The primary and indispensable role of women in transmitting the faith to new generations: this was the focus of Pope Francis’ remarks to the faithful following the readings of the day at Mass on January 26, 2015 in the chapel of the Santa Marta residence in the Vatican. On the day when the Church celebrates the memory of Saints Timothy and Titus – bishops and disciples of St Paul the Apostle-- Pope Francis commented in particular on the second letter of Paul to Timothy.
Paul reminds Timothy of where his “sincere
faith” comes from: his faith comes from the Holy Spirit, “through his
mother and grandmother.” Pope Francis said, “Mothers and grandmothers are the
ones who [in primis]
transmit the faith.” The Holy Father went on to say:
It is one thing to
pass on the faith, and another to teach the matters of faith. Faith is a gift:
it is not possible to study Faith. We study the things of faith, yes, to
understand it better, but with study [alone] one never comes to Faith. Faith is
a gift of the Holy Spirit, which surpasses all [“academic”] formation.
Faith, moreover, is a
gift that passes from generation to generation, through the “beautiful work of
mothers and grandmothers, the fine work of the women who play those roles,” in
a family, “whether they be maids or aunts,” who transmit the faith:
It occurs to me: why
is it mainly women, who to pass on the faith? Simply because the one who
brought us Jesus is a woman. It is the path chosen by Jesus. He wanted to have
a mother: the gift of faith comes to us through women, as Jesus came to us
through Mary.
“We need,” said Pope Francis, “in our own day
to consider whether women really are aware of the duty they have to transmit
the faith.” Paul invites Timothy to guard the Faith, the deposit of Faith,
avoiding “empty pagan chatter, empty chatter of the world.” He went on to
say, “We have – all of us – received the gift of faith: we have to keep it, at
least in order that it not become watered down, so that it remains strong, with
the power of the Holy Spirit who gave it to us.” We keep the faith by
cherishing and nurturing it every day:
If we do not have this
care, every day, to revive this gift of God which is Faith, but rather let
faith weaken, become diluted, Faith ends up being a culture: ‘Yes, but, yes,
yes, I am a Christian, yes yes,’ – a mere culture – or a gnosis, [specialized
kind of] knowledge: ‘Yes, I know well all the matters of Faith, I know the
catechism’. But how do you live your faith? This, then, is the importance of
reviving every day this gift: to bring it to life.
“We ask the Lord’s grace,” he concluded, “that
we might have a sincere Faith, a Faith that is not negotiable depending on the
opportunities that come, a Faith that every day I try to revive or at least ask
the Holy Spirit to revive it, and make it bear much fruit.”
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