Pope urges that God write our lives

October 07, 2013 - Running away from God is a daily temptation that consists in not heeding to God’s voice, to his promptings and invitation in our hearts. The Pope preached a homily at Mass, Monday morning, at the Casa Santa Marta residence in the Vatican, taking his cue from the Mass readings about Jonah fleeing God and the Gospel parable of the Good Samaritan. The Argentine Pope admitted that a Christian, a Catholic, a priest, a Bishop and even a Pope – all have the temptation to run away from God. But from the parable, he picked out two cases of the subtle ways one flees God’s voice within. A zealous and well-dressed priest sees the half-dead man, but he is late for Mass and goes away. The Levite, thinking of the hassle of witnessing before the judge if the man dies, also passes by. Only a sinner, a Samaritan who habitually fled from God, had the capacity to understand God’s voice, the Pope pointed out. The Pope said the Samaritan who was canonically illegal, not used to religious observances or moral living, and theologically erring, understood God’s call and did not run way. Like the priest and the Levite, Jonah fled from God, because, the Pope said, they had their hearts shut and could not listen to God. The Pope said Jonah had his own plan of life, like the priest and the Levite but the Samaritan allowed God to write his life. The Pope thus urged all to allow God, not ourselves, to write our lives. (Source: Vatican)