• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
        • Sports News
        • Official Clergy Assignments
        • Schools News
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Question Corner
          • George Weigel
          • Effie Caldarola
          • John Garvey
          • Father Ed Dougherty, M.M.
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie & Television Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
        • Recipes
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • CR Media platforms
        • Electronic Edition
  • Advertising
  • Shop
        • Purchase Photos
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
  • CR Radio
  • News Tips
  • Subscribe
Pope Francis celebrates an ecumenical evening prayer service marking the conversion of St. Paul at the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome Jan. 25, 2023. (CNS photo/Guglielmo Mangiapane, Reuters)

God ‘suffers’ when believers injure, ignore those God loves, pope says

January 25, 2023
By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service
Filed Under: Ecumenism and Interfaith Relations, News, Vatican, World News

ROME (CNS) — God suffers and grieves when those who profess to believe in him do not love the people he loves and do not work for the justice he desires, Pope Francis said.

“God suffers when we, who call ourselves his faithful ones, put our own ways of seeing things before his, when we follow the judgments of the world rather than those of heaven, when we are content with exterior rituals yet remain indifferent to those for whom he cares the most,” the pope said in his homily Jan. 25 at an ecumenical evening prayer service.

A statue of St. Paul is seen as Pope Francis celebrates an ecumenical evening prayer service marking the conversion of St. Paul at the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome Jan. 25, 2023. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)

Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Anglican and Protestant representatives joined the pope at Rome’s Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls for vespers closing the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Members of the Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religions joined the mostly Rome-based religious leaders for the service.

The Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity and the Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches entrusted the preparations of the 2023 week of prayer to a group convened by the Minnesota Council of Churches.

Acknowledging “the injustices perpetrated in the past against native peoples and in our own day against African Americans,” Pope Francis said, the group chose as the theme for the week “Do good; seek justice” from Isaiah 1:17.

In the face of “various forms of contempt and racism, before indifference, lack of understanding and sacrilegious violence, the word of God admonishes us: ‘Learn to do good, seek justice,'” the pope said. “It is not enough to denounce, we need also to renounce evil, to pass from evil to good.”

“In other words,” he said, God’s “admonishment is meant to change us.”

In Isaiah’s time — and even today, the pope said, “it was generally thought that the rich, who made great offerings and looked down upon the poor, were blessed in God’s eyes. Yet this was, and is, completely to misunderstand the Lord. It is the poor that Jesus proclaims blessed, and in the parable of the final judgment, he identifies himself with those who hunger and thirst, the stranger, the needy, the sick and those in prison.”

Even more, Pope Francis said, God is offended by “sacrilegious violence,” the violence of destroying another person, made in God’s image and likeness.

“We can imagine with what suffering he must witness wars and acts of violence perpetrated by those who call themselves Christians,” the pope said.

With all the knowledge people have of spirituality and theology, he said, “we have no excuses” to believe that God would want faith to be used to harm another.

“Still, there are those who appear to feel encouraged or at least permitted by their faith to support varieties of narrow and violent nationalism, xenophobia and contempt, and even the mistreatment of those who are different,” the pope said.

In fidelity to God, he said, “we must be opposed to war, to violence and to injustice wherever they begin to appear.”

Pope Francis prayed that St. Paul would “help us to change, to be converted; may he obtain for us something of his own indomitable courage.”

Such courage is needed to continue on the path to full Christian unity, he said, and to overcome the temptations to be impatient or to focus only on the needs of one’s own church.

Read More Vatican News

Scholars, diplomats reflect on U.S. and church’s response to the Holocaust

Pope preaches peace, cooperation, resilience to a Congo ‘gasping for breath’

Pope arrives in Congo after praying on flight for migrants

U.S.-born priest to lead Vatican body overseeing selection of world’s bishops

Pope Francis condemns ‘spiral of death’ in the Holy Land

Pope clarifies remarks about homosexuality and sin

Copyright © 2023 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

Print Print

Primary Sidebar

Cindy Wooden

Catholic News Service is a leading agency for religious news. Its mission is to report fully, fairly and freely on the involvement of the church in the world today.

View all posts from this author

For the latest news delivered twice a week via email or text message, sign up to receive our free enewsletter.

| MOST POPULAR |

  • Gov. Moore’s budget cuts BOOST, proposes phase-out of scholarship program
  • Mercy delivers Magic show in ‘Classic’ victory over Maryvale
  • Catholic pro-life activist Mark Houck acquitted of federal charges
  • Catholic schoolteachers describe what they love about their jobs
  • Former priest Frank Pavone, head of Priests for Life, faces sexual misconduct allegations

| Latest Local News |

Archdiocese launches anti-racism program: ‘In God’s Image: A Racial Justice Journey for All’

Archbishop Lori tells conference to look at ‘root’ of violence, poverty

Mercy on the move with athletic advancements

| Latest World News |

Mosque suicide bombing targets police, dozens dead

Scholars, diplomats reflect on U.S. and church’s response to the Holocaust

Pope preaches peace, cooperation, resilience to a Congo ‘gasping for breath’

| Catholic Review Radio |

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

Footer

Our Vision

Real Life. Real Faith. 

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • Mosque suicide bombing targets police, dozens dead
  • Archdiocese launches anti-racism program: ‘In God’s Image: A Racial Justice Journey for All’
  • Scholars, diplomats reflect on U.S. and church’s response to the Holocaust
  • Pope preaches peace, cooperation, resilience to a Congo ‘gasping for breath’
  • Archbishop Lori tells conference to look at ‘root’ of violence, poverty
  • New translation tweaks to sacrament of penance take effect this Lent
  • Pope arrives in Congo after praying on flight for migrants
  • U.S.-born priest to lead Vatican body overseeing selection of world’s bishops
  • With national March for Life behind them, pro-life advocates plan for state marches, rallies

Search

Membership

Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2023 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED