His Holiness Pope Francis to Bahrain clergy: Never tire of spreading God's joy

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On final day of His Holiness Pope Francis' Apostolic Journey to Bahrain, Pope encourages nation's clergy to joyously bring God's joy to the Gulf nation's diverse flock, and makes appeals for peace in Ethiopia and Ukraine.

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

Preserve and deepen your Christian joy, spreading it to all around you, and remember that with God, you can face and overcome everything.

His Holiness Pope Francis offered this powerful reminder when speaking to bishops, priests, deacons, consecrated persons, seminarians and lay pastoral workers, of Bahrain on Sunday in the Sacred Heart Church in Bahrain's capital of Manama.

This encounter marks the last public meeting of the Pope prior to his departure from the Middle Eastern Gulf nation, for his 39th Apostolic Journey abroad, for the Bahrain Dialogue Forum and to encourage the Muslim-majority nation's small, but fervent Catholic flock.

During his remarks, the Holy Father called for spreadi ng Christian joy, he urged those present to let the Holy Spirit comfort and restore them and he encouraged them to be guardians of unity, who are credible and ready to engage in dialogue.

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Harmony in the face of Jesus

The Pope expressed his delight to be "in the midst of this Christian community that clearly manifests its “Catholic” face," with a "universal face, a Church made up of people from various parts of the world who come together to profess our one faith in Christ."

He noted that some present were from Lebanon, and assured them, all peoples suffering in the Middle East, of his prayers and closeness to their "beloved" country, which has been "so weary and sorely tried."

“It is beautiful to be part of a Church composed of different histories and different faces that find their harmony in the one face of Jesus.”

Reflecting on this Sunday's liturgy, the Pope said that Jesus' words speaking of the living water flowing from Christ and His followers made the Holy Father think about their land.

Quenching our thirst for happiness

Despite there being a large expanse of desert, he observed there are springs of fresh water flowing underground that irrigate it.

"That is a beautiful image of who you are and, above all, of how faith operates in our lives," he pointed out.

His Holiness Pope Francis in the Sacred Heart Church

Even if on the surface humanity seems "parched" by fears, problems and weaknesses, he noted, the Spirit, in the intimacy of our heart and soul, "refreshes our deserts and restores life to what is parched, who washes away all that soils us and quenches our thirst for happiness."

“The Spirit always restores life. This is the water of which Jesus speaks. This is the wellspring of new life that He promises us. It is the gift of the Holy Spirit, the tender, loving and rejuvenating presence of God within us.”

His Holiness Pope Francis stressed that the Church was born "from the pierced side of Christ," from the water of rebirth in the Holy Spirit.

"We are not Christians by our own merit or simply because we profess a creed," he highlighted, "but because the living water of the Spirit was given to us in baptism, making us beloved children of God, brothers and sisters of one another and a new creation."

"Everything flows from grace; everything comes from the Holy Spirit," he said.

Three great gifts

The Pope focused on "three great gifts" that the Holy Spirit grants the faithful, and which the Spirit asks us to welcome and cultivate.

The first was the gift of joy, the Pope said, saying the Spirit is a wellspring of joy.

"The fresh water that the Lord wants to make flow in the “deserts” of our humanity, earthly and frail," Pope Francis underscored, "is the certainty that we are never alone on the journey of life."

The Spirit, the Holy Father said, does not leave us on our own.

“The Spirit is the Comforter, who consoles us by his quiet and soothing presence, who accompanies us with love, supports us in struggles and difficulties, encourages our most beautiful dreams and deepest desires, and opens us to the wonder and beauty of life.”

The joy of the Spirit, however, is not an occasional feeling or a momentary emotion, but instead is "born of a relationship with God, from knowing that despite the struggles and dark nights that we sometimes endure, we are not alone, lost or defeated, because he is with us."

We can overcome everything with God

“With God, we can face and overcome everything, even the abyss of pain and death.”

His Holiness Pope Francis urged them to "preserve this joy," and let it grow ever greater. The best way to do this, he insisted, is to give this joy away.

"Yes, Christian joy is naturally contagious, since the Gospel makes us go beyond ourselves to share the beauty of God’s love. It is essential, therefore," he said, "that this joy not be dimmed or left unshared in Christian communities..."

In addition to the liturgy, and celebrating Mass, "the source and summit of Christian life," the Pope said, "it is important that we spread the joy of the Gospel through a lively pastoral outreach, especially to young people and families, and through fostering vocations to the priesthood and the religious life."

"We cannot keep Christian joy to ourselves," he noted, saying, "It multiplies once we start spreading it around."

God's sons and daughters

Second, His Holiness Pope Francis continued, the Holy Spirit is a wellspring of unity.

“All those who receive Him receive the Father’s love and are made his sons and daughters, and, if children of God, also brothers and sisters to one another.”

This means, he warned, there can no longer be room for works of the flesh, acts of selfishness, such as factions, quarrels, slander and gossip.

"Worldly divisions, but also ethnic, cultural and ritual differences cannot injure or compromise the unity of the Spirit," the Pope said.

"On the contrary," he continued, "His fire burns away worldly desires and kindles in our lives the warm and compassionate love with which Jesus loves us, so that we in turn can love one another."

The Pope said the Spirit inaugurates the one language of love.

“He breaks down the barriers of distrust and hate, in order to create space for acceptance and dialogue. He frees us from fear and instills the courage to go out and meet others with the unarmed and disarming force of mercy.”

This, the Holy Father recalled, is what the Holy Spirit does, and has done since the very beginnings of the Church, starting with Pentecost.

Guardians of unity

“Let us seek to be guardians and builders of unity! In order to be credible when we dialogue with others, let us live in fraternity among ourselves.”

He urged them to do so in their communities, religious houses, families, in the multi-religious and multi-cultural societies in which we find ourselves.

"I know that you are already offering a good example of walking this path," the Pope clarified, "but fraternity and communion are gifts that we must never tire of imploring from the Spirit."

He said this is necessary in order to "fend off the enemy who always sows weeds"…

This report was originally published on the Vatican News website. Please click here to read the full text.