At the end of the year, the Pope asks that Rome be a city of welcome and hope during the Jubilee of 2025

ROMA, 31 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The Pope has asked that Rome be a city of welcome and hope during the Jubilee that will take place in 2025 and has recalled that the Christian, like Mary, is a pilgrim of hope. He made this clear during the 'Te Deum' liturgical services in thanksgiving for the year that is ending in St. Peter's Basilica, which was attended by some 6,500 people.

In this sense, he asked if Rome is preparing to become a city of hope in the Holy Year. "We all know that the organization of the jubilee has been underway for some time, but we understand well that in the perspective we assume here it is not about this in the first place, it is rather about the testimony of the ecclesial and civil community, a testimony that more than it consists of the lifestyle, the ethical and spiritual quality of coexistence," he indicated.

And along the same lines, he has stated whether each one is working in their area so that the city is a sign of hope, for those who live in it and for those who visit it. "An example," he commented, "is to enter St. Peter's Square and see that on the arm of the colonnade people of all nationalities, cultures and religions move freely and serenely. It is an experience that instills hope. But it is important that it be confirmed with a good reception during the visit to the basilica as well as in the information services".

Likewise, he pointed out that the "charm" of the Historic Center of Rome is "perennial and universal" but he warned that older people or people with disabilities should also be able to enjoy it. "And great beauty must correspond to simple decor and natural functionality (...) because a more livable city for its citizens is also more welcoming for everyone," she warned.

Thus, he stressed that a pilgrimage above all requires preparation and, for this reason, he highlighted that the next year that precedes the Jubilee is dedicated to prayer.

Francis has also stressed that faith allows us to live the end of the year in a different way from the worldly mentality. "Faith in Jesus Christ, God incarnate, born of the Virgin Mary, gives a new way of feeling time and life. I will sum it up in two words: gratitude and hope. Some will say, but isn't that what everyone does? world on this last night of the year? Everyone gives thanks, everyone hopes, whether they are believers or not. Maybe it seems like it and maybe it is, but in reality worldly gratitude, worldly hope are apparent. They lack the essential dimension, which is the relationship with each other, with God and with our brothers," he reflected.

Thus, he has emphasized that worldly gratitude and hope are "crushed on the self, on its interests," and is drowned in the anxiety of having and appearing. And, for this reason, he has explained that they lack breath, they do not go beyond satisfaction and optimism."

However, he pointed out that another atmosphere is breathed in the 'Te Deum' liturgy, that of praise, amazement and gratitude, and he has attributed this atmosphere not to the "majesty" of St. Peter's Basilica. , but of the Mystery of how the Creator took a soul and a body was born from a Virgin.

"The liturgy makes us enter into the feelings of the church and the church, so to speak, learns this from the Virgin Mother. Let us think of the gratitude that Mary must have felt when contemplating the newborn Jesus. It is an experience that can only be had a mother and, nevertheless, in her the mother of God has a unique, incomparable depth," he noted.

The Pontiff has highlighted that the Church learns gratitude from the Virgin Mother and also learns hope. "That of Mary and that of the Church is not optimism, it is something else. It is faith in God, who is faithful to his promises and this faith takes the form of hope in the dimension of time, we could say on the way," he said. added.