Today, many across the globe will be mourning not just a great shepherd of the Catholic Church, but also a wonderful human being, with a kind and gentle spirit. ‘The world has lost a great Man’. I hear this phrase used a lot when actors and other famous people die. This perhaps, is the first time I have used this phrase, its not a phrase I use lightly but one that our blessed Pope Francis truly deserves.
Pilgrims of Hope
I don’t often mourn someone that I haven’t had a personal encounter with. Strangely enough, I feel as though I had a personal encounter with Pope Francis even though I only ever watched him through the TV screen, or heard him on the radio. He was a man that resonated so much love and peace. An advocate of the marginalised, migrants and the vulnerable. His theme for this Jubilee Year is ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. As Catholics and pilgrims on our faith journey we need to bring hope to those Pope Francis spoke so fondly of, our brothers and sisters in Christ, the marginalised, migrants, the vulnerable and all those that feel shut off from this world.
The Little Way
St. Therese Lisieux is known as the ‘Little Way’ because of her simple approach to life and in particular her spiritual life – (I’ll be doing a blog on St.Lisieux one of my favourite saints later). Her approach and example shows us we don’t necessarily have to be a Pope, a Saint or even a religious to do something of significance in our life of faith. We could start by carrying on the torch of Pope Francis by doing something to help the poor, migrants in our community and country and the vulnerable.
A link below to the life of a wonderful man. May his soul rest in perfect peace