Pope Francis shared that he knows “healing”, specifically “in my soul and my body”, when he reached the eighth day of the minimum period of two months of rest and convalescence prescribed by his doctors. He shared this in a brief written message for the south Angelus on Sunday, March 30, published by the Vatican.
This reassuring news came after the Vatican confirmed on Friday March 28, that the 88 -year -old pope showed “improvements” in his breathing and his word following the triple therapy he undergoes – pharmacological, respiratory and physiotherapy – which continues to receive in Santa Marta, the Vatican guest house where he lives, after his dump from the hospital on Sunday, March 23.
It was the seventh consecutive Sunday that he did not give his own text to the Angelus at noon due to speaking difficulties linked to his respiratory problems. In the written message today, he invited people to “live this Lent as a period of healing, especially since it is the jubilee (year)”, revealing that “I too extract it in this way, in my soul and in my body,” he said. “This is why, I sincerely thank all those who, like the Savior, are healing instruments for their neighbor with their word and their knowledge, with kindness and prayer.”
Francis reminded people that “fragility and disease are experiences that we all have in common; All the more, however, we are brothers in salvation that Christ gave us. ” His words seemed to echo what he said five years ago, on March 27, 2020, when he was held alone in a Saint Peter’s place and implored God to save humanity from the Covid-19 epidemic. Then he prayed for the restoration of the world; Now, so many people around the world pray for its full recovery.
The Jesuit pope started his Angelus message, as he usually does, with a brief reflection on the Gospel of the day (LK 15: 1-3, 11-32), which tells the story of the prodigal son and the merciful father.
In this text, “Jesus notes that the Pharisees are scandalized and whisper behind his back, instead of being happy because the sinners come to him. So Jesus tells them about a Father who has two sons: one leaves the house, but then, having been reduced to poverty, he returns and who does not want to enter the Feast ”. “This is how Jesus reveals the heart of God: he is always merciful to all; He heals our wounds so that we can love ourselves as a brothers. “
From his convalescence, Pope Francis, always attentive to world events, called people, “trusting the mercy of God”, to “continue to pray for peace: in martyred Ukraine, in Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Myanmar” – all the countries where people suffer from armed conflicts in progress and war.
In addition to the civil war that the inhabitants of Myanmar have endured since 2021 when the military coup canceled the elections, Francis – who visited the country in 2017 – reported that people “suffer so last week and caused the death of more than 1,600 people and destruction of more than 1,600 people. It also affected Thailand. Francis sent a telegram expressing its proximity to people there, and Cardinal Charles Maung Bo, the president of the Conference of Bishops of Myanmar, called in the end of hostilities to allow humanitarian aid to reach people struck by the massive earthquake.
Pope Francis also expressed his “concern” for the situation in South Sudan, which he visited in February 2023, and made another “sincere attraction to all leaders to do their best to reduce the country’s tension”. He called them to “put aside (your) differences and, with courage and responsibility, sit around a table and engage in a constructive dialogue. It is only in this way that it will be possible to alleviate the suffering of the Sudanese beloved people and to build a future of peace and stability. ”
Francis is well aware that Sudan in the South is likely to be trained in the civil war in neighboring Sudan, from which he separated in 2011. War in Sudan “continues to claim innocent victims,” he said, exhorting “the parties concerned by the conflict to put the safeguard of the life of their brothers and civil sisters first.” He expressed hope “that new negotiations are starting as soon as possible, capable of obtaining a lasting solution to the crisis”, and he called on the international community to “increase his efforts to fight against appalling humanitarian disaster” in the country. He referred to the fact that, according to the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), around 12 million people have been moved since 2023 due to this civil war, of which 8.4 million were moved internally and around 30 million needing humanitarian assistance. Many have fled to South Sudan.
Pope Francis concluded his message on a more optimistic note. “Thanks to God, there are also positive events,” he said. He then praised the ratification of the agreement on the demarcation of the border between Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, describing it as “an excellent diplomatic achievement”. He added: “I encourage the two countries to continue on this path.”
Pope Francis concluded his message by praying with the intercession of the holy mother: “May Mary, mother of mercy, helps the human family to reconcile in peace.”