A few years ago, Pope Francis went to visit a small church in a poor neighborhood of Rome.
As a Lutheran pastor, I don’t put a lot of stock in the Catholic doctrine of papal authority, and I don’t agree with everything Pope Francis says…I do think that he has interesting perspectives…and I appreciate his call for the church to seek out and serve those in need.
As a part of his visit to this small church, five children who lived in the housing project were selected to ask the Pope a question. The first little boy was named Emanuele. He was about five years old. Emanuele slowly approached the microphone to ask his question.
When he got to the microphone, he froze. The crowds…the reporters…the cameras…it was a lot. He just kept looking at the pope, his eyes wide. Then, Pope Francis softly said, “Emanuele, come and whisper your question in my ear.” So, the little boy walked up to the Pope. Pope Francis opened his arms and embraced the boy with absolute love.
Emanuele put his face right against the Pope’s face. For a while, Emanuele just cried, and the pope just kept holding him.
Then, the little boy started to whisper in the Pope’s ear. And the pope whispered into the boy’s ear. They went back and forth for about 2 minutes.
Finally, Emanuele smiled, and said goodbye to the pope and returned to his seat. Then, Pope Francis told the crowd that Emanuele had given the Pope permission to share his question with everyone.
Emanuele had told the pope that, very recently, his father had died. His dad did not believe in God. But still, he was a good man. Because of family tradition, he had brought all four of his children to be baptized in the church.
Now, his dad was dead. That’s part of the reason why Emanuele was crying. But he was also crying because he had a hard question. “Could his dad, someone who did not believe, go to heaven?”
Pope Francis told Emanuele that it was wonderful to hear a son say that his dad was a ‘good man.’ And that Emanuele’s dad had done a very good thing by having all four of his children baptized, even though dad himself may not have believed.
The Pope looked Emanuele in the eye and said, “We have to remember that only God decides who goes to heaven. And we have to remember that God has the heart of a parent; a father, or a mother, who loves their child so very much.”
Then the pope asked Emanuele “Do you think it was a good thing that your dad had his children baptized?” Emanuele nodded. “Do you think that God is pleased with us when we do good things?” Emanuel said, “yes.”
Then the Pope said, “Do you think that God, who has the heart of a mother and father, would be able to leave your dad far away from himself?” Emanuele paused, and then shook his head. The Pope said “say it out loud.” And Emanuele said “no.”
The pope smiled at Emanuele and said, “You see! There is your answer.” God loves your father with a parent’s heart, and a parent’s heart could never leave your dad far away from himself.”
Emanuele smiled.
I think this is a beautiful story. Pope Francis took some very nuanced Christian doctrines and teachings and articulated them in a way that brought healing to a five-year-old, grieving child.
Of course, not everyone looks at events like this through a lens of grace. The next day, on an “Concerned Orthodox Catholic” webpage, the headline read: “Pope faces backlash for telling child that atheists go to heaven.”
Human beings are so good at setting limits around God’s love. We tell ourselves that we are qualified to determine who’s in, and who’s out; who’s included, who’s excluded; who is worthy of heaven, and who is not; who is holy, and who is not.
And we sometimes approach the scriptures, not with hearts open to what God will teach us, but hoping to find a line or two which will support convictions we’ve already created in our minds, convictions formed not on the Gospel, but on our political, cultural, or fear-based assumptions.
Today in our reading from the Book of Acts, we hear a line which was used by the Pope’s critics. In chapter 4, Peter says, “There is salvation in no one else (that is, no one other than Jesus), for there is no other name under heaven given among mortals by which we must be saved.”
After the Pope’s interaction with little Emanuele, his critics said “See! Unless you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe the Christian faith you can’t be saved! Peter said so!”
Now, when Peter preached these words, he was indeed preaching the truth:
- Yes, we do believe that the salvation of the human race happens because Jesus is the son of God, and Jesus became one of us. Jesus died and was resurrected and gave us the gift of his new life and the blessing of the Holy Spirit.
- Yes, we do believe that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus is the source of salvation for the whole world.
- Yes, we do believe that Jesus is the incarnation; the perfect revelation of who God is, and how God saves.
But don’t stop there. Keep reading. Because you know what happens next?
In the rest of the book of Acts, God starts surprising people. More and more people start to experience God’s love through Jesus:
- Men and women
- Boys and girls
- Slaves and servants
- Rich and poor
- The socially acceptable and the outcasts
- People who were Jewish and people who were not.
It seems that once God unleashes his saving love in the world, it starts to spread in ways we can’t control, despite our best efforts.
Maybe that is part of what Jesus means as he speaks to his people in John’s Gospel today. Jesus begins with beautiful images: “I am the good shepherd. I love my flock. I give everything for my sheep. I lay down my life for them. I know my sheep, and they know me.”
And then Jesus says something really interesting: “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So, there will be one flock, one shepherd.”
Hmmm. There’s Jesus, talking to his earliest followers, telling them, “I have other sheep too…” Maybe they didn’t know who those ‘other sheep’ were. Maybe we don’t know who they are! But Jesus loves them just the same, and will find a way to shepherd them, and include them in his heart.
In 1 John 3:20, the scriptures teach that “God is greater than our hearts…” John also reminds us that we are God’s children, right now. Right here. Today. And John reminds us that we are called to love, not just in word or speech, but in truth and action.
“We are God’s children.” When you think about it, isn’t this amazing? In his visit to that little church in Rome, Pope Francis said that everyone who has ever been born is created in God’s image and is loved by God. Everyone.
- You see, it is not our job to decide who is…and who is not…loved by God.
- It is not our job to set standards for what it is to live a Christian life.
- It is not our job to determine who measures up, whatever that means, and who does not.
No. These things are not our job. What is our job? It is to love like Jesus loved. It is to accept like Jesus accepted. It is to care like Jesus cared.
Here’s what I know: God is greater than our hearts. That means that God’s love is bigger than my limitations.
My life, Todd Buegler’s life, was changed for the better because in my baptism, God’s arms were wrapped around me and God promised to love me forever, like a good parent.
And, my life was changed because somewhere along the line, I fell in love with Jesus. And, like anyone who falls in love, I want other people to meet and know and love the one that I love. So, I happily spend my life inviting others to know this Jesus who is everything for me. That’s my vocation. By the way…that’s yourvocation too.
And if I ever find myself wanting to create new barriers, or to judge someone as being “beyond God’s ability to love them,” I need to remember what Jesus says in today’s Gospel: “I have other sheep, not in the fold that you happen to know, and I will shepherd them.”
If I find myself thinking that some part of me is beyond redemption, or some other person, or group of persons, is beyond saving, I will always think of Pope Francis embracing a little boy named Emanuele, and telling him, “Remember, God loves us with a parent’s heart. A mother’s heart…a father’s heart. Could God want us to be far away from him?” Little Emanuele’s answer was “no.” In the same way, our answer is no. Could God want any of his children to be far away? Say it with me: “No.” Could God want any of his children to be far away? Say it with me again, louder: “No.”
So, whatever worries you, whatever is making you cry, whatever causes you stress, or fear, or pain…know that God is there for you… come, and whisper it in God’s ear. God will draw you close…and God will hear you.
Amen.
I am deeply indebted to Rev. Michael Renninger, a pastor and teacher at St. Mary Catholic Church in Richmond, Virginia, whose good work deeply influenced and inspired this sermon.
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