杏MAP导航

By Linda Bordoni

At the heart of 杏MAP导航 Francis鈥� homily on Friday morning in the Casa Santa Marta was a reflection on how to transmit the faith.

Taking his cue from the liturgical reading of the day in which the apostle Paul addresses his disciple Timothy recalling his 鈥渟incere faith鈥� that first lived in his grandmother and then in his mother, the 杏MAP导航 highlighted the words that indicate how faith is to be transmitted: 鈥渟on鈥�, as Paul calls Timothy, 鈥渕other,鈥� 鈥済randmother,鈥� and finally "testimony".

The 'folly of preaching' according to Paul 
 

The 杏MAP导航 said that Paul generated Timothy with the 鈥渇olly of preaching.鈥� He said that in the reading a mention is also made of 鈥渢ears鈥� because, he explained, Paul does not sweeten his preaching with half-truths, he does so with courage because the announcement of the Gospel 鈥渃annot be lukewarm鈥�.

鈥淧reaching is - allow me the word 鈥� 鈥榓 slap鈥�. A slap that moves you and pushes you forward鈥� he said.

Paul himself, Francis said, describes it as 鈥榯he folly of preaching鈥�: 鈥渋t's folly, because to say that God became man and then he was crucified and then he rose again ...鈥� There is always a pinch of folly in preaching which must not be tempted by mediocrity and half-truths.

The Word without testimony has no strength
 

The second word 杏MAP导航 Francis chose to highlight is testimony. Faith, he affirmed, is to be transmitted through witness which gives strength to the Word and he commented on how people used to say of the first disciples: 鈥淗ow they love each other.鈥�

He noted that in some parishes today, many tongues can be heard wagging about this person or that鈥� and instead of commenting on 鈥榟ow they love each other鈥� one could be enticed to comment on how people speak badly of each other, on 鈥渉ow they use their tongues like knives to 鈥榮kin鈥� the other!鈥�

鈥淗ow can you transmit the faith in an atmosphere that is spoilt by gossip, by slander?鈥� he said.

True testimony, the 杏MAP导航 explained means never speaking badly of the other, it means doing works of charity, visiting the sick, and it means asking oneself why others behave or live as they do.

杏MAP导航 Francis also emphasized the fact that evil acts as 鈥渃ounter-testimony鈥� or as bad testimony: it takes away faith and weakens people.

The Church gives life like a mother
 

The other word and concept picked out by 杏MAP导航 Francis is 鈥渕other鈥� and 鈥済randmother鈥�. He explained that 鈥渇aith is transmitted in a womb, the womb of the Church鈥�.

He said that the 鈥淐hurch鈥檚 motherhood is prolonged in the maternity of the mother, the woman鈥�.

He recalled a meeting he had with a nun while he was in Albania. She had been imprisoned during the dictatorship, but sometimes the guards would let her take a walk along the river thinking there could be no harm in that.

But the nun was clever, the 杏MAP导航 said, and the women of the nearby villages would bring their children to her when she went out and she would secretly baptize them in the river.

鈥淚 ask myself, he said, are mothers and grandmothers like the ones Paul speaks of?鈥� Or do they trust in the fact that the children will learn when they go to catechism?

鈥淚t gives me sadness, Francis continued, when I see children who do not know how to make the sign of the Cross鈥� because their mothers and grandmothers have not taught them.

Let us ask the Lord, he concluded, to teach us to be witnesses and preachers and to teach women who are mothers to transmit the faith.