Pope Francis' homily at the Missioning Mass
The words of the Apostle Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration are the same words that, after these intense days, we want to make our own: "Lord, it is good that we are here!" (Mt 17:4). It was good what we experienced with Jesus, what we lived together and how we prayed. But after these days, we ask ourselves: What will we take with us when we return to the valley of daily life?
From the Gospel we have heard, I want to answer this question with three verbs: shine, listen, do not fear.
Shining. Jesus was transfigured and - the text says - "his face shone like the sun" (Mt 17:2). He had recently announced his passion and death on the cross, thus shattering the image of a powerful and worldly Messiah, and frustrating the expectations of the disciples. Now, in order to help them accept God's loving plan, which reaches glory by the way of the cross, Jesus takes three of them with him - Peter, James and John - leads them to the top of a mountain and transfigures himself: his face becomes radiant and his garments limpid. This "bath of light" prepares them for the night they will have to go through.
Dear friends, we too need something of light today to face the darkness that assails us in life, so many daily defeats, to confront them with the light of Jesus' resurrection. He is the light that does not go out, the light that shines even at night. The words of Ezra the priest come to mind, which we find in Sacred Scripture and which we too can repeat after these days spent together: "Our God has willed to make our eyes shine" (Ezra 9:8). Our God enlightens our eyes, enlightens our hearts, enlightens our minds and our will to do something with our lives.
But I would also like to tell you something: we do not become bright when we put ourselves under the spotlight, when we display a perfect image and feel strong and successful. But we shine when, by welcoming Jesus, we learn to love as he loved. Loving like Jesus - that makes us luminous, that leads us to do acts of love. Make no mistake, you will be light the day you do acts of love. If instead of doing acts of love, we look inward, selfishly, the light goes out.
The second verb is to listen. On the mountain, a bright cloud covers the disciples and the Father's voice indicates that Jesus is the beloved Son. The Father's command is simple and direct: "Listen to him" (Mt 17:5). Everything is here: everything that must be done in the Christian life is in this word: listen to him. Listen to Jesus, listen to what Jesus says, take the Gospel and read what Jesus says and your heart, because he has for us words of eternal life for all of us. He reveals that God is Father and love, He teaches us the way of love. Listen to Jesus, because although we have the best of wills, we follow paths that seem to be paths of love, but are selfishness disguised as love. Listen to the Lord, because he will tell us the way of love.
To shine, to listen and, finally, not to fear. These are the last words that Jesus utters on the mountain to encourage the frightened disciples: "Arise and do not be afraid" (Mt 17:7). An idea that is repeated so often in the Gospels: "Do not be afraid". To you, young people, who have big dreams but are often overshadowed by the fear of not seeing them realized; to you, young people, who sometimes think that you will not succeed; to you, young people, tempted at this time to be discouraged, to think you are inadequate or to hide your pain by disguising it with a smile; to you young people who want to change the world and who strive for justice and peace; to you young people who invest the best of your effort and imagination, but are left feeling that they are not enough; to you young people, whom the Church and the world need like the earth needs rain; to you young people who are the present and the future. It is precisely to you, young people, that Jesus says: "Do not be afraid".
Dear young people, I wish I could look each of you in the eye and say: do not be afraid! But I can tell you something much more beautiful: Jesus himself is looking at you now, he who knows you and reads your innermost being; he looks into your heart, he knows your joys and sorrows, your successes and defeats. And he says to you today, here in Lisbon, at this World Youth Day: "Do not be afraid! Do not be afraid! Be encouraged!".
A partir do Evangelho que ouvimos, quero responder a esta pergunta com três verbos: resplandecer, ouvir, não temer.
Resplandecer. Jesus transfigura-Se e – diz o texto – «o seu rosto resplandeceu como o sol» (Mt 17, 2). Recentemente tinha anunciado a sua paixão e morte na cruz, quebrando assim a imagem dum Messias poderoso e mundano, e frustrando as expectativas dos discípulos. Agora e para os ajudar a acolher o amoroso projeto de Deus, que chega à glória pelo caminho da cruz, Jesus toma consigo três deles – Pedro, Tiago e João – condu-los ao alto dum monte e transfigura-Se: o seu rosto torna-se resplandecente e as suas vestes cândidas. Este «banho de luz» prepara-os para a noite que terão de atravessar.
Caros amigos, também hoje nós precisamos de algo de luz para enfrentar a escuridão, que nos assalta na vida, tantas derrotas quotidianas, para as confrontar com a luz da ressurreição de Jesus. Ele é a luz que não se apaga, a luz que brilha ainda de noite. Vêm-me ao pensamento as palavras do sacerdote Esdras, que encontramos na Sagrada Escritura e que também nós podemos repetir depois destes dias passados em conjunto: «O nosso Deus quis fazer brilhar os nossos olhos» (Esd 9, 8). O nosso Deus ilumina o nosso olhar, ilumina o nosso coração, ilumina a nossa mente e a nossa vontade de fazer algo da nossa vida.
Mas também gostava de vos dizer uma coisa: não nos tornamos luminosos quando nos colocamos sob os holofotes, quando exibimos uma imagem perfeita e nos sentimos fortes e bem-sucedidos. Mas brilhamos quando, acolhendo Jesus, aprendemos a amar como Ele amou. Amar como Jesus- isso faz-nos luminosos, isso leva-nos a fazer atos de amor. Não se enganem, vão ser luz no dia em que tiverem atos de amor. Se em vez de fazermos atos de amor, olharmos para dentro, com egoísmo, a luz apaga-se.