Despite the cold, wind and rain, the pope was received with much enthusiasm by thousands of families gathered in Dublin's Phoenix Park, one of the largest in Europe. The popemobile even had difficulty passing among the pilgrims.
At the beginning of the Mass, in Spanish, the pope wanted to ask forgiveness once again for victims who suffered from the power, conscience and sexual abuse committed by members of the Church in Ireland.
POPE FRANCIS
“In a special way, we ask pardon for all of the abuses committed in various types of institutions run by male or female religious and by other members of the Church.” “We ask forgiveness for the times that as a Church, we did not show the survivors of whatever kind of abuse compassion and the seeking of justice and truth through concrete actions. ” “We ask forgiveness some members of the Church's hierarchy that did not take charge of these painful situations and kept quiet. We ask for forgiveness.”
Then, in his homily, Pope Francis reflected on the mission of families as bearers of the Good News.
POPE FRANCIS
“For your families are both a privileged place for, and an important means of, spreading those words as “Good News” for everyone, especially those who long to leave behind the desert and the “house of bondage” for the promised land of hope and freedom.”
He asked them not to be discouraged in the face of hostilities, because there will always be people who are opposed to Jesus' message.
POPE FRANCIS
“But let us also humbly acknowledge that, if we are honest with ourselves, we too can find the teachings of Jesus hard. How difficult it is always to forgive those who hurt us; how challenging always to welcome the migrant and the stranger; how painful joyfully to bear disappointment, rejection or betrayal; how inconvenient to protect the rights of the most vulnerable, the unborn or the elderly, who seem to impinge upon our own sense of freedom. ”
Pope Francis invited the families to rely on the sacraments so as not to fall into discouragement and the temptation of leaving aside the faith. The Church, the pope said, is called to bring to the peripheries of the world the words of eternal life. That is the mission that Pope Francis entrusted to all these families in this Mass.
And before concluding, the expected announcement arrived: the place and date of the next World Meeting of Families. It was revealed by Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life.
“And now it is with great joy to announce to the whole world that the Holy Father has decided that the next World Meeting of Families will be held in Rome in the year 2021.”
It will be the 10th edition of this World Meeting of Families, encounters that began precisely in Rome in 1994 under the guidance of John Paul II.
