Pope Francis on Sunday called for the faithful not to be driven by end-times curiosities or apocalyptic preachers, urging them to focus on what is truly important: “The Lord and our neighbor.”
“Those who follow Jesus pay no heed to prophets of doom, the nonsense of horoscopes, or frightening sermons that distract from the truly important things,” Francis said.
It is important, he continued, to distinguish “the word of wisdom that God speaks to us each day” from the shouting of those who use “God’s name to frighten, to nourish division and fear.”
Francis’s words came as he was celebrating Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica, in Rome.
The celebration was one of the events of the Holy Year of Mercy, and it served as the closing point of the Jubilee for the Socially Excluded, which began on Friday, when the pontiff encountered thousands of homeless people from around Europe.
Speaking to no particular group, Francis denounced that people are growing used to rejection, saying that these “anesthetized consciences,” which lead to “no longer seeing the brother or sister suffering at our side, or noticing the grave problems in our world,” is something to be worried about.Crux.com
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