Pope Francis said Jan. 31 that "no human condition constitutes grounds for exclusion from the heart of the Father."
The pope was speaking during the Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square on the day upon which marked the International Day of Leprosy, Vatican Radio reported.
The only privilege in the eyes of God "is to have no privileges and to be abandoned in his hands," Pope Francis told the crowds gathered in St. Peter's Square."
And calling on all men and women to guard themselves against the temptation of treating religion as a human investment and of thinking they can "bargain" with God seeking to obtain their own interests, the pope urged Catholics to open their hearts to the Lord and to his revelation.