VISIT TO THE COMMUNITY OF VARGINHA (MANGUINHOS)
ADDRESS OF POPE
FRANCIS
Rio de Janeiro
Thursday, 25 July 2013
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
It is wonderful to be here with you! It is wonderful! From
the start, my wish in planning this visit to Brazil was to be able to visit
every district throughout the nation. I would have liked to knock on every
door, to say “good morning”, to ask for a glass of cold water, to take a
cafezinho, - not a glass of grappa! – to speak as one would to family
friends, to listen to each person pouring out his or her heart – parents,
children, grandparents ... But Brazil is so vast! It is impossible to knock on
every door! So I chose to come here, to visit your community, this
community, which today stands for every district in Brazil. How wonderful
it is to be welcomed with such love, generosity, and joy! One need only look at
the way you have decorated the streets of the community; this is a further mark
of affection, it comes from your heart, from the heart of all Brazilians in
festive mood. Many thanks to each of you for this kind welcome! And I thank Rangler and Joana for their kind words.
1. From the moment I first set foot on Brazilian soil, right up to this
meeting here with you, I have been made to feel welcome. And it is important to
be able to make people welcome; this is something even more beautiful than any
kind of ornament or decoration. I say this because when we are generous in
welcoming people and sharing something with them – some food, a place in our
homes, our time – not only do we no longer remain poor: we are enriched. I am
well aware that when someone needing food knocks at your door, you always find a
way of sharing food; as the proverb says, one can always “add more water to the
beans”! Is it possible to add more water to the beans? … Always? … And
you do so with love, demonstrating that true riches consist not in material
things, but in the heart!
And the Brazilian people, particularly the humblest among you, can
offer the world a valuable lesson in solidarity; this
word solidarity is too often forgotten or silenced, because
it is uncomfortable. It almost seems like a bad word … solidarity. I
would like to make an appeal to those in possession of greater resources, to
public authorities and to all people of good will who are working for social
justice: never tire of working for a more just world, marked by greater
solidarity! No one can remain insensitive to the inequalities that persist in
the world! Everybody, according to his or her particular opportunities and
responsibilities, should be able to make a personal contribution to putting an
end to so many social injustices. The culture of selfishness and individualism
that often prevails in our society is not, I repeat, not what builds up
and leads to a more habitable world: rather, it is the culture of
solidarity that does so; the culture of solidarity means seeing
others not as rivals or statistics, but brothers and sisters. And we are all
brothers and sisters!
I would like to encourage the efforts that Brazilian society is
making to integrate all its members, including those who suffer most and
are in
greatest need, through the fight against hunger and deprivation. No
amount of
“peace-building” will be able to last, nor will harmony and happiness be
attained in a society that ignores, pushes to the margins or excludes a
part of
itself. A society of that kind simply impoverishes itself, it loses
something
essential. We must never, never allow the throwaway culture to enter our
hearts! We must never allow the throwaway culture to enter our hearts,
because
we are brothers and sisters. No one is disposable! Let us always
remember
this: only when we are able to share do we become truly rich; everything
that is
shared is multiplied! Think of the multiplication of the loaves by
Jesus! The measure of the greatness of a society is found in the way it
treats
those most in need, those who have nothing apart from their poverty!
2. I would also like to tell you that the Church, the “advocate of
justice and defender of the poor in the face of intolerable social and economic
inequalities which cry to heaven” (Aparecida Document, 395), wishes to
offer her support for every initiative that can signify genuine development for
every person and for the whole person. Dear friends, it is certainly necessary
to give bread to the hungry – this is an act of justice. But there is also a
deeper hunger, the hunger for a happiness that only God can satisfy, the
hunger for dignity. There is neither real promotion of the common good nor
real human development when there is ignorance of the fundamental pillars that
govern a nation, its non-material goods: life, which is a gift of God, a
value always to be protected and promoted; the family, the foundation of
coexistence and a remedy against social fragmentation; integral education,
which cannot be reduced to the mere transmission of information for purposes of
generating profit; health, which must seek the integral well-being of the
person, including the spiritual dimension, essential for human balance and
healthy coexistence; security, in the conviction that violence can be
overcome only by changing human hearts.
3. I would like to add one final point, one final point. Here, as
in the whole of Brazil, there are many young people. You young people, my dear
young friends, you have a particular sensitivity towards injustice, but you are
often disappointed by facts that speak of corruption on the part of people who
put their own interests before the common good. To you and to all, I repeat:
never yield to discouragement, do not lose trust, do not allow your hope to be
extinguished. Situations can change, people can change. Be the first to seek
to bring good, do not grow accustomed to evil, but defeat it with good.
The Church is with you, bringing you the precious good of faith, bringing Jesus
Christ, who “came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (Jn
10:10).
Today, to all of you, especially to the residents of this Community
of Varginha, I say: you are not alone, the Church is with you, the Pope is with
you. I carry each of you in my heart and I make my own the intentions that you
carry deep within you: thanksgiving for joys, pleas for help in times of
difficulty, a desire for consolation in times of grief and suffering. I entrust
all this to the intercession of Our Lady of Aparecida, Mother of all the poor of
Brazil, and with great affection I impart my blessing. Thank you!
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