Pope on the Day of the Poor: “Wealth is what we are, not what we have”

Vatican City

On the morning of November 15, the XXXIII Ordinary Sunday, Pope Francis celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica as part of the Fourth World Day of the Poor, which this year has as its theme: “Reach out to the poor”. (cf. And 7.32).

Deepening the Gospel of the day as Jesus tells the parable to his disciples, in which a Lord calls his servants, gives each a set of talents (a different amount according to their ability) and then, over time, asks them what they made from these coins that they donated; the Pope has divided this account into three parts: “a beginning, a development and an end, which illuminate the beginning, the heart and the end of our lives.”

“At the beginning, everything begins with a great good: the owner does not keep his fortune for himself, but gives it to his servants; to one five, to two others, to another a talent, to each according to his ability”The Holy Father said, remembering that it all starts like this for us too:

“VSon thanks of God, who is Father and has put so much good in our hands, entrusting each one with different talents. We are carriers of great wealth, which does not depend on what we have, but on what we are: on the life we ​​have received, on the good that is in us, on the irreplaceable beauty that God has given us. , because we are made in his image, each of us is precious in his eyes, unique and irreplaceable in history. “

Then we come to center of the parable – Francis continued to reflect – which is the work of the servants, that is to say the service.

And to achieve this, the Pope stressed that it is essential to follow the example of Saint Paul, who “invites us to face reality and not to let ourselves be carried away by indifference”.

“But what is the style of service?” – the Pontiff wondered.

“In the gospel, good servants are those who risk. They are not careful and prudent, they do not keep what they have received, but rather use it. Because the good, if not invested, is lost; because the greatness of our life is not It depends on what we collect, but how much fruit we bear How many people spend their lives accumulating, thinking about being good instead of doing good. But how empty is a life that pursues needs, without looking at the needy! If we have gifts, it is to be gifts “.

Precisely the Lord in the parable shows the faithful servant the path to follow so that the talents received bear fruit: “You should have brought my money to the lenders, so that when I returned I could get back what was mine with interest” (v. 27). At this point, the Pontiff asks us … Who are for us the “lenders”, capable of obtaining a lasting interest?

Coming to the end of the parable, the Pope underlined the Lord’s words: “There will be those who have plenty and those who have wasted their lives and will remain poor (cf. v. 29)”.

At the end of his homily, Francis thanked so many faithful servants of God, who give nothing to speak of themselves, but live like this:

“I think, for example, of Don Roberto Malgesini. This priest did not make theories; he simply saw Jesus in the poor and the meaning of life in service. He gently wiped away the tears, in the name of God who consoles “, declared the Holy Father, concluding:

“In start of his day was prayer, to welcome the gift of God; in center from the day when there was charity, to make the love received fruitful; in the end, a clear testimony of the gospel. She understood that she had to reach out to the many poor people she met daily because she saw Jesus in all of them. Let us ask for the grace not to be Christians in word, but in deed. To bear fruit, as Jesus wishes. “