Pope at Mass: Pray for persons
suffering from unjust sentences
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| Pope Francis at Mass in the Casa Santa Marta (Vatican Media) |
Pope Francis offers his Mass on Tuesday morning in the Casa
Santa Marta for people who suffer unjust sentences because of persecution. He
also reminds us that we are chosen to serve.
By Fr. Benedict Mayaki, SJ
Introducing Tuesday morning’s homily, Pope Francis said: “I
would like to pray today for all those persons who suffer an unjust sentence
because of persecution.”
Pope Francis explained that Jesus was hounded by the doctors
of the law even though He was innocent.
We are all chosen
Isaiah’s prophecy (Is 49: 1-6) relates to the Messiah and
the People of God. God chose the prophet before he was born, explained Pope
Francis. In the same way, each one of us is chosen with the vocation of serving
from our mother’s womb. None of us fell into this world by chance.
“Each one of us has a destiny, a free destiny. The destiny
is the election of God. I am born chosen to be a servant of God with the task
of serving.”
The vocation of service
“To serve is not pretending that we have any other benefit
to give than serving,” said Pope Francis. Jesus, the Servant of God gives us an
example of service. The glory of Jesus was serving until death. It seemed a
defeat but it was a way of serving.
When the People of God distance themselves from the attitude
of serving, they are a People that have apostatized, explains the Pope. This
leads them to construct their lives on other loves that are often idolatrous
and they lose their vocation.
The attitude of repentance
Pope Francis explained that the important thing is our
attitude before God who chose us and anointed us as His servant. Except for Our
Lady and Jesus, we have all fallen. The example of Peter is a source of
inspiration. When Peter denied Jesus and the cock crowed, he cried and repented
(Mt 26:75). This is the path of a servant who asks for forgiveness when he or
she slips and falls.
The other path is that of the servant who is incapable of
understanding that he or she has fallen. This path leaves the heart open to the
passions that lead to idolatry. Like Judas, the heart becomes open to Satan.
The Pope’s prayer
Concluding his homily, the Pope invited us to think of Jesus
who was faithful in service. We are by vocation meant to serve and not to make
a profit from our position in the Church. Pope Francis prayed that like Peter,
we may be able to weep when we slip and fall.
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