Addressing the faithful gathered for his Sunday Angelus on 6 July, Pope Leo offered a reflection on the missionary nature of the Church, grounded in the Gospel of Luke.
The Pope focused his reflection on Jesus’ sending out of seventy-two disciples, an act which, he explained, represents the universal scope of the Gospel. “The hope of the Gospel is meant for all peoples,” he said, adding that this reflects “the breadth of God’s heart and the abundance of His harvest.”
However, Pope Leo continued in quoting Jesus: “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few.” He explained that while the world may seem overwhelmed by distractions and noise, people today still “yearn for a greater truth,” seek justice, and carry within themselves “a longing for eternal life.”
He described God as a sower who has generously gone out and sown in people’s hearts “a desire for the infinite, for a fulfilled life and for salvation that sets us free.” Despite this, there are few who are able “to distinguish, with the eyes of Jesus, the good grain that is ripe for harvesting.”
Be a labourer of faith
The Pope warned that faith should not become “merely an external label.” What the Church and the world need are not occasional participants but “labourers who are eager to work in the mission field, loving disciples who bear witness to the Kingdom of God in all places.”
He acknowledged that there may be many “intermittent Christians who occasionally act upon some religious feeling or participate in sporadic events,” but there are far fewer who are ready “on a daily basis, to labor in God’s harvest.”
Pope Leo stressed that this mission does not require “too many theoretical ideas about pastoral plans.” Instead, he said, “we need to pray to the Lord of the harvest.” Giving priority to one’s relationship with the Lord and cultivating dialogue with Him, he added, allows people to become true labourers, ready to be sent “into the field of the world to bear witness to His Kingdom.”
Concluding his reflection, Pope Leo invited the faithful to entrust themselves to the Blessed Virgin Mary, “who generously gave her ‘yes’ to participating in the work of salvation”, before asking her to “intercede for us and accompany us on the path of following the Lord, so that we too may become joyful labourers in God’s Kingdom.”
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