The Holy Fathers message expanded on the theme chosen for this year’s world day which was taken from the Book of Psalms: “Do not cast me off in my old age.”
When Catholics carry the Eucharist through the streets, “we are not doing this to show off or to flaunt our faith” but to invite others to share in the life that Jesus gives by making himself a gift, Pope Francis said.
In his speech, the Holy Father underlined the importance of compassion and he encouraged everyone “to make this spirituality of fraternity grow, and to promote, through your diplomatic action, the role of multilateral bodies.”
Christian hope “is not an obstinacy we want to convince ourselves of, but it is a gift that comes directly from God,” Pope Francis has said.
It is a belief in the future “because Christ died and rose again and gave us his spirit.”
Pope Francis highlighted the need for religious men and women to be well-rounded, both spiritually and as people who are members of a community.
The cardinal virtues were espoused and promoted by ancient philosophers well before the development of Christianity, the Holy Father said.
The Holy Father and the nine-member Council of Cardinals invited women, including an Anglican bishop, to make presentations at their meetings in December and in February as well.
The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s latest document on human dignity highlights Pope Francis’ decade-long insistence that every human being – independent of their circumstances, stage of development or state of sin – possesses infinite and inalienable dignity that must be respected and protected.