“Brothers and sisters, God is like this: he does not “rest” if we turn away from him, he is afflicted, he trembles in the depths of his being; and he goes looking for us until he takes us back in his arms.
Pope Francis has asked Catholics to consider whether they are imitating the Lord by seeking out those who are missed in their communities or are content to be comfortable and quiet within their own groups.
He said, “Let’s think about our relationship then: do I pray for those who disbelieve, who have drifted away?
“Let us be troubled by these questions, and pray to Our Lady, mother who never tires of looking for us and taking care of us, her children,” he added.
At the end of his Angelus, the pope asked people to continue to pray for the Ukrainian people so that the Lord would be close to them and bring them hope. He announced that Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the papal chaplain, would soon return to Ukraine to “give concrete witness to the closeness of the pope and the Church.”
Pope Francis asked for prayers for his upcoming trip to Kazakhstan, where he will participate in the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions during his visit to the capital, Nur-Sultan, from September 13-15.
