This is amusing: Pope Francis says complaining can too often distance us from Jesus...

In response, a commenter to the news story complained that the Holy Father's homily was "Not the best bit of exegesis."

The Holy Father was simply commenting on the Gospel of the day, at his daily Mass with the workers.  Kind of an everyday homily/commentary a parish priest might offer.  A fruit of his private prayer/lectio.

What the Holy Father said is very true.  In fact the critical spirit fosters a negative culture around ourselves which can blind and close us in.  The Holy Father describes it well:

"They were afraid. All of the disciples were afraid,” he said. As they walked toward Emmaus and discussed everything that had happened, they were sad and complaining. “And the more they complained, the more they were closed in on themselves: They did not have a horizon before them, only a wall,” the Pope explained, according to Vatican Radio.

The disciples had had such high hopes that Jesus would be the one who would redeem Israel, but they thought their hopes were destroyed, he said on Wednesday. Finish reading here.

I wonder if the message was lost on the man who complained?  All he seemed to pick up was that the point wasn't "the best bit of exegesis."

Think of how we miss Jesus, even in the breaking of the bread - the point wherein the disciples finally recognized the Christ.  Think of how we can be so distracted by what someone is wearing to Mass, or how the priest missed that action, or was incoherent in that part of the prayer, or how he forgot to genuflect... just think how we can be so caught up in finding liturgical abuses that we actually miss recognizing Jesus in the breaking of the bread.

The Pope ended his 'feverino' saying:

Complaining and griping, about others and about things in one’s own life, is harmful “because it dashes hope. Don’t get into this game of a life of complaints.”
 

John of the Cross said, "He who complains isn't even a good Christian."  The Pope is obviously much kinder.



Photo:  Pope's daily Mass with the workers.  What a contrast to the private chapel Masses.