Pope Francis declared the 25th and 26th of May 2024 to be the celebration of the first World Children’s Day at the Vatican. “Behold, I make all things new” (Rev 21:5) is the theme for this year’s event. In his letter addressed to children, Pope Francis says to them, “All of you, girls and boys, are a source of joy for your parents and your families, but also for our human family and for the Church, in which each of us is like a link in a great chain stretching from the past to the future and cov

Sr Oluwakemi Akinleye fsp

Children are precious gifts to their families and to humanity. Pope Francis reminds us that “Children, everywhere, are a sign of every person’s desire to grow and flourish. You remind us that we are all children, brothers and sisters. We would not be alive unless others brought us into this world, nor could we grow without having others to love and from whom to receive love.” Where ever they are, children deserve to be loved and protected.

Raising children in the digital era

Good parental guidance is needed at every stage of a chid’s life. Today, digital technologies  give children more learning opportunities than in the past but they can also lead them to being exposed to vices such as pornography and violence at an early age. Therefore, the responsibility of parents spending more time with and guding their children can not be underestimated.

When asked about the difficulties parents face today in raising children, Barrister Mrs Virginia Mudimu, a mother and guardian from Zimbabwe, spoke about the fact that “Nowadays, parents are so busy trying to make ends meet, that they leave their children very often with television and phones. These devices are needed and useful but children must be guided on  their proper use.” She also reminds parents of the invaluable necessity of spending quality time with their children.

Do not forget those other Children

In a world where gross inequality exists between the haves and the have-nots, Pope Francis invites children to remember “all those other children and young people who are already battling illness and hardship, in hospital or at home, and those who even now are being cruelly robbed of their childhood.”

Prayer as a special secret

Teaching children how to pray and helping them grow in having a loving relationship with God is a priceless gift to them. Pope Francis shares his special secret with the children, one of having a life of prayer. “Now, I am going to share a special secret with you. If we really want to be happy, we need to pray, to pray a lot, to pray every day, because prayer connects us directly to God. Prayer fills our hearts with light and warmth; it helps us to do everything with confidence and peace of mind.”

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During his weekly General Audience, Pope Francis continues his catechesis series on virtues and vices, this week focusing on the sins of envy and vainglory, suggesting there are remedies to each, both of which involve making ourselves less at the center, embracing weakness, and letting God operate in our lives.

By Deborah Castellano Lubov
28 February 2024

Envy and vainglory are dangerous vices, but there are remedies to combat each.

Pope Francis suggested this during his weekly General Audience on Wednesday morning in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall, as he continued his catechesis series on virtues and vices, this week examining envy and vainglory. 

Given the Pope’s recent flu-like symptoms, the Holy Father opted for an official of the Vatican Secretariat of State, Msgr. Filippo Ciampanelli, to read his remarks on his behalf, as he has done for the Holy Father on other occasions.

Speaking first about envy, the Pope recalled the sin, even as early as in the story of Cain and Abel, proved to be a destructive force fuelled by resentment towards others, that often leads to deadly hatred. 

“Envy,” he observed, “is an evil that has not only been investigated in the Christian sphere: it has attracted the attention of philosophers and wise men of every culture.”

God’s ‘math’ is different

At envy’s basis, the Holy Father suggested, is a relationship of hate and love. “One desires the evil for the other, but secretly desires to be like him.

“His good fortune,” he continued, “seems to us an injustice: surely, we think to ourselves,  we would deserve his successes or good fortune much more!

At the root of this vice, he noted, is “a false idea of God,” where “we do not accept that God has His own ‘math,’ different from ours.”

Remedies to envy and vainglory

The remedy to envy, the Pope suggested, lies in Saint Paul’s exhortation: “Love one another with brotherly affection, compete in esteeming one another.”

Meanwhile, vainglory, which is excessive or ostentatious pride especially in one’s achievements, he said, is marked by an inflated self-esteem and “a craving for constant praise,” “frequently prone to using other people for one’s own ends.”

This sin, the Holy Father pointed out, goes hand in hand with “the demon” of envy, saying both vices are characteristic of a person “who aspires to be the centre of the world.”

God’s power made perfect in weakness

The vainglorious person, the Pope indicated, is completely self-absorbed.

To combat this vice, the Pope suggested following Saint Paul’s example of boasting of his weakness rather than achievements, which “offers an effective way for overcoming vainglory.”

Pope Francis urged the faithful to imitate Saint Paul in knowing that God’s grace is sufficient, since His power is made perfect in weakness.

As we accept and even embrace our weaknesses, the Holy Father suggested, the power of Christ will set us free for a more generous love of others.

Jose F. Cardinal Advincula
University of Santo Tomas, Manila
February 17, 2024

Rev. Fr. Filemon dela Cruz, Prior Provincial of the Dominican Province of the Philippines; Rev. Fr. Richard Ang, O.P., university rector; my dear Dominican fathers and brothers; administrators, faculty, personnel, and students of the university; dearly beloved in Christ,

Together, we walk for life.

This is the theme we have chosen for our Walk for Life 2024. We want to highlight the fact that in life, we cannot walk alone. As we uphold, promote, and defend the sacredness of life and the dignity of every person, we cannot be alone. We need one another. We need to journey together. An African proverb tells us, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Indeed, our defense and promotion of a culture of life in our society today is not a short-term engagement or a temporary battle. From experience, we know that as long as there are subtle and not so subtle attacks against the family and human life, we will be there to register our firm objection and make sure that our united stand is heard.

Today, I would like to honor and appreciate all of you who have been at the forefront of our mission to proclaim the Gospel of Life, a message lovingly received day after day by the Church and preached with dauntless fidelity as good news to the people of every age and culture. For some of you, this has been your life-long task and advocacy. Thanks to all of you, missionaries for the Gospel of Life, we can fulfill our prophetic role in a rapidly changing world that is oftentimes more welcoming to a civilization of death and so hostile to a civilization of life and love. I encourage you to continue to be passionate in your ministry. Do not be disheartened if sometimes you feel that what you have been doing is not even noticed or ends up in an apparent failure. Take courage. You are not alone. As the prophet Isaiah said in the first reading, “The Lord will guide you alwaysand give you plenty even on the parched land.He will renew your strength,and you shall be like a watered garden,like a spring whose water never fails.”

The theme “Together, we walk for life,” is also a challenge for us to explore new pathways to respond better to the dominant values of our contemporary times. Kailangan na rin nating harapin ang katotohanan na napakaraming isyu sa pamilya at lipunan ngayon ang hindi na maaaring sagutin ng “Huwag ka nang magtanong. Sumunod ka na lang.” We need to engage in more listening and dialogue. This is part of walking for life. Yes, we are clear about our teachings on the different issues connected with life and family. But we also need to rethink our approaches, methodologies, and strategies. How do we deal with the dilemmas and complexities of modern families, the irregular situations in the home, the diversity in understanding identity and personhood, the wounds caused and inflicted because of polarization even in the home? Pope Francis has pointed us to the style of synodality so we can listen and discern together. It is important that all of us here in this walk must help each other to become a synodal Church in mission.

Jesus, in our Gospel today from St. Luke, gave us the best example of how to walk for life together. He dined and dialogued with the known sinners of His time. He called Levi, a tax collector, to follow Him. He attended the banquet which Levi prepared in his house. He had no problem being on the same table with a large crowd of tax collectors! He told the scribes and pharisees who were complaining about his impertinent behavior, “Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do.

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