Cardinal Bergoglio exhorts bishops to serve with steadfast hearts

Buenos Aires, Argentina, Nov 10, 2010 / 12:11 pm

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires, Argentina encouraged the country's bishops to pray for strength to serve “the people of God with meek hearts.”

During his homily at the opening Mass of the bishops’ 100th Plenary Assembly, Cardinal Bergoglio invited his brother prelates to pray for meekness of heart.  Like charity, he explained, meekness translates into patience and unselfish service, rejoicing always in the truth, “believing all things, bearing all things, hoping all things.”

“We were chosen to help our brothers and sisters to be poor and humble people who find refuge in the name of the Lord,” he said.

“In the exercise of this choice of the Lord to lead, sanctify and teach, we must be careful not to break away from him, not to scandalize him, not to become bosses and supervisors distant from the faithful,” he said.

“As long as we remember that we belong to the faithful people who walk trusting in the Lord, we will not fall into those attitudes that … give scandal,” the cardinal told them.

The meekness of heart required of a bishop is not “a mere psychological attitude, but rather a fruit of the Holy Spirit that must characterize us as pastors,” he added.

Cardinal Bergoglio recalled the words of St. Paul to Timothy: “A shepherd must not be given to quarrels. On the contrary, he must be kind to all, able to teach and be patient in trials.  The shepherds who love their people, like good Christians, always manifest a serene meekness in their constancy and strength,” he concluded.