is forgiveness” (2).  John Paul II explains:

True peace therefore is the fruit of justice, that moral virtue and legal guarantee which ensures full respect for rights and responsibilities, and the just distribution of benefits and burdens. But because human justice is always fragile and imperfect, subject as it is to the limitations and egoism of individuals and groups, it must include and, as it were, be completed by the forgiveness which heals and rebuilds troubled human relations from their foundations (3).

Forgiveness rebuilds while terrorism destroys. The fruit of “fanatic fundamentalism,” terrorism is always a crime against humanity, the late Holy Father writes, regardless of causes or intentions. It attempts to impose a view of the truth on others, and in that it exploits both God and man. One cannot be a terrorist in the name of God, and St. John Paul II begs all religious leaders to take a stand on this key point. The answer to religious, political, and cultural dilemmas is not one of violence against defenseless people. The answer is mercy and forgiveness as revealed by Jesus Christ.

Shrine Hosts Interfaith Service For Peace

Earlier this month, the Archdiocese of Washington sponsored an Interfaith Service for Peace at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine. 

This isn’t the first time an inter-religious service for peace has been held in our building. The John Paul II Cultural Center hosted Pope Benedict XVI and nearly 200 representatives of Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Judaism in 2008 for a meeting to promote interfaith dialogue.

St. John Paul II was especially committed to fostering peace throughout the world, so the Shrine was a perfect spot for the service. For photos and more, see our website. 

Our Lady, Queen of Peace, Pray for Us! 

Let Us Pray For Mosul’s Christians

Our present pain is associated with our Christianity and with the mystery of our Passover (i.e., Easter). Our suffering is joined to the suffering of our Savior Jesus, “Man of Sorrows,” will turn out to be a blessing and salvation to us and to others. And the current challenges are faced with more faith, hope and prayer and solidarity and wisdom. Be brave in front of what you are facing, do not be afraid, you have deep roots in Iraq, do not give up for frustration and despair, confident that “for all who draw the sword will die by the sword” (Matthew 26:52) and evil does not last! You are the small mustard seed, the Lord will not let you fall. He is with you today, tomorrow and after tomorrow and forever.

                -Chaldean Catholic Patriarch Sako to Mosul’s Christians

Let us all pray for Mosul’s Christians, that the Lord may be with them in their suffering. 

The Pope's Prayers For Peace

Pope Francis’s general prayer intention this month, is "that people today, often overwhelmed by noise, may discover the value of silence and listen to the voice of God and their brothers and sisters."

His mission intention is, "that Christians suffering persecution in many parts of the world may by their witness be prophets of Christ’s love."

During his Sunday Angelus, Pope Francis also made an appeal for peace throughout the world, especially in Syria. He called for a day of prayer and fasting for peace, which is to take place this Saturday, the vigil of the birth of Mary, Queen of Peace. Pope Francis said:

Let us ask Mary to help us to respond to violence, to conflict and to war, with the power of dialogue, reconciliation and love. She is our mother: may she help us to find peace; all of us are her children!

This day of prayer and fasting is for all people of good will. Even the Grand Mufti of Syria, so touched by Pope Francis’s cry for prayer, wants to join the Holy Father in the vigil. Let us all join then, in begging Our Lord for peace throughout the world. 

The Desire for Peace

The world needs peace,

The world ardently desires peace.

Let us pray that all men and women,

enjoying religious freedom,

may be able to live in peace.

-Blessed John Paul II

December 8, 1987

Jesus Is Not A Dry Cleaner

Last week, Pope Francis delivered an engagingly potent homily about the Sacrament of Reconciliation. He said:

Jesus in the confessional is not a dry cleaner, it is an encounter with Jesus but with this Jesus who waits for us just as we are…Many times we think that going to confession is like going to the dry cleaner to clean the dirt from our clothes.

We are tempted to feel this way about reconciliation, but in actuality, Jesus gives us so much more. He “donates to us the peace that only he gives.”

For more of Pope Francis’ homily about the graced experience of Reconciliation, go here. 

Praying for Boston

Brothers and Sisters,
in response to the inhumane terrorist attacks
we recommend
to the eternal mercy of the God of our Fathers
the numerous innocent victims.

We ask for consolation and comfort
for their family and relatives,
burdened by pain;
we invoke strength and courage
for the many who continue their work
in the places struck by this terrible disaster;
we implore for tenacity and perseverance
by all men of goodwill
continuing on the paths of justice and peace.

May the Lord remove from the heart of man
every trace of resentment, of hostility and of hate,
and open him to reconciliation,
to solidarity and to peace.

Let us pray so that the "culture of love"
may be established all over the world.

A Prayer for Everlasting Peace

I will appoint peace your governor, and justice your ruler.
No longer shall violence be heard of in your land,
or plunder and ruin within your boundaries (Isaiah 60:17-1).

To the Creator of nature and man, of truth and beauty, I pray:

Hear my voice, for it is the voice of the victims of all wars and violence among individuals and nations.

Hear my voice, for it is the voice of all children who suffer and will suffer when people put their faith in weapons and war.

Hear my voice when I beg You to instill into the hearts of all human beings the wisdom of peace, the strength of justice, and the joy of fellowship.

Hear my voice, for I speak for the multitudes in every country and in every period of history who do not want war and are ready to walk the road of peace.

Hear my voice and grant insight and strength so that we may always respond to hatred with love, to injustice with total dedication to justice, to need with the sharing of self, to war with peace.

O God, hear my voice and grant unto the world Your everlasting peace.

-Blessed John Paul II, L’Osservatore Romano

May Lebanon Dwell in the Sanctuary of God

Pope Benedict XVI courageously visited one of the most tumultuous areas of our world this past weekend, bringing words of peace and encouragement to our Christian and Muslim brothers and sisters in Lebanon. During his trip, the Holy Father made time to visit with government representatives, Church leaders, and young people. The Vatican’s website posted a photo gallery from the apostolic journey. 

In a powerful closing ceremony, Pope Benedict addressed the people of Lebanon before his departure. He said:

In his wisdom, Solomon asked Hiram of Tyre to build a house for the name of God, a sanctuary for all eternity (cf. Sir 47:13). And Hiram, whom I mentioned at my arrival, sent wood taken from the cedars of Lebanon (cf. 1 Kg 5:22). Cedar furnishings adorned the interior of the Temple, with garlands of sculpted flowers (cf. 1 Kg 6:18). Lebanon was present in the sanctuary of God. May the Lebanon of today, and her inhabitants, also dwell in the sanctuary of God! May Lebanon continue to be a place where men and women can live in harmony and peace with each other, in order to give the world not only a witness to the presence of God, the primary theme of this past Synod, but also a witness to the communion between people, the second theme of the Synod, whatever their political, social, or religious standpoint. I pray to God for Lebanon, that she may live in peace and courageously resist all that could destroy or undermine that peace. I hope that Lebanon will continue to permit the plurality of religious traditions and not listen to the voices of those who wish to prevent it. I hope that Lebanon will fortify the communion among all her inhabitants, whatever their community or religion, that she will resolutely reject all that could lead to disunity, and with determination choose brotherhood. These are blossoms pleasing to God, virtues that are possible and that merit consolidation by becoming more deeply rooted.

One message repeated throughout they journey, is that we are called to defend peace by respecting human life itself. Let us pray with Pope Benedict that Christians in the Middle East stay safe while courageously defending life. 

Vocations and peace

Pope Benedict XVI gave the Church two important messages this week.

This past Sunday was World Day of Prayer for Vocations, and during his Regina Coeli address the Holy Father spoke of the importance of vocations and how vital it is that young men and women be attentive to God’s call. He said:

We are afraid to listen to the voice of the Lord because we believe it can detract from our freedom. The truth is that each of us is the fruit of love; the love of our parents, of course, but also and more profoundly the love of God. ... When we become aware of this our lives change; they become a response to that love which is greater than any other, and thus our freedom is fully realised.

Pope Benedict also sent a message to the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences for their Eighteenth Plenary Session, which met in Rome this past week. The Holy Father lauded the Academy for choosing to mark the fiftieth anniversary of Blessed John XXIII’s Encyclical Pacem in Terris, which was very important to the Church’s social doctrine. He focused on forgiveness in particular, writing:

The notion of forgiveness needs to find its way into international discourse on conflict resolution, so as to transform the sterile language of mutual recrimination which leads nowhere. If the human creature is made in the image of God, a God of justice who is “rich in mercy” (Eph 2:4), then these qualities need to be reflected in the conduct of human affairs.

These two messages don’t seem to connect. But in both cases, Pope Benedict XVI shows that a better understanding of God’s love can help us to better live out God’s call—specifically in our own vocations and generally in our love for others.