Pope Francis's visit to the Philippines
It will now be a regret in my life, of not having seen the Pope. I had the chance to be in MOA, but I had prioritized other responsibilities. So during the whole time, I'm one of probably million others that stayed at home and watched intently of the Masses and Encounters of Pope Francis.
While I can only imagine what might be different if I actually saw the Pope, i still feel incredibly blessed just seeing him through the television walk our lands. The effect his visit resonates is empowering. I was and still am impressed beyond belief. I feel like I can do whatever I can. I feel like contributing. I want to contribute. I want to help.
I want to make this country a better place.
I've selected several passages from Pope Francis's talks and speeches from the events, which stood out to me personally.
Pope Francis at Malacanang
"It bids us break the bonds of injustice and oppression which give rise to glaring, and indeed scandalous, social inequalities. Reforming the social structures which perpetuate poverty and the exclusion of the poor first requires a conversion of mind and heart."
...
"I hope that this prophetic summons will challenge everyone, at all levels of society, to reject every form of corruption which diverts resources from the poor, and to make concerted efforts to ensure the inclusion of every man and woman and child in the life of the community."
Pope Francis Encounter with the clergy at Manila Cathedral
"The Gospel calls individual Christians to live lives of honesty, integrity and concern for the common good."
Pope Francis Encounter with Families at Mall Of Asia
"I like this idea of dreaming in a family. Every mother and father dreams of their son or daughter in the womb during nine months. Is it true or not? To dream how your daughter or son will be. It is not possible to have a family without such a dream.
When you lose this capacity to dream, you lose the capacity to love, and this energy to love is lost."
...
"Don't ever lose the illusion of when you were boyfriend and girlfriend."
...
"Rest is so necessary for the health of our minds and bodies, and often so difficult to achieve due to the many demands placed on us. But rest is also essential for our spiritual health, so that we can hear God’s voice and understand what he asks of us."
...
"Faith does not remove us from the world, but draws us more deeply into it."
...
"I ask you especially to show concern for those who do not have a family of their own. In particular, those who are elderly and children without parents. Never let them feel isolated, alone and abandoned, but help them to know that God has not forgotten them."
Pope Francis in Tacloban Mass
"I’d like to tell you something close to my heart. When I saw from Rome the catastrophe, I felt that I had to be here and on those very days I decided to come here.
I am here to be with you. A little bit late, I have to say, but I am here."
...
"So many of you have lost everything. I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does know what to say to you. Some of you have lost part of your families. All I can do is keep silent. And I walk with you all with my silent heart."
Pope Francis undelivered speech before Yolanda survivors
" Above all, I ask that the poor throughout this country be treated fairly – that their dignity be respected, that political and economic policies be just and inclusive, that opportunities for employment and education be developed, and that obstacles to the delivery of social services be removed. Our treatment of the poor is the criterion on which each of us will be judged (cf. Mt 25:40, 45). I ask all of you, and all responsible for the good of society, to renew your commitment to social justice and the betterment of the poor, both here and in the Philippines as a whole."
...
" I hope that you will always realize that true happiness comes from helping others, giving ourselves to them in self-sacrifice, mercy and compassion."
Pope Francis Encounter with the Youth at UST
"I want to express the love and the hopes of the Church for you. And I want to encourage you, as Christian citizens of this country, to offer yourselves passionately and honestly to the great work of renewing your society and helping to build a better world."
...
"Women have much to tell us in today’s society. Sometimes we’re too machistas, and we don’t allow room for the woman. But women are capable of seeing things from a different angle from us, a different eye. Women are able to pose questions that we men are not able to understand. "
...
"Only when we too, can cry about the things that you said, can we come close to replying to that question. Why do children suffer so much? Why do children suffer?
When the heart is able to ask itself and cry, then we can understand something. There is a worldly compassion, which is useless. You spoke something of this. It’s a compassion, moreover leads us to put hand in the pocket to give something, to the poor. If Christ had had that kind of that compassion, he would have walked by, just greeted three people, giving them something and moved on, But it’s only when Christ cried and was able to cry that he understood our lives. "
"Certain realities in life we only see through eyes that are cleansed with tears. I invite each one here to ask yourselves, have I learned how to weep, to cry?
if you don’t learn how to cry, you won’t learn how to be good Christians. This is a challenge. Be courageous, please don’t be frightened of crying. "
...
"You might ask me, Father, how do we become saints? This is another challenge, it is a challenge of love., which is the most important subject you have to learn in university. What is the most important subject you have to learn in life? To learn how to love. And this is the great challenge life offers you, to learn how to love."
...
"And for this the Gospel gives us a serene way to move forward. To use three languages, of the mind, of the heart and of your hands, and the three to use them in harmony,"
"To think, to feel and to do."
...
"Real love is about loving and letting ourselves be loved. Let yourselves to be loved, that is why it’s so difficult to come to perfect love to God, because we can love Him, but it’s also very important to let yourselves be loved by Him. Real love, opening ourselves to the love that wants to you, which causes a surprise in us."
" To be wise, use the three languages, to think well, feel well and do well.
And to be wise, allow yourselves to be surprised by the love of God, and that’s a good life. "
...
"This is what you lack, to learn how to beg, and to those to whom we give. This isn’t easy to understand: To learn how to beg. To learn how to receive with humility. To learn to be evangelized by the poor, those that we help, those infirm, orphans, they have so much to offer us. "
Pope Francis undelivered speech, Encounter with Youth
"Today I would like to suggest three key areas where you have a significant contribution to make to the life of your country. The first of these is the challenge of integrity. "
"The word "challenge" can be understood in two ways. First, it can be understood negatively, as a temptation to act against your moral convictions, [..] but the word "challenge" can be also understood positively. It can be seen as invitation to courage, a summons to bear prophetic witness to what you believe and hold sacred."
In this sense, the challenge of integrity is something which you have to face now, at this time in your lives. It is not something you can put off until you are older or have greater responsibilities. "
"One of the greatest challenges young people face is learning to love. To love means to take a risk: the risk of rejection, the risk of being taken advantage of, or worse, of taking advantage of another. Do not be afraid to love! But in love, too, maintain your integrity! Here too, be honest and fair!"
"A second key area where you are called to make a contribution is in showing concern for the environment. [...] As stewards of God's creation, we are called to make the earth a beautiful garden for the human family. When we destroy our forests, ravage our soil and pollute our seas, we betray that noble calling."
"A final area in which you can make a contribution is one dear to all of us. It is care for the poor. [...]
There is always someone near us in need, materially, emotionally, spiritually. The greatest gift we can give to them is our friendship, our concern, our tenderness, our love for Jesus. To receive Jesus is to have everything; to give him is to give the greatest gift of all."
"When you give of your time, your talents and your resources to the many people who struggle and who live on the margins, you make a difference."
Pope Francis homily in Quirino
"He reminds us of our deepest identity. All of us are God’s children, members of God’s family."
"The devil is the father of lies. Often he hides his snares behind the appearance of sophistication, the allure of being “modern”, “like everyone else”. He distracts us with the promise of ephemeral pleasures, superficial pastimes. And so we squander our God-given gifts by tinkering with gadgets; we squander our money on gambling and drink; we turn in on ourselves. We forget to remain focused on the things that really matter. "
"It was a frail child, in need of protection, who brought God’s goodness, mercy and justice into the world."
Pope Francis asks a lot. They're aren't simple tasks. They are complex things; responsibilities and challenges. The ones that really matter.
He challenges us to integrity, and reject corruption.To protect the ideal of the family. To never lose the capacity to love. To learn to rest and show concern to those without a family of their own.
He teaches us compassion and empathy. To cry for others.
He teaches us to help the poor, and that true happiness comes from giving and helping.
And to learn how to beg, to receive with humility.
To care for the environment.
To love, to risk love.
and to protect the children.
While I can only imagine what might be different if I actually saw the Pope, i still feel incredibly blessed just seeing him through the television walk our lands. The effect his visit resonates is empowering. I was and still am impressed beyond belief. I feel like I can do whatever I can. I feel like contributing. I want to contribute. I want to help.
I want to make this country a better place.
I've selected several passages from Pope Francis's talks and speeches from the events, which stood out to me personally.
Pope Francis at Malacanang
"It bids us break the bonds of injustice and oppression which give rise to glaring, and indeed scandalous, social inequalities. Reforming the social structures which perpetuate poverty and the exclusion of the poor first requires a conversion of mind and heart."
...
"I hope that this prophetic summons will challenge everyone, at all levels of society, to reject every form of corruption which diverts resources from the poor, and to make concerted efforts to ensure the inclusion of every man and woman and child in the life of the community."
Pope Francis Encounter with the clergy at Manila Cathedral
"The Gospel calls individual Christians to live lives of honesty, integrity and concern for the common good."
Pope Francis Encounter with Families at Mall Of Asia
"I like this idea of dreaming in a family. Every mother and father dreams of their son or daughter in the womb during nine months. Is it true or not? To dream how your daughter or son will be. It is not possible to have a family without such a dream.
When you lose this capacity to dream, you lose the capacity to love, and this energy to love is lost."
...
"Don't ever lose the illusion of when you were boyfriend and girlfriend."
...
"Rest is so necessary for the health of our minds and bodies, and often so difficult to achieve due to the many demands placed on us. But rest is also essential for our spiritual health, so that we can hear God’s voice and understand what he asks of us."
...
"Faith does not remove us from the world, but draws us more deeply into it."
...
"I ask you especially to show concern for those who do not have a family of their own. In particular, those who are elderly and children without parents. Never let them feel isolated, alone and abandoned, but help them to know that God has not forgotten them."
Pope Francis in Tacloban Mass
"I’d like to tell you something close to my heart. When I saw from Rome the catastrophe, I felt that I had to be here and on those very days I decided to come here.
I am here to be with you. A little bit late, I have to say, but I am here."
...
"So many of you have lost everything. I don’t know what to say to you. But the Lord does know what to say to you. Some of you have lost part of your families. All I can do is keep silent. And I walk with you all with my silent heart."
Pope Francis undelivered speech before Yolanda survivors
" Above all, I ask that the poor throughout this country be treated fairly – that their dignity be respected, that political and economic policies be just and inclusive, that opportunities for employment and education be developed, and that obstacles to the delivery of social services be removed. Our treatment of the poor is the criterion on which each of us will be judged (cf. Mt 25:40, 45). I ask all of you, and all responsible for the good of society, to renew your commitment to social justice and the betterment of the poor, both here and in the Philippines as a whole."
...
" I hope that you will always realize that true happiness comes from helping others, giving ourselves to them in self-sacrifice, mercy and compassion."
Pope Francis Encounter with the Youth at UST
"I want to express the love and the hopes of the Church for you. And I want to encourage you, as Christian citizens of this country, to offer yourselves passionately and honestly to the great work of renewing your society and helping to build a better world."
...
"Women have much to tell us in today’s society. Sometimes we’re too machistas, and we don’t allow room for the woman. But women are capable of seeing things from a different angle from us, a different eye. Women are able to pose questions that we men are not able to understand. "
...
"Only when we too, can cry about the things that you said, can we come close to replying to that question. Why do children suffer so much? Why do children suffer?
When the heart is able to ask itself and cry, then we can understand something. There is a worldly compassion, which is useless. You spoke something of this. It’s a compassion, moreover leads us to put hand in the pocket to give something, to the poor. If Christ had had that kind of that compassion, he would have walked by, just greeted three people, giving them something and moved on, But it’s only when Christ cried and was able to cry that he understood our lives. "
"Certain realities in life we only see through eyes that are cleansed with tears. I invite each one here to ask yourselves, have I learned how to weep, to cry?
if you don’t learn how to cry, you won’t learn how to be good Christians. This is a challenge. Be courageous, please don’t be frightened of crying. "
...
"You might ask me, Father, how do we become saints? This is another challenge, it is a challenge of love., which is the most important subject you have to learn in university. What is the most important subject you have to learn in life? To learn how to love. And this is the great challenge life offers you, to learn how to love."
...
"And for this the Gospel gives us a serene way to move forward. To use three languages, of the mind, of the heart and of your hands, and the three to use them in harmony,"
"To think, to feel and to do."
...
"Real love is about loving and letting ourselves be loved. Let yourselves to be loved, that is why it’s so difficult to come to perfect love to God, because we can love Him, but it’s also very important to let yourselves be loved by Him. Real love, opening ourselves to the love that wants to you, which causes a surprise in us."
" To be wise, use the three languages, to think well, feel well and do well.
And to be wise, allow yourselves to be surprised by the love of God, and that’s a good life. "
...
"This is what you lack, to learn how to beg, and to those to whom we give. This isn’t easy to understand: To learn how to beg. To learn how to receive with humility. To learn to be evangelized by the poor, those that we help, those infirm, orphans, they have so much to offer us. "
Pope Francis undelivered speech, Encounter with Youth
"Today I would like to suggest three key areas where you have a significant contribution to make to the life of your country. The first of these is the challenge of integrity. "
"The word "challenge" can be understood in two ways. First, it can be understood negatively, as a temptation to act against your moral convictions, [..] but the word "challenge" can be also understood positively. It can be seen as invitation to courage, a summons to bear prophetic witness to what you believe and hold sacred."
In this sense, the challenge of integrity is something which you have to face now, at this time in your lives. It is not something you can put off until you are older or have greater responsibilities. "
"One of the greatest challenges young people face is learning to love. To love means to take a risk: the risk of rejection, the risk of being taken advantage of, or worse, of taking advantage of another. Do not be afraid to love! But in love, too, maintain your integrity! Here too, be honest and fair!"
"A second key area where you are called to make a contribution is in showing concern for the environment. [...] As stewards of God's creation, we are called to make the earth a beautiful garden for the human family. When we destroy our forests, ravage our soil and pollute our seas, we betray that noble calling."
"A final area in which you can make a contribution is one dear to all of us. It is care for the poor. [...]
There is always someone near us in need, materially, emotionally, spiritually. The greatest gift we can give to them is our friendship, our concern, our tenderness, our love for Jesus. To receive Jesus is to have everything; to give him is to give the greatest gift of all."
"When you give of your time, your talents and your resources to the many people who struggle and who live on the margins, you make a difference."
Pope Francis homily in Quirino
"He reminds us of our deepest identity. All of us are God’s children, members of God’s family."
"The devil is the father of lies. Often he hides his snares behind the appearance of sophistication, the allure of being “modern”, “like everyone else”. He distracts us with the promise of ephemeral pleasures, superficial pastimes. And so we squander our God-given gifts by tinkering with gadgets; we squander our money on gambling and drink; we turn in on ourselves. We forget to remain focused on the things that really matter. "
"It was a frail child, in need of protection, who brought God’s goodness, mercy and justice into the world."
Pope Francis asks a lot. They're aren't simple tasks. They are complex things; responsibilities and challenges. The ones that really matter.
He challenges us to integrity, and reject corruption.To protect the ideal of the family. To never lose the capacity to love. To learn to rest and show concern to those without a family of their own.
He teaches us compassion and empathy. To cry for others.
He teaches us to help the poor, and that true happiness comes from giving and helping.
And to learn how to beg, to receive with humility.
To care for the environment.
To love, to risk love.
and to protect the children.
