This afternoon, the Holy Father Leo XIV is making a pastoral visit to the parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in Ponte Mammolo, at number 88 Casal de Pazzi street.

Upon his arrival, around 4:00 p.m., the Pope was greeted in the oratory courtyard by children, young people, and their families. Inside the parish facilities, the Pontiff met with the elderly, the sick, and a group of the poor and homeless who use the parish’s shower facilities, along with volunteers from Caritas and the Sant’Egidio Community who care for them.

At 5:00 p.m., the Holy Father presides over the celebration of Holy Mass in the parish church.

At the conclusion of the Eucharistic celebration, the Pope meets with the Pastoral Council and the priests. Then, after exchanging final greetings, he returns to the Vatican.

Below is the homily that the Pope delivered after the proclamation of the Gospel:

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Pope’s Homily

Dear brothers and sisters:

Our Eucharistic celebration today is, more than ever, imbued with joy. In fact, the beauty of this encounter of ours is inscribed within the context of the Sunday called ” laetare ,” that is, “rejoice,” according to the words of Isaiah: “Rejoice, Jerusalem” (Entrance, cf.  Is  66:10).

This gives us pause for thought. Currently, many of our brothers and sisters suffer throughout the world because of violent conflicts, fueled by the absurd notion that problems and differences can be resolved through war, when what is needed is relentless dialogue for peace. Some even attempt to invoke God’s name in these deadly choices, but God cannot be co-opted by darkness. Rather, He always comes to bring light, hope, and peace to humanity, and it is peace that those who call upon Him must seek.

This is the message of this Sunday: beyond any abyss into which man may fall, because of his sins, Christ comes to bring a more intense light, capable of freeing him from the blindness of evil, so that he may begin a new life.

The encounter between Jesus and the man born blind (cf.  Jn  9:1-41) can indeed be compared to the scene of a birth, through which the man, like a child coming into the world, discovers a new world, seeing himself, others and life with the eyes of God (cf. 1  Sam  16:9).

Let us ask ourselves, then: what does this gaze consist of? What does it reveal? What does it mean to “see with the eyes of God”?

According to the evangelist John, it means above all overcoming the prejudices of those who, faced with a suffering man, see only an outcast to be despised, or a problem to be avoided, locking themselves away in the fortified tower of selfish individualism. We often hear phrases like, “When things were going well, there were many friends; but in times of trouble, many have left, they’ve disappeared!” Jesus doesn’t act like that: he looks at the blind man with love, not as an inferior being or a bothersome presence, but as a beloved person in need of help. Thus, their encounter becomes an opportunity for the work of God to be manifested in everyone.

In the “sign,” in the miracle, Jesus reveals his divine power, and man, almost as if repeating the gestures of creation—the clay, the saliva—fully displays once again his beauty and dignity as a creature made in the image and likeness of God. Thus, by regaining his sight, he becomes a witness to the light.

Certainly, this requires effort: he must become accustomed to many previously unknown things, learn to distinguish colors and shapes, readjust his relationships, and this is not easy. Moreover, the hostility surrounding him grows, provokes him, and not even his parents have the courage to defend him (cf.  Jn  9:18-23). ​​It seems almost absurd that those around him want to undo what has happened. Not only that: in the interrogation of the now-seeing blind man, it is primarily Jesus who is judged, accused of having violated the Sabbath to heal him.

Thus, another, different, and even more serious blindness is revealed in those present: the blindness of not seeing, right before them, the face of God. They exchange the possibility of a salvific encounter for the sterile security afforded by the legalistic observance of formal discipline. Faced with such obstinacy, Jesus does not hesitate, showing that no “Sabbath” can hinder an act of love. Moreover, the meaning of Sabbath rest for the people of Israel—and for us, Sunday, the Lord’s Day—is precisely to celebrate the mystery of life as a gift, before which no one can ignore the cry for help of their suffering brothers and sisters.

Perhaps, at times, we too can be blind in this respect, failing to notice others and their problems. Jesus, on the other hand, asks us to live differently, as the first Christian community so aptly understood, where brothers and sisters, constant in prayer, shared everything with joy and simplicity of heart (cf.  Acts  2:42-47). It’s not that tribulations and obstacles were lacking, even in those times. But they did not give up: strengthened by the gift of Baptism, they strove to live as new creatures, living in communion and peace with everyone and finding in the community a family that accompanied and sustained them.

Dear brothers and sisters: these are the fruits we are called to bear as children of light (cf. 1  Thess  5:4-5); and your parish has been faithfully living this mission for about ninety years, paying special attention to situations of poverty, marginalization and emergency, taking into account the presence, in your territory, of the Rebibbia penitentiary center, and with many other gestures of sensitivity and solidarity.

I know that you help many brothers and sisters from other countries to integrate here: to learn the language, to find decent housing, and to find honest and secure work. There are certainly difficulties, unfortunately sometimes exacerbated by those who, without scruples, take advantage of the vulnerable in their own self-interest. However, I am aware of the great effort you all make to meet these challenges through the services of Caritas, the shelters for women and mothers in need, and many other initiatives. I also know of the vitality and generosity with which you dedicate yourselves to the education of young people and children, through the oratory and other educational programs.

St. Augustine, speaking of the face of God, of which we are called to be a mirror in the world, said to the Christians of his time: “What face does love have? What shape, what stature, what feet, what hands? […] It has feet, which lead to the Church; it has hands, which give to the poor; it has eyes, with which one comes to know those who are in need” ( In Epistolam Joannis ad Parthos,  7, 10) and he added, referring to charity: “Preserve it, embrace it: nothing is sweeter than it” ( ibid .).

Dear brothers and sisters, here is the gift of light entrusted to you, so that you may nurture it within yourselves and among yourselves in all its sweetness and spread it throughout the world through prayer, frequent reception of the sacraments, and charity. Continue to commit yourselves in this way on your journey.

May the Sacred Heart of Jesus, to whom your parish is dedicated, increasingly mold and protect this beautiful community, so that, with the same sentiments of Christ (cf.  Phil  2:5), you may live and bear witness with joy and dedication to the treasure of grace that you have received.