POPE FRANCIS turns 84-year-old today.
To celebrate, we've cobbled together some of the Argentine's most inspirational quotes from his seven-and-a-half years as head of the Catholic Church.
- "God never tires of forgiving us; we are the ones who tire of seeking his mercy"
- "The media only writes about the sinners and the scandals, he said, but that's normal, because 'a tree that falls makes more noise than a forest that grows."
- "I prefer a church which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security"
- "No one can grow if he does not accept his smallness."
- "Life is a journey. When we stop, things don't go."
- "We all have the duty to do good."
- "We must restore hope to young people, help the old, be open to the future, spread love. Be poor among the poor. We need to include the excluded and preach peace."
- "I see clearly that the thing the church needs most today is the ability to heal wounds and to warm the hearts of the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity."
- "Living together is an art. It's a patient art, it's a beautiful art, it's fascinating."
A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges is not Christian. This is not in the Gospel.
- "This is the struggle of every person: be free or be a slave."
I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.
Christmas is joy, religious joy, an inner joy of light and peace.
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