Dear brothers and sisters, happy Sunday!

In today’s Gospel reading (Mt 11:25–30) Jesus invites us to join him in praising the Father, “Lord of heaven and earth” (v. 25). The Son of God made man reveals his love by including all creatures in this act of thanksgiving.

The simplicity of such a spontaneous and joyful gesture reflects God’s way of acting: he delights in revealing himself “to infants,” while remaining hidden “from the wise and the intelligent” (v. 25). So filled are they with their own ideas that they fail to recognize the presence of Christ, the Messiah who comes to visit his people.  Human wisdom thus becomes arrogance, and doctrine degenerates into pride. By contrast, God’s true wisdom is revealed in the humility of the Incarnation, and his teaching is addressed above all to those who struggle: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens” (v. 28), says the Lord. Going to Jesus means responding to his love and sharing in his life, even to the cross, as he himself teaches: “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Mt 16:24).  It is precisely this self-giving out of love that constitutes Jesus’ “yoke” (Mt 11:29), which is the essence of his teaching and the heart of his wisdom, ablaze with love for all.

Brothers and sisters, how can the weight of the cross be “easy” and “light” (v. 30)? For one reason alone: because the Lord himself carries it with us, never leaving us alone in what burdens us. As a true teacher, Jesus takes upon himself humanity wounded by evil in order to heal and care for it. The wisdom he gives us is therefore a proclamation of salvation, and his yoke lifts us up from every fall. For this reason, our journey of following Christ is not an asceticism that mortifies. Rather, it is a school of freedom that takes seriously the drama of history and continually sheds light on its meaning, especially in its darkest moments. Indeed, only in the cross of Jesus is evil overcome; only in his passion does our mortal weariness find consolation and redemption.

In slavery, Christ is liberation. Amid the scourge of war, Christ is hope. In the hour of sin, Christ is forgiveness. This is true wisdom and the path that we wish to walk together, united as disciples in his name. Jesus teaches us this as the Son, by becoming our brother. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, he reveals to the Church the truth about God and about humanity, for “no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him” (v. 27).

Dear friends, as we thank the Lord for the loving trust he has placed in us, let us ask Mary, Queen of Peace, to intercede for the good of the Church and of the whole world.

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After the Angelus

Dear brothers and sisters,

Last Thursday, 2 July, Father Francis Xavier Tru’o’ng Bǚu was beatified at the Shrine of Tac Say in Vietnam. He was killed in 1946 in hatred of the faith (in odium fidei). Amid oppression and violence, he defended the rights of the people and did not abandon his parishioners. May his intercession and prayers strengthen all those who proclaim the Gospel in situations of persecution today.

I extend my warm greetings to all of you gathered today in Saint Peter’s Square.

I offer a cordial welcome to the pilgrims from Brazil and to the Choir of the University of Mérida in Venezuela. I continue to remember in my prayers the victims of the earthquake and all the Venezuelan people. May the Lord sustain them in this time of great hardship.

I greet in particular several groups from Poland: the newly ordained priests of the Capuchin Friars Minor of the Province of Kraków; the Children’s Choir of the Archdiocese of Łódź, accompanied by their Auxiliary Bishop; and the group from the Diocese of Legnica.

I also greet the young people from Bellagio and the Jubilaeum Choir from Augusta, Sicily, together with their mayor and their pastor.

I wish everyone a happy Sunday!