Pope: May we be a Church on the move, sharing the joy of the Gospel

By Thaddeus Jones

Marking the conclusion of the XVIth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis presided over the Synod's closing Mass on Sunday, 27 October, in Saint Peter's Basilica. The Pope gave thanks to the Lord for the "journey we have made together" in the Synod on Synodality that began three years ago with local, regional and continental meetings, and culminated in month-long October meetings at the Vatican in 2023 and concluding in 2024.

The newly restored relic of the ancient Chair of Saint Peter and Bernini Baldachin featured prominently in the video coverage of the celebration. The Pope recalled how the Chair represents love, unity, and mercy, and the call to service according to Jesus' command to the Apostle Peter, while the Baldachin helps us rediscover the glory of the Holy Spirit, "the true focal point of the entire basilica."

Recognizing our own blindness

In his homily Pope Francis recalled today's Gospel narrative of the blind man Bartimaeus who cries out to the Lord, asking to regain his sight. Rediscovering his sight, Bartimaeus joyfully sets out to follow Jesus along the way.

The Pope explained how Bartimaeus represents the "inner blindness" we all can have that can hold us back from "the dynamism of life" and having any hope. This can also affect us as Church, the Pope added, where we can become "incapable of perceiving the presence of the Lord, unprepared to face the challenges of reality" and at times unable to respond adequately "to the questions of so many who cry out to us."

The Pope warned that "a sedentary Church" that "confines itself to the margins of reality" risks remaining blind and will "fail to grasp the urgency of giving a pastoral response to the many problems of our world."

Crying out to the Lord

By remembering that "the Lord is passing by", the Church can be like Bartimaeus as a community of disciples who hear the Lord, go out to seek Him, and "feel the joy of salvation...awakened by the power of the Gospel." The Church in turn does this "when it takes up the cry of all the women and men of the world" who seek the joy of the Gospel, wish to rediscover faith, or are set back by suffering, poverty or marginalization.

Following the Lord

Just as Bartimaeus cried out to the Lord in faith and hope, may we do the same, the Pope said, as we also recognize God's action in our lives and  set out to follow him. Whenever we are set back by weakness or inertia, may we find the strength and courage "to arise and continue along the path", returning to the Lord and his Gospel.

As the Gospel recounts that Bartimaeus “followed (the Lord) on the way”, the Pope suggested how this offers an image of the synodal Church when the Lord calls us, helps us up when we are lacking inertia or have fallen, and restores our sight so that "we can perceive the anxieties and sufferings of the world in the light of the Gospel." 

Bringing the light of the Gospel

The Pope emphasized that we need to be "a Church on her feet...not a silent Church, but a Church that embraces the cry of humanity" and is enlightened by Christ bringing the light of the Gospel to others.  

In conclusion, the Pope gave thanks once again for the synodal journey undertaken and prayed that we may "continue our journey together with confidence." And like Bartimaeus, may be "take heart" in hearing the Lord's call, entrusting our blindness to the Lord, rising up and once again carrying "the joy of the Gospel through the streets of the world."