In the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace, Pope Leone XIV addressed a group of French altar servers on pilgrimage to Rome on August 25. His message was direct and without anesthesia: the lack of priests is a tragedy for the Church.
With words burning with spiritual fire, he reminded them that the Eucharist is not a duty-bound ritual but the very heart of Christian life: where Christ continues to give his life “today, once again, on the altar.” The Mass —he said— “saves the world today,” because it renews the mystery of the Cross and the Resurrection.
The Pope sought to shake youthful consciences, calling them to discover the priestly vocation “Sunday after Sunday,” and not to reduce faith to a cultural habit or a calendar obligation. With prophetic tone he posed the ancient question:
- “Who will save us from sickness, failure, even death itself?”
- And he answered: “Only Jesus, because only He has the power to do so: He is God Himself, who loved us even unto death.”
His message goes beyond France or the crisis of vocations: it is a lash against lukewarm Christianity, that glances at the Cross as if it were just an old symbol, forgetting that Christ is still crucified every day by indifference, comfort, and human laziness.
Editorial Comment
What Leone XIV says touches a nerve that runs through not only the Church but society as a whole. The crisis of vocations is, at heart, a crisis of commitment: it is difficult to give oneself to something that demands constancy, silence, and renunciation. That is where our sloth enters: we prefer immediacy, quick applause, and comfort over a “yes” that lasts a lifetime.
When the Pope insists that the Mass “saves the world today”, he is reminding us of what the world no longer wants to hear: that faith is not cultural ornament, but a living force. The paradox is clear: we shout that there are not enough doctors, teachers, or justice, but we fail to see that there are not enough pastors either. It is like wanting fruit without tending the roots.
This laziness is not only that of the believer who no longer goes to Mass: it is the laziness of a society unwilling to face its thirst for meaning, seeking shortcuts and ending up anesthetized. The result: Christ continues to be crucified, not by nails, but by indifference.
The Pope is right to speak with bluntness to the young. If you don’t shake them, they risk drowning in the flood of easy offers. And perhaps today the most revolutionary truth is this: that true love implies sacrifice.
Il Contraddittore ✝️
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