Let your beauty shine, Pope Francis tells young people

CNA Newsroom, Sep 30, 2022 / 09:00 am

Pope Francis on Friday told young people to let their true beauty shine, the beauty that is a reflection of divine beauty. 

In a message to participants in the Ursuline Global Education Compact, the pope said Sept. 30 that one could not educate “without leading a person to beauty, without leading the heart to beauty.” 

“The beauty we are talking about is not turned in on itself like that of Narcissus, who fell in love with his own image and drowned in the lake in which he saw himself mirrored.”

Instead, Pope Francis told students he was speaking of the beauty that never fades because it is a reflection of divine beauty. 

“The beauty that Jesus revealed to us is a splendor that communicates itself through action; a beauty that is embodied in order to be shared; a beauty that is not afraid of getting its hands dirty, of becoming disfigured in order to be faithful to the love of which it is made.” 

Pope Francis told the students he wished them “a healthy restlessness” to be open and courageous like St. Ursula, the “little bear,” who dared to embark on a long journey with her companions and fearlessly faced attacks to the point of martyrdom.

Finally, Pope Francis said he hoped to see participants at next year’s World Youth Day in Lisbon, “which promises to be a great sign of hope and beauty for all the young people of the world.”