Pope Francis Daily

VATICAN
CITY (CNS) — Christians distracted from the path set out by Jesus can turn
into decrepit “spiritual mummies,” Pope Francis said at his morning Mass.

Spiritual
mummies stray from the path of Christian life by choosing to stand still “not doing evil,
but not doing good” either, the pope said May 3 in his homily during Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae.

“A
Christian who doesn’t
walk, who doesn’t move on the path, is a
‘non-Christian’ Christian. No one knows what he is. He is a bit of a
‘paganized’ Christian; he’s there, he’s still, but he doesn’t go forward in
Christian life. The Beatitudes do not flourish in his life; he does not do the
works of mercy; he is still,” the pope said.

The
day’s Gospel reading was
Jesus’ discourse during the Last Supper in which he tells his disciples that he
is “the way, the truth and the life.”

“Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will
do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going
to the Father,” Jesus said.

The
pope said there are
two types of Christians who fail in following the true path: those who are
stubborn and those who wander like vagabonds.

Stubborn
Christians tend to believe they know the path and “do not allow the voice
of the Lord to tell them: ‘Go back and take the right path,'” he said. On
the other hand, vagabond Christians walk around aimlessly in circles and are
easily distracted by worldly vanities.

“There
are others who on the path are seduced by something beautiful and they stop midway; fascinated by
what they see — by this
idea, by that proposal, by that landscape — and they stop! Christian life is
not something charming: it is a truth! It is Jesus Christ!” he said.

Pope
Francis called on the faithful to reflect on whether they have strayed from the
path of Christian life laid out in the Beatitudes and the works of mercy.
Although Jesus’ path leads to the cross, it is also ‘”full of
consolations” and “peace in the soul.”

“Let
us ask the Holy Spirit to teach us to walk well (on this path), always! And
when we tire, (to give us) a little refreshment to go forward. Let us ask for this grace,”
the pope said. 

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