quo vadis? Copacabana?

Jul 28, 2013

On Friday Pope Francis led the Way of the Cross on Copacabana Beach, as a part of the World Youth Day event. In his reflection he referred to the ancient Quo Vadis (where are you going?) encounter between Jesus and Peter. Pope Francis said:
According to an ancient Roman tradition, while fleeing the city during the persecutions of Nero, Saint Peter saw Jesus who was travelling in the opposite direction, that is, toward the city, and asked him in amazement: “Lord, where are you going?”  Jesus’ response was: “I am going to Rome to be crucified again.”  At that moment, Peter understood that he had to follow the Lord with courage, to the very end.  But he also realized that he would never be alone on the journey; Jesus, who had loved him even unto death, would always be with him…   

…Jesus, with his Cross, walks with us and takes upon himself our fears, our problems, and our sufferings, even those which are deepest and most painful… 

…The Cross of Christ contains all the love of God; there we find his immeasurable mercy.  This is a love in which we can place all our trust, in which we can believe.  Dear young people, let us entrust ourselves to Jesus, let us give ourselves over to him (cf. Lumen Fidei, 16), because he never disappoints anyone!..   

…Dear friends, let us bring to Christ’s Cross our joys, our sufferings and our failures.  There we will find a Heart that is open to us and understands us, forgives us, loves us and calls us to bear this love in our lives, to love each person, each brother and sister, with the same love.

Pope Francis’ complete text

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Latest Posts

building bridges

building bridges

It’s hard not to accept this evidence of unity as an answer to prayer and a sign of divine intervention

consecrated

consecrated

It really highlighted how rich the church is in its diversity but also it’s unity in our common faith

Leo on Augustine

Leo on Augustine

You might appreciate this brief clip of Pope Leo (in English) introducing us to Augustine.

Leo XIV

Leo XIV

In Aotearoa we feel a connection with our new pope since he grew up speaking and thinking in our language.

an answer…

an answer…

The clear evidence is that the Holy Spirit has spoken and has been heard