Pope at Mass: Only the Father can
draw people to Jesus
At the morning Mass at Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis prays
for the deceased, especially those buried in mass graves and reflects on the
Gospel passage, “No one can come to me unless the Father draws him”.
By Christopher Wells
Pope Francis dedicated his morning Mass on Thursday to those
who have died because of the Covid-19 pandemic. He prayed especially for those
who have died “anonymously” and have been buried in common graves.
The Holy Father took a verse from the Gospel as the starting
point for his homily: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw
him.”
It is certainly possible to study religion or theology, and
learn a great deal about Jesus, the Pope said, but unless we
are drawn by the Father, we cannot know Christ, or His mystery.
This was the case with the Ethiopian eunuch in the First
Reading from the Acts of the Apostles. He was an official in the Ethiopian
royal court. The Pope noted that he was reading the Scriptures – a passage from
the prophet Isaiah – as he returned home from Jerusalem. God had already
prepared his heart, and now the Father sent Philip the Deacon to him.
The restlessness the official felt was precisely the Father
drawing him to Jesus. When he saw some water by the wayside, he asked to be
baptised.
Our apostolic work: to bear witness
Pope Francis said it is important for us to realize this
principle as the basis for our own apostolic work of spreading the Gospel.
“This is valid for our apostolate, for our apostolic mission as Christians”, he
said. The work of conversion, the Pope continued, is not something we do. Only
God can convert someone. Only the Father can draw someone to Jesus.
Our job, the Pope said, is to bear witness. In missionary
work, it is not enough simply to teach or instruct people about the truths of
the faith. In order to be a true proclamation, we must bear witness in our own
lives, and allow the Father to draw people to Christ.
Prayer opens the Father’s heart
The Pope then asks what we can do “so that the Father will
make it His business to draw people” to Jesus.
The answer he gives is simple: Prayer.
“Witness and prayer go together”, the Pope said. “Without
witness and prayer you cannot do the work of apostolic preaching”. One’s
preaching might be very beautiful, but without the Father's action, people will
not be attracted to Christ.
The centre of our apostolate
Our witness opens the door to people’s hearts, leads them to
welcome the message and the mystery of Jesus. Prayer then opens the Father's
heart, so that He Himself will draw people to Jesus.
This applies not only in the missions but is the “great rule
of our apostolate everywhere”, the Pope said. He warned, though, that being
missionary does not mean proselytism: “Witness, yes, proselytism, no!”
Pope Francis concluded his homily saying, “Let us ask the
Lord for the grace to live our work with witness and prayer, so that He, the
Father, might draw people to Jesus.”
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