Let us return to dreaming

“To emerge from this crisis better, we must recover the awareness that, as a people, we share a common destiny. The pandemic reminds us that no one can save themselves alone.” At the darkest moment of the pandemic, in March 2020, Pope Francis was the first to break the anguished silence of deserted cities by gathering the unspoken questions of frightened people. He understood that the answers from scientists, politicians, and experts about the causes and remedies of that unexpected and extremely difficult ordeal could not be enough, and he invited everyone, believers and nonbelievers alike, to look farther ahead and open paths toward the future. His reflections, developed during the long period of isolation, are collected in this book, in which, with direct and powerful words, he urges us not to let this ordeal prove useless. After a sharp critique of the systems and ideologies that helped produce the current situation - from the profit-obsessed globalized economy to selfishness and indifference toward others and the environment -, the Pope offers a plan that is both visionary and practical for building a better world for everyone, a project that begins in the outskirts and with the poor in order to transform life on the planet. With unprecedented authenticity, and the frankness of expressions from his mother tongue, Francis confesses how, at different times, three deeply painful experiences changed him profoundly, making him a better person. He intertwines the account of what he learned while traveling through the outskirts of Buenos Aires with surprising observations on the proposals and actions of various thinkers, politicians, and activists. A courageous book that sows hope and calls together all those who believe that a fairer and healthier world is possible. Never more than at this moment does Francis reveal himself as a shepherd, father, and guide not only for believers but for all humanity.