A global pandemic shrouded the whole world in the darkness of sickness, death, fear, and isolation. COVID-19 changed the world and society in so many ways, and there seemed no hope.
On the evening of March 28, 2020, a man clothed in a white cassock entered the empty, dark, and rainy Saint Peter’s Square. Pope Francis, a global and much beloved religious leader, needed to speak to all people in such a dark time. Eleven million people throughout the world were listening.
He reflected on the apostles who were caught in a storm on a lake and feared they would perish. Jesus got in the boat, calmed the storm, and assured them they should not fear, for he was with them. Francis wanted the world to know they were not alone; God was with them. He offered a glimmer of hope. Then, raising a monstrance with the Eucharist, he blessed the whole world with the Body of Christ. God was with us all.
The world today still struggles with wars, climate change, starvation, loneliness, and fear. Pope Francis is acutely aware that the world still needs a sense of hope. He, therefore, proclaimed 2025 as a Year of Pilgrims of Hope. Beginning on the First Sunday of Advent, December 1, the beginning of a new Church year, he will once again enter Saint Peter’s Square, open the Holy Year Door of Saint Peter’s Basilica, and proclaim a Holy Year, a year of abundance grace: A Year of Pilgrims of Hope for a world suffering from the impacts of war, the ongoing impact of the Covid 19 pandemic and the climate crisis.
Every diocese, parish, religious community, and its affiliates are charged with bringing the message of hope to our troubled world in whatever way they can. How should we respond?
Let Us Pray:
God of all that exists, you have always been with us in our difficult times, and despite our infidelity, you have graced us with saints and prophets who have always called us back to our roots of faith and fidelity. Raise up among us leaders, prophets, and servants who will energize us. Inspire us to be people of hope in a world lost in division, wars, selfishness, and hate. Your grace will be sufficient for us. Pour an abundance of grace into us that we might live, and model hope in our time and place. Amen.
