On December 8th, 2015, the "Holy Door" will be opened in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. Pope Francis, when addressing the Synod of Bishops, invited all families and all the Church to meet at the threshold of this open door. The Church was encourage to open her doors, to go forth with the Lord towards His sons and daughters who walk together, at times uncertain, at times lost, in these difficult times. Christian families, in particular, have been encouraged to open the door to the Lord who waits to enter, bringing His blessings. But the Lord never forces the door; He asks permission to enter through ours, although His doors are always open.
"There are still places in the world where doors are not locked, but there are also many where reinforced doors have become normal. We must not accept the idea of having to apply this system to our whole life, to live within the family, in the city, in society, and far less to in the life of the Church. .. An inhospitable Church, like a family closed in on itself, mortifies the Gospel and makes the world arid. No more reinforced doors in the Church!" he exclaimed. "The symbolic management of doors -thresholds, passages, frontiers- has become crucial. The door must protect, certainly, but not repudiate. The door must not be force, on the contrary, it is necessary to ask permission to enter, as hospitality shines in the freedom of welcome, and darkens in the arrogance of invasion. The door is opened frequently, to see if there is anyone waiting outside, who perhaps does not have the courage or even the strength to knock. How many people no longer trust... to knock on the door of our Christian heart, at the doors of our Churches... We have lost their trust; please, we must not let this happen. he door says many things about the house and also the Church". "We ourselves are the guardians and servants of the Door of God, who is Jesus", affirmed Francis. "Jesus is the door that lets us enter and leave. Because God's Flock is a refuge, not a prison... we must pass by the door and listen to Jesus' voice; if we hear His tone of voice, we are safe and sound... If the guardian hears the voice of the Shepherd, then he opens and he lets in all the sheep that the Shepherd brings, all of them, including those lost in the woods, that the Good Shepherd has gone to find. The sheep are not chosen by the guardian, but rather by the Good Shepherd. The guardian too obeys the voice of his Shepherd. The Church is the door to the house of the Lord but she is not the proprietor of the house of the Lord". The Pope concluded his catechesis by reiterating that the holy Family of Nazareth knew well what was meant by an open or closed door for someone awaiting the birth of a child, for those who do not have shelter, and for those who must flee danger. May Christian families make the threshold of their home a little sign of the great Door for God's mercy and welcome. It is precisely in this way that the Church must be recognized, in every corner of the earth, "as the guardian of a God who knocks to enter, with the welcome of a God who does not close the door in your face with the excuse that you do not belong to the household". Vatican City, November 8, 2015, General Audience: THE HOLY DOOR IS THE DOOR OF GOD'S MERCY
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Father's Blog
Rev. Fr. Christopher Tracey
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