In his homily at Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis recalled Simon the Cyrene. He explained that the life of a Christian, like that of Jesus, cannot be understood without the cross.
POPE FRANCIS
'Sin is so ugly, but Godâ??s love is so great that He saves us in this way: with this identity in the Cross. You canâ??t understand Jesus Christ the Redeemer without the Cross: you canâ??t understand!â?
The Pope concluded that Christian life 'is not a meritâ? but rather, a way of perfection.
SUMMARY OF POPE'S HOMILY
Source: Vatican Radio
'The Son of Man, that is, the Messiah, the Anointed must suffer greatly, must be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.â?? This is the path of your liberation. This is the path of the Messiah, of the Just One: the Passion, the Cross. And He explains His identity to them. They donâ??t want to understand; and in the passage from Matthew, one sees how Peter refuses this: â??No! No, Lordâ?¦â?? But He begins to open up the mystery of His true identity: â??Yes, I am the Son of God. But this is my path: I must go along this path of suffering.â?
'Sin is so ugly, but Godâ??s love is so great that He saves us in this way: with this identity in the Cross. You canâ??t understand Jesus Christ the Redeemer without the Cross: you canâ??t understand! We can come to believe that he is a great prophet, he does good things, heâ??s a saint. But without the Cross you canâ??t understand Christ the Redeemer. The hearts of the disciples, the hearts of the people were not prepared to understand it. They didnâ??t understand the Prophecies, they didnâ??t understand that He Himself was the Lamb for the sacrifice. They were not prepared.â?
He prepares us to be â??Cyrenesâ?? to help Him bear the Cross. And our Christian life without this is not Christian. It is a spiritual life, goodâ?¦ â??Jesus is the great prophet, and He has saved us. But He and I, noâ?¦ No, you with Him! Taking the same path. Still our identity as Christians must be guarded, not believing that being Christian is a merit; it is a spiritual path of perfection. It is not a merit, it is pure grace.â?
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