Franciscan Sister Kathleen Murphy reflects on Pope Francis’ September intention: That each may contribute to the common good and to the building of a society that places the human person at the center.
“There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven…” (Eccl. 3)
The rounds of time have again brought us to the beginning of a new series of articles dealing with Social Justice. This year, we will consider Pope Francis’ monthly intention which we remember each morning in our Morning Offering. As with so many daily practices, they can recede into routine and lose meaning. Perhaps considering the needs behind these intentions and viewing them through the lens of the call to promote social justice will enliven our prayer each day.
This month Pope Francis asks us to keep in our prayers his intention: That each may contribute to the common good and to the building of a society that places the human person at the center.
This past April, Pope Francis addressed a conference saying, Education is necessary not only to develop students’ intellectual abilities, but also to ensure “human formation and a professionalism of the highest degree. Research, meanwhile, requires unwavering attention to moral issues if it is to be an instrument which safeguards human life and the dignity of the person.
Pope Francis also spoke to the ongoing need of ensuring access to care. He said, A desire for profit should never prevail over the value of human life. This is why the globalization of indifference must be countered by the globalization of empathy.
The Holy Father thus addresses our two main apostolates as Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity. Through our ministry as educators and as health care professionals we have a special call to renew what the Pope calls the centrality of the human person.
Again, as Franciscans, we honor the love that Francis poured out on all his brothers and sisters. He was compelled to show a living charity for the leper, the beggar, the knight, the bishop, the child ,and his brothers. Let our prayers, our daily choices, our conversations and our values show our reverence for the life God has given every human of any race, any size, any orientation, any creed, any age.
