Pope Francis visited Ajaccio, the capital of the French region of Corsica. He arrived for the final session of the congress “La Religiosité Populaire en Méditerranée”. The congress was focused on exploring, understanding, and promoting the diverse expressions of popular faith and piety across Mediterranean cultures.
The Pope reminded those gathered that the countries around the Mediterranean have been cradles of many advanced civilizations. He said that it was precisely in the Mediterranean that God revealed himself to mankind in the person of Jesus Christ and began a continuous dialogue with His people. “He has revealed the face of the Father, his and ours, in a definitive way, and brought to fulfilment the covenant between God and humanity.”
He emphasized that today, in many European countries, the question of God is being sidelined, and people are becoming increasingly indifferent to His presence and His word. However, despite this, the Pope said, we must not allow ideological condemnations that would pit Christian and secular cultures against each other.
“Instead, it is important to acknowledge a mutual openness between these two horizons. Believers are increasingly open to, and at peace with the possibility of practising their faith without imposing it, living it as a leaven within the world and in their communities. Non-believers or those who have distanced themselves from religious practice are not strangers to the search for truth, justice and solidarity. Often, even if they do not belong to any religion, they carry in their hearts a great thirst, a search for meaning, which leads them to ponder the mystery of life and to seek out core values for the common good.”
The Pope recalled the reflections of Blaise Pascal. “In a dialogue with a fictional interlocutor about how to come to faith, Pascal states that it is not enough to multiply the proofs of God’s existence or to make great intellectual efforts. Rather, one must look to those who have already made great progress on the path, because they began with small steps, by taking holy water and having Masses said. It is about the small steps that take you forward.”
Pope Francis reminded that “when popular piety is successful in communicating the Christian faith and the cultural values of a given people, uniting hearts and building community, it bears great fruit that has an effect on society as a whole, including relations between political, social institutions and the Church.”
He emphasized that faith cannot be a private matter; indeed, he compared this notion to heretical belief. Instead, Pope Francis stressed: “authentic faith involves a call for commitment and witness, promotion of human development, social progress and care for creation, all in the name of charity.”
Pope Francis reminded young people to become even more actively involved in social, cultural, and political life, inspired by solid ideals and a passion for the common good. He also emphasized that “Church’s Pastors and faithful, politicians and those in public life, should remain ever close to the people, listening to their needs, sharing their sufferings and voicing their hopes, for genuine authority grows only through closeness to others. Pastors must have these closenesses: to God, to other pastors, to priests, and to peoples. These are the true pastors.”
