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“As the apostle Paul says, the faith that truly unites us to Jesus is’ faith that works through love.”
VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis said Sunday that it is important not to forget that at the end of life there will be “a definitive appointment with God.”
“If we want to be prepared for the final encounter with the Lord, we must cooperate with him now and do good works inspired by his love,” Pope Francis said in his Angelus address on November 8.
“Being wise and prudent means not waiting until the last moment to reciprocate God’s grace, but doing it actively and immediately, starting right now,” he told pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square.
The Pope reflected on the Sunday Gospel from chapter 25 of the Gospel of Matthew in which Jesus tells a parable about ten virgins invited to a wedding feast. Pope Francis said that in this parable the wedding feast is a symbol of the kingdom of heaven and that in Jesus’ time it was customary for weddings to be celebrated at night, so virgins needed to remember to bring oil for their lamps.
“It is clear that, with this parable, Jesus wants to tell us that we must be prepared for his coming,” the Pope said.
“Not only the final coming, but also for daily encounters, big and small, facing that encounter, for which the lamp of faith is not enough; we also need the oil of charity and good works. As the apostle Paul says, the faith that truly unites us to Jesus is ‘faith that works through love.’
Pope Francis said that people, unfortunately, often forget “the purpose of our life, that is, the final appointment with God”, and thus lose the sense of expectation and make the present absolute.
“When one makes the present absolute, one looks only at the present, losing the sense of expectation, which is so good and so necessary,” he said.
“If, on the contrary, we are attentive and respond to the grace of God by doing good, we can serenely await the coming of the Bridegroom. The Lord can come even while we sleep. This is not going to worry us, because we have the reserve of oil accumulated through our daily good works, accumulated with that expectation of the Lord, that he comes as soon as possible and that he comes to take us with him ”, Pope Francis. said.
After praying the Angelus, Pope Francis said he has been thinking about the people of Central America affected by the recent hurricane. Hurricane Eta, a Category 4 hurricane, killed at least 100 people and left thousands more displaced in Honduras and Nicaragua. Catholic Relief Services has been working to provide shelter and food for the displaced.
“May the Lord receive the deceased, comfort their families and support those most in need, as well as all those who are doing everything possible to help them,” the Pope prayed.
Pope Francis also called for peace in Ethiopia and Libya. He asked for prayers for the “Libyan Political Dialogue Forum” being held in Tunis.
“Given the importance of the event, I sincerely hope that at this delicate moment a solution will be found to the long suffering of the Libyan people and that the recent agreement for a permanent ceasefire is respected and implemented. Let us pray for the delegates of the forum, for peace and stability in Libya ”.
The Pope also asked for a celebratory applause for Blessed Joan Roig Diggle, who was beatified at a mass at the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona on November 7.
Blessed Joan Roig was a 19-year-old Spanish martyr who gave his life protecting the Eucharist during the Spanish Civil War.
The Pope said: “May your example awaken in everyone, especially young people, the desire to fully live the Christian vocation. A round of applause to this young Blessed, so brave ”.
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