Those who seek only power and greatness, especially within the church, follow a different path than Jesus, who told his disciples to serve and not to be served, Pope Francis said in a morning homily.
Preaching May 17 during Mass in his residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the pope said Jesus speaks a language of humiliation, death and redemption, while others "speak the language of climbers" who only thinking of rising to the top of the heap, Catholic News Service reported.
"The greatest is the one who serves the most, the one who is always at the service of others, not the ones who boast, who seek power, money, vanity and pride," he said, according to Vatican Radio.
The pope focused his homily on the day's Gospel reading (Mk. 9:30-37), in which the disciples argued about who was the greatest among them.
"If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all," Jesus tells them.
The pope said that although the disciples were tempted to think in a worldly way, Jesus teaches them a different path where "service is the rule."