Pope: God is not distant and anonymous, he is our refuge

During the Angelus, Pope Francis called on everyone to rediscover that God is Father "in this age of orphanhood". The "obsessive search for earthly goods and riches" is an "illusion and a cause of unhappiness".  Entrusting oneself to the love of the Father enables us to overcome “the torments and adversities of life, even persecution, as the testimonies of so many of our brothers and sisters show." The pontiff greeted groups involved in ‘Rare Disease Day’.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) – "God is not a distant and anonymous: he is our refuge, the source of our serenity and peace," Pope Francis reiterated in his reflection ahead of today’s Angelus prayer before the pilgrims gathered in St Peter's Square.

"God,” the pontiff noted, “is for us a great friend, an ally, a father, but we do not always realise this. We prefer to lean on immediate and contingent assets, forgetting, and sometimes refusing, the supreme good, that is God’s fatherly love. Experiencing him as Father, in this age of orphanhood, is so important."

The pope’s comments centred on today's Gospel (Eight Sunday, Year A, Matthew 6.24-34), in which Jesus urges his disciples "to trust God, who takes care of the living beings in creation": the birds, the lilies and the grass of the field.

"Jesus,” said Francesco, “insistently urges us not to worry about tomorrow (cf. vv. 25-28-31), remembering that above all there is a loving Father who never forgets his children: relying on him does not magically solve problems, but it does allow us to face them boldly in the right frame of mind. I am brave because I rely on my Father who loves me so much."

"We turn away from God's love when we engage in the obsessive search for worldly goods and riches, thus manifesting an exaggerated love for these things. Jesus tells us that this exhausting search is an illusion and a cause of unhappiness."

"It is about implementing the project that Jesus proclaimed in the Sermon on the Mount, trusting God who does not disappoint, working as faithful stewards of the goods that He has given us, even those of this earth, but without ‘overdoing it’ as if everything, even our salvation, depended only on us.”

“This evangelical attitude requires a clear choice, that today's passage clearly states: ‘You cannot serve God and mammon’ (v. 24). Either the Lord, or the fascinating but illusory idols. This choice that we are called to affects eventually all our deeds, plans and commitments. It is a choice to be made in a clear way and constantly renewed, because the temptation to reduce everything to money, pleasure and power is pressing."

"Whilst honouring these idols leads to tangible albeit fleeting results, to choose God and his Kingdom does not always bear fruit immediately. It is a decision that is taken with hope that leaves the full realisation to God. Christian hope aims at the future fulfilment of God’s promise and does not stop in front of difficulties, because it is founded on God’s faithfulness, which never fails. God is faithful, he is a faithful friend, he is a faithful ally."

"May the Virgin Mary help us entrust ourselves to the love and goodness of the heavenly Father, to live in Him and with Him. This is the prerequisite for overcoming the torments and adversities of life, even persecution, as the testimonies of so many of our brothers and sisters show."

After the Marian prayer, the Pope greeted and thanked the groups who came to Rome for ‘Rare Disease Day’, which falls on 28 February. "I hope,” Francis said, “that patients and their families are properly supported in this difficult journey, at both the medical and legislative levels."

• vatican
• angelus
• pope francis
• orphanhood
• faithful god
• mammon
• rare diseases