“TRUE, a worldwide tragedy like the Covid-19 pandemic momentarily revived the sense that we are a global community, all in the same boat, where one person’s problems are the problems of all.
Once more we realized that no one is saved alone, we can only be save together. As I said in those days, ‘the storm has exposed our vulnerability and uncovered those false and superfluous certainties around which we constructed our daily schedules, our projects, our habits and priorities.
Amid this storm, the façade of those stereotypes with which we camouflaged our egos, always worrying about appearances, has fallen away, revealing once more the ineluctable and blessed awareness that we are part of one another, that we are brothers and sisters of one another’>” (Pope Francis, “Fratello Tutti Social Friendship, 2020)
Let us pray, “Come Holy Spirit, show us your beauty, reflected in all the peoples of the earth, so that we may discover anew that all are important and all are necessary, different faces of the one humanity that God so loves. Amen.
In the Encyclical Letter above, Pope Francis presented one of St. Francis of Assisi’s counsels in which “he calls for a love that transcends the barriers of geography and distance and declares blessed all those who love their brother as much when he is far away from him as when he is with him.” In other words, assort of global fraternity that “allows us to acknowledge, appreciate and love each person regardless of physical proximity, regardless of where he or she was born or lives.”
Of all the known saints, St. Francis is one of my favorites. St. Mother Teresa is another. Both saw our Lord Jesus in every person most especially in the oppressed, poor and/or sick.
It is a sad commentary, that despite the period from St. Francis up to Pope Francis, racism, like the covid-19 pandemic, continues to rampage our world. It is one of the symptoms of our sick global human society. Hence, the need for Pope Francis to remind us again of this malady.
God’s second greatest commandment of “Loving our neighbors as we love ourselves” remains elusive. Unfortunately, there are many Christians in the world who are guilty of racism. Racists fail to appreciate God’s desire for the diversity of God’s creation. Many of us never learn to respect God’s desire for diversity rather than a monotonous world. The beauty of the differences of color, size, culture, language and religion of people and the diversity of other creatures and things are beyond compare.
Look at the fish of the sea. These are of various sizes, shapes, and color. Look at the birds in the sky, many varieties. And look at God’s greatest creation man and women of different sizes, colors and cultures. Clearly, God loves diversities in his creations.
Anti-Semitism movements’, slavery, and white supremacy, undoubtedly, are satanic influences. Despite the first coming of our Lord Jesus Christ on earth, it seems that mankind as a whole, is back to his evil ways. Still small and big wars proliferate worldwide. The specter of racism continue to haunt the people of USA. Will this ultimately divide the nation? Hence, the imperative of the second coming of Christ and His reign for a thousand years.
In the meantime, Pope Francis admonished us: “It is my desire that, in this time, by acknowledging the dignity of each human person, we can contribute to the rebirth of a universal aspiration to fraternity. Brotherhood between all men and women. Here we have a splendid secret that shows us how to dream and to turn our life into a wonderful adventure.
No one can face life in isolation. We need a community that supports and helps us, in which we can help one another to keep looking ahead. How important it is to dream together… By ourselves, we risk seeing mirages, things that are not there. Dreams, on the other hand, are built together.
Let us dream, then as a single human family, as fellow travellers sharing the same flesh as children of the same earth which is our common home, each of us bringing the richness of his or her beliefs and convictions, each of us with his or her own voice, brothers and sisters all.”
No doubt, racism hinders the development of universal social friendship. Knowing this reality, is the first step to global fraternity. Reformation is not enough. Transformation of the world by our Lord Jesus is required. Human efforts without God’s transforming grace will not suffice. To required. Human efforts without God’s transforming grace will not suffice. To inspire us to seek global brotherhood, let’s pray Pope Francis’ prayer below:
“A Prayer to the Creator”
“Lord, Father of our human family, your created all human beings equal in dignity. Pour forth into our hearts a fraternal spirit and inspire in us a dream of renewed encounter, dialogue, justice and peace.
Move us to create healthier societies and a more dignified world, a world without hunger, poverty, violence and war.
May our human hearts be open to all the peoples and nations of the earth. May we recognize the goodness and beauty that You have sown in each of us, and thus forge bonds of unity, common projects and shared dreams. Amen.”
