Pope Angelus: get ready for the final meeting with the Lord

Vatican City

August 11, XIX Sunday of Ordinary Time and Liturgical Memory of St. Clare of Assisi, Virgin and Foundress of Poor Clares; Pope Francis prayed the Marian prayer of Angelus accompanied by thousands of faithful and pilgrims gathered on St. Peter's Square under the hot summer sun of Rome.

Catch the pbadage of God in their lives

In his usual commentary on the Sunday Gospel (cf. Lk 12, 32-48), the Holy Father reflected on the moment when Jesus calls his disciples to constant vigilance to capture the pbadage of God in his own life, indicating the modalities for living this vigilance well: "Be prepared, with tight dresses on the sides and lit lamps "(v. 35).

Do not take root in comfortable homes

In the first place, the expression to wear "tight waist" (clothes near the hips)"It's an image that recalls the attitude of the pilgrim, ready to take the road," said Francisco, explaining that it is "not to take root in comfortable and rebaduring homes, but s' to abandon with simplicity and confidence the will of God, which guides us to the next goal ".

Keep the lamp of faith

Secondly, we are asked to "keep the lamps lit to illuminate the darkness of the night," added the Bishop of Rome, stressing that we are invited to live an authentic and mature faith, able to enlighten the many "nights". "of life:" the lamp of faith needs to be continually nourished, with the encounter of heart to heart with Jesus in prayer and listening to his Word. "

In this sense, the pope emphasized that this lamp is entrusted to us for the good of all. No one can therefore withdraw intimately in the certainty of his salvation, disinterested in others: "true faith opens the heart to the neighbor and leads to a concrete communion with the brothers, especially with the poor."

Be ready for the final meeting with God

Moreover, in the parable that Jesus tells about the servants who wait for the return of the Lord after his marriage (verses 36-40), the pontiff emphasized another aspect of vigilance: to prepare for the definitive encounter with the Lord. : "Blessed are those servants whom the master will find still awake on his return … And if he arrives in the middle of the night or before dawn, he will find them thus, blessed are they!" (vv 37-38).

With these words – says the pope – the Master reminds us that life is a path to eternity; therefore, we are called to grow all our talents, "never forgetting that we do not have the stable city here, but that we go in search of the future city" (Heb 13:14). In this perspective, each moment becomes precious, so it is necessary to live and act on this earth with nostalgia for heaven.

He will make us participate in his eternal happiness

"If we have lived in harmony with the Gospel and the commandments of God, he will make us participate in his eternal happiness in the heavenly homeland," said Francisco making sure that the thought of the final encounter with the Father, "rich in mercy", full of hope and encourages us to engage unceasingly for our sanctification and the construction of a more just and fraternal world: "May the Virgin Mary, through her maternal intercession, maintain this commitment from us, "he concluded.