Pope Francis invited people to pray for those who do not believe, for those who are far from the Lord, because “God does not remain ‘calm’ if we distance ourselves from Him,” during the Angelus prayer on this Sunday, 11 September.
The Sunday Gospel of Saint Luke that describes when Jesus tells three parables about mercy, the Pope indicated that “the three parables, then, summarize the heart of the Gospel: God is Father and comes to look for us every time we meet, we have lost.”
The Holy Father stressed that “the protagonists of the parables, who represent God, are a shepherd looking for the lost sheep, a woman who finds the lost coin, and the father of the prodigal son” and they have something in common, they are “restless for what they lack.”
“The shepherd is missing one sheep, but he has another ninety-nine; the woman is missing a coin, but she has another nine; and even the Father has another son, who is obedient, to devote himself to. Instead, in his hearts there is a concern for what they lack: the sheep, the coin, the son who has left, ”said the Pope.
Along these lines, Pope Francis underlined that “the one he loves worries about what he misses, he feels nostalgia for the one who is absent, he looks for the one who is lost, he waits for the one who has left. Because he wants no one to miss out.”
“Brothers and sisters, this is how God is: he does not remain ‘calm’ if we move away from him, he grieves, he trembles in his innermost being and starts looking for us, until he holds us in his arms again”, affirmed the Dad.
In this way, the Holy Father stressed that “the Lord does not calculate the loss and the risks, he has the heart of a father and a mother, and he suffers when he misses his beloved children. God suffers because of our remoteness, and when we get lost, he awaits our return.”
“It’s not just about being ‘open to others’, it’s the Gospel!” warned the Pope, who recalled that “God always awaits us with open arms, whatever the situation in life in which we find ourselves.” lost”.
In this sense, Pope Francis pointed out that “the shepherd in the parable did not say: ‘I already have ninety-nine sheep, who is he forcing me to go look for the lost one?’ And yet it was.”
“Let us reflect, then, on our relationships: do I pray for those who do not believe, for those far away? Do we attract the estranged through God’s way, which is closeness, compassion and tenderness? The Father asks us to be attentive to the children he misses the most. Let’s think of someone we know who is close to us and who may have never heard anyone say, ‘You know? You are important to God,’” he noted.
Finally, the Pope encouraged us to reflect on these questions and to pray to the Virgin, “the mother who never tires of looking for us and taking care of us, her children.”