{"id":12838,"date":"2016-02-10T13:05:00","date_gmt":"2016-02-10T13:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says-77298\/"},"modified":"2016-02-10T13:05:00","modified_gmt":"2016-02-10T13:05:00","slug":"if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/","title":{"rendered":"If mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

<\/p>\n

Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn\u2019t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one\u2019s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture.<\/p>\n

Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time \u201cfor conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,\u201d he said, adding that \u201cthis is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter\u2019s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church\u2019s Lenten season.<\/p>\n

In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an \u201cancient institution.\u201d<\/p>\n

He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a \u201ckind of general amnesty\u201d in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted.<\/p>\n

In that time, \u201crequirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,\u201d the Pope observed.<\/p>\n

Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.\u201d<\/p>\n

The result \u201cwas a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,\u201d Francis explained.<\/p>\n

In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world\u2019s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?\u201d he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do.<\/p>\n

Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows.<\/p>\n

He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope\u2019s charity funds.<\/p>\n

When the letters come in, they frequently contain \u201ca little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,\u201d the Pope said, explaining that \u201cit\u2019s beautiful\u201d to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners.<\/p>\n

Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsury is a grave sin before God,\u201d he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation \u201cend up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.\u201d<\/p>\n

These people \u201cdon't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,\u201d he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead.<\/p>\n

Francis pointed to God\u2019s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord \u201cwill give you double\u2026maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.\u201d<\/p>\n

He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, \u201cis called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let's begin to do it ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn’t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one’s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture.<\/p>\n

Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.”<\/p>\n

“But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn’t arrive to the pockets, it’s not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it’s not the Pope who invented this.”<\/p>\n

Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season.<\/p>\n

In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.”<\/p>\n

He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted.<\/p>\n

In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed.<\/p>\n

Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said.<\/p>\n

“With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.”<\/p>\n

The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained.<\/p>\n

In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee.<\/p>\n

“Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do.<\/p>\n

Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows.<\/p>\n

He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds.<\/p>\n

When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person’s salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners.<\/p>\n

Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets.<\/p>\n

“Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can’t do it and they don’t have hope.”<\/p>\n

These people “don’t have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead.<\/p>\n

Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double…maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.”<\/p>\n

He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, “is called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let’s begin to do it ourselves.”<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-vatican"],"yoast_head":"\nIf mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn’t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one’s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture. Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.” “But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.” Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season. In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.” He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted. In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed. Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said. “With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.” The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained. In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee. “Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do. Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows. He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds. When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners. Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets. “Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.” These people “don't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead. Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double...maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.” He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, “is called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let's begin to do it ourselves.”\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"If mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn’t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one’s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture. Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.” “But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.” Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season. In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.” He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted. In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed. Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said. “With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.” The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained. In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee. “Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do. Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows. He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds. When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners. Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets. “Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.” These people “don't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead. Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double...maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.” He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, “is called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let's begin to do it ourselves.”\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Catholic News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-02-10T13:05:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/images\/size340\/Pope_Francis_greets_pilgrims_during_his_general_audience_Feb_10_2016_Credit_Daniel_Ibez_CNA.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"CNA Daily News\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"CNA Daily News\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/\",\"name\":\"If mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-02-10T13:05:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-02-10T13:05:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1\"},\"description\":\"Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn’t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one’s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture. Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.” “But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.” Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season. In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.” He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted. In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed. Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said. “With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.” The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained. In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee. “Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do. Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows. He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds. When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners. Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets. “Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.” These people “don't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead. Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double...maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.” He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. 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Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.” “But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.” Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season. In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.” He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted. In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed. Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said. “With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.” The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained. In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee. “Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do. Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows. He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds. When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners. Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets. “Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.” These people “don't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead. Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double...maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.” He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, “is called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let's begin to do it ourselves.”","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"If mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says","og_description":"Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn’t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one’s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture. Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.” “But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.” Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season. In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.” He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted. In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed. Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said. “With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.” The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained. In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee. “Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do. Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows. He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds. When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners. Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets. “Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.” These people “don't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead. Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double...maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.” He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, “is called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let's begin to do it ourselves.”","og_url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/","og_site_name":"Catholic News","article_published_time":"2016-02-10T13:05:00+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/images\/size340\/Pope_Francis_greets_pilgrims_during_his_general_audience_Feb_10_2016_Credit_Daniel_Ibez_CNA.jpg"}],"author":"CNA Daily News","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"CNA Daily News","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/","name":"If mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website"},"datePublished":"2016-02-10T13:05:00+00:00","dateModified":"2016-02-10T13:05:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1"},"description":"Vatican City, Feb 10, 2016 \/ 06:05 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- For Pope Francis, mercy isn’t just spiritual, but is something that ought to be expressed in concrete acts of service and in sharing one’s goods with the poor, which was a key tradition during jubilee years throughout scripture. Referring to the current Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope explained that the Jubilee is time “for conversion, so that our heart can become bigger, more generous, more like a child of God, with more love.” “But I tell you that if the Jubilee doesn't arrive to the pockets, it's not a true Jubilee,” he said, adding that “this is in the Bible, it's not the Pope who invented this.” Francis spoke to pilgrims present in St. Peter’s Square for his general audience on Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of the Church’s Lenten season. In his continued catechesis on mercy as seen in scripture, the Pope noted how the jubilee year is an “ancient institution.” He took his cue from the biblical passage in the book of Leviticus in which the Jubilee was instituted among the Jews. According to the rules of the jubilee, the year served as a “kind of general amnesty” in which a person who had been forced to sell their goods or property could regain possession of them, he noted. In that time, “requirements such as the Jubilee were used to combat poverty and inequality, guaranteeing a life of dignity for all and an equal distribution of the land on which to live and from which to draw sustenance,” the Pope observed. Because the land originally belonged to God, who then entrusted it to man, no one can claim exclusive possession of it or use ownership to create situations of inequality, he said. “With the Jubilee whoever had become poor returned to have what was necessary in order to live, and whoever had become rich restored to the poor what they had taken from them.” The result “was a society based on equality and solidarity where freedom, land and money would become again a good for everyone,” Francis explained. In off-the-cuff- remarks, he noted that roughly 80 percent of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of around 20 percent of the people, and encouraged faithful to be generous with what they have both during Lent, and the jubilee. “Each person can think in their hearts: if I have too many things, why not leave 10 percent, 50 percent, to those who have nothing?” he asked, assuring those present that if they take the matter to prayer, the Holy Spirit would inspire them about what is reasonable for them to do. Francis then turned to the biblical law that required the payment of tithes, which would be used to assist the poor, people without land, orphans and widows. He said that tithes such as this arrive daily to the Office of the Papal Almoner, which oversees the Pope’s charity funds. When the letters come in, they frequently contain “a little bit of money: something small or not so small, which is part of a person's salary to help others,” the Pope said, explaining that “it’s beautiful” to help others, whether it be people, charitable institutions, hospitals, retirement homes or foreigners. Pope Francis then issued a sharp condemnation of the practice of usury, and lamented how many families have been forced to live on the streets due to the corruption of those who want to line their own pockets. “Usury is a grave sin before God,” he said, and noted that many times, people in desperation “end up committing suicide because they can't do it and they don't have hope.” These people “don't have an outstretched hand to help them, only the hand that makes them pay for personal interests,” he said, and prayed that the Lord would use the Jubilee of Mercy as a time to remove the desire of usury from all hearts, making them bigger and more generous instead. Francis pointed to God’s promise to bring blessings to those who lend a hand and who give generously, adding that when we are generous, the Lord “will give you double...maybe not in money, but the Lord always gives double.” He closed his address by encouraging those present to have the courage to share what they have with others. This, he said, “is called mercy, and if we want the mercy of God, let's begin to do it ourselves.”","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/02\/if-mercy-doesnt-reach-your-pockets-its-not-real-pope-says\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"If mercy doesn\u2019t reach your pockets, it\u2019s not real, Pope says"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/","name":"Catholic News","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/35d4bd7addc580050842c844a11575f1","name":"CNA Daily News","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8f1180c7dca7995d4a997aac72a3a88a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8f1180c7dca7995d4a997aac72a3a88a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"CNA Daily News"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/author\/cna-daily-news\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1031"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12838\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}