Even if he has some remains of bronchitis, Pope Francis gave sensible advice during one of his speeches in St. Peter's Square from the Vatican.
He made a new appeal for world peace. "To Saint Joseph - he said - we recommend the populations of tormented Ukraine and the Holy Land, Palestine, Israel, who suffer so much from the horror of war". Then the Pontiff added: "Let us never forget. War is always a defeat, we cannot go forward in war, we must make every effort to negotiate, to negotiate, to end the war. Let us pray for this". (source: tgcom24.mediaset.it)
"In a world dominated by appearances, by superficial thoughts, by the banality of both good and evil, the ancient lesson of Prudence deserves to be recovered". The Pontiff said this in the catechesis at the general audience in St. Peter's Square, reflecting on prudence and continuing the series of catecheses dedicated to the virtues. (source: Vatican news.va)
Prudence, together with justice, fortitude, and temperance, constitute the virtues that are defined as "cardinal".
The cardinal virtues explains the Pope, are not the "exclusive prerogative" of Christian life because they were already the heritage of the ancient wisdom, in particular of the Greek thinkers. In the Gospels, Jesus talks about prudence and repeatedly urges his people to be prudent. (source: Vatican news.va)
Being cautious does not mean being fearful.
It is important, however, to clarify the meaning of prudence states the Pope. It would be a mistake for example to believe that it is the characteristic "of a fearful person" and always in doubt about what action to take. Nor should we think of prudence as just a form of caution. And he continues: (source: Vatican news.va)
"Giving primacy to prudence means that man's action is in the hands of his intelligence and freedom. The prudent person is creative: he reasons, evaluates, tries to understand the complexity of reality and does not allow himself to be overwhelmed by emotions, laziness, pressure, illusions." (source: Vatican news.va)
Governing with prudence means harmonizing differences
Falling into error is always a possibility for us, but with prudence, we can avoid "big mistakes", states again Pope Francis. (source: Vatican news.va)
Prudence is the quality of those who are called to govern: they know that administering is difficult, that there are many points of view and we must try to harmonize them. (source: Vatican news.va)
Prudence knows how to preserve the memory of the past.
The Pope observes that prudence teaches many things: that "the best is the enemy of the good", that too much zeal "can generate conflicts and misunderstandings", and that it is necessary to be foresighted and take the past into account. (source: Vatican news.va)
The prudent person knows how to preserve the memory of the past, not because he is afraid of the future, but because he knows that tradition is a heritage of wisdom. (source: Vatican news.va)
The virtue of prudence in the Gospel
Jesus, states Pope Francis, shows that he appreciates prudence. "He who builds his house on the rock is prudent", he praises the wise virgins who are not found without oil for their lamps because "Christian life is a union of simplicity and shrewdness". (source: Vatican news.va)
Preparing his disciples for the mission, Jesus recommends: "Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be prudent like serpents and simple like doves". As if to say that God doesn't just want us to be saints, he wants us to be 'intelligent saints', because without prudence it's easy to go the wrong way! (source: Vatican news.va)