"Friends, each of us is much more than our labels." Pope Francis has no doubt, and with these words, he encourages the young people detained in the Centro de Cumplimiento de Menores Las Garzas de Pacora. It is the first time that a pontiff at WYD listens to the confessions of some young detained in a juvenile prison. It happens here today in Panama, where he denounces: "How painful it is to see a society concentrate its energies more on complaining rather than on creating opportunities”.
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The Pontiff traveled 42 kilometers by car to reach the district of Pacora, where he confessed 5 young prisoners, 4 boys and one girl - obviously there won’t be any images - and greeted the 450 young detainees who participated in the penitential liturgy. Upon arrival, the Pope toured the streets of this peripheral side of town aboard the Popemobile as a sign of closeness to its inhabitants.
In his homily the Bishop of Rome says: "He receives sinners and eats with them", We just heard this at the beginning of the Gospel reading. They are the words muttered by some of the Pharisees and scribes who were greatly upset and scandalized by the way Jesus was acting”, he recalls. “With those words, they tried to discredit and dismiss Jesus in the eyes of everyone. But all they managed to do was point out one of his most ordinary yet distinctive ways of relating to others: “He receives sinners and eats with them”.
“Jesus is not afraid to approach those who, for countless reasons, were the object of social hatred, like the publicans – we know that tax collectors grew rich by exploiting their own people and they caused great resentment – or like those who were called sinners because of the gravity of their faults, errors and mistakes. He does this because he knows that in heaven there is more joy for a single converted sinner than for ninety-nine righteous people who do not need conversion”. Whereas the Pharisees and the scribes were content to grumble or complain, restricting and blocking any kind of change, conversion and inclusion, Jesus approaches and engages, even putting his reputation at risk. He asks us, as he always does, to lift our eyes to a horizon that can renew our life and our history. Two very different and contradictory approaches. A sterile, fruitless approach – that of murmuring and gossip – and another, one that invites to change and conversion, the approach of the Lord”. Francis notes that " Many people do not tolerate this attitude of Jesus; they don’t like it. First by complaining under their breath and then by shouting, they make known their displeasure, seeking to discredit his way of acting and that of all those who are with him. They do not accept and they reject this option of drawing near to others and giving them another chance. Where people’s lives are concerned, it seems easier to post signs and labels that petrify and stigmatize not only people’s past but also their present and future. Signs that ultimately serve only to divide: these people are good and those are bad; these people are the righteous and those the sinners".
This attitude “spoils everything, because it erects an invisible wall that makes people think that, if we marginalize, separate and isolate others, all our problems will magically be solved. When a society or community allows this, and does nothing more than complain and backbite, it enters into a vicious circle of division, blame and condemnation. It takes the social approach of marginalization, exclusion and confrontation, leading it to say irresponsibly, like Caiaphas: “It is expedient that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation should not perish”. Normally the thread is cut at the thinnest part: that of the most vulnerable and defenceless”. Francis then exclaims: " How painful it is to see a society concentrate its energies more on complaining and backbiting than on fighting tirelessly to create opportunities and change!”. Instead, “The Gospel, on the other hand, is completely characterized by the other approach, which is nothing more or less than that of God’s own heart. The Lord wants to celebrate when he sees his children returning home. Jesus testified to this by showing to the very end the merciful love of the Father”. A love that has no time for complaining, but seeks to break the circle of useless, needless, cold and detached criticism, and faces head-on the complexity of life and of every situation. A love that initiates a process capable of providing ways and means for integration and transformation, healing and forgiveness: a path of salvation”.
By eating with tax collectors and sinners, “Jesus shatters the mentality that separates, excludes, isolates and falsely separates “the good and the bad”. He does not do this by decree, or simply with good intentions, or with slogans or sentimentality. He does it by creating relationships capable of enabling new processes; investing in and celebrating every possible step forward”. In this way, “he also breaks with another form of complaining, one even harder to detect, one that “stifles dreams” because it keeps whispering: “you can’t do it, you can’t do it”. The whisper that haunts those who repent of their sin and acknowledge their mistakes, but don’t think that they can change. It makes them think that those who are born publicans will always die publicans; and that is not true”, the Pope assures us.
Francis then strongly encourages: "Friends, each of us is much more than our labels. That is what Jesus teaches us and asks us to believe. His approach challenges us to ask and seek help when setting out on the path of improvement. There are times when complaining seems to have the upper hand, but don’t believe it, don’t listen to it. Seek out and listen to the voices that encourage you to look ahead, not those that pull you down".
The joy and hope of every Christian – of all of us, and the Pope too – comes from having experienced this approach of God, who looks at us and says, “You are part of my family and I cannot leave you out in the cold; I cannot lose you along the way; I am here at your side”. Here? Yes, here! So Jesus turns complaining into celebration, and tells us: “Rejoice with me!”. The Pope also stresses that " A society grows sick when it is unable to celebrate change in its sons and daughters. A community grows sick when it lives off relentless, negative and heartless complaining. But a society is fruitful when it is able to generate processes of inclusion and integration, of caring and trying to create opportunities and alternatives that can offer new possibilities to the young, to build a future through community, education and employment. Even though it may feel the frustration of not knowing how to do so, it does not give up, it keeps trying".
Before going to the Pacora Juvenile Prison, Pope Francis met privately with a group of 450 young Cuban pilgrims from WYD in the Esclavas College near the Apostolic Nunciature. The Pope arrived at the end of the Mass, gave his blessing and briefly greeted those present. In addition to the young people, two Cuban bishops also took part in the meeting, which lasted about 10 minutes. Previously the Pontiff had celebrated in private at the Apostolic Nunciature. The faithful and collaborators of the Archdiocese of Panama took part in the celebration.
