Pope Francis: Let go of unnecessary baggage

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Source: Vatican Media

To experience fully God's joy and love, let go of unnecessary baggage which just weighs us down and hinders the journey, Pope Francis told pilgrims during his Angelus address on Sunday.

Reflecting on the day's Gospel reading, the Pope said: "Let's pause for a moment on this image: the disciples are sent together and must take only what is necessary with them." Recalling that the Gospel is not announced alone, but together, as a community, the Holy Father said to do so, it is important to know how to maintain sobriety in the use of things, sharing resources, abilities, and gifts.

To be free, he said, we need to go without the superfluous, in such a way "that everyone has what they need to live with dignity and to contribute actively to the mission."

It also requires, being sober in thoughts and feelings, abandoning preconceptions and rigidities that, "like unnecessary baggage, weigh down and hinder the journey," rather than promoting "engagement and listening," which make "witness more effective."

"Let's think, for example, about what happens in our families or communities", he said. "When we are content with what is necessary, even with little, with God's help, we manage to get along and agree, sharing what we have, everyone giving up something and supporting each other."

This, he observed, is already a missionary announcement, before and even more than words, because it embodies the beauty of Jesus' message in the concreteness of life.

"A family or a community that lives in this way," he said, "creates around itself an environment rich in love, where it is easier to open up to faith and the newness of the Gospel, and from which one emerges better, more serene."

"If, on the other hand, everyone goes their own way," and "what counts are only things - which are never enough," he warned, "the atmosphere becomes heavy, life becomes difficult, and encounters become more occasions of unease, sadness, and discouragement than of joy."

For these reasons, the Holy Father said, communion and sobriety are important values for our Christian life and our apostolate, and are "indispensable values for a truly missionary Church at all levels."

Pope Francis then invited the faithful to join him in asking themselves some questions: "Do I feel the joy of announcing the Gospel, of bringing, where I live, the joy and light that come from the encounter with the Lord?"

And to do this, he pondered, "do I commit to walking together with others, sharing ideas and abilities with them, with an open mind and a generous heart?"

"And finally," the Pope asked, "do I know how to cultivate a sober lifestyle, attentive to the needs of my brothers and sisters?"

Pope Francis concluded by imploring Mary, Queen of the Apostles, to help us faithful be true missionary disciples, in communion and in sobriety of life.

Following the Angelus, the Holy Father welcomed pilgrims and visitors from Italy and around the world. He also sent greetings to Polish pilgrims at the Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa who are taking part in the annual pilgrimage organized by Radio Maria.

On the occasion of Sea Sunday - observed each year on the second Sunday of July - Pope Francis also called for prayers "for those who work in the maritime sector and for those who care for them.

Finally, Pope Francis looked ahead to the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, 16 July, and called on the Blessed Mother to "give comfort and obtain peace for all peoples who are oppressed by the horror of war," especially those in Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, and Myanmar.

Watch Sunday's Angelus on Vatican Youtube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3U0TKm1RsU