FROM THE DESK OF THE PASTOR
FROM THE DESK OF THE PASTOR OCT. 9, 2026
PRAY FOR POPE LEO AND FOR OUR FAMILIES
Dear friends in Christ,
This past week, as most of you have heard, Pope Leo had surgery to remove a lobe of his lungs and was diagnosed with lung cancer. Though it was caught early, we want to be sure to pray for the Holy Father, for his recovery, for healing and for his good health. No doubt this has come as quite a shock to him, but he is approaching it with his usual grace and good humor. He has asked for our prayers, so let us offer them up for him and for the sake of the Church.
This past week, the Holy Father called a conference on Amoris Laetitia, Pope Francis’ apostolic letter on the family.
He was to deliver this homily as the close of the meetings but Cardinal Tagle delivered it in his stead. In it, Pope Leo reminds us of what is fundamental to the family and the life of faith:
“The joy of love experienced by families is also the joy of the Church” …. In this regard, today’s liturgy offers us several points for reflection. In the first reading, we heard Saint Paul’s “hymn to love” (cf. 1 Cor 12:31–13:13). In Chapter 4 of the Apostolic Exhortation, this same text provides the basis of a rich meditation on the virtues of Christian marriage, a union that is “affective… spiritual and sacrificial” (no. 120), and an icon of God’s love (cf. no. 121)…. Moreover, the Apostle was addressing a community rich in gifts and charisms (cf. 1 Cor 12:4-11), yet one that needed to mature in love. He reminded the Corinthians that persons without love, despite all the talents they may have received, are like “a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal” (13:1), like a voice without love, unable to speak to the heart, cut off from others, distant, cold and impenetrable. We were not made to live that way. The responsorial Psalm also calls this to mind by calling us the “people” and “flock” of a God whose “steadfast love endures for ever” and whose faithfulness extends “to all generations” (Ps 100:5). He is a Lord who loves without holding back, who never ceases to seek us, place his trust in us and renew his friendship with us.
This is the love that Amoris Laetitia invites us to make the foundation of our families. This is the true love that, in a particular way, we are urged to teach to young people preparing for marriage, instructing them about “the importance of the virtues,” among which a special place is given to chastity, which is “invaluable for the genuine growth of love between persons” ….Pope Francis observed that “learning to love someone does not happen automatically, nor can it be taught in a workshop just prior to the celebration of marriage” (no. 208). He explained: “For every couple, marriage preparation begins at birth,” (ibid.) and everything a young person experiences within the family should help to make that person capable of “a full and definitive commitment” (ibid.).
In this way, love lived within the family — with its moments of struggle, mistakes and failures, yet also with the marvel of its unpredictable, everyday life — becomes the first school of human affection, the first precious and irreplaceable apprenticeship in the “joy of love.” …. The Evangelist John handed down to us the simple and clear instruction that Jesus spoke at the end of his earthly life: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 15:12). Let us put it into practice, so that we may grow as a Church that is a “family of families” (Amoris Laetitia, no. 87), in an atmosphere of reciprocal care that will benefit us all. Thus, young couples will feel encouraged as they begin their married life; parents will find support as they face the demanding challenges of raising their children and managing family life; and older people will be recognized and valued in their role as witnesses to wisdom and virtue, even as their physical strength wanes. Those who are more vulnerable, or who are experiencing difficult circumstances and moments of crisis, will also find support and encouragement, surrounded by affection and shielded from judgment and prejudice. Let us remember that “as wounded as the family may be, it can always grow beginning with love”
The values of openness to life and respect for life, from conception to natural death, are also rooted in this charity, which is fundamental to our existence and to our life together as human beings. The family is the foremost guardian of these values, a beacon for the good of humanity. In this regard, Pope Francis stressed that “no union that is temporary or closed to the transmission of life can ensure the future of society” (Amoris Laetitia, 52). The world has no future without strong families open to the gift of children and attentive to their education and growth.
I would like to recall another important invitation from Jesus, in the readings we have heard, that we ask the Father “in my name” (Jn 15:16). These words remind us that the family is a privileged place of prayer. Sadly, in many parts of the world today, the practice of praying together at home — before meals, at the beginning and end of the day, or on special occasions — has fallen away. Amoris Laetitia reminds us that “emphasis should also be given to the importance of family spirituality, prayer and participation in the Sunday Eucharist” (no. 223). It likewise recommends that families gather “regularly to promote growth in their spiritual life and solidarity in the concrete demands of life” (ibid.). Common prayer and the Sacraments play a vital role in family life because they open hearts to the action of God, enabling families to reach together places that they could never reach on their own. Indeed, they are a solid nourishment and a healing medicine. I therefore strongly urge everyone to rediscover and encourage these practices…. Dear brothers and sisters, let us entrust all families and the whole Church to the Holy Family of Nazareth… POPE LEO XIV
Blessings on your week!
Fr Johnson
