POPE FRANCIS: THE VIST

Thrill of seeing, cheers with the crowd, soaked under the rain, long hours of waiting, and a glimpse of Pope Francis. I did not experience all of these during the visit of Pope Francis. I was home eagerly waiting live feeds from television stations his every move and the people’s emotions. It was not because I did not want to see him. I made a choice to give my slot at MOA to a fellow seminarian. It came to me that it was the right decision. God may have other plans for me.

Although I may not be present on any of the events, I felt I was there after all as I watched it all live even the press conferences. I still felt blessed after watching all the events on television. I may not have seen him personally but I have heard clearly all what he had said and wanted to impart to us Filipinos.

The question that we will try to reflect on is what is the meaning of Pope Francis to me? With all the sermons that Pope Francis left us, two have struck me. First was during the celebration of the Holy Eucharist with Bishops, priests and religious at the Manila Cathedral. What hit me were His challenges to the congregation. His challenges were not new. A week before, Archbishop Socrates Villegas has given a pastoral letter to the clergy of the Archdiocese. In it were almost the same challenges left by Pope Francis. Was it coincidence? I believe it is the will of God. It is God who is reminding me of these challenges, as I will take the step of becoming his instrument.

Second was his message during the encounter with the youth. Let me concentrate more on this message and what it means to me and to the country. LANGUAGES. This came from Pope Francis in his speech at the University of Sto. Tomas University during his encounter with the Filipino Youths. Let us then try to reflect with these three languages.

Language of the mind. The Pope has encouraged all of us to use our minds in knowing God more. Our minds are given by God to us to be used. They are not for display or for evil doings. They are to be used for good. We are challenged to contribute to the intensification of spreading the Gospel.  Let us be apologetics of the Gospel. Let us guard the faith by using our minds. It is not proper to say that only the scholars, only the theologians, only the priests and religious have the sense of duty to use their mind for the Lord. We are considered people of God upon baptism. We as Catholics have the obligation to defend the Church and to help in the propagation of the faith. I am reminded by Pope Francis to use my theological studies to a great cause.

Language of the heart. The Pope is not only asking us to use our minds in thinking. Moreover, he is inviting us to use our hearts. This means that we need to feel. The question then is what do we need to feel? Joy? Sadness? Anger? We need to feel the need of our dear brothers and sisters. We need to undergo what our poor brethrens are feeling. Today, we are called not just to identify what their situations are, but also sensitivity on what they feel. We need to be immersed to the emotions of others. Learning things is not only from books or schools. There are also times that we learn when we know how to feel. Feeling is an important language we need to develop as Catholics. We need to feel the needs of our brothers and sisters. It is by feeling that we become selfless.

Language of the hands.  It is not enough to know and understand. Pope Francis in his speech stressed that we need to do something for our brethrens. As Catholics, Christ is asking us to give ourselves for the service of God and others. Love is not love when we do not know how to give, when we do not know how to do something for others, when we do not know how to be selfless. Love is love when all our actions are selfless. We have hands not only to grasp on things but also to open it so that others can reach what it is holding. Upon receiving Christ in our life we have to share Him to others. Reach out. Give. Let us however take note that the true meaning of giving is not letting go of the excess that we have. Giving is letting go even those that we have hard time letting go especially those we value most. It is only then that we can say I have given up everything for you oh Lord.

Language of the mind, of the heart and of the hands. We can only say that we are authentic Catholics when we live out these three languages. This is so because Christ our Lord whom we follow did them. He selflessly practiced these languages. He is our model. As followers, we have to do the same. It is hard to practice the languages but they are not impossible to do. I am challenged to PRACTICE THE LANGUAGES!

Last is his constant message that the focus is not he but Christ. I wanted to become a priest not for my own attention but to bring the attention of people towards Christ. His message struck me repeatedly. He did not only mention it once but most of the time.

With all of these, what is his visit to me? One word that I have mentioned the most is CHALLENGE. Yes, it was inspiring. Yes, it was heart-warming. However, for me it was challenging. He challenged me to stand and take part of the action. Yet, this challenge is also for all Filipinos. We are challenged to become true Catholics. We are proud to say to the world that we are a Catholic nation. We must then live as one. We are challenged to become a light. The visit of Pope Francis is truly a CHALLENGE to all of us. It does not matter whether we are poor or rich, whatever culture we have come from. The CHALLENGE remains. Are you ready to take up the challenge?