his week, the Pope stopped the pope-mobile so that these two children could accompany him to greet the pilgrims during his tour of the plaza.
Then, in his catechesis, he reflected on how the Bible shows that God corrects with mercy, and never gets tired of forgiving, no matter how serious the sin.
POPE FRANCIS
"God speaks lovingly to the conscience of his children so that they repent and allow themselves to be loved again by Him. Salvation is always a gratuitous gift of God. But it involves the decision to listen and be corrected by Him."
The Pope is reflecting on mercy each week. This week, he has pointed out that God is not limited to forgive; he also corrects people to make them better.
POPE FRANCIS
"God acts to us as a parent who loves his children, who rescues them, cares for them, and forgives them. And who also educates and corrects them when they are wrong, to help them become responsible, to grow in goodness and in freedom.”
The Pope digressed from his speech for a moment in order to ask Catholics to not accept alms from those who have earned money dishonestly.
POPE FRANCIS
"It's money derived from the blood of many people who are exploited, abused, enslaved, and poorly paid. I would say, please, take that check and burn it. The people of God, the Church does not need dirty money but rather open hearts to God's mercy.”
The hundreds of men and women who were sitting in the front row in greenuniforms did not go unnoticed by the Pope. They were students learning to be firefighters. Pope Francis thanked them and gave them a special blessing.