Pope's Audience: Our strength is the love of Christ

(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said he wanted to go to Albania to express his closeness, and the closeness of the whole Church, to the Albanian people.

During his general audience he returned to the two main themes of his Visit – inter-religious coexistence and the memory of the martyrs.

Religious co-existence, he said, is a real, concrete possibility: Albanians practice it. “It is a genuine and fruitful dialogue that avoids relativism and takes account of the identity of each [religious community].”

Pope Francis also focused on the heroic witness of the Albanian martyrs. The martyrs gained the strength to endure the “terrible persecutions” from their “intimate union with Jesus, the relationship of love with Him.” The Holy Father reminded us that the Church does not find its strength in “organizational capabilities or structures;” rather, “our strength is the love of Christ!”

The memory of the martyrs, he said, “is essential for the future” of the Albanian people. The blood of the martyrs “was not shed in vain,” he continued, “but is a seed that will bear the fruits of peace and fraternal collaboration.”

The Pope said he entrusted the fruits of his voyage to Our Lady of Good Counsel, the principle patron of Albania, “that she might continue to guide the path of this martyr people.”

Read the full text of Pope Francis' General Audience address here.

At the conclusion of the Audience, greeting Arabic speaking pilgrims, especially those from Jordan and the Middle East, the Pope’s thoughts also returned to the region. “The witness to Christ” said Pope Francis, “appears, in some places, difficult and dangerous, and at times, can even cost people their lives, but if we live faithfully, with perseverance and faith in the One who has conquered death, [this witness] is transformed into an endless source of joy and bliss. In fact Christ never forgets his faithful disciples: always be true witnesses of Christ and the truth; be the cause of reconciliation and unity, be witnesses of justice, peace and charity. May the Lord bless you and protect you always.”