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Illustration: James Tissot, The Beatitudes Sermon, c. 1890, Brooklyn Museum
Jubilee of \Artists and The World of culture
Holy Mass Homily of Pope Francis
(read by Cardinal José Tolentino de Mendonça)
St Peter’s Basilica,
Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, 16 February 2025
Luke 6:17. 20-26
Jesus came down with the Twelve and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples with a great crowd of people from all parts of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon.
Then fixing his eyes on his disciples he said:
How happy are you who are poor: yours is the kingdom of God.
Happy you who are hungry now: you shall be satisfied.
Happy you who weep now: you shall laugh.
Happy are you when people hate you, drive you out, abuse you, denounce your name as criminal, on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice when that day comes and dance for joy, for then your reward will be great in heaven.
This was the way their ancestors treated the prophets.
But alas for you who are rich: you are having your consolation now.
Alas for you who have your fill now: you shall go hungry.
Alas for you who laugh now: you shall mourn and weep.
Alas for you when the world speaks well of you!
This was the way their ancestors treated the false prophets.
In the Gospel we have just heard, Jesus proclaims the Beatitudes to his disciples and to a large crowd of people. We have heard them so many times, and yet they never cease to amaze us:
‘Blessed are you poor, for the kingdom of God belongs to you;
blessed are you who are hungry, for you will be satisfied;
blessed are you who are weeping, for you will laugh’ (Lk 6:20–21).
These words reverse the logic of the world and invite us to look at reality with new eyes, with the eyes of God, who sees beyond appearances and recognizes beauty, even in fragility and suffering.
The second part has harsh words of warning: ‘Woe to you who are rich, for you will be comforted; woe to you who are full, for you will hunger; woe to you who laugh, for you will know sorrow and tears’ (Lk 6:24–25).
The contrast between “blessed are you” and “woe to you” reminds us of the importance of discerning where we find our security.
You, artists and people of culture, are called to be witnesses of the revolutionary vision of the Beatitudes.
Your mission is not only to create beauty, but to reveal the truth, goodness and beauty hidden in the folds of history, to give voice to the voiceless, to transform pain into hope.
We live in a time of complex crises, which is economic and social and, above all, a crisis of the soul, a crisis of meaning.
We ask ourselves questions about time and orientation: are we pilgrims or wanderers, do we walk with a goal in mind or are we scattered and wandering?
The artist is the one who has the task of helping humanity not to lose its direction, not to lose the horizon of hope.
But, beware, not an easy, superficial, disembodied hope, no! True hope is intertwined with the drama of human existence. It is not a comfortable refuge, but a fire that burns and illuminates, like the Word of God. That is why authentic art is always an encounter with mystery, with the beauty that surpasses us, with the pain that questions us, with the truth that calls us. Otherwise, ‘woe’. The Lord is severe in his exhortation.
As the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins writes,
‘the world is charged with the greatness of God, /
It flames suddenly, like glittering tinsel shaken’.
The mission of the artist is to discover this hidden greatness and reveal it, making it perceptible to our eyes and hearts.
The same poet also perceived “the leaden echo” and “the golden echo” in the world.
Artists are sensitive to these resonances, and through their work, they engage in discernment about the various echoes of the events of this world and help others to do the same.
Men and women who represent the world of culture are called upon to evaluate these echoes, to explain them to us and to show us which path they lead us down: either they are seductive songs of sirens or the authentic appeals to humanity.
You are asked to provide insight in order to help distinguish between what is like “chaff scattered by the wind” and what is solid, “like trees planted by streams of water”, capable of bearing fruit
Psalm 1:3-4.
He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff which the wind drives away.
Dear artists, I see in you custodians of beauty who know how to bow down to the wounds of the world, who know how to listen to the cry of the poor, the suffering, the wounded, the prisoners, the persecuted, the refugees.
I see you as custodians of the Beatitudes.
We live in an age in which new walls are being built, in which differences become a pretext for division rather than an opportunity for mutual enrichment.
But you, men and women of culture, are called to build bridges, to create spaces for encounter and dialogue, to enlighten minds and enkindle hearts.
Some might say: ‘But what is the use of art in a wounded world, and aren’t there perhaps more urgent, more concrete, more necessary things?
Art is not a luxury, but a necessity of the spirit.
It is not an escape, but a responsibility, an invitation to action, a call, a cry.
Educating in beauty means educating in hope.
And hope is never separated from the drama of existence; it runs through the daily struggle, the fatigues of life, the challenges of our times.
In the Gospel we have heard today, Jesus proclaims blessed the poor, the afflicted, the patient, the persecuted.
It is an inverted logic, a revolution of perspective.
Art is called to participate in this revolution.
The world needs prophetic artists, courageous intellectuals, creators of culture.
Let yourselves be guided by the Gospel of the Beatitudes, and let the art you make be a proclamation of a new world; let your poetry make us see it. Never stop searching, questioning, taking risks.
Because true art is never comfortable, it offers the peace of restlessness.
And remember: hope is not an illusion; beauty is not a utopia; the gift you have is not a chance, it is a call. Respond with generosity, with passion, with love.
