(Vatican Radio) Contemplation, proximity and abundance are the three words upon which Pope Francis centered his homily on Tuesday at Mass at the Casa Santa Marta.Speaking to those present for the morning celebration, the Pope reiterated that one cannot understand God solely with the mind and pointed out that God challenges us by "meddling" in our lives to heal our wounds, just as Jesus did.
Intelligence – the Pope said – is not sufficient to enter into the mystery of God. You need contemplation, proximity and abundance.
Listen to Linda Bordoni's report...
Drawing his inspiration from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, Pope Francis said there is only one way we can understand they the mystery of our salvation, and that is: on our knees, in contemplation.
Intelligence is not enough – he added: " You need contemplation, intelligence, heart, knees praying… all together: this is how we enter into the mystery".
And the Pope went on to speak about closeness – or proximity. "One man created sin, Francis explained, and one man saved us". God is close, he is close to our history. From the very first moment when he chose our father, Abraham, he walked with His people. And Jesus himself – he said - had a craftsman's job:a worker who uses his hands. The image that comes to mind – the Pope continued – is that of a nurse in a hospital who heals our wounds, one at a time. Just like God – he explained – who gets involved, who meddles in our miseries, He gets close to our wounds and heals them with his hands. And to actually have hands – he continued – He became man. So God saves us not only by decree: "He saves us with tenderness and with caresses. He saves us with His life for us."
And then Pope Francis spoke of "abundance". Where sins abound – he said – grace abounds. Each of us knows his miseries and knows how they abound. But God's challenge is to defeat them and heal the wounds as Jesus did with His superabundance of grace and love. And Francis pointed out that although some do not like to admit it: those who are closest to the heart of Jesus are sinners, because He goes to look for them, calls them and heals them, while those who are in good health do not need a doctor: " I have come to heal, to save."
The Pope concluded his homily reflecting on how some saints say that one of the ugliest sins is distrust: distrust in God. "But how can we be wary of a God who is so close, so good, who prefers the sinful heart ?" . This mystery – he said - is not easy to understand with intelligence, but with the help of these three words: "contemplation, proximity and abundance" because God "always wins with the superabundance of his grace, with His tenderness ", with His wealth of mercy."
