Real faith changes the way Christians live, treat each other, pope says

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians must avoid using their faith to label those who are different — often the poor — as enemies to be avoided and rejected, Pope Leo XIV said.

“Some forms of worship do not foster communion with others and can numb our hearts,” he said in his homily during Mass in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 12 for the Jubilee of Marian Spirituality.

“Mary’s path follows that of Jesus, which leads us to encounter every human being, especially the poor, the wounded and sinners,” Pope Leo said in his homily. “Because of this, authentic Marian spirituality brings God’s tenderness, his way of ‘being a mother,’ to light in the church.”

Members of movements, confraternities and various Marian prayer groups were invited to Rome for their Oct. 11-12 Jubilee, which included an evening prayer service in the square Oct. 11 with Pope Leo in the presence of the original statue of Our Lady of Fatima.

The statue, brought from the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal, also was on display during the Oct. 12 Mass.

Marian spirituality, “which nourishes our faith, has Jesus as its center,” Pope Leo said in his homily. Remembering Jesus Christ is what matters.

“The celebration of Sunday, therefore, should make us Christians,” he said. “It should fill our thoughts and feelings with the burning memory of Jesus and change the way we live together and the way we inhabit the earth.”

The pope reflected on the day’s Gospel reading of Jesus cleansing 10 lepers (Lk 17:11-19). While all of them appealed to him and were healed, only one, who was a foreigner, thanked Jesus and glorified God.

“The lepers in the Gospel who do not return to give thanks remind us that God’s grace can touch us and find no response,” he said. “It can heal us, yet we can still fail to accept it.”

“Let us take care, therefore, not to go up to the temple in such a way that does not lead us to follow Jesus,” he said.

When some forms of worship fail to foster communion with others, he said, “we fail to encounter the people God has placed in our lives. We fail to contribute, as Mary did, to changing the world, and to share in the joy of the Magnificat.”

“Let us take care to avoid any exploitation of the faith that could lead to labelling those who are different — often the poor — as enemies, ‘lepers’ to be avoided and rejected,” he said.

“Marian spirituality is at the service of the Gospel” because “it reveals its simplicity,” he said.

“Our affection for Mary of Nazareth leads us to join her in becoming disciples of Jesus,” he said, and “it teaches us to return to him and to meditate and ponder the events of our lives in which the Risen One still comes to us and calls us.”

Marian spirituality “helps us to see the proud being scattered in their conceit, the mighty being cast down from their thrones and the rich being sent away empty-handed,” he said, referring to the Canticle of Mary (Lk 1:51-54). “It impels us to fill the hungry with good things, to lift up the lowly, to remember God’s mercy and to trust in the power of his arm.”

Just as God asked Mary for her “yes,” he said, “Jesus invites us to be part of his kingdom.”

“Dear friends, in a world seeking justice and peace, let us revive Christian spirituality and popular devotion to the events and places blessed by God that have changed the face of the earth forever,” he said.

“Let us use them as a driving force for renewal and transformation,” he said, especially during the Holy Year, which encourages conversion, restitution, reflection and liberation.

During the Mass, one of the prayers of the faithful prayed that God would “dispel all pride from the hearts of those who hold positions of power and inspire decisions which favor the little ones and the least.”

The pope offered his own prayer entrusting the church, the world and all of humanity to Mary.

“Holy Virgin, Mother of Christ our hope, your caring presence in this Year of Grace accompanies and consoles us and gives us, in the dark nights of history, the certainty that in Christ evil is overcome and every person is redeemed by his love,” he said.

“To your immaculate heart we entrust the whole world and all of humanity, especially your children who are tormented by the scourge of war,” he said. “Advocate of grace, advise us on the path of reconciliation and forgiveness, do not fail to intercede for us, in joy and in sorrow, and obtain for us the gift of peace that we earnestly implore.”

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