Pope Francis meets with Papal Representatives

By Christopher Wells

More than one hundred pontifical representatives – Apostolic Nuncios and Permanent Observers – met with Pope Francis on Thursday in the Vatican. The Holy Father convened similar Meetings of Pontifical Representatives in 2013 and 2016, and has expressed his desire that the triennial gatherings should continue in the future.

At the meeting on Thursday morning, Pope Francis elected to engage in a dialogue with the papal representatives rather than deliver a planned discourse. The text of the address, which he described as a “meditation… on the role of the Nuncio”, was consigned to the Nuncios and Permanent Observers for further reflection.

Man of God and man of the Church

In the prepared remarks, the Holy Father offers papal representatives a kind of “decalogue” of ten qualities that characterize a Nuncio. The Nuncio, he says, is a man of God, following God in all things; and a man of the Church. A Nuncio does not represent himself, but the Church, and especially the Pope. He makes present and symbolizes the Holy Father, serving as a bridge connecting the Vicar of Christ and the people to whom he is sent.

Pope Francis says that the Nuncio is a man of apostolic zeal, with “the duty of illuminating the world with the light of the Risen One, of bringing Christ to the ends of the earth”. At the same time, he must be a man “of mediation, of communion, of dialogue, and of reconciliation”, who must be impartial, seeking only justice and peace.

The Nuncio must also be a man of initiative, able to recognize and meet the challenges of the present moment, avoiding both rigidity, and “hypocritical and chameleon-like flexibility”. Pope Francis says that the Nuncio is also a man of obedience, which for a Christian and a Nuncio refers to “the call to follow the style of life of Jesus of Nazareth”.

A Nuncio’s life must also be marked by prayer, the Pope says, which brings true “familiarity with Jesus”, Whom he is called “to communicate, to proclaim, to represent”. Pope Francis then reminds the papal representatives that “prayer, the path of discipleship, and conversion find in charity that is shared the verification of their evangelical authenticity”.

A Litany of Humility

Pope Francis concludes his “decalogue” for Nuncios “with the virtue of humility”, sharing with the Nuncios and Permanent Observers the “Litany of Humility” composed by the Servant of God, Cardinal Rafael Merry dal Val, a former Secretary of State under St Pius X:

Lord Jesus. Meek and humble of heart, hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being extolled, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being honored, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being praised, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being preferred to others, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being consulted, deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being approved, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being humiliated, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being despised, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of suffering rebukes, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being calumniated, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being forgotten, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being ridiculed, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being wronged, deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being suspected, deliver me, Jesus.

That others may be loved more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be chosen and I set aside, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be praised and I unnoticed, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be preferred to me in everything, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.