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It was the pope’s first general audience since he underwent colon surgery.
Pope Francis said on Wednesday that the dramatic conversion of St. Paul should remind us that God has a plan for our lives.
At his general audience on Wednesday, Pope Francis warned against preachers who sow division and mistrust online.
Catholics should take courage in the fact that even as Jesus was dying on the cross, his most agonizing moment on earth, he was praying for them, Pope Francis said Wednesday.
Pope Francis said Wednesday that just as Jesus prayed for his friends while on earth, he also prays for each person eternally before the Father in heaven.
Pope Francis confronted the “scandal” of prayers that seem to go unanswered during his Wednesday general audience by pointing to the hope found in the Resurrection, “when all human longings … will be fulfilled.”
Pope Francis acknowledged Wednesday that praying is hard, but suggested ways to overcome common obstacles.
Pope Francis said Wednesday that persistent prayer can lead to miracles “because prayer goes directly to the heart of the tenderness of God.”
Pope Francis on Wednesday encouraged people to embrace the contemplative dimension of being human both in prayer and their daily lives.
Pope Francis said Wednesday that Christian meditation is a way of encountering Jesus and not “a withdrawal into ourselves.”
Pope Francis said Wednesday that an essential task of the Church today is to teach people how to pray.
Pope Francis said on Wednesday that the communion of saints means that Christians are never alone in the darkest moments of their lives.
At his general audience, Pope Francis said that Holy Week is a time to “remember the ‘sacrificed lambs,’ the innocent victims of wars, dictatorships, everyday violence, abortions.”
Pope Francis said Wednesday that it is essential for Christians to participate in the liturgy and the sacraments to encounter the Real Presence of Jesus.
Pope Francis urged Catholics on Wednesday to praise God not only in happy times, “but above all in difficult moments.”
Catholics can change the world by being “bearers of gratitude,” Pope Francis said at the general audience Wednesday.
Prayer is so powerful that “even death trembles when a Christian prays,” Pope Francis said at the general audience Wednesday.
Pope Francis said Wednesday that God does not wait for us to stop sinning to start loving us, but always holds out hope for the conversion of even the most hardened sinner.
Catholics risk going astray if they neglect the four essential characteristics of Church life, Pope Francis said at the general audience Wednesday.
After nine weeks of public general audiences, Pope Francis’ weekly gathering will again take place behind closed doors, the Vatican said Thursday.