Angelus November 13, Pope Francis Cop27 and Ukraine

On the occasion of the Angelus on Sunday, November 13, Pope Francis does not forget to make important reflections on current global issues. In his speech, after the Prayer of the Angels, the Sovereign Pontiff speaks of COP27 in Egypt and, as always, also addresses Ukraine.

As every Sunday, the reflection of Pope Francis which precedes the prayer of the Angelus stems from today’s Gospel. On this occasion, the Holy Father invites us to reflect on the ephemeral value of earthly things. The Lord remembers, indeed, that on Earth everything passes. But it’s not meant to be an attempt to spread bitterness, but rather an invitation to persevere with what really matters in life.

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Without wasting time and without being interested in useless things, Jesus exhorts us rather to work towards the really important things. Like peace, which Pope Francis also recalls by evoking the war in Ukraine, or fraternity and commitment to the Planet, which the Holy Father highlights by also evoking the COP27 currently underway in Egypt.

Reflection on the occasion of the Sunday Angelus

Today’s gospel takes us to Jerusalem, to the holiest place: the temple. There, around Jesus, some speak of the magnificence of this grandiose building. As Pope Francis wants to point out: “Often, like those people in the temple, we give priority to the works of our hands, to our successes, to our religious and civil traditions, to our sacred and social symbols.” Although it is not wrong, it could take away the important things, give another scale to the priorities of life. “Instead, Jesus says to focus on what’s left, to avoid dedicating your life to building something that will then be destroyed, like this temple, and to forget about building what doesn’t fall apart, to build on his word, on love, on the good. Be persevering, rigorous and determined to build on what does not pass”.

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Perseverance is the word that comes up this Sunday in the reflection preceding the Angelus. Persevere in building good every day. Not expecting to see immediate results, but keeping faith in the steadfastness that doing good is never wrong and will lead to greater happiness than, perhaps, one can even imagine. To persevere is to “stay” and it is to remain in the good. As Pope Francis further explains: “If we persevere – Jesus reminds us – we have nothing to fear, even in the sad and ugly events of life, not even the evil that we see around us, because we let us remain anchored in the good”.

“A concrete commitment to the care of creation”

Taking the example of Dostoyevsky’s words, the Holy Father invites us to love “man even with his sin”. Because, as the Pontiff concludes, before reciting the Angelus: “The love of God is faithful, it is persevering, it never changes”. Finally, at the end of the prayer, the Holy Father recalls that tomorrow (November 14) is the first anniversary of the launch of the Laudato si’ Action Platform, intended to promote ecological conversion and lifestyles that relate to it. Thanking all the people who took part in the initiative, more than six thousand, Pope Francis says: “This is an excellent start for a seven-year journey, aimed at responding to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor “.

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“I encourage this crucial mission for the future of humanity, so that it can promote a concrete commitment in all to the service of creation”. And from this reference, he recalls the COP27 which is taking place in Egypt, hoping that progress will be made, “with courage and determination”, in the wake traced by the Paris Agreement. And as on every occasion, the Pontiff does not forget to recall the tormented Ukraine in his greetings: “Conclude with prayer and concrete solidarity. Peace is possible! Let us not resign ourselves to war”.