Pope Francis used the timing of his weekly General Audience to speak about the Easter Triduum, beginning Holy Thursday and ending at the Easter Vigil.
He also spoke of the power of one's Baptism, which unites everyone to Christ's death and ressurection.
The pope prayed that this Easter, the Blessed Mother would “obtain for us the grace to be united ever more fully to the Risen Lord and to reflect in our lives the reconciling and transforming power of His divine love.”
SUMMARY OF POPE FRANCIS' CATECHESIS:
Dear brothers and sisters:
Tomorrow begins the Church’s celebration of the Paschal Triduum, in which we re-live the great mystery of the Lord’s death and resurrection. The Gospel message that Jesus died for our sins and rose to new life is a source of joy and hope for all the world. At the same time, it is a summons to our responsibility and mission as the Lord’s followers to proclaim the victory of the Risen Jesus by our lives.
In Baptism, we were given a share in Christ’s passover from death to life. Each of us has been called to live fully this new life in union with him and in imitation of his loving concern for the least of our brothers and sisters. In the poor, the suffering, the lonely and all those in need, we are asked to see the face of Jesus, and to become, in him, a means of redemption and hope, life and resurrection for our world. May Mary, who knew both the sufferings of the cross and the joy of the resurrection, obtain for us the grace to be united ever more fully to the Risen Lord and to reflect in our lives the reconciling and transforming power of his divine love.
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly those from England, Ireland, Finland, the Netherlands, Ghana, South Africa, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines and the United States of America. I offer a special greeting to the delegates taking part in the Seminar organized by the Vatican Observatory in preparation for the forthcoming UNISPACE+50 Conference. May this Holy Week lead all of us to celebrate the resurrection of the Lord Jesus with hearts purified and renewed by the grace of the Holy Spirit.
God bless you!
