Pope, in East Timor, reflects on ‘sacrament of the poor’
September 11, 2024
» Continue to this story on Vatican Press Office
CWN Editor's Note: Pope Francis visited a school for disabled children in Timor-Leste (East Timor), as part of his apostolic journey to four Asian nations.
There, he said:
When Jesus talks about the final judgment, he says to some people: “Come with me,” but he does not say: “Come with me because you were baptized, because you were confirmed, because you were married in the Church, because you did not lie, because you did not steal.” No, he says: “Come with me because you took care of me.”
Jesus says: “Come with me because you took care of me when I was hungry, and you gave me food, when I was thirsty, and you gave me drink, when I was sick, and you visited me,” and so on. I call this the sacrament of the poor. A love that encourages, that edifies, that strengthens.
“And that is what we find here: love,” the Pope continued. “Without love, this makes no sense. This is how we come to understand the love of Jesus, who gave his life for us. We cannot understand the love of Jesus unless we start to practice love.”
The above note supplements, highlights, or corrects details in the original source (link above). About CWN news coverage.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
