Pope Leo XIV points to St. Francis as model for repairing the Church and building peace

Pope Leo XIV held up St. Francis of Assisi as a model for renewing the Church and building peace during his Sunday Angelus, marking the 800th anniversary of the saint’s death.

Reflecting on the Gospel parable of the vineyard in Matthew 21, the Pope said Jesus’ rejection shows that violence and human sin cannot defeat God’s saving plan. God can transform what is rejected into the foundation of something new, he said, pointing to Christ as the stone rejected by the builders that became the cornerstone.

“Jesus himself recalls these words from the Psalm, which celebrates the marvelous work done by the Lord: it is precisely what was cast aside that becomes the foundation that sustains everything,” the Pontiff remarked. “This is how the Almighty guides history, coming to our aid in all our falls: God never discards our lives!”

The Pope described the vineyard in the parable as an image of the Church, which Christians can either build up or damage through their choices.

Pope Leo XIV said Francis, whom Christ called to repair his Church, began that work by building his own life on Christ, embracing prayer, poverty, suffering and charity. He even received the stigmata, as the Pontiff noted.

“A man of fervent prayer, full of charity toward all, he was an example to the first friars who shared his asceticism as an authentic condition for the reform of the Church,” the Pontiff remarked. “Saint Francis repaired the Church by virtue of his faith in the Lord Jesus, healing the rifts of discord through the witness of fraternal love.”

Eight centuries after his death, Pope Leo XIV said the Franciscan charism continues to bear fruit throughout the Church, both through the Franciscan orders and the blessings his spiritual legacy imparts.

He urged Catholics during the Franciscan Jubilee Year to commit to praying for peace and building harmony.

After the Angelus, the Pope renewed his call for Catholics to pray the Rosary throughout October for an end to war. He thanked children participating in Aid to the Church in Need’s “A Million Children Praying the Rosary” initiative.

“Let us all follow their example, invoking the intercession of the Virgin Mary so that peoples may be freed from the scourge of war,” Pope Leo said.

The Pontiff asked the faithful to pray especially for the Holy Land and innocent victims of violence.

Pope Leo XIV also said an upcoming Vatican gathering marking the 10th anniversary of Amoris Laetitia will bring together heads of the Eastern Catholic Churches and presidents of bishops’ conferences from around the world.

The meeting, he said, will seek ways to better proclaim the Gospel among families and younger generations. The Pope called families, with God’s help, “a sign of hope and an inestimable treasure for the Church and for society.”