On 15 January, Pope Francis met with the members of the Studium Biblicum Franciscanum, the Faculty of Biblical Sciences and Archaeology of the Pontifical University "Antonianum in Rome, who celebrated their formation’ centenary.

In Pope Francis’s exhortation to the Franciscan brothers during the audience, he said, "The current situation in the Holy Land and the peoples who inhabit it involves us and pains us. We must pray and act tirelessly for this tragedy to end."

The Franciscans have an extraordinary calling in the Holy Land: to guard the "places of our Redemption," they are not only custodians of the Holy Places but also the Word of God. That is why they seek to pray and act for all the needy brothers.

Christ also makes this call to you, and through prayer, we enter into a relationship of love with the Father. A relationship that is not kept to itself but reaches fullness by bearing fruit in others.

Let us not stop praying for our brothers, especially those who need our prayer the most. From Magdala, we continue to pray for those who continue to suffer in the Holy Land due to the ongoing war that affects so many. Let us remain faithful in prayer. Let us not give up on reminding ourselves of our Father.

But now, how to make a good prayer? A good prayer is not measured by the techniques we apply or how many prayers we know by heart. A good prayer leads you to have an encounter with Christ and gradually shapes the heart like His.

If you want to learn more about prayer, we invite you to join tour Pilgrimage of Prayer during this Lent, where we will immerse ourselves in the richness of worship and explore its importance. You can subscribe to our pilgrimage here.

May this Lent be a preparation that helps us contemplate the word of God more, savor it, reflect on it, and let its message permeate our actions to glorify God with our lives.

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