CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- Pope Francis declared on Palm Sunday that Christians must not be sad or discouraged but filled with joy because Jesus conquered evil and every sin \u201cwith the force of God\u2019s love.\u201d<\/p>\n\t\u201cJesus on the Cross feels the whole weight of the evil, and with the force of God\u2019s love he conquers it, he defeats it with his resurrection,\u201d he said March 24.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cDear friends,\u201d Pope Francis told the thousands of pilgrims filling St. Peter\u2019s Square and the street leading to it, \u201cwe can all conquer the evil that is in us and in the world: with Christ, with the force of good!\u201d<\/p>\n
\tThe liturgy began with the Pope touring through the crowd in the open-air popemobile and finishing at the obelisk that stands in the middle of St. Peter\u2019s Square.<\/p>\n
\tAccompanied by cardinals, bishops and laity holding palms, he listened as the readings were proclaimed. The group of clergy and faithful then made their way to the altar in front of the basilica and heard the reading of the Passion of Christ from Matthew\u2019s Gospel.<\/p>\n
\tPope Francis reflected on three elements in his Palm Sunday homily: the joy that comes from meeting and knowing Christ; the fact that Jesus entered Jerusalem to redeem the world with his loving sacrifice on the Cross; and that young people can teach everyone to embrace the Cross with joy and to live lives of self-sacrifice.<\/p>\n
\tThe first word that came to the Pope\u2019s mind as he reflected on the entrance of Jesus into Jerusalem was joy.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cDo not be men and women of sadness: a Christian can never be sad! Never give way to discouragement!<\/p>\n
\t\u201cOurs is not a joy that comes from having many possessions, but from having encountered a Person: Jesus, from knowing that with him we are never alone, even at difficult moments, even when our life\u2019s journey comes up against problems and obstacles that seem insurmountable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\tThe Pope then turned to his second point of reflection \u2013 the way Jesus entered Jerusalem, as a king who was received \u201cby humble people, simple folk.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tBut even more, he entered \u201cto receive a crown of thorns, a staff, a purple robe: his kingship becomes an object of derision.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cAnd this brings us to the second word: Cross. Jesus enters Jerusalem in order to die on the Cross.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cAnd it is here that his kingship shines forth in godly fashion: his royal throne is the wood of the Cross,\u201d he underscored.<\/p>\n
\tWhat Jesus did, Pope Francis said, was to take upon himself \u201cthe evil, the filth, the sin of the world, including our own sin,\u201d and cleanse it \u201cwith his blood, with the mercy and the love of God.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tHe then recalled how the world is filled with the effects of evil and sin:<\/p>\n
\t\u201cWars, violence, economic conflicts that hit the weakest, greed for money, power, corruption, divisions, crimes against human life and against creation! And our personal sins: our failures in love and respect towards God, towards our neighbor and towards the whole of creation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tIn the face of all this, he asked, \u201cDo we feel weak, inadequate, powerless?\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cBut,\u201d he responded, \u201cGod is not looking for powerful means: it is through the Cross that he has conquered evil! We must not believe the Evil One when he tells us: you can do nothing to counter violence, corruption, injustice, your sins!\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cWe must never grow accustomed to evil!\u201d he insisted.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cWith Christ,\u201d he declared, \u201cwe can transform ourselves and the world. We must bear the victory of Christ\u2019s Cross to everyone everywhere, we must bear this great love of God.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tPope Francis dedicated his final words to the youth, who were in St. Peter\u2019s Square today because Palm Sunday is traditionally the day on which World Youth Day is celebrated at the diocesan level.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cDear young people,\u201d he said, you have \u201can important part in the celebration of faith! You bring us the joy of faith and you tell us that we must live the faith with a young heart, always, even at the age of seventy or eighty.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cAnd you are not ashamed of his Cross! On the contrary, you embrace it, because you have understood that it is in giving ourselves that we have true joy and that God has conquered evil through love,\u201d he told the youth.<\/p>\n
\tPope Francis also looked ahead to this coming July, when he will participate in his first World Youth Day as Pope.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cDear friends,\u201d he said, \u201cI too am setting out on a journey with you, in the footsteps of Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cWe are already close to the next stage of this great pilgrimage of Christ\u2019s Cross. I look forward joyfully to next July in Rio de Janeiro!\u201d he told the young people in St. Peter\u2019s Square.<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI will see you in that great city in Brazil! Prepare well \u2013 prepare spiritually above all \u2013 in your communities, so that our gathering in Rio may be a sign of faith for the whole world.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tFollowing Palm Sunday Mass, Pope Francis spent around 25 minutes moving through the piazza greeting the faithful \u2013 an unusually long time for a segment that typically takes about 10 minutes.<\/p>\n
\n
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Vatican City, Mar 24, 2013 \/ 05:54 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- Pope Francis declared on Palm Sunday that Christians must not be sad or discouraged but filled with joy because Jesus conquered evil and every sin “with the force of God’s love.”…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2722","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","category-vatican"],"yoast_head":"\n
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