Francis went to a prison on the Roman coast and performed the rite of washing the feet of nine men and three women of different ages and nationalities. As usual on this occasion, he gave his sermon without a readymade text and spoke of the “simplicity” of Jesus’ gesture: “How beautiful it would be if this could be done every day and for all people.”
Vatican News
This afternoon, just before 3:00 p.m. (local time), Pope Francis traveled to Civitavecchia near Rome to celebrate Holy Mass “in Coena Domini” with people detained in the New Penitentiary Complex.
The Pope arrived before 4:00 p.m. and was greeted by the prison authorities. The Pope conducted Mass in the prison chapel. In addition to some inmates, there was a representation of agents and officials and some authorities, including Italy’s Minister of Justice, Marta Cartabia.
Serve for free, without interest
During the liturgy, the pope delivered his homily without any prepared text, commenting on the importance of washing the feet, “a strange thing” in this world: “Jesus washes the feet of the traitor, the one who sells him”. And he added: “Jesus teaches us this very simply: You must wash one another’s feet […] one serves the other without interest: how wonderful it would be if this were possible every day and for all people”.
The Pope regretted that many of our gestures are made out of interest. “Instead, it is important to do everything without interest: one serves the other, one is the brother of the other, one helps the other, one corrects the other and that is how it should be. And then he calls the traitor “friend” and waits for him to the end: he forgives everything. Today I would like to put this in the heart of all of us, including myself: God forgives everything and God always forgives! We are the ones who tire of asking forgiveness.” He is only asking for our trust.
Check out pictures from the ceremony
serve and help
Each of us, Francis said, “has something that has been on our hearts for a long time, but ask Jesus for forgiveness.”
And he suggested a prayer: “Lord, forgive me. I will try to serve others, but you serve me with your forgiveness.”
“That’s the thought I want to leave behind: to serve and help us.”
The Pope concludes by announcing that he will repeat Jesus’ gesture. “I will do it from the heart because we priests should be the first to serve others, not exploit others. Clericalism sometimes leads us down this path. But we must serve.”
And he recalled that “there is a Lord who judges, but it is a strange judgment: the Lord judges and forgives”. He concluded by urging people to continue the celebration “with a desire to serve and forgive one another.”
Jesus gesture
After the homily, Pope Francis, as usual, repeated the gesture of Jesus at the Last Supper, when the Lord washed the feet of his disciples, as a sign of radical love, to the point of service and humiliation. There were 12 inmates, men and women, including people of different ages and nationalities.
At the end of the Mass, the prison warden thanked the Holy Father and presented him with a print of the old port of Civitavecchia, some garden products grown by the inmates, and some work done by the staff and the prisoners.
After the ceremony, the Pope briefly greeted around fifty people representing inmates, officials and prison staff. Before dark he returned to Casa Santa Marta.