VATICAN CITY — Rather than hide behind a facade of faithfulness, Christians should be sincere with God even when telling him “no,” Pope Francis said.
Speaking to some 20,000 visitors gathered in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 1, the pope reflected on the day’s Gospel reading from St. Matthew in which Jesus tells the parable of the two sons; when asked by their father to work in the vineyard one replies “no” but goes to the vineyard, while the other says “yes” but does not go.
The problem in the parable, Pope Francis said, does not consist in the two sons’ resistance to the difficult task of working in the vineyard, but in “their sincerity, or lack thereof, with their father and with themselves.”
The problem with the behavior of the son who says “yes” but does not go to the vineyard is not that he is a sinner, but that he is “corrupt,” because he hides his disobedience “without welcoming any honest dialogue or feedback,” the pope said.
The son who said “no” to the father’s command but did go to the vineyard “is not perfect, but sincere,” the pope said.
His “no” to the father “shows his reluctance clearly and, in a certain sense, courageously,” Pope Francis said.
“He is a sinner, we could say, but he is not corrupt,” the pope said. “There is always the hope of redemption for a sinner; for the corrupt, instead, it is much more difficult.”
The pope urged people to reflect on their willingness to say “yes” to God, and to ask themselves when they fail to do so, “Am I sincere before God about my difficulties, my failings, my weaknesses?”
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