When the pope speaks, you listen.
As Catholics, we look to the pope to give us the guidance we need in life and take his word as the word of God.
Recently, Pope Francis submitted a TED Talk from the Vatican for TED's international conference in Vancouver.
"In this complicated and often confusing world, Pope Francis has become possibly the only moral voice capable of reaching people across boundaries and providing clarity and a compelling message of hope," said Bruno Giussani, TED's international curator.
Listening to Pope Francis give us lessons to live by is an extremely humbling experience. Who are we to disagree with him?
These were his main lessons:
We Are All Connected
"Quite a few years of life have strengthened my conviction that each and everyone's existence is deeply tied to that of others," Francis said. "Life is not time merely passing by, life is about interactions. I could have very well ended up among today's 'discarded' people. And that's why I always ask myself, deep in my heart: 'Why them and not me?'"
Click to see the Pope's other lessons for us.
It Just Takes One Person To Make Change
"People's paths are riddled with suffering, as everything is centered around money, and things, instead of people," said Pope Francis. "A single individual is enough for hope to exist, and that individual can be you. And then there will be another 'you,' and another 'you,' and it turns into an 'us.' And so, does hope begin when we have an 'us?' No. Hope began with one 'you.' When there is an 'us,' there begins a revolution."
Try A Little Tenderness
"Tenderness means to use our eyes to see the other, our ears to hear the other, to listen to the children, the poor, those who are afraid of the future," Francis said. "To listen also to the silent cry of our common home, of our sick and polluted Earth. Tenderness means to use our hands and our heart to comfort the other, to take care of those in need."
Perhaps the best quote from Pope Francis was this:
"Please, allow me to say it loud and clear: the more powerful you are, the more your actions will have an impact on people, the more responsible you are to act humbly. If you don't, your power will ruin you, and you will ruin the other."
Do you agree with Pope Francis' lessons to us?