By Cian Molloy - 16 July, 2017
The topic for this month’s ‘Pope Video’ is the need to pray for those who have strayed from their Christian faith.
The video, produced by the Apostleship of Prayer in Rome, is part of a series of audio-visual presentations based on the monthly ‘Pope’s Prayer Intention’.
In this month’s video, Pope Francis tells us: “Let us never forget that our joy is Jesus Christ – his faithful and inexhaustible love.
“When a Christian becomes sad, it means that he has distanced himself from Jesus. But then, we must not leave him alone! We should offer him Christian hope – with our words, yes, but more with our testimony, with our freedom, with our joy.
“Let us pray that our brothers and sisters who have strayed from the faith, through our prayer and witness to the Gospel, may rediscover the beauty of the Christian life.”
As usual, this month’s one-minute video is subtitled, as the Pope speaks from the heart in Spanish, his mother tongue, while seated at his office desk in the Vatican. Intercut with his message are scenes of Christians consoling a man outside the doors of a parish church and then inviting him to return back inside with him, a group of young Christian pilgrims full of joy and an African teacher laughing with a group of students.
The Pope makes joy central to his vision of Christian witness.
More than 13 million people in 98 different countries view the Pope Video via its dedicated website or via social media. The resource is used by a wide variety of prayer groups and youth groups, but you could also use it as a guide for your own personal meditations. You can view this month’s video by clicking the link at the bottom of the home page of www.catholicireland.net or by visiting www.thepopevideo.org.
