On September 30, Pope Francis received members of the Federation of Communities of Santo Thomas, approving their mission in the field of education, emphasizing that this is a spiritual charity.
(Vatican News Network)On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Federation of Saint Thomas Societies, Pope Francis received the members of the Federation in the Vatican on September 30, encouraging them to make positive contributions to the implementation of the spirit of the Second Vatican Council.
The Pope emphasized first: “The characteristic of the ecumenical council is to understand properly the rights and duties of the laity in the mission of evangelization, which they also have as children of God through baptism. always surprising that the Holy Spirit enters every human reality through the talents he inspired in Jesus’ disciples.
The Pope said: “Today, we see that your federation has been educated by the ecumenical council, has started the evangelization of different cultures, youth and families, has created many educational institutions, such as universities and colleges in different parts of the world . . .
Going on, the Pope noted that the life story of Saint Thomas, patron of the Confederation, “also has its challenges”. The Pope explained that people at that time found value in the writings of the Greek philosopher Aristotle, but some people were reluctant to study his writings because they feared that his non-Christian ideas were not compatible with Christianity. However, the Pope said: “St. Thomas found that most of Aristotle’s writings corresponded to the revelation of Christianity. That is, St. Thomas was able to show that there is a natural harmony between faith and reason.” this wealth, the Pope stressed, is essential “to overcome fundamentalism, blindness and ideology”.
The Pope went on to point out that another evidence Saint Thomas left us was his deep relationship with God, as shown, for example, through his adoration of Jesus present in the Eucharist. “His devotional life helped him to discover the mystery of God, thereby enabling him to describe it with the talent of writing. An important fact is: in order to discover the presence of God in the world, in events, it is necessary to pray to unite the heart with Jesus in the tabernacle.
Finally, the Pope encouraged those present to live out the charisms they had. “Through education, you are clearly aware of this, and it is important for you to remember that education is precisely one of the spiritual works of charity,” said the Pope. Education “which gives meaning and describes every element of human life, it is not exhausted in the process of sharing knowledge or developing skills, as the word education suggests, it help everyone bring out the best.”
At the end of his speech, the Pope entrusted the members of the Saint Thomas Confederation to the Virgin Mary, praying: “May Mary teach us to be evangelists for culture, youth and families, with divine tenderness.”
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