Pope at Angelus: One day, we will all be united in Christ

By Joseph Tulloch

Pope Francis began his Sunday Angelus address by quoting Jesus’ words from today’s Gospel: “the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light”.

These words might suggest the idea of the end of the world, the Pope said, but “the Lord seizes the opportunity to offer a different interpretation”, namely that “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away”.

What will pass

This, the Pope said, would be the subject for his catechesis: what passes and what remains.

Turning initially to consider things that pass, the Pope noted that “in some circumstances in our life, when we are going through a crisis or experience some failure … we have the feeling that everything is coming to an end, and even the most beautiful things pass away.”

These crises, the Pope stressed, though difficult, are “important”, because they teach us to “accord everything its due weight”, and not “attach our hearts to the realities of this world.”

St Peter's Square during the Angelus

What will remain

While everything in this world passes away, the Pope said, Jesus’ words do not: they will remain for eternity.

And, because Christ himself remains, so does everything else.

“In Him”, the Pope stressed, “we shall one day find again the things and people who have passed away and who have accompanied us in our earthly existence. In the light of this promise of resurrection, every reality takes on a new meaning: everything dies and we too will one day die, but we will lose nothing of what we have built and loved, because death will be the beginning of a new life.”

Pope Francis then brought his catechesis to an end with an invitation to his listeners to reflect on what they value in their own lives.

Let us ask ourselves: are we attached to earthly things, which pass quickly, or to the words of the Lord, which remain and guide us towards eternity?