By Cindy Wooden, OSV.
Even in countries with the strictest separation between Church and State, being a Christian means living and acting as a Christian, Pope Leo XIV told a group of French politicians and civic leaders.
"Christianity cannot be reduced to a mere private devotion, for it implies a way of living in society marked by love of God and neighbor, who in Christ is no longer an enemy but a brother," the pope told members of the group from the diocese of Créteil, who were on pilgrimage with their bishop, Msgr. Dominique Blanchet, on August 28.
Pope Leo began the audience by telling the delegation that, although he assumed that many of them spoke English, "I will try to speak French, counting on your benevolence".
Faith in all areas of Christianity
Faith in Jesus has implications for "all dimensions of human life, such as culture, economy and work, family and marriage, respect for human dignity and life, health care, along with communication, education and politics," the Pope said.
"Unite yourselves more and more to Jesus; live in him and bear witness to him," Pope Leo told the group. There should not be "a division in the personality of a public figure; there is not the politician on one side and the Christian on the other. Rather, there is the politician who, under the gaze of God and guided by his conscience, lives his commitments and responsibilities as a Christian."
Pope encouraged politicians and civic leaders to grow in their faith and study doctrine catholic The Pope is committed to "apply the social teachings of the Church in the exercise of his functions and in the drafting of laws".
Mention of Natural Law
"Its foundations are in deep harmony with human nature and the natural law that everyone can recognize, including non-Christians and non-believers," he said. "So do not be afraid to propose it and defend it with conviction: it is a doctrine of salvation that seeks the good of every human being and the building of peaceful, harmonious, prosperous and reconciled societies."
Pope Leo prayed that the Jubilee Year pilgrimage would help pilgrims "return to their daily commitments strengthened in hope, more firmly rooted to work for the building of a more just, more humane, more fraternal world, which can only be a world more deeply imbued with the Gospel."
