Vicar of Christ?

Ahwatukee · Oct 19, 2015

Sorry! I put the first one in the wrong forum. So here it is again in the right forum.

Above is an excerpt from a post on Rapture Forum called "Holy Father" or "Father of Lies". I was especially amazed regarding what the pope said that I have put in bold above. These are the words of one who doesn't have a clue of what Christ's mission was and he's the head of what is supposed to be the Church of Christ? He called Christ's death "the failure at the cross," as though God's plan of salvation was thwarted because he was crucified! yet, it was Christ's very mission to go to the cross, as the prophesies foretell and Christ himself told of how he would die before it happened:

"And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." (John 12:32)

"Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up" (John 3:14)

The Pope has it backwards in that, if Christ hadn't gone to the cross then his mission would have been a failure and we would all still be in our sins. I hope that all of you Catholics take note of this, for this is the one whom you are following and the pagan institution that you are believing in. My prayer for you is that you would believe in the true Christ and adhere to the word of God and abandon this counterfeit, pagan system called Roman Catholicism.

Gr8grace · Oct 19, 2015

I agree with your theology and the posts that I have read from you. But I read that quote as quite true?

Humanly speaking and from a fleshly viewpoint, the Cross was a failure. Even the disciples, who were still carnally minded for the most part, saw it as a defeat until Christ pointed out the spiritual victory to them.....He is risen.

The pope and the catholic church isn't that blatantly blasphemous and stoopid.................yet!

Magenta · Oct 19, 2015

PopeFrancis said:

ahwatukee said:

Just about unbelievable! Truly incredible that this man is the head of the Roman church, the church as the world recognizes it. Really we should not be surprised that he and the world are so deceived. And yet to be confronted with such an effrontery is both dismaying and shocking.

Now is my soul troubled; and what shall I say? Father, save
me from this hour: but for this cause came I unto this hour.

Kaycie · Oct 19, 2015

The pope is not one to follow anyways, he teaches false doctrine and acts like he's God on earth- which he is not.

Ahwatukee · Oct 19, 2015

Gr8grace said:

Well regardless, yes, that was a quote from the pope. Here is also a quote from that same post of what the RCC's real agenda is:

"The false prophet of Rome also showed his true colors when he did not refer to one Scripture from God's Word during his hour long speech before Congress. Instead he encouraged people to follow the "Golden Rule." The next day, In his message to bishops of the Catholic Church, the pope said, "Our mission as bishops is first and foremost to solidify unity." In other words, the bishops primary goal is not to proclaim the Gospel, but to unite all people under the power and influence of the papacy."

Blain · Oct 19, 2015

Gr8grace said:

It's not true in the least, from a fleshly view point yes it may have appeared as a failure but we should all know by now that it doesn't matter what the flesh see because the flesh is completely blind compared to God's eyes. Even if it was seen as a failure it doesn't affect the fact that it was victory there is a reason God says our thoughts are not his thoughts and his ways are not our ways

Jackson123 · Oct 19, 2015

Ahwatukee said:

And to help this goal catholic make a teaching in Lumen gentium II 16 that Muslim and abraham and catholic adore the same God.

It mean Muslim God, and Abraham God and catholic God is allah.

WarriorHadassah · Oct 19, 2015

Romans along with Caiaphas plotted Jesus death. People truly think the Vicar(Man-god) is going to honor Jesus. Romans appointed Caiaphas as the High Priest, so Caiaphas was a puppet from the beginning. The Vicar came to America to place the political agenda into motion that means America will fall in line with the Vicar(Man-god) who has global power through out the nations. People will be surprise how many religious leaders in America report to the Vicar not just Catholics. Many religious leaders have signed off on the Global Agenda of One World Religion. I feel sorry for sheep who has follow the authority of the false teachers, pastors, wolves in sheep clothing who are puppets for the Vicar(Man-god). Global Slavery for all!

Ahwatukee · Oct 19, 2015

WarriorHadassah said:

Very true! And if people are devout to the pope now, what do you think is going to happen when he begins to perform those miracles, signs and wonders, even causing fire to come down out of heaven in full view of the inhabitants of the earth?

Yet · Oct 19, 2015

Vicar: instead of. Take the place of. Displace. Single salaried pastors do the same thing as mediators between the folks and Christ. We got the hierarchy idea from Rome. Martin Luther did not drop all things catholic/pagan as some think.

Ahwatukee · Oct 19, 2015

Yet said:

Yeah, well my point was that this leader of the RCC referred to Christ's death as ending in failure, the failure of the cross. As though Christ's death was untimely or that his mission was thwarted by being crucified. When in actuality, his dying on the cross was his mission, that being to pay the penalty for ours sins with his righteous blood and it was done right on time, He being the Passover Lamb.

Yet · Oct 19, 2015

I tend to wander. Sorry my friend.

fordman · Oct 19, 2015

I would be much interested is seeing the source if the orginal quote. With that being said, take a gander at what Pope Francis really said.From Catholic Answers:1) What did Pope Francis actually say? In his Sept. 24 vespers homily at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, addressing a group of priests and religious, Pope Francis said: We can get caught up measuring the value of our apostolic works by the standards of efficiency, good management, and outward success which govern the business world. Not that these things are unimportant! We have been entrusted with a great responsibility, and God’s people rightly expect accountability from us. But the true worth of our apostolate is measured by the value it has in God’s eyes. To see and evaluate things from God’s perspective calls for constant conversion in the first days and years of our vocation and, need I say, it calls for great humility. The cross shows us a different way of measuring success. Ours is to plant the seeds: God sees to the fruits of our labors. And if at times our efforts and works seem to fail and produce no fruit, we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus . . . and his life, humanly speaking, ended in failure, in the failure of the cross. 2) People are really upset about that? Yes. 3) Really? Yes. Next question. 4) Why would they be upset about it? I’m not going to go into the psychology of the outrage mongers, beyond noting that they appear to have an anti-Francis animus that distorts their ability to read straightforward texts. However, they are objecting to the statement that Jesus’ “life . . . ended in failure, in the failure of the cross.” 5) But wait! Didn’t you just omit an important qualifier in what the pope said? Yes. The ellipsis (i.e., the “ . . . ”) in the above statement replaces the all-important qualifier “humanly speaking.” It’s only by omitting or ignoring or misunderstanding this qualifier that one could take offense at the pope’s remark. This qualifier tells the listener (or reader) that the statement is only an apparent, not an actual, description of affairs. Pope Francis means that from a superficial, human point of view, Jesus’ death might look like he was a failure, but, from God’s perspective, this was not so. 6) How would that human assessment work? In Jesus’ day, people expected the Messiah to lead a triumphant rebellion against the Romans, restore political independence to Israel, and reign in Jerusalem as a Davidic king. Jesus didn’t do any of those things. Instead, the Romans killed him, and they did so in a particularly painful and humiliating way. His followers were scattered and took to meeting in secret after his crucifixion. From the perspective of most people of the day, based on their expectations of what the Messiah would do, he looked like a failed political revolutionary. 7) How does that contrast with the true perspective on Jesus? From God’s perspective, Jesus did exactly what he was supposed to. He was never meant to lead a political rebellion against the Romans. He expressly told the Roman governor, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). Instead, he fulfilled God’s plan precisely by dying on the cross. And, while his followers may have been in disarray and fear for a time, they eventually led a massive movement that converted the Roman Empire to the Christian Faith. Even in the first generation of that process, the early Christians could be described as having “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). While, from a human perspective, Jesus and his movement looked like failures at the moment he was killed, from God’s perspective, Jesus was a success, and in time this would be revealed by the fruit his movement bore. 8) How do we know this is what Pope Francis has in mind? Well, the phrase “humanly speaking” tells the reader that the pope is setting up precisely this kind of contrast between the human and the divine perspective. So does the surrounding text. Look at the beginning of the quotation above: The pope is telling priests and religious that they should not judge the success of their efforts by purely worldly standards. That kind of evaluation has a role, but it is not the definitive standard. Instead, God’s perspective is. Thus he stressed: But the true worth of our apostolate is measured by the value it has in God’s eyes. . . . The cross shows us a different way of measuring success. Ours is to plant the seeds: God sees to the fruits of our labors. The pope’s point is that, judged by worldly standards, our efforts might seem to end in failure, when in reality—from God’s perspective—they are actually succeeding! Thus he reminds us that if at times our efforts and works seem to fail and produce no fruit, we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus It is at this point that he introduces the merely apparent failure of Jesus’ efforts in human terms and how the apparent “failure of the Cross” was actually a brilliant success that bore fruit according to God’s timetable rather than man’s. 9) Isn’t this contrast between the human and the divine perspective on Jesus’ ministry reflected in the New Testament? Yes. Multiple times. One example is 1 Corinthians 1, where St. Paul writes: For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor. 1:18, 22-25). The fact that Jesus’ death on the cross was scandalous and a mark of failure to people in Paul’s own day (“folly . . . a stumbling block to Jews and folly to the Greeks”) is being contrasted with the true perspective, according to which it is “the power of God and the wisdom of God.” It is precisely this contrast in perspective that Pope Francis is referring to. 10) Couldn’t Francis have been clearer? One can always say that someone could have been clearer (even when this isn’t true). But we, as listeners and readers, have an obligation to devote reasonable efforts to understanding what is being said in the things we hear and read. Pope Francis is not obliged to speak at all times in public as if he were addressing small children. When he’s addressing adults, he can reasonably expect them to know what is meant by phrases like “humanly speaking” and to be able to recognize the use of ironic references like “the failure of the cross.” St. Paul expects the same thing of his readers when he uses phrases like “the foolishness of God.” (Just imagine how the outrage mongers would get the vapors if Pope Francis had uttered that phrase!) Popes—and this certainly includes Pope Francis—are not always clear, but this is not one of those times. What Pope Francis said is perfectly clear for anyone who reads it attentively and with good will. In the foreword to his Jesus of Nazareth series, Pope Benedict XVI made a simple request: I would only ask my readers for that initial goodwill without which there can be no understanding. That is precisely what the outrage mongers are not showing to Pope Francis in this case. Jimmy Akin, Catholic Answers .

zzz98 · Oct 19, 2015

fordman said:

I would be much interested is seeing the source if the orginal quote. With that being said, take a gander at what Pope Francis really said.From Catholic Answers:1) What did Pope Francis actually say? In his Sept. 24 vespers homily at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, addressing a group of priests and religious, Pope Francis said: We can get caught up measuring the value of our apostolic works by the standards of efficiency, good management, and outward success which govern the business world. Not that these things are unimportant! We have been entrusted with a great responsibility, and God’s people rightly expect accountability from us. But the true worth of our apostolate is measured by the value it has in God’s eyes. To see and evaluate things from God’s perspective calls for constant conversion in the first days and years of our vocation and, need I say, it calls for great humility. The cross shows us a different way of measuring success. Ours is to plant the seeds: God sees to the fruits of our labors. And if at times our efforts and works seem to fail and produce no fruit, we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus . . . and his life, humanly speaking, ended in failure, in the failure of the cross. 2) People are really upset about that? Yes. 3) Really? Yes. Next question. 4) Why would they be upset about it? I’m not going to go into the psychology of the outrage mongers, beyond noting that they appear to have an anti-Francis animus that distorts their ability to read straightforward texts. However, they are objecting to the statement that Jesus’ “life . . . ended in failure, in the failure of the cross.” 5) But wait! Didn’t you just omit an important qualifier in what the pope said? Yes. The ellipsis (i.e., the “ . . . ”) in the above statement replaces the all-important qualifier “humanly speaking.” It’s only by omitting or ignoring or misunderstanding this qualifier that one could take offense at the pope’s remark. This qualifier tells the listener (or reader) that the statement is only an apparent, not an actual, description of affairs. Pope Francis means that from a superficial, human point of view, Jesus’ death might look like he was a failure, but, from God’s perspective, this was not so. 6) How would that human assessment work? In Jesus’ day, people expected the Messiah to lead a triumphant rebellion against the Romans, restore political independence to Israel, and reign in Jerusalem as a Davidic king. Jesus didn’t do any of those things. Instead, the Romans killed him, and they did so in a particularly painful and humiliating way. His followers were scattered and took to meeting in secret after his crucifixion. From the perspective of most people of the day, based on their expectations of what the Messiah would do, he looked like a failed political revolutionary. 7) How does that contrast with the true perspective on Jesus? From God’s perspective, Jesus did exactly what he was supposed to. He was never meant to lead a political rebellion against the Romans. He expressly told the Roman governor, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). Instead, he fulfilled God’s plan precisely by dying on the cross. And, while his followers may have been in disarray and fear for a time, they eventually led a massive movement that converted the Roman Empire to the Christian Faith. Even in the first generation of that process, the early Christians could be described as having “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). While, from a human perspective, Jesus and his movement looked like failures at the moment he was killed, from God’s perspective, Jesus was a success, and in time this would be revealed by the fruit his movement bore. 8) How do we know this is what Pope Francis has in mind? Well, the phrase “humanly speaking” tells the reader that the pope is setting up precisely this kind of contrast between the human and the divine perspective. So does the surrounding text. Look at the beginning of the quotation above: The pope is telling priests and religious that they should not judge the success of their efforts by purely worldly standards. That kind of evaluation has a role, but it is not the definitive standard. Instead, God’s perspective is. Thus he stressed: But the true worth of our apostolate is measured by the value it has in God’s eyes. . . . The cross shows us a different way of measuring success. Ours is to plant the seeds: God sees to the fruits of our labors. The pope’s point is that, judged by worldly standards, our efforts might seem to end in failure, when in reality—from God’s perspective—they are actually succeeding! Thus he reminds us that if at times our efforts and works seem to fail and produce no fruit, we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus It is at this point that he introduces the merely apparent failure of Jesus’ efforts in human terms and how the apparent “failure of the Cross” was actually a brilliant success that bore fruit according to God’s timetable rather than man’s. 9) Isn’t this contrast between the human and the divine perspective on Jesus’ ministry reflected in the New Testament? Yes. Multiple times. One example is 1 Corinthians 1, where St. Paul writes: For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men (1 Cor. 1:18, 22-25). The fact that Jesus’ death on the cross was scandalous and a mark of failure to people in Paul’s own day (“folly . . . a stumbling block to Jews and folly to the Greeks”) is being contrasted with the true perspective, according to which it is “the power of God and the wisdom of God.” It is precisely this contrast in perspective that Pope Francis is referring to. 10) Couldn’t Francis have been clearer? One can always say that someone could have been clearer (even when this isn’t true). But we, as listeners and readers, have an obligation to devote reasonable efforts to understanding what is being said in the things we hear and read. Pope Francis is not obliged to speak at all times in public as if he were addressing small children. When he’s addressing adults, he can reasonably expect them to know what is meant by phrases like “humanly speaking” and to be able to recognize the use of ironic references like “the failure of the cross.” St. Paul expects the same thing of his readers when he uses phrases like “the foolishness of God.” (Just imagine how the outrage mongers would get the vapors if Pope Francis had uttered that phrase!) Popes—and this certainly includes Pope Francis—are not always clear, but this is not one of those times. What Pope Francis said is perfectly clear for anyone who reads it attentively and with good will. In the foreword to his Jesus of Nazareth series, Pope Benedict XVI made a simple request: I would only ask my readers for that initial goodwill without which there can be no understanding. That is precisely what the outrage mongers are not showing to Pope Francis in this case. Jimmy Akin, Catholic Answers .

Thank you for this!

Ahwatukee · Oct 19, 2015

Yet said:

No problemo my friend.

crossnote · Oct 20, 2015

Ahwatukee said:

Maybe it was his interpreter's fault, leaving out the meaning, 'from a human standpoint' the cross was a failure. (Just trying to put the best construction on it).

Ahwatukee · Oct 20, 2015

crossnote said:

Here's the entire post. I don't think that it was an interpretation error.

[TABLE]
[TR]
[TD="colspan: 3"]"Holy Father" or "Father of Lies"
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="colspan: 3"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="align: left"]
By Mike Gendron
As we watched the non-stop coverage of the pope's visit to America last month, many of the scenes appeared to be apocalyptic. We saw multitudes of people flocking to get a glimpse of a mortal man who was unknown three years ago. The national excitement for this false prophet was overwhelming as gullible people hung on his every word. Warnings were ignored from the true head of the church who said, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves" (Mat. 7:15). The Lord Jesus said, "I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him" (John 5:43). Clearly, the pope not come in the Father's name, but he arrogantly wears the title reserved for the one and only "Holy Father" (John 17:11). Tragically, most Catholics do not know the Word of God and their ignorance makes them easy prey for the worst kind of deception.

Pope Francis did not mention Jesus Christ a single time in his entire address to Congress, yet he claims to be the Vicar of Christ and the Head of Christ's Church. Knowing that the Lord Jesus is the very foundation of the Christian faith, the pope's omission speaks volumes about his worldly agenda. In a message the next day at St. Patrick's Cathedral, pope did mention Jesus but in a deceptively misleading way. He said, "we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus... and his life, humanly speaking, ended in failure, the failure of the cross."

This pope is clueless when it comes to understanding God's will. The life of Christ was anything but a failure at the cross. His death, which satisfied divine justice for the sins of His people, was according to the predetermined plan of God (Acts 2:23). When the sinless Savior accomplished everything necessary to save His people, He cried out in victory, "it is finished!" (John 19:30). The good shepherd laid down his life for the sheep (John 10:11). No one took the Lord's life; He laid it down on His own accord (John10:18). How dare the pope say the life of Jesus ended in failure! The pope, and all other false prophets, are described by Jesus as hirelings who come to steal and kill and destroy the sheep (John 10:10).

It was heartbreaking to see the total lack of discernment as multitudes praised the most influential false prophet in the world. The false prophet of Rome also showed his true colors when he did not refer to one Scripture from God's Word during his hour long speech before Congress. Instead he encouraged people to follow the "Golden Rule." The next day, iIn his message to bishops of the Catholic Church, the pope said, "Our mission as bishops is first and foremost to solidify unity." In other words, the bishops primary goal is not to proclaim the Gospel, but to unite all people under the power and influence of the papacy. True Christians must contend against Rome's ecumenical agenda and silence the ignorance of foolish people (1 Pet. 2:15). It is my prayer that Roman Catholics will start abiding in God's Word. Only then will they come to know the truth that will set them free from religious deception (John 8:31-32). [/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

zzz98 · Oct 20, 2015

Ahwatukee said:

Here's the entire post. I don't think that it was an interpretation error.

[TABLE]
[TR]
[TD="colspan: 3"]"Holy Father" or "Father of Lies"
[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="colspan: 3"][/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD="align: left"]
By Mike Gendron
As we watched the non-stop coverage of the pope's visit to America last month, many of the scenes appeared to be apocalyptic. We saw multitudes of people flocking to get a glimpse of a mortal man who was unknown three years ago. The national excitement for this false prophet was overwhelming as gullible people hung on his every word. Warnings were ignored from the true head of the church who said, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves" (Mat. 7:15). The Lord Jesus said, "I have come in my Father's name, and you do not receive me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive him" (John 5:43). Clearly, the pope not come in the Father's name, but he arrogantly wears the title reserved for the one and only "Holy Father" (John 17:11). Tragically, most Catholics do not know the Word of God and their ignorance makes them easy prey for the worst kind of deception.

Pope Francis did not mention Jesus Christ a single time in his entire address to Congress, yet he claims to be the Vicar of Christ and the Head of Christ's Church. Knowing that the Lord Jesus is the very foundation of the Christian faith, the pope's omission speaks volumes about his worldly agenda. In a message the next day at St. Patrick's Cathedral, pope did mention Jesus but in a deceptively misleading way. He said, "we need to remember that we are followers of Jesus... and his life, humanly speaking, ended in failure, the failure of the cross."

This pope is clueless when it comes to understanding God's will. The life of Christ was anything but a failure at the cross. His death, which satisfied divine justice for the sins of His people, was according to the predetermined plan of God (Acts 2:23). When the sinless Savior accomplished everything necessary to save His people, He cried out in victory, "it is finished!" (John 19:30). The good shepherd laid down his life for the sheep (John 10:11). No one took the Lord's life; He laid it down on His own accord (John10:18). How dare the pope say the life of Jesus ended in failure! The pope, and all other false prophets, are described by Jesus as hirelings who come to steal and kill and destroy the sheep (John 10:10).

It was heartbreaking to see the total lack of discernment as multitudes praised the most influential false prophet in the world. The false prophet of Rome also showed his true colors when he did not refer to one Scripture from God's Word during his hour long speech before Congress. Instead he encouraged people to follow the "Golden Rule." The next day, iIn his message to bishops of the Catholic Church, the pope said, "Our mission as bishops is first and foremost to solidify unity." In other words, the bishops primary goal is not to proclaim the Gospel, but to unite all people under the power and influence of the papacy. True Christians must contend against Rome's ecumenical agenda and silence the ignorance of foolish people (1 Pet. 2:15). It is my prayer that Roman Catholics will start abiding in God's Word. Only then will they come to know the truth that will set them free from religious deception (John 8:31-32). [/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

Nice hatchet job instead of the. truth

fordman · Oct 20, 2015

zzz98 said:

Yes..... with a dull hatchet no less.. Curious of which anti-Catholic web-site it was retrived from and how easily people fall for it. {rolling eyes}

p.s. sorry about not breaking up my post #13 into readable paragraphs.

Pax Christi

Magenta · Oct 20, 2015

fordman said:

Interesting that neither give evidence to back your opinions.

I did a word search and found absolutely no mention of Jesus Christ, just as claimed. Try this on for size:

Full text of the pope's address to Congress on Sept. 24, 2015, as prepared for delivery.
Mr. Vice-President,
Mr. Speaker,
Honorable Members of Congress, Dear Friends,

I am most grateful for your invitation to address this Joint Session of Congress in “the land of the free and the home of the brave”. I would like to think that the reason for this is that I too am a son of this great continent, from which we have all received so much and toward which we share a common responsibility.

Each son or daughter of a given country has a mission, a personal and social responsibility. Your own responsibility as members of Congress is to enable this country, by your legislative activity, to grow as a nation. You are the face of its people, their representatives. You are called to defend and preserve the dignity of your fellow citizens in the tireless and demanding pursuit of the common good, for this is the chief aim of all politics. A political society endures when it seeks, as a vocation, to satisfy common needs by stimulating the growth of all its members, especially those in situations of greater vulnerability or risk. Legislative activity is always based on care for the people. To this you have been invited, called and convened by those who elected you.

Yours is a work which makes me reflect in two ways on the figure of Moses. On the one hand, the patriarch and lawgiver of the people of Israel symbolizes the need of peoples to keep alive their sense of unity by means of just legislation. On the other, the figure of Moses leads us directly to God and thus to the transcendent dignity of the human being. Moses provides us with a good synthesis of your work: you are asked to protect, by means of the law, the image and likeness fashioned by God on every human face.

Today I would like not only to address you, but through you the entire people of the United States. Here, together with their representatives, I would like to take this opportunity to dialogue with the many thousands of men and women who strive each day to do an honest day’s work, to bring home their daily bread, to save money and –one step at a time – to build a better life for their families. These are men and women who are not concerned simply with paying their taxes, but in their own quiet way sustain the life of society. They generate solidarity by their actions, and they create organizations which offer a helping hand to those most in need.

I would also like to enter into dialogue with the many elderly persons who are a storehouse of wisdom forged by experience, and who seek in many ways, especially through volunteer work, to share their stories and their insights. I know that many of them are retired, but still active; they keep working to build up this land. I also want to dialogue with all those young people who are working to realize their great and noble aspirations, who are not led astray by facile proposals, and who face difficult situations, often as a result of immaturity on the part of many adults. I wish to dialogue with all of you, and I would like to do so through the historical memory of your people.

My visit takes place at a time when men and women of good will are marking the anniversaries of several great Americans. The complexities of history and the reality of human weakness notwithstanding, these men and women, for all their many differences and limitations, were able by hard work and self- sacrifice – some at the cost of their lives – to build a better future. They shaped fundamental values which will endure forever in the spirit of the American people. A people with this spirit can live through many crises, tensions and conflicts, while always finding the resources to move forward, and to do so with dignity. These men and women offer us a way of seeing and interpreting reality. In honoring their memory, we are inspired, even amid conflicts, and in the here and now of each day, to draw upon our deepest cultural reserves.
I would like to mention four of these Americans: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King,Dorothy Day and Thomas Merton.

This year marks the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the assassination ofPresident Abraham Lincoln, the guardian of liberty, who labored tirelessly that “this nation, under God, [might] have a new birth of freedom”. Building a future of freedom requires love of the common good and cooperation in a spirit of subsidiarity and solidarity.

All of us are quite aware of, and deeply worried by, the disturbing social and political situation of the world today. Our world is increasingly a place of violent conflict, hatred and brutal atrocities, committed even in the name of God and of religion. We know that no religion is immune from forms of individual delusion or ideological extremism. This means that we must be especially attentive to every type of fundamentalism, whether religious or of any other kind. A delicate balance is required to combat violence perpetrated in the name of a religion, an ideology or an economic system, while also safeguarding religious freedom, intellectual freedom and individual freedoms. But there is another temptation which we must especially guard against: the simplistic reductionism which sees only good or evil; or, if you will, the righteous and sinners.

The contemporary world, with its open wounds which affect so many of our brothers and sisters, demands that we confront every form of polarization which would divide it into these two camps. We know that in the attempt to be freed of the enemy without, we can be tempted to feed the enemy within. To imitate the hatred and violence of tyrants and murderers is the best way to take their place. That is something which you, as a people, reject.

Our response must instead be one of hope and healing, of peace and justice. We are asked to summon the courage and the intelligence to resolve today’s many geopolitical and economic crises. Even in the developed world, the effects of unjust structures and actions are all too apparent. Our efforts must aim at restoring hope, righting wrongs, maintaining commitments, and thus promoting the well-being of individuals and of peoples. We must move forward together, as one, in a renewed spirit of fraternity and solidarity, cooperating generously for the common good.

The challenges facing us today call for a renewal of that spirit of cooperation, which has accomplished so much good throughout the history of the United States. The complexity, the gravity and the urgency of these challenges demand that we pool our resources and talents, and resolve to support one another, with respect for our differences and our convictions of conscience.

In this land, the various religious denominations have greatly contributed to building and strengthening society. It is important that today, as in the past, the voice of faith continue to be heard, for it is a voice of fraternity and love, which tries to bring out the best in each person and in each society. Such cooperation is a powerful resource in the battle to eliminate new global forms of slavery, born of grave injustices which can be overcome only through new policies and new forms of social consensus.

Here I think of the political history of the United States, where democracy is deeply rooted in the mind of the American people. All political activity must serve and promote the good of the human person and be based on respect for his or her dignity. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” (Declaration of Independence, 4 July 1776). If politics must truly be at the service of the human person, it follows that it cannot be a slave to the economy and finance. Politics is, instead, an expression of our compelling need to live as one, in order to build as one the greatest common good: that of a community which sacrifices particular interests in order to share, in justice and peace, its goods, its interests, its social life. I do not underestimate the difficulty that this involves, but I encourage you in this effort.

Here too I think of the march which Martin Luther King led from Selma to Montgomery fifty years ago as part of the campaign to fulfill his “dream” of full civil and political rights for African Americans. That dream continues to inspire us all. I am happy that America continues to be, for many, a land of “dreams”. Dreams which lead to action, to participation, to commitment. Dreams which awaken what is deepest and truest in the life of a people.

In recent centuries, millions of people came to this land to pursue their dream of building a future in freedom. We, the people of this continent, are not fearful of foreigners, because most of us were once foreigners. I say this to you as the son of immigrants, knowing that so many of you are also descended from immigrants. Tragically, the rights of those who were here long before us were not always respected. For those peoples and their nations, from the heart of American democracy, I wish to reaffirm my highest esteem and appreciation. Those first contacts were often turbulent and violent, but it is difficult to judge the past by the criteria of the present. Nonetheless, when the stranger in our midst appeals to us, we must not repeat the sins and the errors of the past. We must resolve now to live as nobly and as justly as possible, as we educate new generations not to turn their back on our “neighbors” and everything around us. Building a nation calls us to recognize that we must constantly relate to others, rejecting a mindset of hostility in order to adopt one of reciprocal subsidiarity, in a constant effort to do our best. I am confident that we can do this.

Our world is facing a refugee crisis of a magnitude not seen since the Second World War. This presents us with great challenges and many hard decisions. On this continent, too, thousands of persons are led to travel north in search of a better life for themselves and for their loved ones, in search of greater opportunities. Is this not what we want for our own children? We must not be taken aback by their numbers, but rather view them as persons, seeing their faces and listening to their stories, trying to respond as best we can to their situation. To respond in a way which is always humane, just and fraternal. We need to avoid a common temptation nowadays: to discard whatever proves troublesome. Let us remember the Golden Rule: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Mt 7:12).

This Rule points us in a clear direction. Let us treat others with the same passion and compassion with which we want to be treated. Let us seek for others the same possibilities which we seek for ourselves. Let us help others to grow, as we would like to be helped ourselves. In a word, if we want security, let us give security; if we want life, let us give life; if we want opportunities, let us provide opportunities. The yardstick we use for others will be the yardstick which time will use for us. The Golden Rule also reminds us of our responsibility to protect and defend human life at every stage of its development.

This conviction has led me, from the beginning of my ministry, to advocate at different levels for the global abolition of the death penalty. I am convinced that this way is the best, since every life is sacred, every human person is endowed with an inalienable dignity, and society can only benefit from the rehabilitation of those convicted of crimes. Recently my brother bishops here in the United States renewed their call for the abolition of the death penalty. Not only do I support them, but I also offer encouragement to all those who are convinced that a just and necessary punishment must never exclude the dimension of hope and the goal of rehabilitation.

In these times when social concerns are so important, I cannot fail to mention the Servant of God Dorothy Day, who founded the Catholic Worker Movement. Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints.

How much progress has been made in this area in so many parts of the world! How much has been done in these first years of the third millennium to raise people out of extreme poverty! I know that you share my conviction that much more still needs to be done, and that in times of crisis and economic hardship a spirit of global solidarity must not be lost. At the same time I would encourage you to keep in mind all those people around us who are trapped in a cycle of poverty. They too need to be given hope. The fight against poverty and hunger must be fought constantly and on many fronts, especially in its causes. I know that many Americans today, as in the past, are working to deal with this problem.

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