Pope's general audience of May 22, urges prayers for Oklahoma tornado victims
22 may, 2013 - One of the routine activities of the Pope is his weekly general audience
which he holds on Wednesday. It is a public meeting during which pilgrims and tourists
who come to Rome have a chance of seeing and hearing him speak and they can also receive
his blessing. The general audience of May 22nd was held in the open, in Rome’s St.
Peter’s Square. It began with several aides reading a passage from the Gospel of St.
Matthew in several languages, on which the Pope based his discourse. The main discourse
of Pope Francis was in Italian, summaries of which were translated into various languages.
Listen: The
following is the summary in English of the Holy Father’s words. this morning: In
our catechesis on the Creed, we now pass from the article on the Holy Spirit to that
on the Church, “one, holy, catholic and apostolic”. The Holy Spirit and the Church
are in fact inseparable. The Spirit enlivens and guides the Church, and each of us
within the Church, to carry out Christ’s mandate to make disciples of all peoples.
He opens minds and hearts to the beauty and truth of the Gospel. The Spirit overcomes
selfishness and division, creating unity, communion, reconciliation and love. The
Spirit also instils the strength needed to bear courageous witness to the Risen Christ;
he is the spirit of mission and evangelization. The fire of the Holy Spirit was sent
down upon the Apostles at Pentecost in answer to their fervent prayer; ardent prayer
in the Spirit must always be the soul of new evangelization and the heart of our lives
as Christians. Let us renew each day our trust in the working of the Holy Spirit,
open our hearts to his inspiration and gifts, and strive to be signs of unity and
communion with God in the midst of our human family.
Several aides greeted
the Pope on behalf of the language groups present at the audience, including one group
from India. Prior to greeting the English-speaking pilgrims, the Holy Father appealed
for prayers for the victims of the tornado that hit Oklahoma, United States, on Monday.
He spoke in Italian: Listen:
Pope
Francis greeted the various language groups in Italian and also in Spanish, and concluded
Wednesday’s general audience with his blessing. Receive the Pope’s Blessing: