Piety and pity are active expressions of mercy, pope says
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IMAGE: CNS photo/Alessaandro Bianchi, Reuters)By Cindy WoodenVATICAN CITY (CNS) -- True piety and evangelical pity arefound together in those who are moved by the pain of others, take action tohelp them and, therefore, share God's mercy, Pope Francis said."We are called to cultivate attitudes of pity in theface of many situations in life, shaking off the indifference that prevents usfrom recognizingthe needs of our brothers and sisters and liberating ourselves from slavery tomaterial well-being," the pope said May 14 at a jubilee general audience.During the Year of Mercy, the pope is holding specialgeneral audiences one Saturday each month and using the occasion to speak aboutthe importance of experiencing God's mercy and sharing it with others."For Jesus," he said, "experiencing pitymeans sharing the sadness of those one encounters, but at the same time,working to transform sadness into joy."True piety and true pity are not superficial feelings, hesaid, but are expressions of comp...
IMAGE: CNS photo/Alessaandro Bianchi, Reuters)
By Cindy Wooden
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- True piety and evangelical pity are
found together in those who are moved by the pain of others, take action to
help them and, therefore, share God's mercy, Pope Francis said.
"We are called to cultivate attitudes of pity in the
face of many situations in life, shaking off the indifference that prevents us
from recognizing
the needs of our brothers and sisters and liberating ourselves from slavery to
material well-being," the pope said May 14 at a jubilee general audience.
During the Year of Mercy, the pope is holding special
general audiences one Saturday each month and using the occasion to speak about
the importance of experiencing God's mercy and sharing it with others.
"For Jesus," he said, "experiencing pity
means sharing the sadness of those one encounters, but at the same time,
working to transform sadness into joy."
True piety and true pity are not superficial feelings, he
said, but are expressions of compassion and mercy.
Pity must not be confused "with the compassion we feel
for the animals that live with us," he said. "In fact, it sometimes
happens that one feels pity toward animals, but remains indifferent to the
suffering of our brothers and sisters. How many times do we see people so
attached to cats and dogs and yet they leave their neighbor without the help
they need."
Also during the jubilee year, as an example of the corporal
and spiritual works of mercy, the pope is making a private visit each month to
people with special needs. He has visited a home for the elderly, a community
for recovering addicts and a refugee camp in Greece.
He went to a L'Arche Community in Ciampino, near Rome, May
13 and spent the afternoon with 18 people who have developmental disabilities
and the volunteers who have built a home with them. He brought pastries,
peaches and cherries with him and took part in the community's afternoon snack
break before praying with the community in the small chapel.
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