• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
        • Sports News
        • Official Clergy Assignments
        • Schools News
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Question Corner
          • George Weigel
          • Effie Caldarola
          • John Garvey
          • Father Ed Dougherty, M.M.
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie & Television Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
        • Recipes
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • CR Media platforms
        • Electronic Edition
  • Advertising
  • Shop
        • Purchase Photos
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • Magazine Subscriptions
        • Archdiocesan Directory
  • CR Radio
  • News Tips
  • Subscribe
Pope Francis presents a Bible to a person at his residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, at the Vatican Jan. 24, 2021. Pope Francis had been scheduled to celebrate Mass in St. Peter's Basilica to mark Sunday of the Word of God but was not present due to a bout of sciatica. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

God’s word is ‘a love letter to us’ to be read every day, pope says

January 25, 2021
By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
Filed Under: Bible, Feature, News, Vatican, World News

Archbishop Rino Fisichella presides over Mass marking Sunday of the Word of God in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican Jan. 24, 2021. Pope Francis had been scheduled to celebrate the Mass but was not present due to a bout of sciatica. (CNS photo/Romano Siciliani, pool)

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Unable to preside over Mass on the Sunday of the Word of God because of a recurring bout of sciatica, Pope Francis’ homily was read by Archbishop Rino Fisichella, head of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization, which coordinates the annual celebration.

However, the pope did lead the recitation of the Angelus as scheduled Jan. 24.

In his written homily for the Sunday of the Word of God, the pope underlined the importance of stepping away from distractions and making time each day for reading even just a brief passage of the Bible, particularly the Gospels, where God’s Word continues to say, “Do not be afraid, I am with you. I am at your side and I will always be there.”

God will never retreat from “our human condition or tire of it,” he wrote. “We must believe and proclaim that God has drawn near to us, that we have been forgiven and shown mercy.”

God’s word is “a love letter, written to us by the one who knows us best. In reading it, we again hear his voice, see his face and receive his Spirit,” the pope wrote.

Plagued by sciatica attacks for years, the pope’s absence from the Mass Jan. 24 was the second time he recently altered his schedule because of the painful condition; sciatica prevented him from presiding over the traditional end-of-the-year prayer service Dec. 31 and Mass for the feast of Mary, Mother of God, the following day.

Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said Jan. 23 that the pope also would be postponing his meeting with the Vatican diplomatic corps Jan. 25 and that Cardinal Kurt Koch would take his place the same evening at a prayer service to close the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

In the homily he wrote for the Mass Jan. 24, Pope Francis said people should always carry a Bible with them, “in our pocket, on our phone.”

“Let us give it a worthy place in our homes” and remember to read at least a few verses daily, Pope Francis said, because its message “can touch our hearts” and “make us feel God’s closeness to us and fill us with courage as we make our way through life.”

But people will also need to “ask the Lord for the strength to turn off the television and open the Bible, to turn off our cellphone and open the Gospel,” he wrote.

About 100 people, all wearing masks, were in the socially distanced congregation for the Mass at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter’s Basilica.

The Book of the Gospels was placed on a stand that was used during every session of the Second Vatican Council and special editions of the Bible were distributed at the end of the Mass to a group of faithful, including a professional soccer player, a woman from Pakistan studying in Rome to be a Scripture scholar and a physician specializing in infectious diseases. A woman who is blind received a copy of the Gospel of Mark in braille.

The Vatican said later that the people who received the Bibles also met with Pope Francis at his residence.

Livestreaming his Angelus address from the library of the Apostolic Palace, the pope said salvation is a gift of love that calls for conversion.

Jesus “invites us to recognize ourselves as in need of God and his grace; to have a balanced attitude with regard to earthly goods; to be welcoming and humble toward others; to know and fulfill ourselves in the encounter with and service of others,” the pope said.

The pope also led a short moment of silence for Edwin, a 46-year-old from Nigeria who was homeless and died from the cold not far from St. Peter’s Square Jan. 20.

“Let us think what this man was feeling, 46 years old, in the cold, ignored by everyone, abandoned, even by us.”

Also see

World’s desire for unity persists since World War II, pope says

Use diplomacy to fix injustices sparking conflicts, pope tells ambassadors

Pope, Council of Cardinals discussed the role of women in the church

Humanity must build alliances supporting peace, creation, pope says

Fighting in Holy Land, bombing in Philippines prompt prayers from ailing Pope

Answer Advent call for vigilance with charity, confession, pope suggests

Copyright © 2021 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

Print Print

Primary Sidebar

Carol Glatz

Catholic News Service is a leading agency for religious news. Its mission is to report fully, fairly and freely on the involvement of the church in the world today.

View all posts from this author

For the latest news delivered twice a week via email or text message, sign up to receive our free enewsletter.

| MOST POPULAR |

  • Quirk of calendar requires two obligations for Masses at Christmas time
  • Wearing a rosary can make a Latino a target for police, historian says
  • Powerful masterpiece: Beloved rendition of Handel’s Messiah coming to Baltimore Basilica
  • Univ. of Notre Dame names Father Robert Dowd its new president
  • Movie Review: ‘Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé’

| Latest Local News |

Choosing your gaze: Hispanic Youth Ministry Retreat provides a weekend of spiritual growth, unity

Catholic High crowned again as Baltimore’s best girls private school by magazine

Baltimore City approves inclusive housing bill

| Latest World News |

World’s desire for unity persists since World War II, pope says

Use diplomacy to fix injustices sparking conflicts, pope tells ambassadors

GOP presidential candidates debate absent Trump, gender transitions for minors

| Catholic Review Radio |

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

Footer

Our Vision

Real Life. Real Faith. 

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • World’s desire for unity persists since World War II, pope says
  • Use diplomacy to fix injustices sparking conflicts, pope tells ambassadors
  • A new baby for Advent
  • GOP presidential candidates debate absent Trump, gender transitions for minors
  • Choosing your gaze: Hispanic Youth Ministry Retreat provides a weekend of spiritual growth, unity
  • ‘You kill your crickets, eh?’ Discovering Dickens’ other Christmas tale
  • Catholic High crowned again as Baltimore’s best girls private school by magazine
  • Proposed referendum for Irish Constitution calls for widening the definition of family
  • Pope, Council of Cardinals discussed the role of women in the church

Search

Membership

Catholic Media Assocation

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2023 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED