Pope Francis has an extraordinary gift: he is able to identify the signs of the times, thereby making the Word, the strong Word of God, intelligible. It happened on Monday January 11 during the traditional meeting with the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See. Indeed, the tragic events that have scarred our contemporary history raise deep questions that challenge the human community at global level. From this perspective, the interpretation of the signs as a whole implies a form of discernment; it requires an additional token of faith, hope and charity. Most of all, it requires a concrete commitment for the promotion of the ‘res publica’ of all peoples. In fact, the very fact that the Pope put the migration crisis and the reception of refugees at the centre of his speech, going beyond fears and prejudice, is extremely significant.
His words have conveyed a clear, objective picture of globalization, that in all circumstances must reaffirmation the dignity of the human person created in God’s own image and likeness. In fact, he said, “the phenomenon of migration raises a serious cultural issue which necessarily demands a response. The acceptance of migrants can thus prove a good opportunity for new understanding and broader horizons, both on the part of those accepted, who have the responsibility to respect the values, traditions and laws of the community which takes them in, and on the part of the latter, who are called to acknowledge the beneficial contribution which each immigrant can make to the whole community”. Far from being a “do-gooder” interpretation, as it is often understood, it is the acknowledgement of a phenomenon that raises questions to free consciences; a thrust to channel personal freedom into the promotion of increased justice at the service of the truth.
In his wisdom, the Pope then mentioned a very thorny issue concerning the consolidated distinction – notably in Europe – between refugees fleeing devastating wars and totalitarian regimes and the so-called economic migrants. “It is painful to realize – he said – that often these migrants are not included in international systems of protection based on international agreements”. Pope Bergoglio equally condemned the “culture of waste and lack of respect for human life, so that no one will feel neglected or forgotten, and that no further lives will be sacrificed due to the lack of resources and, above all, of political will”. Conversely from what often happens international political circles, Pope Francis has grasped the complexities of the migration phenomenon, highlighting a set of factors that in many cases are not given proper attention, such as “entrenched habits and practices, beginning with issues involving the arms trade, the provision of raw materials and energy, investment, policies of financing and sustainable development, and even the grave scourge of corruption”.
Speaking before the representatives of 180 governments that have diplomatic relations with the Holy See, the Pope highlighted several times the importance of religious freedom, a guarantee of peace, and he called upon all those present to recover a sound form of anthropology as the underlying basis of all regional, national and international political decisions. To that regard, referring to past November’s meeting with the Muslim community of Bangui, capital of the Central African Republic, the Pope reiterated that “those who claim to believe in God must also be men and women of peace and consequently of mercy, for one may never kill in the name of God”. This means that
The instrumental use of religion for subversive purposes is a blatant denial of the spiritual foundation engrained in the hearts of all true believers.
Needless to say, the Pope also spoke of the sacrosanct value of the family, properly defined as the “school of mercy”, pointing out that “out of the family’s experience of fraternity is born solidarity in society”. The Pope’s realistic reflection stigmatised the threat of “growing efforts on the part of some to redefine the very institution of marriage by relativism, by the culture of the ephemeral, by a lack of openness to life”.
