Pope Francis has spoken of the link between Easter, the Sacrament of Confession, forgiveness and restoring inner peace.
He spoke of the disciples after the Crucifixion: “Like those disciples, we need to let ourselves be forgiven, to ask the heartfelt pardon of the Lord. We need to open our hearts to be forgiven. Forgiveness is the Easter gift that enables our interior resurrection.”
Pope Francis was celebrating the Second Sunday of Easter at the Church of Santo Spirita, Sassia in Rome – a Church which was rebuilt in the 12th century and has undergone several restorations in its time.
On the resurrected Christ appearing to his disciples, the Pope said: “The risen Jesus appeared to the disciples on several occasions. He patiently soothed their troubled hearts. Risen himself he now brings about ‘the resurrection of the disciples’.”
Facing a masked and cautiously socially-distanced congregation he spoke about healing: “The disciples were upset. They were locked away for fear, fear of being arrested and ending up like the Master. But they were not only huddled together in a room. They were also trapped in their remorse. They had abandoned and denied Jesus. They felt helpless, discredited, good for nothing. Jesus arrives and says to them twice: ‘Peace be with you’.”
He reiterated the renewed mission of the disciples who had previously argued over status and rewards but were united in Christ: “They now saw in others the same mercy that had changed their own lives. They discovered that they shared the mission: the forgiveness and the Body of Jesus, and so it seemed natural to share their earthly possessions.”
The Pope called upon Catholics to actively engage in community and the spirit of forgiveness: “Dear sister, dear brother, do you want proof that God has touched your life? See if you can stoop to bind the wounds of others. Today is the day to ask, ‘Am I, who so often has received God’s piece, his mercy, merciful to others?”
He continued, discussing the importance of embracing faith collectively: “Let us not live a one-way faith, a faith that receives but does not give, a faith that accepts the gift but does not give it in return. Having received mercy, let us become merciful. For if love is only about us, faith becomes arid, barren and sentimental. Without others faith becomes disembodied.”
Finishing the homily which he fittingly spoke in front of Jacopo and Fracesco Zucchi’s fresco of the Pentecost, Pope Francis said: “Let us ask for the grace to become witnesses of mercy. Only in this way will our faith be alive and our lives unified. Only in this way will proclaim the Gospel of God, which is the Gospel of mercy.”
He welcomed those watching online and gave a dedicated greeting to those sat in the very Church that is dedicated to Divine Mercy: “Regular faithful, nursing staff, inmates, people with disabilities, refugees and migrants, Hospitalier Sisters of Mercy and Civil Protection officers. You represent some of the situations in which mercy is made tangible; it becomes closeness, service, care for those in difficulty. I hope you always feel you have been granted mercy, so as to be merciful to others in return.”