Here and Now with Francis: 2/11/2022 (Communion of Saints, Joseph)
From 2-2-2022 General Audience [D]eepen our understanding of the figure of Saint Joseph. Sometimes even Christianity can fall into forms of devotion that seem to reflect a mentality that is more pagan than Christian. . . . Even when we rely fully on the intercession of a saint, or even more so that of the Virgin Mary, our trust only has value in relation to Christ. As if the path toward this saint or toward Our Lady does not end there, no. Not there, but in relationship with Christ. He is the bond, Christ is the bond that unites us to him and to each other, and which has a specific name: this bond that unites us all, between ourselves and us with Christ, it is the “communion of saints”. . . . What, then, is the “communion of saints”? The Catechism of the Catholic Church affirms: “The communion of saints is the Church” (no. 946). See what a beautiful definition this is! “The communion of saints is the Church.” What does this mean? That the Church is reserved for the perfect? No. I...