Saints Peter & Paul

Byzantine

Catholic Church

431 GEORGE STREET * BRADDOCK, PENNSYLVANIA 15104 * TELEPHONE (412) 461-1712

Webpage: https://stspeterpaulbcc.com/

E-male: stspeterpaulbc@gmail.com

ADMINISTRATOR: FATHER VITALII STASHKEVYCH PARISH OFFICE: 4200 HOMESTEAD DUQUESNE RD,

MUNHALL, PA, 15120

TELEPHONE: 412-461-1712

CONFESSIONS: 30 MINUTES BEFORE LITURGY

Sunday, March 1st, 2020 Tone 5 Page:146/220

SCHEDULE OF DIVINE SERVICES FOR THIS WEEK:

Sunday 03/01/20 20 11:00 AM 1st Sunday of The Great Fast +Stephen Ference

By Jeanette Ference

Friday 03/06/20 20 06:30 PM 42 Martyrs of Ammorium Liturgy of Presanctified Gift

Panachida for All Souls Saturday

Sunday 03/08/20 20 11:00 AM 2nd Sunday of The Great Fast +Olga Savko

By David, Steven, Cathy

SICK AND SHUT-INS Please remember in your prayers our parishioners who are sick,

homebound, hospitalized, living in nursing facilities, or need

your prayers for their personal intentions:

Andrew Cencarik, Don Downey, Phillip Fall, Anna D. Fialkovich, Mark Fialkovich, Benjamin

Kaefer, Jr., John Kopay, Jr., Sylvia Kopay, Mary Anne Ference Mistick, Richard Paloscko,

Nancy Pcolar, Bob Newton, Rebecca McCullough, Will McCullough Shirley Carmoney Torbich,

Marie Churley, Joanne Skinta, John Gegick and Those serving in the Armed Forces.

**If you have a family member in the hospital or other facilities, and would like us to remember

them in prayer, contact Father Vitalii and we will be glad to publish their name in the bulletin – even if they are

not a parishioner of Saints Peter & Paul Parish.

DIVINE SERVICES ATTENDANCE

The attendance for Sunday, February 23, was 51.

42 MARTYRS OF AMORIUM

The Holy 42 Martyrs of Amorium (†845) — Passion-bearers Constantine, Aetius,

Theophilus, Theodore, Melissenus, Callistus, Basoes and 35 others with them — were

prominent officers and notables of the Byzantine city of Amorium, one of Byzantium's

largest and most important cities at the time, who were seized following the capture and

systematic destruction of the city in 838 AD by the Abbasid caliph Al-Mu'tasim, then

taken as hostages to Samarra (today in Iraq) and executed there seven years later for

refusing to convert to Islam. Their feast day is celebrated on March 6.

Amorium was an episcopal see (bishopric) as early as 431, and was fortified by the

Emperor Zeno, but did not rise to prominence until the 7th century. Its strategic location

in central Asia Minor made the city a vital stronghold against the armies of the Arab

Caliphate following their conquest of the Levant.

The city was first attacked by the Arabs in 644, and taken in 646. Over the next two

centuries, it remained a frequent target of Muslim raids (razzias) into Asia Minor,

especially during the great sieges of 716 and 796. It became the capital of the theme of Anatolikon soon after.

In 742-743, it was the main base of iconoclast Emperor Constantine V against the usurper Artabasdos. In 820,

an Amorian, Michael II, ascended the Byzantine throne, establishing the Amorian dynasty. This began the period of

the city's greatest prosperity, when it became the largest city in Asia Minor.

However due to its' status as the native city of the reigning dynasty, in 838 AD the Caliph Al-Mu'tasim launched

a campaign specifically against the city, which was captured and razed.

During the war between the Byzantine Emperor Theophilus the Iconoclast (829-842) and the Saracens, the

Saracens managed to besiege the city of Ammoria. As a result of treason on the part of the military commander

Baditses, Ammoria fell, and forty-two of its generals were taken captive and sent off to Syria.

During the seven years of their imprisonment they tried in vain to persuade the captives to renounce Christianity

and accept Islam. The captives stubbornly resisted all their seductive offers and bravely held out against terrible

threats. After many torments that failed to break the spirit of the Christian soldiers, they condemned them to death,

hoping to shake the determination of the saints before executing them. The martyrs remained steadfast, saying that

the Old Testament Prophets bore witness to Christ, while Mohammed called himself a prophet without any other

witnesses to support his claim.

NOTES FROM THE CANTOR’S MEETING 2/22/20

The meeting was moderated by Deacon Jeffrey Mierzejewski of the Metropolitan Cantor Institute. The purpose

of the meeting was for Cantors to have an opportunity to present and discuss their needs and desires concerning our

church singing, talk about what has worked in our different parishes, meet other cantors, and learn about church

music education and publications planned for the coming year.

One issue brought up was “How can we get the people who do not open their books and sing to open their

books and sing”. One suggestion was to have a meeting of the people and explain what their responsibility is while

attending Liturgy. Another issue had to do with the reciting of the Creed and the Our Father instead of singing the

prayers.

A new Funeral Service book with music is in the works. Many cantors do not know the funeral service. There

was a suggestion that a funeral is an opportunity for the church to increase the membership in the church. Funeral

attendees may want to come to a Sunday service and try us out.

There was also talk about including harmonizing in the Liturgy.

By Andy Novotny

The Lord Calls us to do God's Will. Pray that you may know God's Will in your life; especially, if you

have the inclination that you are being called to the ordained or consecrated life. If you think God is

calling you to be a priest, religious or deacon, contact Fr. Vitalii Stashkevych.

PRAY FOR VOCATIONS

The Byzantine Catholic Serra Club of Pittsburgh is an organization that fosters and promotes priesthood and

religious vocations in the Byzantine Catholic Church. They also support Seminarians, Priests and Religious

Sisters in their sacred ministry. The Byzantine Serra Club meets monthly. If you would like to join, call

William Kress 412-761-1499 or email kb.kress@gmail.com

Join the Serrans in their work to ensure the future of our Church.

THIS WEEK’S USHER TEAM - Team C

OUR GIFTS TO GOD AND OUR CHURCH, FABRUARY 23, 2020:

SUNDAY OFFERING $ 701.00

LOOSE CASH 25.00

CHILDREN’S COLLECTION 4.00

CANDLES 42.00

MONTHLY 120.00

BCW 15.00

HOLY DAY 10.00

EASTERN EUROPE COLLECTION 25.00

TOTAL $ 942.00

CATHOLIC TEACHING

II. THE RESURRECTION - A WORK OF THE HOLY TRINITY

Christ's Resurrection is an object of faith in that it is a transcendent intervention of God himself in creation and

history. In it the three divine persons act together as one, and manifest their own proper characteristics. the Father's

power "raised up" Christ his Son and by doing so perfectly introduced his Son's humanity, including his body, into

the Trinity. Jesus is conclusively revealed as "Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his

Resurrection from the dead". St. Paul insists on the manifestation of God's power through the working of the Spirit

who gave life to Jesus' dead humanity and called it to the glorious state of Lordship.

As for the Son, he effects his own Resurrection by virtue of his divine power. Jesus announces that the Son of

man will have to suffer much, die, and then rise. Elsewhere he affirms explicitly: "I lay down my life, that I may

take it again. . . I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." "We believe that Jesus died and rose

again."

The Fathers contemplate the Resurrection from the perspective of the divine person of Christ who remained

united to his soul and body, even when these were separated from each other by death: "By the unity of the divine

nature, which remains present in each of the two components of man, these are reunited. For as death is produced by

the separation of the human components, so Resurrection is achieved by the union of the two."

III. THE MEANING AND SAVING SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RESURRECTION

"If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain." The Resurrection above all

constitutes the confirmation of all Christ's works and teachings. All truths, even those most inaccessible to human

reason, find their justification if Christ by his Resurrection has given the definitive proof of his divine authority,

which he had promised.

Christ's Resurrection is the fulfilment of the promises both of the Old Testament and of Jesus himself during his

earthly life. The phrase "in accordance with the Scriptures" indicates that Christ's Resurrection fulfilled these

predictions.

The truth of Jesus' divinity is confirmed by his Resurrection. He had said: "When you have lifted up the Son of

man, then you will know that I am he." The Resurrection of the crucified one shows that he was truly "I AM", the

Son of God and God himself. So St. Paul could declare to the Jews: "What God promised to the fathers, this he has

fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus; as also it is written in the second psalm, 'You are my Son, today I have

begotten you.'" Christ's Resurrection is closely linked to the Incarnation of God's Son, and is its fulfilment in

accordance with God's eternal plan.

The Paschal mystery has two aspects: by his death, Christ liberates us from sin; by his Resurrection, he opens

for us the way to a new life. This new life is above all justification that reinstates us in God's grace, "so that as Christ

was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." Justification consists in

both victory over the death caused by sin and a new participation in grace. It brings about filial adoption so that men

become Christ's brethren, as Jesus himself called his disciples after his Resurrection: "Go and tell my brethren." We

are brethren not by nature, but by the gift of grace, because that adoptive filiation gains us a real share in the life of

the only Son, which was fully revealed in his Resurrection.

Finally, Christ's Resurrection - and the risen Christ himself is the principle and source of our future resurrection:

"Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. . . For as in Adam all die, so

also in Christ shall all be made alive." The risen Christ lives in the hearts of his faithful while they await that

fulfilment. In Christ, Christians "have tasted. . . the powers of the age to come" and their lives are swept up by Christ

into the heart of divine life, so that they may "live no longer for themselves but for him who for their sake died and

was raised."

(Catechism of the Catholic Church, "HE DESCENDED INTO HELL. ON THE THIRD DAY HE ROSE AGAIN".)

INTRODUCTION TO THE OLD TESTAMENT: BOOK OF ECCLESIASTES

Author: Qohelet; Date Written: 970-225 BC

Ecclesiastes is a Wisdom book that explores life from a pessimistic perspective.

While Proverbs proposes salient points of wisdom to be followed, Ecclesiastes

exposes the utter futility of human life without God. Qohelet (pronounced KO-HEL-

ET), the author of Ecclesiastes, cries "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity!" (1:2).

Traditionally, Qohelet is identified with King Solomon as "son of David and king in

Jerusalem," (1:1) but the book does not mention Solomon by name. Some scholars

posit a much later date for the book because of certain linguistic features.

The book examines many issues, but the focus is on where human beings spend their energies. Qohelet rejects

three goals which people regularly pursue: knowledge, money and pleasure. Each one is "vanity and a striving after

wind" (1:14). While he acknowledges the usefulness of knowledge and wisdom (7:12), Qohelet rejects seeking them

as vain (1:17). The accumulation of wisdom and knowledge is merely a human undertaking when what God really

desires from us is obedience (12:13).

Work and money also play a central role in the book. Qohelet observes how people spend their days working

and toiling, but never seem to gain from it. Everyone seems stuck in a useless pattern of striving. Even those who

achieve material success often find that they don't get to enjoy the fruits of their labor (6:2). Qohelet's observations

line up with the curse of toil that Adam received after the Fall (Gen 3:17).

While Qohelet's observations are somewhat despairing in tone, we are not meant to reject working or gaining

wisdom (3:22; 10:10). Rather, through Ecclesiastes we realize the shortness of human life, the smallness of our

work, the insignificance of our lives without God. Qohelet helps us understand that there are many pursuits in human

life that are not worth investing our time and energy in. Rather, we should seek God and keep his commandments.

For money, pleasure and knowledge are merely necessary things along the path of life, but God is the goal of the

journey.

For Qohelet, it seems at first that money, pleasure and wisdom will produce human happiness. But he is

continually surprised to find out that this is not always the case. It seems unjust, even evil, that a person could work

hard all his life and never enjoy the results (6:2). Yet throughout Ecclesiastes, we come to realize that happiness is a

gift from God, not something we can produce. Even the enjoyment of our own work is a gift.

Ecclesiastes often uses the Hebrew word hebel, which is usually translated as "vanity." The word has many

shades of meaning from "breath, wind, vapor" to "worthlessness, darkness, absurdity."

The book discusses the finality of death, which brings all earthly pursuits to a sudden halt. It is as if all the grand

projects of man are simply cut off. No one can escape from death; it envelops the good and the wicked alike (9:2).

Ecclesiastes is hard to stomach because it confronts us so sharply with the contradictions of life. Yet the hard

truths which Ecclesiastes teaches lift our vision higher. While our daily work is important in a limited sense,

Ecclesiastes focuses us on the ultimately important purposes of life: to love God and keep his commandments

(12:13).

PARISH MEMBERSHIP

We welcome anyone to become a parishioner of Sts Peter and Paul Byzantine Catholic Church. Only those who

are registered are considered members of the Parish. When one registers to become a parish member, they assume

the responsibility of rendering stewardship of time, talent and treasure to this parish family. Worship at this parish is

always expected. Registration is done only by the pastor.

DEANERY PENITENTIAL VESPERS SCHEDULED

The Great Fast Deanery Vespers will be celebrated, each Sunday during The Great Fast Season at 4:00 p.m.

preceded by The Holy Mystery of Reconciliation at 3:30 p.m.

The following churches have been selected to host a different week:

March 1 St. Andrew Church, Gibsonia Homilist: Fr. Thomas Schaefer

Confessor: Fr. Robert J. Karl

March 8 SS. Peter & Paul Church, Duquesne Homilist: Fr. Christiaan W. Kappes

Confessor: Fr. Frank A. Firko

March 15 SS. Peter & Paul Church, Braddock Homilist: Fr. Robert J. Karl

Confessor: Msgr. Russell A. Duker

March 22 St. John the Baptist Cathedral, Munhall Homilist: Fr. Frank A. Firko.

Confessor: Fr. Valerian M. Michlik

March 29 Holy Ghost Church, McKees Rocks Homilist: Fr. Andrew J. Deskevich;

Confessor: Fr. Blichard

This will be a great penitential practice of prayer & self-denial if you wish to take it upon yourselves. Please

make an effort to join us. Fellowship of meatless soups and bread will be served following the liturgical services

PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDARS! ST. ELIAS EVENTS

Friday March 6 Lenten Kitchen – 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m

Friday March 13 Lenten Kitchen – 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m

Friday March 20 Lenten Kitchen – 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m

Friday March 27 Lenten Kitchen – 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m

Friday April 3 Lenten Kitchen – 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m

In our menu: Baked Fish Dinner, Fried Fish Dinner, Fish Sandwich, Shrimp Dinner, Pirohi, Mac & Cheese, Noodle

Haluski and Bake Sale.

1ST SUNDAY OF THE GREAT FAST

Today is the Sunday of Orthodoxy, but we should remember that it isn’t the triumph of the Orthodox over other

confessions and other people, but the feast of God’s victory, the victory of truth, the victory of Christ overall

weakness of human mind. Because which of us can say that he believes in God as it is described in the Holy

Scripture? The evangel of Saint Mark says that all miracles will be opened to the believer, he will speak new

languages, heal diseases, raise the dead, if he drinks any poison, and it will do him no harm. Which of us can tell that

he has similar faith?

The Apostle Paul says that we carry the Kingdom of God as if in clay vessels, that is we are clay vessels. And

indeed, the Church overwhelms us, but we don’t overwhelm the Church, it is immense and we are small. The

Church is not only community of people who came to Christ. The Church is a miracle; it is the presence of the whole

mystery of the Holy Trinity among us and our communion by the grace of God, mercy of God to this miracle.

The first member of Church is the Saviour Christ in whom all fullness of God lives in bodily form. And together

with Him His gift, the holy Spirit, pours out on all creature, not only on believers but on the whole world because He

opened the doors through which the mystery of eternity enters.

In another place the Apostle Paul says that God’s power works in sickness. We are unworthy of the wealth

which the Lord has given us and gives every day, every hour during all our life. We are sick but God’s power works

in us. And so we celebrate this today. Therefore, we’ll rejoice today that God overcomes in us, opens the truth and

life, love and joy, makes us new creature, but let’s not extol ourselves over others.

Let’s show our faith in our work and see what work is being done by the heterodox who don’t share our

Orthodox faith and we’ll see that their life is more Christlike despite the unfulness of their confession than the life of

many and many of us. So, we who confess the Orthodox faith, who has been given such purity and fullness of faith,

must keep it with reverence and fear and live according with it, and only then we’ll be able to say that we are the

disciples of Christ in the full sense of this word.

So, let’s repent that we, from the fullness of the True faith, can’t often create a community or society worthy of

Christ and the faith which we confess. Amen.

FEAST OF ORTHODOXY

The Feast of Orthodoxy (also knowns as the Sunday of Orthodoxy or the Triumph

of True Faith) is celebrated on the first Sunday of Great Lent (six Sundays before

Pascha) in the liturgical calendar of the Byzantine Rite Eastern Catholic Churches.

The Feast is kept in memory of the final defeat of iconoclasm and the restoration of

the icons to the churches.

Despite the teaching about icons defined at the Seventh Ecumenical Council in

787, the iconoclasts began to trouble the Church again. After the death of the last

iconoclast emperor, Theophilos, his young son Michael III, with his mother the

regent Theodora, and Patriarch Methodios, summoned the Synod of Constantinople

in 843 to bring peace to the Church. At the end of the first session, all made a

triumphal procession from the Church of Blachernae to Hagia Sophia, restoring the

icons to the church. This occurred on 11 March, 843. The Synod decreed that a perpetual feast on the anniversary of

that day should be observed each year on the First Sunday of Great Lent, and named the day, "the Sunday of

Orthodoxy".

The name "Orthodoxy" has gradually affected the character of the feast. Originally commemorating only the

defeat of iconoclasm, the commemoration has gradually come to be understood in a more general sense as

opposition to all heterodoxy. In this way, though its first occasion is not forgotten, the feast has become one in

honour of the true Faith in general. This is shown by its special service.

MARRIAGE

Marriage was not invented or instituted by Christ. The Lord, however, gave a

very specific meaning and significance to human marriage. Following the Old

Testament Law, but going beyond its formal precepts in His messianic perfection,

Jesus taught the uniqueness of human marriage as the most perfect natural

expression of God’s love for men, and of his own love for the Church.

According to Christ, in order for the love of a man and woman to be that

which God has: perfectly created it to be, it must be unique, indestructible,

unending and divine. The Lord himself has not only given this teaching, but he

also gives the power to fulfill it in the sacrament of Christian marriage in the

Church.

In the sacrament of marriage, a man and a woman are given the possibility to become one spirit and one flesh in

a way which no human love can provide by itself. In Christian marriage the Holy Spirit is given so that what is

begun on earth does not “part in death” but is fulfilled and continues most perfectly in the Kingdom of God.

For centuries there was no particular ritual for marriage in the Church. The two Christians expressed their

mutual love in the Church and received the blessing of God upon their union which was sealed in the holy eucharist

of Christ. Through the Church’s formal recognition of the couple’s unity, and its incorporation into the Body of

Christ, the marriage became Christian; that is, it became the created image of the divine love of God which is

eternal, unique, indivisible and unending.

When a special ritual was developed in the Church for the sacrament of marriage, it was patterned after the

sacrament of baptism-chrismation. The couple is addressed in a way similar to that of the individual in baptism.

They confess their faith and their love of God. They are led into the Church in procession.

They are prayed over and blessed. They listen to God’s Word. They are crowned with the crowns of God’s

glory to be his children and witnesses (martyrs) in this world, and heirs of the everlasting life of his Kingdom. They

fulfill their marriage, as all sacraments are fulfilled, by their reception together of holy communion in the Church.

There is no “legalism” in the sacrament of marriage. It is not a juridical contract. It contains no vows or oaths. It

is, in essence, the “baptizing and confirming” of human love in God by Christ in the Holy Spirit. It is the deification

of human love in the divine perfection and unity of the eternal Kingdom of God as revealed and given to man in the

Church.

The Christian sacrament of marriage is obviously available only to those who belong to the Church; that is, only

for baptized communicants. This remains the strict teaching and practice of the Church today. Because of the

tragedy of Christian disunity, however, a catholic may be married in the Church with a baptized non-Christian on the

condition that both members of the marriage sincerely work and pray for their full unity in Christ, without any

coercion or forceful domination by either one over the other. A Christian who enters the married state with a non-

Christian must have the sacramental prayers and blessings of the Church in order to remain a member of the Church

and a participant in the sacrament of holy communion.

To be continued…

JOAN SKINTA AT CARE CENTER

Woodhaven Care Ceeter, c/o Joan Skinta Room 107, 2400 McGinley Rd., Monroeville Pa 15146

GENERAL INFORMATION

For security reasons, during 11:00 AM Sunday Liturgy, the back door will be locked at 11:15 AM. Also,

please remember during the Weekly Liturgy, the back door will be locked. Please park your car in front of the

church.

LENTEN MESSAGE OF POPE FRANCIS

“We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God” (2 Cor 5:20)

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

This year the Lord grants us, once again, a favourable time to prepare to celebrate with renewed hearts the great

mystery of the death and resurrection of Jesus, the cornerstone of our personal and communal Christian life. We

must continually return to this mystery in mind and heart, for it will continue to grow within us in the measure that

we are open to its spiritual power and respond with freedom and generosity.

1. The paschal mystery as the basis of conversion

Christian joy flows from listening to, and accepting, the Good News of the death and resurrection of Jesus. This

kerygma sums up the mystery of a love “so real, so true, so concrete, that it invites us to a relationship of openness

and fruitful dialogue” (Christus Vivit, 117). Whoever believes this message rejects the lie that our life is ours to do

with as we will. Rather, life is born of the love of God our Father, from his desire to grant us life in abundance (cf.

Jn 10:10). If we listen instead to the tempting voice of the “father of lies” (Jn 8:44), we risk sinking into the abyss of

absurdity, and experiencing hell here on earth, as all too many tragic events in the personal and collective human

experience sadly bear witness.

In this Lent of 2020, I would like to share with every Christian what I wrote to young people in the Apostolic

Exhortation Christus Vivit: “Keep your eyes fixed on the outstretched arms of Christ crucified, let yourself be saved

over and over again. And when you go to confess your sins, believe firmly in his mercy which frees you of your

guilt. Contemplate his blood poured out with such great love, and let yourself be cleansed by it. In this way, you can

be reborn ever anew” (No. 123). Jesus’ Pasch is not a past event; rather, through the power of the Holy Spirit it is

ever present, enabling us to see and touch with faith the flesh of Christ in those who suffer.

2. The urgency of conversion

It is good to contemplate more deeply the paschal mystery through which God’s mercy has been bestowed upon

us. Indeed, the experience of mercy is only possible in a “face to face” relationship with the crucified and risen Lord

“who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal 2:20), in a heartfelt dialogue between friends. That is why prayer is so

important in Lent. Even more than a duty, prayer is an expression of our need to respond to God’s love which

always precedes and sustains us. Christians pray in the knowledge that, although unworthy, we are still loved. Prayer

can take any number of different forms, but what truly matters in God’s eyes is that it penetrates deep within us and

chips away at our hardness of heart, in order to convert us ever more fully to God and to his will.

In this favourable season, then, may we allow ourselves to be led like Israel into the desert (cf. Hos 2:14), so

that we can at last hear our Spouse’s voice and allow it to resound ever more deeply within us. The more fully we

are engaged with his word, the more we will experience the mercy he freely gives us. May we not let this time of

grace pass in vain, in the foolish illusion that we can control the times and means of our conversion to him.

3. God’s passionate will to dialogue with his children

The fact that the Lord once again offers us a favourable time for our conversion should never be taken for

granted. This new opportunity ought to awaken in us a sense of gratitude and stir us from our sloth. Despite the

sometimes tragic presence of evil in our lives, and in the life of the Church and the world, this opportunity to change

our course expresses God’s unwavering will not to interrupt his dialogue of salvation with us. In the crucified Jesus,

who knew no sin, yet for our sake was made to be sin (cf. 2 Cor 5:21), this saving will led the Father to burden his

Son with the weight of our sins, thus, in the expression of Pope Benedict XVI, “turning of God against himself”

(Deus Caritas Est, 12). For God also loves his enemies (cf. Mt 5:43-48).

The dialogue that God wishes to establish with each of us through the paschal mystery of his Son has nothing to

do with empty chatter, like that attributed to the ancient inhabitants of Athens, who “spent their time in nothing

except telling or hearing something new” (Acts 17:21). Such chatter, determined by an empty and superficial

curiosity, characterizes worldliness in every age; in our own day, it can also result in improper use of the media.

4. A richness to be shared, not kept for oneself

Putting the paschal mystery at the centre of our lives means feeling compassion towards the wounds of the

crucified Christ present in the many innocent victims of wars, in attacks on life, from that of the unborn to that of the

elderly, and various forms of violence. They are likewise present in environmental disasters, the unequal distribution

of the earth’s goods, human trafficking in all its forms, and the unbridled thirst for profit, which is a form of idolatry.

Today too, there is a need to appeal to men and women of good will to share, by almsgiving, their goods with

those most in need, as a means of personally participating in the building of a better world. Charitable giving makes

us more human, whereas hoarding risks making us less human, imprisoned by our own selfishness. We can and must

go even further, and consider the structural aspects of our economic life. For this reason, in the midst of Lent this

year, from 26 to 28 March, I have convened a meeting in Assisi with young economists, entrepreneurs and change-

makers, with the aim of shaping a more just and inclusive economy. As the Church’s magisterium has often

repeated, political life represents an eminent form of charity (cf. Pius XI, Address to the Italian Federation of

Catholic University Students, 18 December 1927). The same holds true for economic life, which can be approached

in the same evangelical spirit, the spirit of the Beatitudes.

I ask Mary Most Holy to pray that our Lenten celebration will open our hearts to hear God’s call to be

reconciled to himself, to fix our gaze on the paschal mystery, and to be converted to an open and sincere dialogue

with him. In this way, we will become what Christ asks his disciples to be: the salt of the earth and the light of the

world (cf. Mt 5:13-14).