Pope Francis on Wednesday appealed to public officials and institutions to take greater care of the environment and help prevent natural disasters. Speaking during his Wednesday General Audience, the pope noted that Friday marks the international day for the reduction of natural disasters. He urged those in authority to promote a culture of care for creation, as well as taking concrete steps to defend our common home and to protect its most vulnerable inhabitants.
Friday 13th, the pope noted, also marks the closing of centenary celebrations for the last Marian apparitions to the shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal. He invited everyone to pray the Rosary throughout this month of October, asking God to move even the hardest of hearts, to put an end to violence and build a more peaceful world.
Pope Francis continued his reflections on Christian hope, talking this week about the attitude of ‘attentive waiting’. His words came during his weekly General Audience in St Peter’s Square.
Pope Francis said just as Jesus tells his disciples to be like those who await the return of their master, with lamps alight, Christians must always be attentive, awaiting the Lord’s return.
Attentiveness requires patience
Every day is a new opportunity to be attentive to God, the pope continued, to welcome the day as his gift, and to live that day by offering our good works to him. Such attentiveness requires patience, he said, yet no night is so long, as to make us forget the joy that comes with dawn.
Future guided by God’s providence
As Christians, the pope concluded, we know that that no matter what we may suffer, life has its purpose and the merciful Lord will greet us at its end. Thus we can look upon history and our own lives with confidence and hope, he added, knowing that the future is not guided solely by the work of our hands, but by God’s providence.
Vatican Radio
Facebook Comments