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Pope Francis

157 quotes

“The unjust distribution of goods persists, creating a situation of social sin that cries out to Heaven and limits the possibilities of a fuller life for so many of our brothers.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2007 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Said during a gathering of Latin American bishops, as quoted in 'Option for the Poor' alive and well in Latin America, National Catholic Reporter (21 May 2007)
“Human rights are not only violated by terrorism, repression or assassination, but also by unfair economic structures that creates huge inequalities.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2009 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Said in criticism of the government of Néstor Kirchner, former President of Argentina, in 2009, as quoted in "Pope Francis: the humble pontiff with practical approach to poverty" by Mark Rice-Oxley, in The Guardian (13 …
“This is what I want, a poor Church for the poor.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2013 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: First audience at the Vatican, as quoted in Pope Francis describes wish for 'poor church for the poor', NBC News, (16 March 2013)
“You ask me if the God of the Christians forgives those who don’t believe and who don’t seek the faith. I start by saying — and this is the fundamental thing — that God’s mercy has no limits if you go to him with a sincere and contrite heart. The issue for those who do not believe in God is to obey their conscience.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2013 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Leading Atheist: Pope Francis “Is The Kind Of World Leader We Need”" by Joe Keohane, at Esquire (12 September 2013)
“The Marxist ideology is wrong. But I have met many Marxists in my life who are good people, so I don’t feel offended. … The promise was that when the glass was full, it would overflow, benefiting the poor. But what happens instead, is that when the glass is full, it magically gets bigger (and) nothing ever comes out for the poor. This was the only reference to a specific theory. I was not, I repeat, speaking from a technical point of view but according to the church’s social doctrine. This does not mean being a Marxist.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2013 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Response to critics who have called him a Marxist, because of his criticism of capitalist theories in "Pope Francis: I’m Not a Marxist" in TIME magazine (15 December 2013)
“«Era silenziosa, ma dentro il suo cuore, quante cose diceva al Signore! “Tu, quel giorno – questo è quello che abbiamo letto – mi hai detto che sarà grande; tu mi ha detto che gli avresti dato il Trono di Davide, Suo Padre, che regnerà per sempre e adesso lo vedo lì!”. La Madonna era umana! E forse aveva la voglia di dire: “Bugie! Sono stata ingannata!”».”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2013 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: [At the foot of the Cross, the Blessed Virgin Mary] "was silent, but inside her heart, how many things she said to the Lord! "You, that day - this is what we read - you told me that He will be great; you told me that yo…
“Proselytism is solemn nonsense, it makes no sense. We need to get to know each other, listen to each other and improve our knowledge of the world around us. Sometimes after a meeting I want to arrange another one because new ideas are born and I discover new needs. This is important: to get to know people, listen, expand the circle of ideas. The world is crisscrossed by roads that come closer together and move apart, but the important thing is that they lead towards the Good.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Son of God became incarnate to infuse into the human soul the feeling of brotherhood. All are brothers and all children of God. Abba, as he called the Father. I will show you the way, he said. Follow me and you will find the Father and you will all be his children and he will take delight in you. Agape, the love of each one of us for the other, from the closest to the furthest, is in fact the only way that Jesus has given us to find the way of salvation and of the Beatitudes.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Ignatius, for understandable reasons, is the saint I know better than any other. He founded our Order. I'd like to remind you that Carlo Maria Martini also came from that order, someone who is very dear to me and also to you. Jesuits were and still are the leavening not the only one but perhaps the most effective — of Catholicism: culture, teaching, missionary work, loyalty to the Pope. But Ignatius who founded the Society, was also a reformer and a mystic. Especially a mystic.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[Mystics] have been fundamental [to the church]. A religion without mystics is a philosophy.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I love the mystics; Francis also was in many aspects of his life, but I do not think I have the vocation and then we must understand the deep meaning of that word. The mystic manages to strip himself of action, of facts, objectives and even the pastoral mission and rises until he reaches communion with the Beatitudes. Brief moments but which fill an entire life.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[St. Francis] is great because he is everything. He is a man who wants to do things, wants to build, he founded an order and its rules, he is an itinerant and a missionary, a poet and a prophet, he is mystical. He found evil in himself and rooted it out. He loved nature, animals, the blade of grass on the lawn and the birds flying in the sky. But above all he loved people, children, old people, women. He is the most shining example of that agape we talked about earlier.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I say that politics is the most important of the civil activities and has its own field of action, which is not that of religion. Political institutions are secular by definition and operate in independent spheres. All my predecessors have said the same thing, for many years at least, albeit with different accents. I believe that Catholics involved in politics carry the values of their religion within them, but have the mature awareness and expertise to implement them. The Church will never go beyond its task of expressing and disseminating its values, at least as long as I'm here.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I believe in God, not in a Catholic God, there is no Catholic God, there is God and I believe in Jesus Christ, his incarnation. Jesus is my teacher and my pastor, but God, the Father, Abba, is the light and the Creator. This is my Being.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“God is the light that illuminates the darkness, even if it does not dissolve it, and a spark of divine light is within each of us. In the letter I wrote to you, you will remember I said that our species will end but the light of God will not end and at that point it will invade all souls and it will all be in everyone.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I think so-called unrestrained liberalism only makes the strong stronger and the weak weaker and excludes the most excluded. We need great freedom, no discrimination, no demagoguery and a lot of love. We need rules of conduct and also, if necessary, direct intervention from the state to correct the more intolerable inequalities.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“We will also discuss the role of women in the Church. Remember that the Church (la chiesa) is feminine.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Transcendence remains because that light, all in everything, transcends the universe and the species it inhabits at this stage.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Church evangelizes and is herself evangelized through the beauty of the liturgy, which is both a celebration of the task of evangelization and the source of her renewed self-giving.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“[T]he confessional must not be a torture chamber but rather an encounter with the Lord’s mercy which spurs us on to do our best. A small step, in the midst of great human limitations, can be more pleasing to God than a life which appears outwardly in order but moves through the day without confronting great difficulties.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Eucharist, although it is the fullness of sacramental life, is not a prize for the perfect but a powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Marriage now tends to be viewed as a form of mere emotional satisfaction that can be constructed in any way or modified at will. But the indispensible contribution of marriage to society transcends the feelings and momentary needs of the couple. As the French bishops have taught, it is not born “of loving sentiment, ephemeral by definition, but from the depth of the obligation assumed by the spouses who accept to enter a total communion of life”.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 1999 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ch. 2, sec. 66; quoting John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Asia (6 November 1999), 7: AAS 92 (2000), 458
“God never tires of forgiving us; we are the ones who tire of seeking his mercy.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Sometimes we are tempted to find excuses and complain, acting as if we could only be happy if a thousand conditions were met. To some extent this is because our “technological society has succeeded in multiplying occasions of pleasure, yet has found it very difficult to engender joy”.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 1975 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ch. 5, sec. 7; quoting Paul VI, Gaudete in Domino (9 May 1975), 22: AAS 67 (1975), 292
“[A]n evangelizer must never look like someone who has just come back from a funeral! Let us recover and deepen our enthusiasm, that “delightful and comforting joy of evangelizing, even when it is in tears that we must sow… And may the world of our time, which is searching, sometimes with anguish, sometimes with hope, be enabled to receive the good news not from evangelizers who are dejected, discouraged, impatient or anxious, but from ministers of the Gospel whose lives glow with fervour, who have first received the joy of Christ”.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2007 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ch. 5, sec. 10; quoting Fifth General Conference of the Latin American and Caribbean Bishops, Aparecida Document (29 June 2007), 360
“Christians have the duty to proclaim the Gospel without excluding anyone. Instead of seeming to impose new obligations, they should appear as people who wish to share their joy, who point to a horizon of beauty and who invite others to a delicious banquet. It is not by proselytizing that the Church grows, but “by attraction”.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2007 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Ch. 5, sec. 14; quoting Benedict XVI, Homily at Mass for the Opening of the Fifth General Conference of the Latin American and Caribbean Bishops (13 May 2007), Aparecida, Brazil: AAS 99 (2007), 437
“Some people continue to defend trickle-down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world. This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In this preaching, which is always respectful and gentle, the first step is personal dialogue, when the other person speaks and shares his or her joys, hopes and concerns for loved ones, or so many other heartfelt needs. Only afterwards is it possible to bring up God’s word, perhaps by reading a Bible verse or relating a story, but always keeping in mind the fundamental message: the personal love of God who became man, who gave himself up for us, who is living and who offers us his salvation and his friendship.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“The Internet, in particular, offers immense possibilities for encounter and solidarity, this is something truly good, a gift from God.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Pope: The Internet is a 'gift from God.' But watch out for the trolls." at CNN (23 January 2014)
“Inconsistency on the part of pastors and the faithful between what they say and what they do, between word and manner of life, is undermining the Church’s credibility.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in AWAKE! (February 2014)
“… exclude the need for appearances: what counts is not appearances; the value of life does not depend on the approval of others or on success, but on what we have inside us.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in "Imposition of the Ashes - Homily of pope Francis" at www.vatican.va (5 March 2014)
“When we shut ourselves in any form of selfishness or self-complacency; when we allow ourselves to be seduced by worldly powers and by the things of this world, forgetting God and neighbour; when we place our hope in worldly vanities, in money, in success. Then the Word of God says to us: “Why do you seek the living among the dead?”. Why are you searching there? That thing cannot give you life! Yes, perhaps it will cheer you up for a moment, for a day, for a week, for a month … and then?”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in General Audience of 23 April 2014, Saint Peter square in Rome (23 April 2014)
“I urge you to work together in promoting a true, worldwide ethical mobilization which, beyond all differences of religious or political convictions, will spread and put into practice a shared ideal of fraternity and solidarity, especially with regard to the poorest and those most excluded.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: As quoted in Address to the UN system chief executives board for coordination, Consistory Hall (9 May 2014)
“inside every Christian is a Jew”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: 13 June 2014 via Huffington Post
“Children have the right to grow up in a family with a father and mother capable of creating a suitable environment for the child's development and emotional maturity. Today marriage and the family are in crisis. We now live in a culture of the temporary, in which more and more people are simply giving up on marriage as a public commitment. The revolution in mores and morals has often flown the flag of freedom, but in fact it has brought spiritual and material devastation to countless human beings, especially the poorest and most vulnerable.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Pope Francis declares union between man and woman 'at root of marriage' in blow to gay rights", by Adam Withnall, The Independent (18 November 2014)
“Da più parti si ricava un'impressione generale di stanchezza e d'invecchiamento, di un'Europa nonna e non più fertile e vivace. Per cui i grandi ideali che hanno ispirato l'Europa sembrano aver perso forza attrattiva, in favore dei tecnicismi burocratici delle sue istituzioni. (From many quarters there is a general impression of fatigue and aging, of a “grandma” Europe that is not fertile and lively. So the great ideals that inspired Europe seem to have lost its attractive force in favour of the bureaucratic technicalities of its institutions.)”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Addressing the European Parliament, 25 November 2014.
“The human heart desires joy. We all desire joy, every family, every people aspires to happiness. But what is the joy that the Christian is called to live out and bear witness to? It is the joy that comes from the closeness of God, from his presence in our life. From the moment Jesus entered into history, with his birth in Bethlehem, humanity received the seed of the Kingdom of God, like the soil receives the seed, the promise of a future harvest.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2014 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Angelus", in Saint Peter's Square (14 December 2014)
“The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. There is no more meaningful time than the beginning of a new year to hear these words of blessing.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2015 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: New Year Messages, National Catholic Register (January 2015)
“Peace requires the force of meekness, the force of nonviolence of truth and of love. We are also called to acknowledge the violence and injustices present in many places around the world, and we cannot allow ourselves to be indifferent and immobile. Everyone must work to build a society of solidarity and one that is truly more just.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2015 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: New Year Messages, National Catholic Register (January 2015)
“The earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) first seen 2015 wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
Recorded in: Twitter (18 June 2015)
“Dear brothers and sisters, I have often thought of how the Church may render more clear her mission to be a witness to mercy; and we have to make this journey. It is a journey which begins with spiritual conversion. Therefore, I have decided to announce an Extraordinary Jubilee which has at its centre the mercy of God. It will be a Holy Year of Mercy.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Instead of resolving the problems of the poor and thinking of how the world can be different, some can only propose a reduction in the birth rate. ... To blame population growth instead of extreme and selective consumerism on the part of some, is one way of refusing to face the issues. It is an attempt to legitimize the present model of distribution, where a minority believes that it has the right to consume in a way which can never be universalized, since the planet could not even contain the waste products of such consumption.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Economic powers continue to justify the current global system where priority tends to be given to speculation and the pursuit of financial gain, which fail to take the context into account, let alone the effects on human dignity and the natural environment. Here we see how environmental deterioration and human and ethical degradation are closely linked. Many people will deny doing anything wrong because distractions constantly dull our consciousness of just how limited and finite our world really is.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Everything is connected. Concern for the environment thus needs to be joined to a sincere love for our fellow human beings and an unwavering commitment to resolving the problems of society.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Moreover, when our hearts are authentically open to universal communion, this sense of fraternity excludes nothing and no one. It follows that our indifference or cruelty towards fellow creatures of this world sooner or later affects the treatment we mete out to other human beings. We have only one heart, and the same wretchedness which leads us to mistreat an animal will not be long in showing itself in our relationships with other people.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am deeply grateful for your welcome in the name of all Americans. As the son of an immigrant family, I am happy to be a guest in this country, which was largely built by such families.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Mr. President, I find it encouraging that you are proposing an initiative for reducing air pollution. Accepting the urgency, it seems clear to me also that climate change is a problem which can no longer be left to a future generation.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“I am happy that America continues to be, for many, a land of dreams. Dreams which lead to action, to participation, to commitment. Dreams which awaken what is deepest and truest in the life of a people.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“In recent centuries, millions of people came to this land to pursue their dream of building a future in freedom. We, the people of this continent, are not fearful of foreigners, because most of us were once foreigners. I say this to you as the son of immigrants, knowing that so many of you are also descended from immigrants.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source
“Building a nation calls us to recognize that we must constantly relate to others, rejecting a mindset of hostility in order to adopt one of reciprocal subsidiarity, in a constant effort to do our best. I am confident that we can do this.”
Pope Francis (1936–2025) said by 2025 at the latest wikiquote, CC BY-SA 4.0 source