The Pope Reflection

0:00

God has given human beings life so that we can flourish, and yet there are so many who are denied their rightful dignity. Let us pray for this fragile gift of life, for respect and protection in all its stages.

As you listen to these words from the Psalms, notice how intimately God is involved in creating and sustaining human life. how do you experience that closeness right now as you pray?

1:31

It was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes beheld my unformed substance. In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed.

2:45

Kairos

Are you able to see your life from God's point of view? God created you in the beginning, God sustains you in every moment and God will continue to hold you in being for the rest of time. Let your mind's eye rove over your life up to this point, noticing how God has always been present to you in every joy and struggle you have passed through.

As you become more aware of this precious gift of life, consider some of those whose lives have been demeaned, degraded or destroyed, whether through abuse, oppression or violence. How does God look upon each one of them? You might discover in yourself the desire to uplift them, honour them and protect them, or simply to hold each one of them in prayer.

Let yourself marvel at the intricate web of life that spans the whole human community, and how deeply God is involved with each of its members. A single thread of life broken in one part affects the integrity of the whole. Are there practical steps you could take to strengthen the culture of life in your community, and in our world?

5:50

If you live your life with greater dignity, then you will give unconscious permission for others to do the same. Speak to God about what it means for you to live with dignity. As you listen, do you notice any areas of resistance in yourself? Ask God for the courage to live with greater dignity today, so you can bring greater dignity to others.

The Psalm we heard invites us to see our lives as kind of book. We are writing each page by our lives, but God has already read the text from beginning to end. Spend a few moments speaking to God about the pages of your life you are writing at the moment, and ask God to show you how to write the pages of your future so that all human life might be respected and protected.

8:20

Good Father, I know you are with me. Here I am on this new day. Place my heart once more next to the Heart of your Son Jesus, who is giving himself for me and who comes to me in the Eucharist. May your Holy Spirit make me his friend and apostle, available for his mission of compassion. I place in your hands my joys and hopes, my works and sufferings, everything that I am and have, in communion with my brothers and sisters of this Worldwide Prayer Network. With Mary, I offer you my day for the mission of the Church and for the prayer intentions of the Pope and my Bishop for this month. Amen.