The Church of Mercy by Pope Francis Page B

are part of the one flock of Christ that walks together.
    Here I think once more of you priests, and let me place myself in your company. What could be more beautiful for us than walking with our people? It is beautiful! When I think of the parish priests who knew the names of their parishioners, who went to visit them: one of them told me, “I know the name of each family’s dog.” They even knew the dog’s name! How nice it was! What could be more beautiful than this? I repeat it often: walking with our people, sometimes in front, sometimes behind, and sometimes in the middle. We walk in front in order to guide the community, in the middle in order to encourage and support, and at the back so that no one lags too far behind, to keep them united. There is another reason too: because the people have a “nose”! The people scent out, discover, new ways to walk; they have the
sensus fidei
, as theologians call it. What could be more beautiful than this? During the synod, it will be very important to consider what the Holy Spirit is saying to the laity, to the People of God, to everyone.
    But the most important thing is to walk together by working together, by helping one another, by asking forgiveness, by acknowledging one’s mistakes and asking for forgiveness, and also by accepting the apologies of others by forgiving—how important this is! Sometimes I think of married people who separate after many years. “Oh . . . no, we didn’t understand each other. We drifted apart.” Perhaps at times they didn’t know how to ask for forgiveness at the right time. Perhaps at times they did not know how to forgive. And I always give this advice to newlyweds: “Argue as much as you like. If the plates fly, let them! But never end the day without making peace! Never!” And if married people learn to say, “Excuse me, I was tired,” or even a little gesture, this is peace. Then carry on with life the next day. This is a beautiful secret, and it prevents these painful separations. It is important to walk in unity, without running ahead, without nostalgia for the past. And while you walk you talk, you get to know one another, you tell one other about yourselves, you grow as a family. Here let us ask ourselves: How do we walk? How does our diocese walk? Does it walk together? And what am I doing so that it may truly walk in unity?

20
Taking the Cross
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Homily on Palm Sunday, 24 March 2013
    Jesus enters Jerusalem. The crowd of disciples accompanies him in festive mood, their garments stretched out before him. There is talk of the miracles he has accomplished, and loud praises are heard: “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38).
    Crowds, celebration, praise, blessing, peace: joy fills the air. Jesus has awakened great hopes, especially in the hearts of the simple, the humble, the poor, the forgotten, those who do not matter in the eyes of the world. He understands human sufferings, he has shown the face of God’s mercy, and he has bent down to heal body and soul.
    This is Jesus. This is his heart, which looks to all of us, to our sicknesses, to our sins. The love of Jesus is great. And thus he enters Jerusalem, with this love, and looks at us. It is a beautiful scene, full of light—the light of the love of Jesus, the love of his heart—of joy, of celebration.
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    This joy is born from knowing that with him we are never alone, even at difficult moments.
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    At the beginning of Mass, we too repeated it. We waved our palms, our olive branches. We too welcomed Jesus; we too expressed our joy at accompanying him, at knowing him to be close, present in us and among us as a friend, a brother, and also as a King—that is, a shining beacon for our lives. Jesus is God, but he lowered himself to walk with us. He is our friend, our brother. He illumines our path here. And in this way we have welcomed him today. And here the first word that I wish to