(Vatican Radio) “The Church is not a cultural organization,” but, “the family of Jesus.”
This was the focus of Pope Francis’ remarks to the faithful gathered for Mass on Saturday
morning in the Domus Sanctae Marthae residence at the Vatican. The Pope said that
Christians should not be ashamed to live with the scandal of the Cross, and urged
them not to be "trapped by the spirit of the world." Listen:
Pope Francis
took the question put to Jesus by the scribes and chief priests, “By what authority
are you doing these things?” as his starting point. Once again, he said, they were
looking to set a trap for the Lord, trying to paint Him into a corner, to force Him
to make a mistake. The Holy Father went on to ask why the scribes and Pharisees wanted
to embarrass Jesus. ”Tthe problem that these people had,” said the Holy Father, was
not that Jesus had performed miracles. Rather, he explained, “They were shocked that
the demons cried out to Jesus, ‘You are the Son of God, You are the Holy One.” This
is the thing about Jesus that really scandalises. “He is God who became incarnate.”
For us, too, “do they set traps in life,” though, “[that characteristic] of the Church,
which scandalises, is the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word, and, “this cannot
be tolerated, this the devil will not suffer.”:
“How many times do you hear
people say: ‘But you Christians, be a bit more normal, like other people: be reasonable!’
This is a speech by snake charmers, to be sure: ‘But, be normal, OK? A little more
normal, do not be so strict.” But behind this is: ‘Please, do not come with [your]
tales, [about] God who became man!’ The Incarnation of the Word: that is the scandal
behind it! We can do all the social work we want, and they will say, ‘How nice, the
Church, what good social work the Church does’. But if we say that we do this because
those people [we help] are the flesh of Christ, there is scandal. And that is the
truth, that is the revelation of Jesus: that presence of Jesus incarnate.”
And
“this is the point,” said Pope Francis. “Always there will be the [temptation] to
do good things without the scandal of the Incarnate Word, without the scandal of the
Cross.” Instead, we must “be true to this scandal, to this reality that scandalises.”
It is, “better this way: the coherence of the faith.” The Pope then recalled how the
Apostle John says: “Those who deny that the Word came in the flesh, are from the antichrist;
they are the antichrist.” On the other hand, he continued, “Only those who say that
the Word is come in the flesh are of the Holy Spirit.” Pope Francis then said, “It
would do us all good to think about this: the Church is not a cultural organisation
that [includes] religion and social work.”:
“The Church is the family of Jesus.
The Church confesses that Jesus is the Son of God come in the flesh: that is the scandal,
that is the reason why they persecuted Jesus. In the end, [the answer that] Jesus
had not wanted to [give] to these, to the question, ‘With what authority are you doing
this?’ He gives to the high priest. ‘But, at the end of: Thou art the Son of God?
- Yes!’ [He was] sentenced to death for that. This is the core of the persecution.
If we become “reasonable” Christians, “social” Christians, Christians who only do
philanthropy, what will be the consequence? That we will never have martyrs: that
will be the consequence.”
When, however, we Christians tell the truth, that
“The Son of God is come, and was made flesh,” when we “preach the scandal of the Cross,
persecutions will come, the Cross will come,” and that “will be fine,” for “such is
our life”:
“We ask the Lord not to be ashamed to live with this scandal of
the Cross. [We ask Him for] wisdom: the wisdom to ask not to be trapped by the spirit
of the world, that will always make to us polite suggestions, civil proposals, good
proposals – but behind those there is precisely the negation of the fact that the
Word came in the flesh, of the Incarnation of the Word. That, in the end, is what
scandalises those who persecute Jesus, that is what destroys the work of the devil.
So be it.”
The Cardinal Archbishop of Havana, Jaime Ortega, concelebrated the
Mass, with a group of the Holy Father’s lay attendants, the Gentlemen of His Holiness,
in the congregation.