Pope: A vain believer can lose his faith, but a humble pagan can find it
February 13, 2014: Welcoming the Word of God with humility can lead to a pagan to
find faith, but to yielding to passions can make a believer lose their faith. This
is the lesson drawn from the readings of the day by Pope Francis at the Thursday morning
Mass at Casa Santa Marta.
Pope Francis was reflecting on the Gospel, in which
a courageous woman, a Canaanite, who is a pagan asks Jesus to free her daughter from
the devil. She is a desperate mother - says Pope Francis - and a mother, confronted
with the ill health of a child, is ready to do anything. Jesus explains that He came
first of all for the sheep of the house of Israel and he does so with harsh words:
'Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs'. This woman, who certainly had not attended a university,
responds, not with her intelligence, but with her mother's womb, with her love: '
Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children's scraps!' This woman - said
the Pope - was not ashamed and because of her faith Jesus preformed a miracle for
her.
She risked making a bad impression, but she insisted, and from paganism
and idolatry found health for her daughter and she found the living God. This is the
journey of a person of good will who seeks God and finds him. The Lord blesses her.
How many people take this path and the Lord waits for them! But it is the same Holy
Spirit that brings them forward to make this journey. Every day in the Church of God
there are people who are making this journey, silently, to find the Lord, because
they allow themselves to be carried forward by the Holy Spirit.
"But there
is also the opposite path" - noted the Pope - that of Solomon, which we hear of in
the first reading. Solomon was the wisest man on earth, he had received great blessings
from God, he had a universal fame, all the power, he was a believer in God, but what
happened?. He liked women and had many pagan concubines who led his heart astray to
follow other gods: he introduced idols into Israel. And these women slowly, slowly
weakened Solomon's heart. His heart did not remain intact in the Lord, like the heart
of David his father.
His heart is weakened; he weakened and lost his faith.
He lost his faith. The wisest man in the world allowed himself to be led along by
an indiscreet love, [a love] without discretion, he allowed himself to be led by his
passions. 'But father, Solomon did not loose his faith, he believed in God and was
able to recite the Bible!'. Yes, it is true, but being able to recite the Creed does
not mean you have faith. You can say the Creed and have lost faith.
Solomon
- the Pope said - was a sinner, like his father David. But then he went ahead and
as sinner converted into a corrupt man. His heart was corrupt, because of this idolatry.
His father was a sinner, but the Lord had forgiven him all of his sins, because he
was humble and asked for forgiveness. Solomon, however, was so wise, but vanity and
his passions led him to corruption. It's in our hearts, where we lose our faith.
The
evil seed of his passions nourished Solomon's heart and led him to idolatry. And we
have heard, after the first reading, in the Alleluia, this beautiful advice: 'welcome
the Word with docility' - 'the Word that was planted in you can lead you to salvation'.
Let us take the path of the Canaanite woman of that pagan woman, welcoming the Word
of God, which has been planted in us and that will lead us to salvation. May the powerful
Word of God keep us on this path and not allow us to be led into corruption or idolatry".