Pope Francis on Wednesday greeted pilgrims and tourists during his weekly General Audience tellling them to rejoice in God’s gift of love.
Find Pope’s Francis’ English language remarks read out at the General Audience below
Dear Brothers and Sisters: As children we were always taught that it
is not good to boast. For when we boast about who we are or what we
have, we disrespect those who are less fortunate.
Yet, Saint Paul
surprises us by twice telling us to boast.
First, he tells us to boast
of the abundant grace we receive in Jesus Christ through the gift of
faith.
God has created all things as a gift of love, through which he
makes known his plan of salvation fulfilled in Jesus. He invites us to
make this grace the cause of all our praise and joy.
When we do this,
we know God’s peace, which flows into our lives and relationships. But
Saint Paul also tells us to boast of our afflictions.
For God’s peace
is not the absence of fears, disappointments, or suffering. Rather, it
reminds us that God loves us and is always with us.
This peace, Saint
Paul says, bears patience, for even in the most difficult moments, we
know that the mercy and goodness of the Lord remain with us, that
nothing can separate us from God. Christian hope then is not based on
who we are or what we are capable of, but on God’s love for each one of
us.
May we be instruments of hope, so that our greatest boast will be
of a Father who excludes no one, but opens his home to all. And may we
be a people who sustain one another with this message of Christian hope.