VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Having faith does not mean there will be no difficulties in life, either for individuals or for the church as a whole, Pope Francis said, but it does mean knowing that Jesus is there to give courage and to defeat evil. “The Lord knows that the boat of our life, as well as the boat of the church, is threatened by headwinds, and that the sea on which we sail is often turbulent,” the pope said Aug. 13, commenting on the day’s Gospel story about Jesus walking on the water toward the disciples whose boat was being tossed about by the wind. Jesus “does not spare us the hard work of sailing,” the pope told an estimated 15,000 people gathered in the square for the midday recitation of the Angelus. Instead, “he invites us to face difficulties so they too might become salvific places, so Jesus can conquer them, so they become opportunities to meet him.” “In our moments of darkness, he comes to meet us, asking to be welcomed like that night on the lake” when the disciples were afraid until Jesus reassured them, Pope Francis said.
