Listen With your Heart: Pope Francis

By Lissy Maruthanakuzhy

Panaji, May 27, 2022: When I saw the theme for the World 56th Communications Day 2022 ” Listen with your Heart” the song that came to my mind is:

Listen, let your heart keep seeking
Listen, to his constant speaking…
Listen to the spirit calling you.

This is a song familiar to all of us.

Yes, Pope Francis is calling each one of us to” Listen with your heart.” Pope Francis tells us in his message, “In fact, we are losing the ability to listen to those in front of us, both in the normal course of everyday relationships and when debating the most important issues of civil life.”

Yes, indeed, listening is a very important aspect in our lives. It can build one, give new energy, hope, and joy in the life of another one.

I remember an anecdote from the life of Pope Francis when he was a Bishop.

Bishop Jorge as he was known then, was rushing to the railway station to travel to a religious community to give a recollection talk. He was just in time to catch his train. If he missed it, he would be late for his program and the participants would be waiting.

In the courtyard he met with a man who requested him to hear his confession. Bishop directed him to the Cathedral, saying that he would find a priest at the confessional.

However, after walking a few steps further he sensed an urgency in that man. Bishop Jorge came back and led the man to the Cathedral, heard his confession and returned to the railway station. To his surprise the train was still there as if waiting for him.

Bishop Jorge had listened to the call of the Spirit, constantly speaking in his life.
Bishop Jorge had listened with the heart to the cry of that man seeking mercy.

One day when a young woman with her mother came to our house asking for me, I was perplexed. How did she get my name and find our house, I wondered? But I kept my queries to myself recognizing an emergency.

Hardly had she taken her seat she began to speak, poured her heart out. About an hour later she said, “Thank you for listening to me. I feel already better after talking to you.” And she heaved a sigh of relief.

As I closed the door behind her, another song came to my mind:

“Someone will be calling you to be there for a while.
Can you hear her cry from deep within?
Laughter, joy, and presence: the only gift you are!
Have you time? I’d like to be with you.”

One of the biggest problems in the world today is loneliness. In our life we often meet with people who ask a bit of our time, to listen to them.

I recall a young woman who came to me sharing her family disputes. As I felt inadequate to help her, I directed her to a counselor nearby. Later I repented, that I did not give her a listening ear. I do not know what happened to her after our meeting.

Sharing this incident with a wise friend, I realized, what she needed from me was a listening ear and not any expertise. The stress due to quarrels with spouses and relatives, unfair treatment at work, busy lives, and failures in love…are all taking toll on precious lives.
Pope Francis says, “We all have ears, but many times even those with perfect hearing are unable to hear another person. In fact, there is an interior deafness worse than the physical one. Indeed, listening concerns the whole person, not just the sense of hearing. The true seat of listening is the heart.”
Saint Augustine used to encourage listening with the heart, to receive words not outwardly through the ears, but spiritually in our hearts: “Do not have your heart in your ears, but your ears in your heart,” St Augustine said.
Often, we fail to recognize the ‘danger zone’ hidden in those who approach `us with the request, ‘can I talk to you.’ They may be friends, colleagues or strangers. We fail to realize the desperate situation they are in, to bare their self with a trustworthy person.

Mental stress takes away the reasoning power and leads one to take ultimate steps.

We could be of great help to another if only we could do what an author Tahereh Mafi says, “All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.”

This is what Pope Francis is asking each of us through his message.

The stories of many people who struggle in their lives due to stress or family feuds, or work related misunderstandings, make us reflect on our life in society, workplaces, and families.

Pope Francis is reminding us that one needs an atmosphere to share the good and bad moments of life with someone who can be trusted. They need no advice, no suggestions. They want only a listening ear.

When confused, or distressed, one is not even able to think of the medical help available. In such moments, intervention of friends can bring in life.

An American actress and a founder of the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre, Amy Poehler, suggests, “Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you; spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.”

Have you time to spare for me? is the oft-heard request these days.

Victor Frankl, an eminent Austrian psychiatrist and Holocaust survivor, once had a depressed patient ringing him late at night to tell him that she was about to commit suicide.

Frankl spoke to her until dawn, giving her rationale after rationale to embrace life anew. After a whole lot of persuasion, she assured him that she won’t take her life. Later when Viktor met his patient and asked her what among his suggestions made her reverse her decision she simply said, “None of them.”

The nonplussed doctor pressed her further and was then told that his willingness to listen for long without passing judgment was what made her change her mind and understand that it was still worthwhile to live.

Pope Francis reminds us, “The ability to listen to society is more valuable than ever in this time wounded by the long pandemic. So much previously accumulated mistrust towards “official information” has also caused an “infodemic” within which the world of information is increasingly struggling to be credible and transparent. We need to lend an ear and listen profoundly, especially to the social unease heightened by the downturn or cessation of many economic activities.”

Friends, please listen…. With your heart.