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The Church is a mother, and she preaches in the same way that a mother speaks to her child, knowing that the child trusts that what she is teaching is for his or her benefit, for children know that they are loved», we read in No. 139 of the Apostolic Exhortation “
Evangelii Gaudium,” on the Proclamation of the Gospel in Today's World, promulgated by Pope Francis on November 26th, 2013.
«A good mother can recognize everything that God is bringing about in her children; she listens to their concerns and learns from them».
In the “family of the Church” reigns the «spirit of love», which guides each member alike, both the mother and the children, while each one teaches and learns, and «something similar happens in a homily». «Just as all of us like to be spoken to in our mother tongue, so too in the faith—writes the Holy Father—we like to be spoken to in our “mother culture”, our native language (cf. 2 Macc 7:21, 27), and our heart is better disposed to listen. This language is a kind of music which inspires encouragement, strength and enthusiasm».
«This setting, both maternal and ecclesial, in which the dialogue between the Lord and his people takes place, should be encouraged by the closeness of the preacher, the warmth of his tone of voice, the unpretentiousness of his manner of speaking, the joy of his gestures. Even if the homily at times may be somewhat tedious, if this maternal and ecclesial spirit is present, it will always bear fruit, just as the tedious counsels of a mother bear fruit, in due time, in the hearts of her children» (No. 140).
