At World Youth Day Thursday, Pope Francis told the bishops of Central America to be close to the people, and to let their wounds and suffering be the drive behind the bishops\u2019 actions and priorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is important, brothers, that we not be afraid to draw near and touch the wounds of our people, which are our wounds too, and to do this in the same way that the Lord himself does,\u201d the pope said Jan. 24.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA pastor cannot stand aloof from the sufferings of his people; we can even say that the heart of a pastor is measured by his ability to be moved by the many lives that are hurting or threatened.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo do this as the Lord does,\u201d he added, \u201cmeans allowing this suffering to have an impact on our priorities and our preferences, on the use of our time and money, and even on our way of praying.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pope Francis addressed the bishops of Central America during his first full day in Panama City for World Youth Day 2019. The international gathering of young people will culminate in a prayer vigil and Mass with the pope Jan. 26-27.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During his speech in the Church of St. Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis presented St. Oscar Romero, who was canonized last October. St. Romero was the Archbishop of San Salvador when he was killed during the celebration of Mass in 1980.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He is an inspirational figure for the Church in Central America, and particularly for bishops, Francis said: \u201cHis legacy can become an active and life-giving witness for us, who are likewise called to the daily martyrdom of serving our people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Romero treated all people as if he was their father, friend, or brother, he added, noting that his example can \u201cserve as a yardstick, however daunting, to help us measure our own hearts as bishops.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pope explained that priests are \u201con the front lines,\u201d and need the closeness, support, and encouragement of their bishops. Acknowledging that administrative tasks are a necessary part of a bishop\u2019s responsibilities, he urged them to spend more time on listening, \u201cthe one thing we cannot delegate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It is normal for priests and their bishop to have the occasional disagreement, but \u201cit is important that the parish priest encounter [in his bishop] a father, a shepherd in whom he can see a reflection of himself, not an administrator concerned about \u2018reviewing the troops,\u2019\u201d he emphasized, according to a Catholic News Agency report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Noting Romero\u2019s deep love for the Church, Francis reminded bishops that they are not the inventors of the Church and that \u201cshe was not born with us and she will carry on without us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To think with the Church, for Romero, meant \u201ccontemplating her as the People of God,\u201d he said. \u201cIn this way, Romero showed us that the pastor, in order to seek and discover the Lord, must learn to listen to the heartbeat of his people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The bishop \u201cmust smell the \u2018odor\u2019 of the sheep, the men and women of today, until he is steeped in their joys and hopes, their sorrows and their anxieties, and in so doing ponder the word of God,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
World Youth Day, he noted, is a unique opportunity for encountering and drawing closer to the young members of their flocks, who are \u201cso full of hope and desires, but also many hurts and scars.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pope also encouraged them to promote programs and educational centers for young people, in order to protect them from the influence of the \u201cculture of death,\u201d which only appears to offer solutions to today\u2019s problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Young people, he said, have been \u201corphaned\u201d by a culture and society which do not prioritize people and the common good, resulting in young people without families or homes, \u201cwithout a community, without a sense of belonging.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Francis also addressed the issue of migration, referencing a recent pastoral letter of the bishops of Central America which called attention to the \u201cmassive and organized\u201d migration affecting the region and the danger it poses to the dignity of the human person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMany migrants have young faces; they are seeking a better life for their families,\u201d he said, emphasizing that just to realize this fact is not enough, and the Church needs to proclaim clearly the \u201cgood news.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Church, by virtue of her universality, can provide the fraternal hospitality and acceptance that can enable the communities of origin and of destination to dialogue and to help overcome fears and suspicions, and thus to consolidate the very bonds that migrations \u2013 in the collective imagination \u2013 threaten to break,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Quoting the First Epistle of John, he added: \u201cIf anyone has the world\u2019s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God\u2019s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or speech but in deed and in truth.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
At World Youth Day Thursday, Pope Francis told the bishops of Central America to be close to the people, and to let their wounds and suffering be the drive behind the bishops\u2019 actions and priorities. \u201cIt is important, brothers, that we not be afraid to draw near and touch the wounds of our people, which […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":14701,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[153],"tags":[753,193,751,1108],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n