Pope Leo's First Homily in Outline Form

Today in the Sistine Chapel, Pope Leo gave his first homily as pope.

Without controversy or confusion, his message was clear, orderly, organized, thoughtful, orthodox, concise and he stuck to the fundamentals.

Pope Leo defined who Jesus is, who he is as Pope, who the Church is compared to the people of the world. He gave us advice on how to live out our faith given the circumstances that we are faced with in the world today. 

Refreshingly absent of overt political rhetoric, he prioritized theology and spirituality in his message and demonstrated an understanding of the traditional role of the Vicar of Christ.

Here's a rough outline of the homily. 

I. Emphasis on Christocentricity (Rejection of Indifferentism)

     A. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God: the one Savior, who alone reveals the face of the Father. 

II. Two Things God Gives us 
     A.The Gift of Incarnation: in order to make himself close and accessible to men and women at evry stage.
           1. Stages of Jesus’ Life (in time) and Resurrected Life (for all time)
                    a. a child
                    b. a young person
                    c. a man
                    d. As the Risen Lord: And with his glorious body. 
     B. The Gift of Revelation, The Path to Follow: He thus showed us a model of human holiness with the promise of an eternal destiny that transcends all our limits and abilities.

III. The World and the Church. A Distinction is Made...Peter as Spiritual Leader, (The Pope) understands both of these things in order to allow himself to be changed by that gift and to give it to...

      A. the World Outside the Church: Christ to be proclaimed for the good of the human race. 
      B. those Baptized and Inside the Church.Those who...

             1. chosen by him before we were formed in our mothers’ wombs
             2. reborn in the waters of Baptism
             3. Given Grace: Surpassing our limitations and with no merit of our own
             4. Given Baptismal Mission: brought here and sent forth from here, so that the Gospel might be proclaimed to every creature (cf. Mk 16:15).

IV. Definition of the Pope…

     A. The Prince of the Apostles
     B. Faithful administrator for the sake of the entire mystical Body of the Church. 
     C. The Successor of Peter: “You are the Christ the Son of the Living…”:
             1. Peter’ expressed the patrimony that the Church through the apostolic succession
                  a. Preserved
                  b. Deepened
                  c. Handed on for two thousand years
      D. Bishop of Rome:
              1. Who Saint Ignatius of Antioch said is called to

                   a. preside in charity over the universal Church
                   b.  embrace selfless Sacrifice: Saint Ignatius, who was led in chains to this city, the place of his impending sacrifice, wrote to the Christians there:                           “Then I will truly be a disciple of Jesus Christ, when the world no longer sees my body”
                         Ignatius was speaking about being devoured by wild beasts in the arena – and so it happened

                   c. An indispensable commitment for all those in the Church who exercise a ministry of authority. 
                           1. to move aside so that Christ may remain
                           2. to make oneself small so that he may be known and glorified
                           3. to spend oneself to the utmost so that all may have the opportunity to know and love him.

V. Definition of Church as…

       A. A city set on a hill
       B. An ark of salvation sailing through the waters of history
       C. A beacon that illumines the dark nights of this world. 
       D. True Splendor is Holiness: And this, not so much through the magnificence of her structures or the grandeur of her buildings like the monuments          among which we find ourselves but rather through the holiness of her members. 
       E. For we are the people whom God has chosen as his own, so that we may declare the wonderful deeds of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light 

VI. Definition of The World: the world in which we live, with its limitations and its potential, its questions and its convictions.

         A. “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” If we reflect on the scene we are considering, we might find two possible answers, which characterize two different attitudes. 
                 1. First, there was the world’s response at that time.. 
                      a. Jesus as Gifted Orator: a world that considers Jesus a completely insignificant person, at best someone with an unusual and striking way of speaking and acting. 
                      b. Jesus as Morality Teacher: because of his demands for honesty and his stern moral requirements, this “world” will not hesitate to reject and eliminate him.
                 2. Then there is the other possible response to Jesus’ question: that of ordinary people... 
                        a. Jesus as Prophet: the Nazarene is not a charlatan, but an upright man, one who has courage, who speaks well and says the right things, like other great prophets in the history of Israel. 
                 3. Just a Man: They follow him, at least for as long as they can do so without too much risk or inconvenience. Yet to them he is only a man, and therefore, in times of danger, during his passion, they too abandon him and depart disappointed.

          B.  Definition of the World Today: 

                 1. The Christian faith is considered absurd for the weak and unintelligent. 
                 2. They prefer technology, money, success, power, or pleasure for security.
          C. It is not easy to preach the Gospel where believers are…     

                  1. Mocked

                  2. Opposed

                  3.Despised or at best tolerated and pitied. 
            D. Missionary outreach is desperately needed. A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by…

                   1. the loss of meaning in life
                   2. the neglect of mercy
                   3. appalling violations of human dignity
                   4. the crisis of the family
                   5. so many other wounds that afflict our society.
                   6. Jesus is reduced to a kind of charismatic leader or superman by those living in a state of practical atheism.

                      a. This is true not only among non-believers but also among many baptized Christians 

                      b.. We are called to bear witness to our joyful faith in Jesus the Savior.

                               1. It's essential that we too repeat, with Peter: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Mt 16:16).

                               2. Individually: In our personal relationship with the Lord in our commitment to a daily journey of conversion.
                               3. As a Church: experiencing together our fidelity to the Lord and bringing the Good News to all.