In his off-the-cuff address to religious and seminarians in Georgia, the Pope said: “Marriage is not being destroyed with arms but with ideas. There are ideological colonisations taking place. The gender theory is a big enemy”.
“Today there is a world war aimed at destroying marriage,” Francis said today, addressing religious and seminarians at the Church of the Assumption in Tbilisi. But his most powerful words were in response to the testimony of a mother, Irina, who mentioned the gender theory.
“Marriage is the most beautiful thing God created,” Francis said. “The Bible tells us that God created man and woman in his own image, in other words, man and woman become one flesh, they are the image of God”. Francis then talked about the “difficulties that come with marriage, the misunderstandings and the temptations” and about the solution sought through “divorce: I’ll look for someone else, she’ll look for another man and we’ll have a fresh start. Irina, do you know who pays the price of divorce? Both pay. But they are not the only ones, God pays, because when one single flesh divorces, it sullies God’s image. It is the children who pay the price. You have no idea, dear brothers and sisters, how children suffer, young children, when they see their parents argue and separate.”
Couples “need to do their utmost to salvage their marriage,” he went on to say. Is it normal for married couples to fight? Yes, it is normal. It happens and sometimes plates fly. But if it’s true love, you make up straight away. You know why? Because the “cold war” that follows the day after is very dangerous indeed. How many marriages are saved when the couple has the courage to exchange a caress and make up at the end of the day instead of having an argument.”
“It is true,” the Pope continued, “there are more complex situations, when the devil gets involved and places a woman in front of a man and she appears more beautiful that his wife. Or he puts a man in front of a woman and he appears to be a better man compared to her husband… When this temptation arises, seek help immediately. How does one help couples? By welcoming them, showing closeness, giving guidance, through discernment and by integrating them into the Church body. The Catholic community needs to help save marriages.” Francis then repeated the three “golden words” of married life. “When one does something for the other are you capable of saying thank you? And if one of the two gets up to mischief, are you capable of saying sorry? And if you have a plan, are you capable of asking for the other person’s opinion? Three words: permission, gratitude, apology.”
“If people use these words in their marriages, these will endure,” Francis said. “You, Irina, spoke about a great enemy of marriage in today’s world: the gender theory. Today there is a world war that aims to destroy marriage, it is not being destroyed with arms but with ideas. Ideological colonisations are destroying it. So we need to defend against these ideological colonisations, if there are problems and make peace as soon as possible, before the day ends.”
Referring back to the questions put to him by a priest and a seminarian, the Pope spoke about the importance of keeping the faith alive by listening to grandparents and proclaiming the faith to the young. He recalled the strength of Georgian women in transmitting the faith, mentioning Jesus’ mother and wife, the Church, reminding those present that the Church is “a woman”: “It seems the Lord is especially keen to foster women’s faith”. He then advised the consecrated “not to back down when the going gets tough” because “all of us are sinners, all of us are in need of confession, but mercy, Jesus’ love is greater than our sins”.
The Pope gave a piece of advice: “I ask you to please protect us from worldliness. Jesus spoke out very strongly against worldliness and in his speech at the Last Supper he asked the Father to protect them against worldliness. Let us ask for this grace, all together.”
He ended by talking about ecumenism. “Never argue, let us leave it to the theologians to study the abstract aspects of the Church. What should I do with a friend, a neighbour, an Orthodox person? I must be open, I must be a friend. But should I put pressure on them to convert? Proselytism is a big sin against ecumenism! Never seek to proselytise the Orthodox. They are our brothers and sisters, disciples of Jesus Christ”. So Catholics must not condemn but instead show “friendship and walk together, pray for one another and perform works of charity together when possible.”
