VATICAN CITY — In his daily homily on Tuesday, Pope reflected on different models of Christian witness, warning the faithful to guard against hypocrisy when they evangelize and encouraging them to imitate Jesus.
“Let us ask the Lord that these two readings help us in our lives as Christians,” said the Pope in reference to the day’s Scripture passages, encouraging the faithful to learn “not to be pure legalists, hypocrites, like the scribes and Pharisees … but to be like Jesus, with that zeal to seek people.”
During his Jan. 14 homily given in the Vatican’s St. Martha guesthouse, Pope Francis used the characters in the day’s readings to develop the theme of Christian witness, highlighting how the attitudes portrayed display four different types of believers.
Focusing on Eli, the priest from the first reading, his sons, who were also priests, the scribes and Jesus, the Holy Father said the Lord’s attitude is one of teaching with authority, while the others bound their people with heavy burdens.
“It is Jesus himself who says that [the scribes] did not move these things even with a finger, right?” the Pope said, “And then [Jesus] will say to people: ‘Do what they say but not what they do.’”
The scribes, Pope Francis noted, are “incoherent people,” adding that it often seems “that these scribes and Pharisees are always beating on the [regular folks].”
However, the Holy Father explained that “Jesus told them … that, in this way, they closed the door to the Kingdom of heaven [as if to say], ‘You don’t let others enter, and so neither will you yourselves gain entrance.’”
“This is how some people teach, preach and witness the faith … and how many people out there think that the faith really is as they present it,” the Pope said.
Pope Francis then recalled the attitude of Eli in the first reading, when he saw Hannah in the Temple begging for a son, and, at first thinking her drunk, he told her to go away.
This attitude, Pope Francis noted, represents that of the “salesman” or the “manager” of the faith, revealing a priest whose heart is not truly in what he does.
“How many times,” the Pope said, “do God’s people feel themselves unloved by those who ought to give witness: by Christians — by lay faithful, by priests, by bishops?”
“Why, then, do I have some sympathy for this man [Eli]?” asked the Pope. “Because, in his heart, he still had the anointing, because when the woman explains her situation, Eli says, ‘Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant you what you asked for.’”
“The priestly anointing comes out in the end,” the Pope said. “He had hidden it inside his laziness, poor man, a lukewarm man, and it ends badly for him, poor fellow.”
Turning to Eli’s sons, Pope Francis explained that, after the scribes and their father Eli, they represent a third model of a believer. He referred to them as “brigands,” who “were priests,” but shirked their duties in order to chase after power and money.
These men exploited their people and took advantage of the alms given, said the Pope, stating that they, like Judas, are an image of the corrupt Christian, who betrays Jesus, and, in the end, are punished severely by the Lord.
The Witness of Jesus Christ
Pope Francis then noted that, in contrast to the former three, the fourth and final model of witness is Jesus himself, who teaches others by the power and authority of his own holiness and by being close to his people, especially to sinners.
Pointing to how Jesus pardons the adulteress and converses with the Samaritan woman at the well in the Gospels as examples, the Pope explained that the Lord genuinely seeks to heal the wounded.
“Let us ask the Lord that these two readings help us in our lives as Christians,” he prayed. “Let us not be corrupt like the sons of Eli, nor be lukewarm as Eli himself,” but “to be like Jesus, with that zeal to seek people, heal people, to love people.”
In concluding his homily, Pope Francis encouraged those in attendance, with the attitude of Jesus, to say to others, “‘But if I do this tiny little thing, little as I am, think about how God loves you, think about how your Father is.’ Let us ask for this grace.”
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He says “pure legalists,” not just legalists so perhaps me means Yes by all means follow the rules but don’t forget WHY the rules exist. Also didn’t Jesus say He didn’t come to abolish the law but to fulfill it ?
Rich and David, I also would consider myself a conservative Catholic but on my journey God has placed many individuals in my life who attend both the Latin mass and the Ordinary form. I myself, have never attended the Latin Mass but those I know on a personal basis express such beauty when they describe the reverence and care given to Our Precious Lord that it is something I might consider if the Holy Spirit draws me to it. We all have many fears Rich, I still do. But the humility with which you expressed them is the first step to facing those fears. In the darkness is exactly where Our Lord will take Your hand and lead You. Just trust. If possible, sit quietly with him in Eucharistic adoration and just talk over everything with Him. And as David said, keep Yourself under Our Lady’s tender care. Remember what she said, “In the end My Immaculate Heart will Triumph.” God be with You. I will remember You in my adoration Hour today.
Hmmm. I am a conservative Catholic, but Carolyn has made me think back 40 years to my own conversion experience. That happened to me at the age of 40 when a read a book on Medjugorje. Now, in thinking back about that book and the message from Our Lady, there was absolutely no rules or condemnation that I can recall, but it and She brought me back to my faith in a profound way. I wonder if the Blessed Mother’s approach and Pope Francis’ approach are unique for this time we are living as Christ’s approach was unique to the time He was living; they are both times not of the ordinary.
DON - I think the problem is that in many cases, the Pope gives these little sermons in Casa Santa Marta. His audience often is people who work in the Vatican. So some of his preaching might be specifically against the vices that he sees there, in the Curia. The Pope may not mean these little homilies to go round the world and be picked apart as huge papal statememnts. They are just little homilies, he gives them every day, and his audience changes a bit every day. He may be simply thinking something through. But when the media tells you he is talking about conservatives, there is a 90% chance he is not. Just the other day, Lombardi came out with a list of things that people SAID he said that he did not say. And remember what Ganswein said about the liberals that are going crazy right now: “Their jubilation will stick in their throats”.
I think Pope Francis is just what the church and world need at this time in history and I thank God for him and pray that he will bring people back to God the church and the sacraments
It amazing to read either side of opinions on the holding up the beauty of glory or over simplifying of the liturgical beauty. We love mother Angelica who built the glorious temple for our God and we love mother Teresa on one outfit for the solitary with the poor of poor. It’s ok to have a glorious gothic church or just wooden monastery with a stick crossfix . I personally will be joyful to pray at either side of church. Just don’t call the other by name please!
Carolyn,
Thank you for your thoughtful words and sharing your experience. Frequently my frustration is more a projection, a mask that covers my own fear, and my fear lives in those dark places where I have not allowed faith and love to penetrate. We should remember to speak the truth with love, not with fear.
Don, I’m pretty sure the pope is referring to you.
It’s great that you follow the rules, and it’s great that you recognize sin in the world and reject it. But you cannot abandon those who have fallen into sin through total condemnation. Christ didn’t do it, and neither can we - no matter how tempted we are. That is a major sin of pride - that your fellow brothers and sisters are less forgivable or worthy of God’s mercy than you are. I think it may be time to revist the story of the prodigal son.
And FYI - everybody struggles in some way. The only people ever born without sin were Mary and Jesus - and even Jesus experienced some excruciating temptation during his lifetime. Seriously, it’s time to put down the stone and thank God with all your heart that in His mercy you have been spared the temptations of homosexuality or abortion or (the list goes on…)
Tom, which of the items in my post is the product of left-wing media spin? I have read each of the Pope’s major interviews for myself mor than once, read Evangelii Gaudium several times (with highlighter in hand). I believe too much of Pope Francis’ focus has been on what he thinks is “wrong” with the Church - as an institution, in its clergy, and in the laity. And, an objective reading of his statements can only lead to the conclusion that he thinks very much is wrong and needs fixing. Each of the quotes and parapharases in my post above is an example of this; they are not the product of left-wing media spin. He seems to have a genuine, visceral distaste for these aspects of the Church he inherited from Benedict and seems to think they must change in order for the Church to move forward. Look, I think Pope Francis has the chance to be a real game-changer by taking the Chuch out of it’s essentially defensive posture and transforming it into an evangelical juggernaut that will once again transform the world. I think that is exactly what the Church needs and I think, with the help of the Holy Spirit, he may be able to accomplish it. But I also think he is the darling of the press and of “dissenters” right now, not because they are coming around to the Truth, but because a) they (falsely) believe he’s going to bring the Church around to their version of it, and b) they welcome his criticisms of the Church and its members. My frustration is that, in my personal experience, I don’t really see many of the things he is talking about. I don’t see a bunch of priests and bishops beset with “clericalism” and “careerism”; I see a bunch of over-worked servants of Christ doing the best they can to serve their flocks. I don’t see a bunch of “pure legalists” insisting on arbitrary rules and disjointed doctrines to the exclusion of proclaiming the Gospel; I see clergy who mostly preach God’s love and mercy and avoid discussing the “rules” or moral issues like the plague because of the backlash they would receive. I don’t see a Church that is on the side of the rich and powerful; I see a Church that provides more charitable service to the poor than any other organization in the world, and that in the U.S. advocates for immigration reform, increasing the minimum wage, and (until faced with legislation requiring religious entities to fund abortion and contraceptives) was a major advocate of universal healthcare. I don’t see a Church that “leads” with opposition to homosexual marriage; I see a Church that is constantly attacked for its position on this issue, and if this is what gets talked about it is because the media and gay activists are driving the narrative.
“Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof”
is another way of describing hypocrites. All of us have
a tendency to judge others according to our own measure of
righteousness. Very few of us live up to the full teachings
of our Lord Jesus Christ as given in the Sermon on the Mount.
(Matthew chapters 5-7).
Thank you Nancy D.
The reference was appreciated by this Catholic.
May we seek people heal people & love people only in sanctifying grace. Otherwise our seeking healing and loving could be done in vain. What love is there when the parent approves of the child decision to harm themselves? Is that healing? We must seek Him and ask Him to heal and love in Him through Him and by Him. Anything less is vainglory.
“Where are all these people that supposedly are “pure legalists, hypocrites like the scribes and Pharisees”? Who is he talking about? Pro-lifers?” I’m sure he’s NOT. I would think he’s talking about what I call “Nostalgists,” people who object to anything new and unfamiliar on the grounds that the ways of their memory and experience are always and everywhere preferable. These might include people who are scandalized by a pope who rejects the trappings of royalty accumulated by popes over the centuries and tries to return the office to that of chief shepherd of his people. “Sounds very much like he’d be on board with the German bishops who want to do away with the rule against communion for the remarried.” He is NOT. The “rule” is clearly of God and cannot be abrogated by mere humans, even the pope. “It is just disheartening that he appears to despise the Church he leads.” In your opinion, that is. I think this says far more about how you conceive of the Church as an institution than it does about the Church itself or Pope Francis.
When I was a youth minister a local parish, I was once scolded by my immediate superior for not emphasizing “following the rules” enough. I’d accept permission slips past the due date and that sort of thing. How were these kids going to learn responsibility and the importance of following the rules? I responded that rules are not salvific and that, in my opinion, a youth minister’s chief responsibility was not to teach them to follow rules but was instead to do my best to bring them to a place to encounter Christ. If that meant accepting a late permission slip so that the child could attend the retreat, then so be it.
I was let go a month or so later.
To say that there are not some Christians who place following rules and guidelines above an authentic encounter with the Lord is not far fetched.
Next time Don has something to say about Pope Francis, he probably ought to get his information somewhere other than the left-wing media. I say this because his conception of Francis’ views and aims are indistinguishable from that of the Washington Post, which is not known for its insight into matters Catholic.
So, Bernedetti, you failed to answer the question. Just who is he calling out with these statements? Who??? You must admit he seems to loathe many aspects of the Church he inherited from Pope Benedict, no? Or how do you explain his many comments to this effect - that unless we adopt his new posture the entire moral edifice of the Church will ‘fall like a house of cards’ - chastising the Church for insisting on ‘imposition of disjointed doctrines’ - being ‘inward-looking’ and ‘self refrential’ - attempting to revive a past that can’t be recovered - beset by clericalism - insufficiently focused on the poor - having made virtually no progress in implementing Vatican II’s call for ecumenism. All of these are quotes or paraphrases, and it’s just a few of the many examples. In my opinion, many of these statements have been made with a tone of righteous indignation rather than of charity toward his predecessors. That’s just my opinion, obviously.
@Nancy D,
Thank you for sharing that link. As I said (rather rashly, perhaps) in my first comment, we have a “presupposition problem”—a “presupposition crisis,” really—where the preaching of mercy alone makes no sense and actually becomes the source of misinterpretation and confusion. Without knowing or accepting the truth as truth, the recipients do not recognize God’s mercy approaching them but rather believe the Catholic Church’s understanding of the truth is moving closer to their perception of the truth. (And there are no small number of groups who seem to “spin” this misunderstanding out of sheer animus.)
The times I have heard Cdl Burke speak, I have never felt any confusion in that regard. He speaks cautiously, gently, and yet clearly. He is not a ‘rottweiler’ but a good and honest teacher and shepherd. I hope our Holy Father appreciates what a true son of the Church he has in Cdl Burke.
I think the Pope gives the false impression that the Church rules are not important; that’s not what he’s saying, though. He’s saying that following the rules and judging others for not following the rules does not a Christian make.
My folks used to adhere to the strict rule of not eating meat in Fridays; I don’t think they ever thought about why, they just felt that they had done their Catholic obligation. Was it bad for them to follow that rule? Of course not! They were doing something that they believed that God wanted them to do, and in so doing they experienced sacrifice, something that Jesus thought was pretty important. Now, had my parents stopped talking to our next-door neighbors for their failure to adhere to that rule, then they would have been choosing the rule over one of Christ’s teaching about condemnation: writing off the neighbors as rule breakers instead of reaching out to them to help them understand sacrifice.
Catholic rules help us live like Christ wants us to live; but using rules as an end unto themselves is a problem.
Rich and Don, When I hear this From Pope Francis I believe it is addressed to more than just our priests and Church Leaders. As a lay person I admit to sharing Your frustrations that morality has not been addressed enough by Our Priests and Bishops. In trying to raise teenagers at this time, in our Church, about what is right and wrong is always a battle. But if I look deeper, I think what I hear, is that Pope Francis is challenging all of us to Trust more in Our Lords ability to speak to Our Brothers and Sister’s hearts through the Holy Spirit than our own motives. When I think of my own journey back to the Church I realize that God had placed in my life such good and holy,humble souls that spoke to me in such kindness, that although I was in a state of sin, that invatation to change my life was attainable by the grace of the sacraments. Pope Francis has reminded me that I owe that same kindness to others that had been shown to me. We are all experiencing frustrations because of the changes in Our world and in the Church but We follow an amazing God is the same Yesterday,Today,and Tomorrow. Until we meet him again let’s take care of each other and pray for Our Holy Father. Jesus promised He would NEVER abandon us. I count on that.
Thanks for setting us straight on that Pope Don. Maybe next time you have something to say about the Holy Father you can use a little more respect. Pope Francis is not a political figure, but the Vicar of Christ. Perhaps you don’t believe that, I dunno.
http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2014/01/thedemonstration-in-rome-burke.html
This man despises those who insist on rules, doesn’t he? The message it sends is that the rules are not important. Well, they ARE important. I am sick of him harping on the Church as being full of scribes and Pharisees, running down the clergy, and breaking every small “t” tradition and rule that he can just to make the point of breaking it. It shows a total lack of respect, and it is the opposite of humility - it is hubris. Where are all these people that supposedly are “pure legalists, hypocrites like the scribes and Pharisees”? Who is he talking about? Pro-lifers? Those who oppose same-sex marriage? Who???? Maybe he’s talking about some rampant legalism in the Argentinian Church? I dunno. Sounds very much like he’d be on board with the German bishops who want to do away with the rule against communion for the remarried. Is that it? He’s talking to the people who think the existing rules should remain in effect? It is just disheartening that he appears to despise the Church he leads.
Okay, if I may play devil’s advocate (hopefully I am speaking only figuratively), I think there is a “presupposition problem” that must be addressed today. When Jesus forgave the adultress, the entire culture of Jesus’ time knew she had done something seriously wrong—Jesus knew it, she knew it, and everybody with stones in their hands knew it. That is not the case today. The dominant message we hear (from the courts and from those who hold the largest megaphones) is that abortion is a right, contraception is a right, sex outside marriage is a right, sex between two males or two females is a right. How does one forgive when there is nothing to forgive? If the Pope wants to demonstrate radical mercy, let him preach forgiveness for priests convicted of sexual abuse. Now THAT would really stick in a few craws….
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