| Make the Gospel your code of conduct
Thousands of members of the armed forces and the police from all over
the world gathered in St Peter's Square on Sunday, 19 November [2000],
to celebrate their Jubilee with the Holy Father who presided at a solemn
Eucharistic concelebration for them. "Who better than you", he said,
"can testify to the violence and to the disruptive forces of evil
present in the world?", thanking them for their commitment and reminding
them that "countless people look to you and trust in you, in the hope of
being able to enjoy a life of serenity, order and peace". Here is a
translation of the Pope's homily, which was given in Italian.
1. "Then they will see the Son of man coming in clouds with great
power and glory" (Mk 13: 26).
On this last Sunday of Ordinary Time, the liturgy speaks to us of
Christ's second coming. The Lord will appear in clouds, clothed in
power and glory. He is the same Son of man, merciful and compassionate,
whom the disciples knew during his earthly journey. When the moment
comes for his manifestation in glory, he will come to give human history
its definitive fulfilment.
Through the symbolism of cosmological upheavals, the Evangelist Mark
recalls that God will pronounce his last judgement on human events
in the Son, putting an end to a universe corrupted by falsehood and torn
by violence and injustice.
You have come to offer Christ your resolutions as peacemakers
2. Who better than you, dear soldiers and members of the police,
young men and women, can testify to the violence and to the
disruptive forces of evil present in the world? You fight against them
every day: indeed, you are called to defend the weak, to protect the
honest, to foster the peaceful coexistence of peoples. The role of
the sentinel, who scans the horizon to avert danger and promote
justice and peace everywhere, befits each of you.
I greet you all with deep affection, dear brothers and sisters, who have
come to Rome from many parts of the world to celebrate your special
Jubilee. You are the representatives of the armies who have faced one
another down through history. Today you are meeting at the tomb of the
Apostle Peter to celebrate Christ "our peace, who has made us both one,
and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility" (Eph 2: 14). You
have come to offer to him, mysteriously and really present in the
Eucharist, your resolutions and your daily commitment as peacemakers.
To each of you I express my deepest appreciation of your dedication and
generous commitment. I first of all extend my greeting with fraternal
esteem to Archbishop José Manuel Estepa Llaurens, who has expressed your
common sentiments. My greeting is extended to the dear Archbishops and
Military Ordinaries, whom I congratulate for the dedication with which
they provide pastoral care for you. With them, I greet the military
chaplains, who generously share in the ideals and efforts of your
arduous daily activity. My respectful thoughts also turn to the officers
of the armed forces, to those in command of the police forces and of the
various security agencies, as well as to the civil authorities who have
wished to share in the joy and grace of this solemn Jubilee celebration.
3. Your daily experience brings you face to face with difficult and
sometimes dramatic situations, which jeopardize human security.
However the Gospel comforts us, presenting the victorious figure of
Christ, the judge of history. With his presence, he brightens the
darkness and even man's despair, and offers those who trust in him the
comforting certainty of his constant assistance.
In the Gospel just proclaimed we heard an important reference to the fig
tree, whose branches, when their new leaves sprout, announce that
springtime is near. With these words, Jesus encourages the Apostles not
to give up before the difficulties and uncertainties of the present.
Rather, he urges them to know how to wait and to prepare
themselves to welcome him when he comes. Today, dear brothers and
sisters, you too are invited by the liturgy to "read the signs of the
times", an expression coined by my venerable predecessor, Pope John
XXIII, who was recently beatified.
However complex and difficult situations may be, do not lose trust.
In the human heart, the seed of hope must never die. Indeed, always
be attentive to discovering and encouraging every positive sign of
personal and social renewal. Be prepared to further the courageous
building of justice and peace with every possible means.
Be men and women of peace, welcoming Christ into your hearts
4. Peace is a fundamental right of every man and woman, which
should be continuously promoted taking into account that "insofar as men
are sinners, the threat of war hangs over them and will so continue
until the coming of Christ" (Gaudium et spes, n. 78). At times
this duty, as recent experience has also shown, involves concrete
initiatives to disarm the aggressor. Here I wish to refer to the
so-called "humanitarian interference", which, after the failure of
efforts by politics and the instruments of non-violent defence, is a
last resort in order to stay the hand of the unjust aggressor.
Thank you, dear friends, for your courageous work of peacemaking in
countries devastated by senseless wars. Thank you for the help you
offer, heedless of risks, to people struck by natural disasters. How
numerous are the humanitarian missions in which you have been
involved in recent years! In carrying out your difficult duty, you
frequently find yourselves exposed to dangers and demanding sacrifices.
Ensure that all your interventions always cast light on your authentic
vocation as "custodians of the security and freedom of your
fellow-countrymen", who "are contributing to the maintenance of peace",
according to the felicitous expression of the Second Vatican Council (Gaudium
et spes, n. 79).
Be men and women of peace. And to be so to the full, welcome into
your hearts Christ, the author and guarantor of true peace. He will
enable you to exert that evangelical strength that overcomes the
alluring temptations of violence. He will help you to put force at the
service of the important values of life, of justice, of forgiveness and
of freedom.
5. Here, I would like to offer a tribute to your many friends who
have paid with their lives for fidelity to their mission. Forgetting
themselves and despising danger, they rendered the community a priceless
service. Today, during the Eucharistic celebration, we entrust them
to the Lord with gratitude and admiration.
But where did they find the strength necessary to do their duty to the
full, other than in total adherence to the professed ideals? Many
of them believed in Christ, and his words illumined their existence and
gave an exemplary value to their sacrifice. They made the Gospel their
code of conduct. May the example of your colleagues, who in faithfully
doing their duty reached the heights of heroism and, perhaps, of
holiness, be an example to you.
Like them, you also look to Christ who also calls you "to the fullness
of Christian life and to the perfection of charity". He calls you to be
holy. And to be able to achieve your vocation, according to the Apostle
Paul's well-known expression, "Take the whole armour of God.... Stand
therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the
breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the
equipment of the gospel of peace above all taking the shield of faith
... take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is
the word of God" (Eph 6: 13-17). Above all, "pray at all times" (Eph 6:
18).
May Mary, the Virgo Fidelis, support and help you in your
difficult activity. May your hearts never be troubled: rather, be
ready, watchful and firmly anchored to the promise of Jesus, who in
today's Gospel has assured us of his help and protection: "Heaven and
earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away" (Mk 13: 31).
In invoking Christ, may you continue to carry out your duty generously.
Countless people look to you and trust in you in the hope of being able
to enjoy a life of serenity, order and peace.
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