Pope Francis: We can deceive ourselves, but in the end, without love we are nothing

After leaving the San Francisco Javier Retreat Center, the Holy Father Francisco traveled by car to the National Stadium in the Singapore Sports Hub for the celebration of the Holy Mass, where he stated that “in the end life ends up returning us to the only reality, that without love we are nothing.”

Upon his arrival, Pope Francis toured the stadium in a popemobile and greeted some of the fifty thousand faithful who received him with applause. The Holy Father stopped with them to exchange brief words and give them rosaries, especially to the children.

At 5:15 p.m. (local time) Pope Francis presided over the Eucharist corresponding to the Memory of the Most Holy Name of Mary.

“The origin is not money, it is love”

At the beginning of his homily, Pope Francis thanked the Church of Singapore, which is “alive, growing and in dialogue” with other religions.

Referring to the “imposing constructions” of the country, the Holy Father remarked that even in their origin “is not in the first place, as many think, money, nor technology, not even engineering – all useful means –, but in definitive love, the love that builds.”

Specifically, he reiterated that “there is no good work behind which there are not, perhaps, brilliant, strong, rich, creative people, although they are always fragile women and men, like us, for whom without love there is no life, no impulse, no reason to act, no strength to build.”

“If something good exists and remains in this world, it is only because, in multiple and varied circumstances, love has prevailed over hate, solidarity over indifference, generosity over selfishness,” he noted.

For the Pontiff, “if it were not for that, no one here would have been able to grow such a large metropolis, the architects would not have made projects, the workers would not have worked and nothing would have been possible.”

In this sense, he stated that behind each of the works before us “there are many love stories to discover.”

And it is good that we learn to interpret these stories, Pope Francis continued, “written on the facades of our houses and on the layout of our streets, and to transmit their memory, to remind us that nothing that is lasting is born and grows without love.”

He lamented that sometimes the greatness and grandeur of our projects “can make us forget this, deceiving us into thinking that we can be the authors of ourselves, of our wealth, of our well-being, of our happiness; However, in the end life ends up returning us to the only reality, that without love we are nothing.”

Along these lines, he explained that faith “confirms and enlightens us even more about this certainty, because it tells us that at the root of our capacity to love and be loved is God himself, who with a Father’s heart desired us and called us. into existence in a totally free way and who, in an equally free way, has redeemed us and freed us from sin and death, through the death and resurrection of his Only Begotten Son.”

“In Him is the origin and fulfillment of everything we are and what we can become,” he remarked.

Human love is a reflection of the love of God

In this way, he pointed out that “in our love we see a reflection of the love of God”, since “beyond how amazed we feel at the works created by man, it reminds us that there is an even greater wonder, that there is to embrace with even greater admiration and respect.”

These are, according to the Pontiff, “the brothers and sisters that we meet every day on our path, without preferences or differences.”

He also noted that “the most beautiful building, the most precious treasure, the most profitable investment in the eyes of God are us, beloved children of the same Father, called in turn to spread love.”

This, for Pope Francis, “we can see in numerous saints, men and women conquered by the God of mercy, to the point of becoming his reflection, his echo, his living image.”

The example of the Virgin Mary and Saint Francis Xavier

He gave the example of the Virgin Mary, in whom “we see the love of the Father manifested in one of the most beautiful and total forms: that of the tenderness of a mother, who understands and forgives everything, and who never abandons us. That’s why we entrust ourselves to her.”

He also remembered Saint Francis Xavier, who was received in this land on numerous occasions. Following his and Mary’s example, Pope Francis encouraged the faithful to ask themselves: “Lord, here I am, what do you want me to do?”

“May these words accompany us not only these days, but always, as a constant commitment to listen and respond promptly to invitations to love and justice, invitations that continue to reach us today from the infinite charity of God,” he concluded. Pope Francis.

At the end of the celebration, following words of thanksgiving by the Archbishop of Singapore, Cardinal William Goh Seng Chye, Pope Francis returned by car to the St. Francis Xavier Retreat Centre.