Pope Francis attends a weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square on June 28 at the Vatican. (Photo by Vincenzo Pinto/AFP)
Christians are called to detach themselves from power, reject violence and sacrifice themselves for God and others out of love, Pope Francis said.
Christians must live the way Christ chose to: not as "persecutors, but persecuted; not arrogant, but meek; not as snake-oil salesmen, but subservient to the truth; not impostors, but honest," he said June 28 during his weekly general audience.
In fact, "Christians find repugnant the idea that suicide attackers might be called 'martyrs' because there is nothing in their purpose that can come close to the behavior of children of God," who are called always to act out of love, he told the estimated 12,000 pilgrims in St. Peter's Square.
In his weekly catechesis, the pope continued his series on Christian hope by focusing on what gives Christians strength and perseverance in the face of opposition, hatred and persecution.
"Christians love, but they are not always loved," Catholic News Service reported the pope as saying.
Because the world is marked by sin, selfishness, injustice and hostility, he said, it is "normal" that Christians are expected to go against the current and live the way Christ lived and taught.
The Christian lifestyle must be marked by "poverty," he said, noting how Jesus talks to his disciples more about "stripping" themselves than about "getting dressed."
"Indeed, a Christian who is not humble and poor, detached from wealth and power and, above all, detached from him or herself, does not resemble Jesus," he said.
Christians journey forth into the world with the bare essentials, except their heart, which should be overflowing with love, he added.
The only weapons Christians possess are the Gospel and the hopeful assurance that God is always by their side, especially in the worst of times.
Full story: Pope: Christians fight evil with love, sacrifice, never with violence
Source: Catholic News Service