Monday, July 14, 2025

Popular News

HomeNewsVaticanPope at Angelus: ‘Service is antidote to glory-seeking’

Pope at Angelus: ‘Service is antidote to glory-seeking’

Pope Francis prayed the Angelus with pilgrims gathered on Sunday in St. Peter’s Square, and reflected on the day’s Gospel (Mk 10:35-45).

He spoke about how Jesus tries to correct his disciples by “converting them from the mentality of the world to that of God.”

The Pope spoke about the brothers James and John, who had asked Jesus to sit at his right and left at the coming of the Kingdom of God.

“Jesus knows that James and John are animated by great enthusiasm for him and for the cause of the Kingdom, but he also knows that their expectations and their zeal are polluted by the spirit of the world,” the Pope said.

So, he continued, Jesus tells them: “You do not know what you are asking.”

Service vs. glory-seeking

Pope Francis said Jesus turns their request for glory into a “cup” to drink and of a “baptism” to receive. “They too, like the other Apostles, will participate in his cross when their time comes.”

The Holy Father said Jesus is inviting the disciples to follow him and learn the way of love “at a loss”, that is, not for profit or earthly gain. “Our heavenly Father will take care of the reward,” he said.

Jesus, Pope Francis said, uses the episode to point out that service is the path to greatness in the Kingdom of God. “While the great of the Earth are building ‘thrones’ for their own power, God chooses an uncomfortable throne, the Cross, from which to reign, by giving his life.”

The Pope said all Christians are called to conversion away from self-seeking and honors.

“The way of service is the most effective antidote against the disease that comes from searching for the first place, which infects many people and does not even spare the Church.”

Finally, Pope Francis said the Gospel calls us to “bear witness with courage and generosity to a Church that kneels at the feet of the least, and to serve them with love and simplicity.”

Popular News

Pope at Mass for Care of Creation: Ecological crisis requires contemplative gaze

Pope Leo XIV celebrates the first Mass for the Care of Creation at the...

How to spend your holidays according to the popes

As Pope Leo XIV’s takes some time off at the Pontifical Villas of Castel...

Six million visitors to Notre Dame Cathedral in six months

After a five-year renovation following a fire, the Cathedral in Paris is projected to...

San Antonio Archbishop prays for families of flood victims as death toll rises

As the death toll from floods in central Texas rises to 82, Archbishop Gustavo...