Reflect on the passion of Christ in the midst of the coronavirus crisis, urges Pope Francis

Meditating on the Passion of Christ can help us as we struggle with questions about God and suffering during the coronavirus crisis, Pope Francis said to his general public Wednesday.

Speaking via live streaming due to the pandemic, the pope urged Catholics on April 8 to spend some time in Holy Week sitting in silent prayer in front of a crucifix and reading the Gospels.

At a time when churches around the world are closed, "this will be for us, so to speak, like a great domestic liturgy," he said.

The suffering unleashed by the virus raises questions about God, the pope noted. “What are you doing in the face of our pain? Where is it when it all goes wrong? Why doesn't it solve our problems quickly? "

“The story of the Passion of Jesus, which accompanies us in these holy days, is useful for us,” he said.

The people cheered on Jesus as he entered Jerusalem. But they rejected him when he was crucified because they expected "a mighty and triumphant Messiah" rather than a kind and humble figure preaching a message of mercy.

Today we are still projecting our false expectations on God, the Pope said.

“But the Gospel tells us that God is not like that. It is different and we could not know it with our own strength. That is why he approached us, came to meet us and revealed himself completely at Easter ”.

"Where is it? On the cross. There we learn the characteristics of the face of God. Because the cross is the pulpit of God. It will do us good to look at the Crucified in silence and see who our Lord is ”.

The cross shows us that Jesus is "He who does not point his finger at anyone, but opens his arms to everyone," said the pope. Christ does not treat us as strangers, but rather takes our sins upon himself.

“To free ourselves from prejudices about God, let's look to the Crucifix,” he advised. "And then we open the Gospel".

Some may argue that they prefer a "strong and powerful God," the pope said.

“But the power of this world passes, while love remains. Only love guards the life we ​​have, because it embraces our frailties and transforms them. It is the love of God that at Easter healed our sin with his forgiveness, which made death a passage in life, which changed our fear into trust, our anguish into hope. Easter tells us that God can transform everything into good, that with him we can truly trust that everything will go well ”.

“That is why on Easter morning we are told: 'Do not be afraid!' [Cf. Matthew 28: 5]. And the distressing questions about evil do not suddenly vanish, but find in the Risen One the solid foundations that allow us not to be shipwrecked “.

At the morning mass on April 8, in the chapel of his Vatican residence, the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis prayed for those who were taking advantage of others during the coronavirus crisis.

"Today we pray for the people who exploit the needy in this pandemic period," he said. “They exploit the needs of others and sell them: the mafia, loan sharks and many others. May the Lord touch their hearts and convert them ”.

On Wednesday of Holy Week, the Church focuses on Judas, the pope said. He encouraged Catholics not only to meditate on the life of the disciple who betrayed Jesus, but also to "think of the little Judas that each of us has within us".

“Each of us has the ability to betray, sell, choose for our own sake,” he said. “Each of us has the opportunity to be attracted by the love for money, goods or future well-being”.

After the mass, the pope presided over the adoration and blessing of the Blessed Sacrament, guiding those who look around the world in a prayer of spiritual communion.