venerandae memoriae, die XVmensis Augusti anni MCMLXVII novam Romanae
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This evening I wish also to include those who are not present among us. I
am thinking especially of the sick or mentally ill, young people in prison,
those struggling on the margins of our societies, and those who for whatever
reason feel alienated from the Church. To them I say: Jesus is close to you!
Feel his healing embrace, his compassion and mercy!
Almost two thousand years ago, the Apostles, gathered in the upper room
together with Mary and some faithful women, were filled with the Holy
Spirit.1 At that extraordinary moment, which gave birth to the Church,
the confusion and fear that had gripped Christ's disciples were transformed
into a vigorous conviction and sense of purpose. They felt impelled to speak
of their encounter with the risen Jesus whom they had come to call affectio-
nately, the Lord. In many ways, the Apostles were ordinary. None could
claim to be the perfect disciple. They failed to recognize Christ,2 felt ashamed
of their own ambition,3 and had even denied him.4 Yet, when empowered by
the Holy Spirit, they were transfixed by the truth of Christ's Gospel and
inspired to proclaim it fearlessly. Emboldened, they exclaimed: repent, be
baptized, receive the Holy Spirit! 5 Grounded in the Apostles' teaching, in
fellowship, and in the breaking of the bread and prayer,6 the young Christian
community moved forward to oppose the perversity in the culture around
them,7 to care for one another,8 to defend their belief in Jesus in the face of
hostility,9 and to heal the sick.10 And in obedience to Christ's own command,
they set forth, bearing witness to the greatest story ever: that God has
become one of us, that the divine has entered human history in order to
transform it, and that we are called to immerse ourselves in Christ's saving
love which triumphs over evil and death. Saint Paul, in his famous speech to
the Areopagus, introduced the message in this way: "God gives everything -
including life and breath - to everyone ... so that all nations might seek God
and, by feeling their way towards him, succeed in finding him. In fact he is
1 Cfr Acts 1:14; 2:4. 2 Cfr Lk 24:13-32. 3 Cfr Lk 22:24-27. 4 Cfr Lk 22:54-62. 5 Cfr Acts 2:37-38. 6 Cfr Acts 2:42. 7 Cfr Acts 2:40. 8 Cfr Acts 2:44-47. 9 Cfr Acts 4:33.
10 Cfr Acts 5:12-16.