Pope Francis asks us to contemplate 'the voice of the suffering'

'I pray, I will pray for you with all my heart.'

Pope Francis spoke at an Assisi prayer service on Tuesday to say Jesus' cry of thirst on the cross can be heard today, mirrored in the cries of innocent victims of war across the globe.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - According to the Catholic Herald, the Pontiff met with other Christian leaders, including Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, for the prayer service.

His Holiness said Christians have been called to contemplate Christ in "the voice of the suffering, the hidden cry of the little innocent ones to whom the light of this world is denied."

He explained how often victims of war "encounter the deafening silence of indifference, the selfishness of those annoyed at being pestered, the coldness of those who silence their cry for help with the same ease with which television channels are changed."

Everyone, including non-believers, respects and loves Pope Francis but his calls for the world to care continually fall on deaf ears.

Still, he prays, his faith fully resting in our Lord and Savior, whose divine promises are always kept.

During the prayer service, Pope Francis prayed in the lower Basilica of St. Francis while members of other religions went elsewhere within Assisi to pray according to their own traditions.

Each leader prayed for peace in areas suffering violent conflicts. Young men and women placed lit candles in a circular stand as an acolyte read the names of each war-torn country, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Nigeria, Syria and the Ukraine.

Archbishop Welby also spoke during the service to speak against greed, which plays into the "silence of indifference."

The Archbishop stated the world "struggles to distinguish between what something costs and what it is worth," but God responds with "infinite love and mercy."

Christ offered himself in exchange for our sins. We may ask our Heavenly Father for blessing after blessing  because: "in God's economy we are the poorest of the poor; poorer than ever because we think ourselves rich.

"Our money and wealth is like the toy money in a children's game: It may buy goods in our human economies which seem so powerful, but in the economy of God it is worthless. We are only truly rich when we accept mercy from God through Christ our Savior."

As Christians, we have been called to enjoy the riches of the Kingdom of Heaven. To do this, we must speak for those without voices - we must speak for the poor and look to Christ through their eyes.

"We are to be those who enable others to be merciful to those with whom they are in conflict," Archbishop Welby continued. "We are called to be Christ's voice to the hopeless, calling, 'come to the waters' in a world of drought and despair, giving away with lavish generosity what we have received in grace-filled mercy."

Patriarch Bartholomew added, "All who are thirsty come: all who want it may have the water of life, and have it free."

He explained Christians have the power "to invoke the Lord for the greatest of his gifts - peace - from him, the king of peace."

All who thirst for peace receive it from Jesus, the Patriarch stated. Christians must understand "the cry of our neighbour" to give prophetic witness to the lost.

"Then we shall offer living water to the thirsty, endless water, water of peace to a peaceless world, water that is prophecy, and all shall listen to Jesus, who will thrice say: 'Surely I am coming soon,'" Patriarch Bartholomew stated.

Pope Francis spoke of Jesus' words as he hung from the cross.

"I thirst," He said, which was not just a physical desire for water but also a spiritual need for love.

The Pontiff said St. Francis of Assisi was upset by "love is not loved," then said Christians are called to contemplate Christ Crucified in those "who thirst for love."

Speaking of love, he mentioned St. Teresa of Calcutta, who ensured the words "I thirst" were inscribed within their chapels beside the crucifix.

The Pope explained St. Mother Teresa knew to quench Christ's thirst "through service to the poorest of the poor," adding, "The Lord's thirst is indeed quenched by our compassionate love; he is consoled when, in his name, we bend down to anothers' suffering."

Pope Francis explained Christians have been challenged to listen and hear the cry of the poor and of the helpless, particularly those who "live under the threat of bombs" and "the wounded and parched members of his body...They thirst."

He then called believers to be "trees of life that absorb the contamination of indifference and restore the pure air of love to the world.

"From the side of Christ on the cross water flowed, that symbol of the Spirit who gives life so that, from us, his faithful compassion may flow forth for all who thirst today."

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