Pope Leo yesterday reminded Christians that they need to make space in their lives to receive Jesus Christ. Source: Crux.
Speaking in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican yesterday, the Pontiff quoted the Gospel of Mark: “On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, His disciples said to him, ‘Where do you want us to go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?’”
Leo said this was a “practical question” but that the answer from Jesus “seems almost to be a riddle.”
In the Gospel of Mark, the Lord says, “Go into the city and a man will meet you, carrying a jar of water.”
The Pope said the details become symbolic: “A man carrying a jar, a typically feminine gesture at that time; an upstairs room already prepared; an unknown host. It is as if everything has been arranged in advance.”
“In fact, this is exactly the case. In this episode, the Gospel shows to us that love is not the result of chance, but of a conscious choice. It is not a simple reaction, but a decision that requires preparation.”
The Pope said that “upstairs room already prepared” tells people that God always precedes them.
“Even before we realise we need to be welcomed, the Lord has already prepared a space for us where we can recognise ourselves and feel we are his friends. This place is, fundamentally, our heart: A ‘room’ that may seem empty, but which awaits only to be recognised, filled and cherished,” Leo said.
“The Passover, which the disciples must prepare, is in reality already present in Jesus’s heart. He has already thought of everything, arranged everything, decided everything.
“However, he asks his friends to do their part. This teaches us something essential for our spiritual life: Grace does not eliminate our freedom, but rather awakens it. God’s gift does not eliminate our responsibility, but makes it fruitful,” he continued.
He said to prepare for the thanksgiving of the Lord does not mean doing more, “but leaving room.”
“It means removing what encumbers us, reducing our demands and ceasing to hold unrealistic expectations,” Leo said.
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Leave room for God, Pope Leo says at General Audience (Crux)
