In his homily during the Mass at the Casa Santa Marta, Holy Father Pope Francis pointed out that the Apostle was very angry with those who boasted of being “open Christians,” but in whom “the confession of Jesus Christ went hand in hand with a tolerated immorality”: “Brothers and sisters, it is widely reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of a kind not found even among pagans.” Those were the harsh words of rebuke, taken from the First Letter to the Corinthians, that St Paul addressed to the Christians there, noting that many of them were leading a double life.
As reported by Vatican news, Holy Father Pope Francis remarked that “Jesus had recommended to His disciples “new wine, new wineskins. The newness of the Gospel, the newness of Christ is not only transforming our soul; it is transforming our whole being: soul, spirit and body, all of it, everything: that is, transforming the vine – the leaven – into new wineskins, also everything. The newness of the Gospel is absolute, is total; it takes all of us, because it transforms from the inside out: the spirit, the body, and everyday life.”
The Pontiff concluded his remarks by highlighting that “The path of those who take up the newness of Jesus Christ is the same as that of Jesus: the path towards martyrdom. Martyrdom is not always bloody, but a daily martyrdom. We are on a path, and we are watched by the great accuser who raises up the accusers of today to catch us in contradiction. But there is no need to negotiate with “novelties”; there is no need to water down the proclamation of the Gospel.”
