People of God; may your homilies never be dull; may your homilies arrive
straight to the heart of the people as they come from your heart: what you say
to them is what you have in your heart. In this way one offers the Word of the
Lord, and in this way your doctrine will be joy and sustenance to Christ's
faithful; the aroma of your life will be witness, as example edifies, whereas
words without example are empty. They are ideas that never reach the heart and
may even do harm; they do not do good".

"When you celebrate Mass, acknowledge then what you are doing. Do not be hasty!
Imitate what you celebrate - it is not an artificial rite. ... With Baptism,
you
will add new faithful to the People of God. You must never refuse Baptism to
those who ask for it. With the Sacrament of Penance you will forgive sins in
the
name of Christ and of the Church. And I, in the name of the Jesus Christ, the
Lord, and His spouse, the Holy Church, I ask you never to tire of being
merciful. You will be in the confessional to forgive, not to condemn! Imitate
the Father, Who never tires of forgiving. With the holy oils you will bring
relief to the sick. By celebrating the holy rites and raise at the different
times of the day the prayers of praise and supplication, you will become the
voice of the People of God and of the whole of humanity. Aware of having been
chosen among men and constituted for their benefit to attend to matters of God,
exercise Christ's priestly work with joy and sincere charity, intent solely on
pleasing God and not yourselves. A priest who lives to please himself, who acts
like a peacock, is unpleasant".

"Finally, participating in Christ's mission as Head and Pastor in filial
communion with your bishop, make efforts to unite the faithful in a single
family - you are ministers of unity in the Church and in the family - to lead
them to God the Father by means of Christ in the Holy Spirit", he concluded,
adding. "and always keep before your eyes the example of the Good Shepherd, Who
did not come to be served, but to serve; not to remain in comfort, but to reach
out to seek and save what was lost".

___________________________________________________________


Regina Coeli: contemplation and thanksgiving are not enough - we must follow
the
Good Shepherd

Vatican City, 26 April 2015 (VIS) - At the end of the celebration of Holy Mass
for new vocations, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the
Vatican Apostolic Palace to pray this Sunday's Regina Coeli with the faithful
gathered in the square. Beforehand the Holy Father spoke about the figure of
Jesus, the Good Shepherd in Whom we contemplate God's Providence.

"The Father gave us the greatest and most precious gift He could give. It is
the
highest and purest love, as it is not motivated by any need, it is not
conditioned by any calculation, it is not attracted by any interest to receive
in exchange. Before this love of God, we experience immense joy and open
ourselves up to the the acknowledgement of what we have freely received. But
contemplating and giving thanks are not enough. We must also follow the Good
Shepherd. In particular, those who have the mission of guides in the Church -
priests, bishops, popes - are called upon to assume not the mentality of a
manager but rather that of a servant, in imitation of Jesus Who, despoiling
Himself, saved us with His mercy. The new priests of the diocese of Rome, whom
I
have had the joy of ordaining this morning in St. Peter's Basilica, are also
called to this style of pastoral life".

The Pope invited two of the newly ordained priests to appear at the window to
greet the people and to thank the faithful for their ordination, and he asked
that Our Lady might obtain for him, for the bishops and the priests of all the
world the grace of serving the holy people of God through the joyful preaching
of the Gospel, heartfelt celebration of the Sacraments and patient and gentle
pastoral guidance".

Following the Marian prayer, the Pope assured his closeness to those affected
by
the powerful earthquake in Nepal and neighbouring countries. "I pray for the
victims, for the injured, and for all those who suffer as a result of this
disaster", he said. "May they have the support of fraternal solidarity. And let
us pray to Our Lady to be close to them".

___________________________________________________________


Telegram for the earthquake in Nepal

Vatican City, 26 April 2015 (VIS) - Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin
has sent a telegram of condolences on behalf of the Holy Father to Bishop Paul
Simick, of the apostolic vicariate of Nepal, for the victims of the earthquake
that struck the country and neighbouring India, Tibet and Bangladesh.

"His Holiness Pope Francis was deeply saddened to learn of the earthquake and
the resultant loss of many hundreds of lives in Nepal, as well as in
neighbouring countries. He expresses his solidarity with all affected by this
disaster and assures those who grieve for deceased family members of his
closeness in prayer. His Holiness commends the souls of the victims to the
loving mercy of the Almighty and he offers encouragement to the civil
authorities and emergency personnel as they continue their rescue efforts and
assistance to those touched by this tragedy. Upon them all he invokes the
blessings of the Almighty as a pledge of healing and consolation".

___________________________________________________________


To the John Paul II Foundation: nurture solidarity with Christian fraternity

Vatican City, 25 April 2015 (VIS) - "The canonisation of John Paul II has given
a new impulse to your work in the service of the Church and evangelisation. It
has rendered it, if possible, even more universal. And you offer a valuable
contribution to ensuring that the spiritual legacy of this Pope saint may
continue to make fertile the great field of the Church and to support her path
through history", said the Pope this morning to the members of the John Paul II
Foundation, whom he received in audience in the Sala Clementina of the
Apostolic
Palace.

Francis thanked them for their initiatives in the educational field, recalling
John Paul II's great love for the young. "You contribute to ensuring that his
charism and his paternity continue to bear fruit", he remarked, also
emphasising
the valuable opportunities they offer to priests and laypeople to enhance their
formation, to be better prepared and to accompany communities in facing the
cultural and pastoral challenges of our times.

"It is enough to think of one of the key words of his teaching, 'solidarity': a
word that some people thought ought to become obsolete, but which in reality
still retains all its prophetic force", he continued. "Therefore, it is
important that you, first of all, in your 'network' of the Circles of Friends
of
the Foundation, live this solidarity among yourselves, nurturing it continually
with Christian fraternity, inspired in turn by prayer and obedience to the Word
of God".

___________________________________________________________


Audiences

Vatican City, 27 April 2015 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father received in
audience:

- Professor Riccardo Di Segni, Chief Rabbi of Rome;

- Archbishop Bruno Musaro, apostolic nuncio to the Arab Republic of Egypt and
Holy See delegate at the League of Arab States;

- Archbishop Giorgio Lingua, apostolic nuncio to Cuba;

- Ten prelates of the Episcopal Conference of Benin, on their "ad Limina"
visit:

- Archbishop Antoine Ganye of Cotonou;

- Bishop Eugene Cyrille Houndekon of Abomey;

- Bishop Francois Gnonhossou, S.M.A., of Dassa-Zoume;

- Bishop Victor Agbanou of Lokossa;

- Archbishop Pascal N'Koue of Parakou;

- Bishop Paul Kouassivi Vieira of Djougou;

- Bishop Clet Feliho of Kandi;

- Bishop Antoine Sabi Bio of Natitingou;

- Bishop Martin Adjou Moumouni of N'Dali;

- Rev. Jean-Benoit Gnambode, diocesan administrator of Porto Novo.

On Saturday, 25 April, the Holy Father received in audience:

- Cardinal Marc Ouellet, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops;

- Guillermo Leon Escobar Herran, new ambassador of Colombia to the Holy See,
presenting his letters of credence;

- Archbishop Giuseppe Pinto, apostolic nuncio to the Philippines;

- Msgr. Fernando Chica Arellano, Holy See permanent observer at the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (F.A.O.), International Fund for
Agricultural Development (I.F.A.D.), and World Food Programme (W.F.P.);

- Bishop Antonio Augusto dos Santos Marto of Leiria-Fatima, Portugal.

___________________________________________________________


Other Pontifical Acts

Vatican City, 27 April 2015 (VIS) - The Holy Father has appointed Bishop John
C.
Wester of Salt Lake City, U.S.A., as metropolitan archbishop of Sante Fe (area
158,296, population 1,473,000, Catholics 328,850, priests 207, permanent
deacons
215, religious 269), U.S.A. He succeeds Archbishop Michael J. Sheehan, whose
resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese upon reaching the
age
limit was accepted by the Holy Father.

___________________________________________________________

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www.visnews.org and www.vatican.va

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the source:  V. I. S. - Vatican Information Service.
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