This
is how Pope Francisco addressed the cardinals this morning in the
Clementine Hall at his first meeting with the entire College of
Cardinals, electors and non-electors. The pontiff improvised at several
times during his talk, such as when he informed them that, the day
before yesterday, Cardinal Jorge Maria Mejia, archivist emeritus of the
Vatican Secret Archives, suffered a heart attack and is now recovering
at the Pius XI private clinic. “His condition is stable and he sent his
greetings to us all.”
Before
beginning his address, the Pope listened to the greeting that Cardinal
Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, read to him on behalf
of the entire College. “We give thanks to the Lord our God. This is the
liturgical invitation that we, the Cardinal Fathers address to one
another, between the 'seniors' and the 'juniors', to thank the Lord for
the gift that He has made to His Holy Church, giving us a new Shepherd. …
Know, Holy Father, that all of us, your cardinals, are at your full
disposal, seeking to build with you the apostolic cenacle of the nascent
Church, the Upper Room of Pentecost. We will try to keep 'an open mind
and a believing heart', as you wrote in your book of meditations.”
During
his address, Pope Francis affirmed that today's encounter “seeks to be
almost an extension of the intense ecclesial communion experienced in
this period. Enlivened by a profound sense of responsibility and
supported by a great love for Christ and the Church, we have prayed
together, sharing our fraternal feelings, our experiences and
reflections. A mutual understanding and openness has brown in this
climate of great cordiality. This is good because we are brothers.
Someone said to me: 'The cardinals are the Holy Father's priests.' But
we are that community, that friendship, that closeness that will do us
all well. And this knowledge, this mutual openness have facilitated our
docility to the Holy Spirit. He, the Paraclete, is the supreme
protagonist of every initiative and expression of faith.” He then added:
“It's curious: It makes me think that the Paraclete makes all the
differences in the Churches and seems to be an apostle of Babel. But, on
the other hand, [the Holy Spirit] is the one who makes unity of these
differences, not in equality, but in harmony. I remember the Church
Father who defined it thus: 'Ipse harmonia est.' This Paraclete who
gives, to each of us, different gifts, unites us in this Church
community that worships the Father, the Son, and Him, the Holy Spirit.”
The
Holy Father noted that “the period of the Conclave was full of meaning,
not only for the College of Cardinals, but also for all the faithful.
In these days we felt, almost tangibly, the affection and solidarity of
the universal Church, as well as the attention of many people who,
although they do not share our faith, look to the Church and the Holy
See with respect and admiration.” At the same time he expressed his
gratitude to all the cardinals for their cooperation in the Church's
functions during the Sede Vacante. He especially thanked Cardinal Sodano
for “his words of devotion and for the well wishes that he extended to
me [on behalf of the cardinals]” and Cardinal Camerlengo Tarcisio
Bertone, S.D.B., “for his thoughtful work in this delicate phase of
transition”. He also thanked Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, cardinal
dean of the Conclave “who was our boss in the Conclave: thank you very
much!”
He
then continued: “I think with great affection and deep gratitude of my
venerable predecessor, Benedict XVI, who during these years of his
pontificate has enriched and strengthened the Church with his teaching,
his goodness, his guidance, his faith, his humility, and his gentleness,
which will remain a spiritual heritage for all. He noted that, “as Pope
Benedict XVI reminded us so often in his teachings and most recently
with his brave and humble gesture, Christ is the one who guides the
Church through His Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the soul of the Church,
with his life-giving force that unifies one body from many: the mystical
Body of Christ.”
“Let
us never give in to pessimism, to that bitterness that the devil offers
us every day. Do not give in to pessimism and discouragement. We have
the firm certainty that the Holy Spirit gives the Church with His mighty
breath, the courage to persevere and also to seek new methods of
evangelization, to bring the Gospel to the ends of the earth. The
Christian truth is attractive and persuasive because it responds to the
deep needs of human existence, convincingly announcing that Chirst is
the only Saviour of the whole person and of all persons. This
announcement is as valid today as it was at the beginning of
Christianity when there was a great missionary expansion of the Gospel.
“Now,”
he finished, “return to your Sees to continue your ministry enriched by
the experience of these days that have been so full of faith and
ecclesial communion. This unique and incomparable experience has allowed
us to understand in depth the beauty of ecclesial reality, which is a
reflection of the splendour of the Risen Christ. One day we'll look upon
that beautiful face of the Risen Christ.”
On finishing his address, the Pope greeted, one by one, all the cardinals present in the Clementine Hall personally.