‘Never tire of passing on the faith’: Pope Leo shares pro-life, pro-family messages in Uruguay

During his homily for Mass Nov. 8 at the Cathedral Basilica in Florida, Uruguay, Pope Leo XIV urged parents and grandparents to pass on the faith to their children through witness and word, saying that the history of the faith in Uruguay has not so much been written in books but rather “quietly passed down from generation to generation within families.”

The message reiterated the pro-family, pro-life theme that Pope Leo returned to during several of his addresses while in Uruguay Nov. 6-8. He celebrated Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Florida, National Shrine of Our Lady of the Thirty-Three, shortly before departing in the afternoon for Argentina, the second of three countries on the route of his 11-day apostolic journey. 

In the homily, Pope Leo shared about his enthusiasm to be a pilgrim at the cathedral dedicated to the patroness of Uruguay, adding that he entrusts all the faithful to Our Lady’s protection. Connecting the Mass’ Scripture readings, which related Judith’s courage and prayer, to Uruguay’s history, Pope Leo reflected on a key moment in Uruguay’s history in 1825, when 33 people fighting for the country’s freedom turned to the Blessed Virgin Mary for her intercession. Therefore, since the earliest days of the nation’s founding, Uruguay has been linked to a mother, he said. 

“Since that time, generations have come and gone, circumstances have changed, including the relationship of many Uruguayans to the faith,” Pope Leo said. “Yet she has remained here. While Mary accompanied the history of this people, at the same time in so many homes other women preserved the faith and passed it on to their children.”

'Preach with your lives as well as your words'

He spoke directly to mothers and grandmothers, and then to fathers and grandfathers, about the importance of sharing the faith. He highlighted the role that many women have had in passing down the faith, teaching children how to pray and live out Christian charity. He thanked all the women — whether a mother, grandmother, godmother, or religious sister — for their faith “and for having kept open a path to God in so many families.” 

He also acknowledged that many women carry the sorrow of children or grandchildren abandoning the faith and perhaps now wonder if all the efforts to raise them in the faith was futile. Encouraging those who carry this cross, Pope Leo recalled the witness of Saint Monica, who spent years praying for her son Augustine and trusting in God’s grace during that difficult time. 

“Therefore, do not consider what you have sown to be lost,” Pope Leo said. “The Lord himself taught us that the seed can grow without the sower knowing how.”

“Mothers and grandmothers: never tire of passing on the faith! Preach with your lives as well as with your words,” he continued. “Insist on prayer, love, and hope; insist on them in season and out of season. Do so with patience, without harshness or discouragement. Even if your loved ones seem far from God, continue to place them before him. Do not stop blessing them, accompanying them, and simply reminding them of what they once received. There are doors that you cannot open, but God can.” 

Pope Leo to fathers and grandfathers: Let your children see you pray 

Then, Pope Leo addressed fathers and grandfathers specifically, telling them: “Your children and grandchildren need to see that the faith occupies a genuine place in the lives of the men in your family.”

He encouraged fathers to let children see them pray and to imitate St. Joseph, who raised Jesus and put God first. 

“Dear fathers and grandfathers, young people need to see that you pray, receive the sacraments, treat your wives with respect, ask for forgiveness and live with integrity, even when doing so requires sacrifice,” Pope Leo said. “Children learn a great deal by seeing that their father can kneel before God without feeling that he is any less of a man for doing it.”

Pope Leo emphasizes dignity of the unborn, says they 'already belong to the human family'

The Pope also shared pro-life and anti-euthanasia messages during his visit in Uruguay, where euthanasia and abortion are both legal. Upon his arrival Nov. 6, he met with authorities, civil society, and the diplomatic corps and gave an address during which he highlighted the dignity of the unborn and the elderly. 

“The unborn already belong to the human family and to the future of their people,” he said during the address. “Their absolute dependence on their mother does not diminish the dignity to which they are entitled or the protection they deserve.”

“Welcoming a new life requires that fathers assume their responsibility alongside mothers, that the family offer its support, and that social conditions exist that allow both parents to raise and care for their children,” he added. “The protection of the unborn and the support of those who welcome them are inseparable. The family remains the primary setting in which each person is welcomed and learns to live with others.”

He also emphasized that a person’s worth cannot be measured by their output or independence. His apostolic visit comes just weeks after he underwent lung surgery; he shared in the address that the experience made him think of the many people who do not have access to health care, and emphasized that societies have a responsibility to ensure access to health care. In particular, he pointed to the painful reality of suicide, as people grapple with loneliness, anxiety, and hopelessness. 

Given this reality, “it is clear that adequate health care, family ties, and the closeness of the community are inseparable,” he said. “None should ever feel like a stranger among their own or think that their absence matters less than their presence.”

Noting that there are myriad kinds of suffering, he emphasized that caring for those who suffer is a responsibility incumbent on everyone. 

“As Benedict XVI noted, ‘the true measure of humanity is essentially determined in relationship to suffering and to the sufferer,’” Pope Leo said. “Hence, it is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that each person can live with dignity, receive the care they need, and be accompanied until the natural end of his or her life.”

Pope to young people: Do not be afraid of your vocation

On Nov. 7 Pope Leo attended a prayer vigil at the Centenary Stadium attended by more than 70,000 people in the stadium and another 30,000 following along in surrounding areas, according to the Holy See Press Office. Recognizing the families, laypeople, priests, and consecrated men and women who have lived out the faith in Uruguay for many years, Pope Leo thanked them “for making Jesus Christ present in so many lives.”

Continuing, he said he has been reflecting on something faced by many Christian communities: “the advance of secularization and an increasingly widespread religious indifference.”

“In many places, the faith is no longer passed on as readily as it was in previous generations, and the number of people who live most of their lives without Church attendance or religious practice is growing,” he said. “The members of the pilgrim Church in Uruguay have had to learn to live and proclaim their faith in this context, as we have just heard. For this reason, their experience can help brothers and sisters in other parts of the world who are beginning to discover, in different ways, what it means to be a minority.”

He said that many people persevere even amid these circumstances, pointing to parents who pray with their children, teachers who witness to the faith, young people who follow Christ, priests who go far and wide to bring the sacraments to Catholics, and communities that continue to come together. 

“Dear friends: with humility and simplicity, you can reflect the light of Christ in your own lives,” he later said. “Perhaps there are people who would never open a Bible on their own, who have not set foot in a church in years, or who cannot even say whether they believe in God.  But when they see you, the desire for God may be awakened in them; they may even discover that it is worth risking their lives to find him.”

Continuing, the Pontiff then encouraged young people to not be afraid of the commitment of marriage, and he urged married couples to be open to life. 

“Friends, young people, dare to take the step of marrying, starting a family yourselves. Do not be afraid of ‘forever’! Married couples, open your home to life, even when the world tells you that a child is a burden,” he said. “If any of you feel that Christ is calling you to leave everything behind to follow him in the priesthood or in consecrated life, do not ignore that voice out of fear of missing out on other opportunities.

“When being just and honest comes at a price, pay it. When forgiving seems like a defeat, forgive.  When everyone tells you to think of yourselves first, do not be afraid to put yourselves in the last place.  Be willing to give up time, money, comfort and plans to serve others.  May those who see you find themselves asking: Why do they live in this way? Where do they get this freedom? Why do they love one another so much?’”

He encouraged the faithful to live in such a way that makes it evident Christ is alive and that encountering Him is life-changing. He emphasized that Christ awaits everyone in the Holy Eucharist, and encouraged spending time in Eucharistic Adoration. 

Pontiff expresses spiritual closeness to Poland after mass shooting

Amid the apostolic journey in South America, the Pope also sent a message expressing spiritual closeness to those mourning in the wake of a mass shooting in the main square of Krakow, Poland, on Nov. 7, when a gunman opened fire, killing six people and injuring 15 others before police shot and wounded him. The perpetrator is currently hospitalized in critical condition. 

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin sent a telegram Nov. 8 from the Holy Father to Cardinal Grzegorz Ryś, metropolitan archbishop of Krakow, saying that the Pontiff, “deeply saddened at the news of the victims and injuries caused by the shooting in Krakow, wishes to express his spiritual closeness in the Risen Christ to those who have been affected by this tragedy.”

Poland is observing two national days of mourning in the wake of the tragedy. 

“Invoking the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Poland, the Holy Father implores the gift of Christian hope for families overcome by grief and joins with all those who are mourning during these days,” the Vatican telegram concluded. “As he assures them of his prayers, the Supreme Pontiff imparts the Apostolic Blessing and urges them to persevere tirelessly in the search for peace and harmony.”