Do you want to grow in love? Keep Jesus close, pope says
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Do you want to grow in love? Keep Jesus close, pope says
A Christian can stay on the right path to Heaven, and grow in love for God and his neighbor, only by keeping close to Christ and his love, Pope Francis said Sunday.
āWhen one moves away from Jesus and his love, one loses oneself and existence turns into disappointment and dissatisfaction,ā the pope said July 22. āWith Jesus at [our] side we can proceed with security, we can overcome trials, we progress in love for God and for our neighbor.ā
āTo find the right orientation of life,ā everyone needs the truth ā which is Christ ā to guide and enlighten their path, he continued, according to a Catholic News Agency report.
Speaking before the Angelus, Francis reflected on the dayās Gospel reading from Mark, which tells of Jesusā pity on the crowd of people, who āwere like sheep without a shepherd.ā In this passage, Jesus is āthe realization of Godās concern and care for his people,ā he said.
Jesus is moved with compassion for the people in need of guidance, but he does not perform a miracle, the pope noted. Instead, he teaches them. āHere is the first bread that the Messiah offers to the hungry and lost crowd: the bread of the Word.ā
Pointing to how Jesus and his disciples had been searching for a place to rest, but the crowd had followed them, Francis said, the same thing can happen to today. āSometimes we fail to realize our projects, because an unexpected emergency occurs that messes up our programs and requires flexibility and availability to the needs of others.ā
He said when this happens, āwe are called to imitate Christ.ā As it shows in the Gospel, Jesus did not ignore the people. He had compassion on them, came down to them, and ābegan to teach them many things,ā something Christians can learn from.
āThe gaze of Jesus is not a neutral or, worse, cold and detached look, because Jesus always looks with the eyes of the heart,ā the pope said. Jesusā heart āis so tender and full of compassion, that he knows how to grasp the even more hidden needs of people.ā
Jesusā compassion on the people is not āan emotional reaction of unease,ā it is much more, he continued: āit is the attitude and predisposition of God towards man and his history.ā
In this example of Jesus, Christians find a model of love and service toward others, he said.
After the Angelus, Pope Francis added a note about recent reports of the shipwrecking of boats filled with migrants in the Mediterranean Sea. āI express my sorrow in the face of these tragedies and assure my memory and my prayer for the missing people and their families,ā he said.
He also made an appeal to the international community to act promptly to prevent the reoccurrence of such tragedies and to guarantee safety and respect for the rights and dignity of all people.