Church must eschew ideology, claims to 'own' the Word, Pope tells congregation
June 24, 2013
In his homily at a morning Mass on June 24, Pope Francis said that St. John the Baptist—whose birth the Church was celebrating that day—lived only to proclaim Jesus Christ.
“That is John’s vocation: he negates himself,” the Pope said. His life ended in darkness, imprisonment, and finally a grisly martyrdom, the Pontiff noted. In this respect, he said, St. John is a model for the Church.
"The Church exists to proclaim, to be the voice of a Word, her husband, who is the Word. The Church exists to proclaim this Word until martyrdom,” the Pope explained. Like John the Baptist, the Church should always serve the Word, never claiming ownership of the Word, never indulging in ideology, only bringing people to Christ.
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Posted by: -
Jun. 24, 2013 11:19 PM ET USA
St. John the Baptist died because he told Herod that it was not lawful for him to have another man's wife. If he had thought harder, he could have given the king a lack of due discretion decree of nullity and saved his handsome head. Sorry. I couldn't resist; it is my own lack of due discretion that made me do it.
