Jews and Christians should join forces for peace, Pope says
The fruitful friendship and dialogue between Jews and Christians must go beyond the world of experts and academia, Pope Francis said.
“It would be wonderful, for example, if in the same city rabbis and parish priests could work, together with their respective communities, in service to those in need and by promoting paths of peace and dialogue with all,” he said.
This way the fruits of decades of dialogue “will not remain the prerogative of a select few, but become a productive opportunity for many”, he said.
The Pope made his remarks during an audience with people taking part in a meeting to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of German Cardinal Augustin Bea – a leading biblical scholar who greatly influenced several documents of the Second Vatican Council and, particularly, the Church’s relationship with Judaism.
“Cardinal Bea should not only be remembered for what he did, but also the way he did it,” the Pope said.
“He remains a model and a source of inspiration for ecumenical and interreligious dialogue,” he told the attendees of the meeting, which was sponsored by Rome’s Cardinal Bea Center for Judaic Studies in partnership with the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, the Pontifical Biblical Institute, and the Center for the Study of Christianity at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Don’t become complacent of God’s wrath, Pope warns
Christians must not take advantage of God’s forgiveness – selfishly repeating sin after sin – because God’s wrath for those who refuse to change their ways is just as great as his mercy, Pope Francis said in a morning homily.
“Do not say, ‘God’s compassion is great, he will forgive my many sins’ and then I just keep going on, doing what I want,” he said at morning Mass in the chapel of his residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae.
Pope Francis suggested Catholics spend five minutes at the end of each day examining their conscience, pinpointing their failings and working to conform their life ever more closely to Christ’s.
In his homily, the Pope reflected on the first reading from the Book of Sirach (5:1-8) in which the Jewish sage warns the faithful against being too overconfident with God, “adding sin upon sin”, and delaying conversion because “mercy and anger alike are with him; upon the wicked alights his wrath”. The reading prompted Pope Francis to tell the small congregation at Mass, “Do not wait to convert yourself, to change your life, to perfect your life, to remove the weeds.”
Justice is needed for Pell case, Australian bishops urge
Australian bishops have expressed their shock at Cardinal George Pell’s guilty verdict of child sexual abuse and have urged that “justice” be served.
Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane, president of the Australian bishops’ conference, said in a statement last week that “the news of Cardinal George Pell’s conviction on historical child sexual abuse charges has shocked many across Australia and around the world, including the Catholic bishops of Australia”.
“The bishops agree that everyone should be equal under the law, and we respect the Australian legal system,” the archbishop said. “The same legal system that delivered the verdict will consider the appeal that the cardinal’s legal team has lodged.”
He added that the bishops hope justice will be served and that they pray for “all those who have been abused and their loved ones, and we commit ourselves anew to doing everything possible to ensure that the Church is a safe place for all, especially the young and the vulnerable”.
Cardinal Pell is expected to be sentenced to serve jail time.