Pope Leo Urges Faith Through Words and Actions at Angelus

Vatican City, August 24, 2025: During his Sunday Angelus address, Pope Leo reflected on the Gospel’s image of the “narrow door,” which Jesus used to respond to the question of whether only a few people would be saved.

“Strive to enter through the narrow door, for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able,” the Pope reminded the faithful.

A Warning Against Overconfidence

Pope Leo highlighted a challenging question this image raises: if God is a Father of love and mercy, always waiting to welcome us, why does Jesus describe the door to salvation as narrow?

The Pope explained that God is not discouraging anyone but is challenging those who are overconfident, believing that religious practice alone guarantees salvation.

“Those who think they are in good standing simply because they follow religious rituals do not truly understand that the heart cannot be transformed by acts alone,” Pope Leo said. God desires lives grounded in love, justice, and care for others, not empty observances.

He added that people who separate their faith from their actions and boast of attending meals with Jesus or following His teachings will be turned away.

Walking the Path of the Narrow Door

Sunday’s Gospel offers both a challenge and a promise. Jesus questions the “certainty of believers,” showing that authentic faith goes beyond words, Mass attendance, or memorising Christian teachings.

Faith becomes genuine when it guides our choices, inspiring us to act in love and justice, just as Jesus did. This path often demands courage, selflessness, and perseverance, even when evil seems to prevail.

Pope Leo concluded by urging the faithful to call upon Mary’s intercession, asking her to help them “courageously pass through the ‘narrow door’ of the Gospel” and to embrace the boundless love of God the Father.

Courtesy: Vatican News

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