Pope Leo XIV at Angelus Says True Righteousness Flows from Great Love
During his Sunday Angelus address, Pope Leo XIV reflected on the Gospel reading by emphasizing that authentic righteousness is rooted not in minimal observance of the law but in a love that transforms the heart. Speaking to the faithful gathered in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope said Jesus invites believers to embrace the newness of the Kingdom of God, where commandments are fulfilled through charity rather than reduced to formal compliance.
The Gospel passage, which follows the proclamation of the Beatitudes, presents Jesus clarifying the deeper meaning of the Law of Moses. Pope Leo explained that Christ did not come to abolish the law but to bring it to fulfillment. That fulfillment, he noted, is achieved through love, which reveals the true purpose of every commandment and draws believers into a living relationship with God and with one another.
According to the Pope, righteousness in the Christian sense cannot be limited to the external observance of rules. Instead, it opens the believer to love and compels action grounded in mercy and fraternity. Jesus’ teaching, he said, contrasts a merely formal religious attitude with the righteousness of the Kingdom of God, which reaches into intentions, relationships, and daily conduct.
Pope Leo pointed to the way Jesus revisits specific precepts of the Law and deepens them. Rather than offering a superficial interpretation, Christ invites his followers to examine their hearts. Anger, reconciliation, fidelity, and truthfulness are not simply matters of legal precision but opportunities to live out love in concrete ways. The Pope explained that through these examples, Jesus shows that the law given through Moses and the prophets was always oriented toward communion with God and toward building just relationships among people.
By entering human history, the Pope said, Christ reveals the fullness of that divine plan. In Jesus, believers are called to recognize themselves as children of the Father and as brothers and sisters to one another. This identity reshapes the understanding of righteousness, making it inseparable from love. The Pope stressed that minimal righteousness is not enough, as the Gospel calls for a greater love that exceeds calculation and convenience.
He reminded the faithful that such love is not achieved by human strength alone but through grace. God provides the strength needed to live the demands of the Gospel. For this reason, the Christian life is not simply about moral effort but about openness to divine assistance and transformation.
Concluding his reflection, Pope Leo entrusted the faithful to the intercession of the Virgin Mary, asking that she help believers better understand the Kingdom of God and live according to its call to righteousness. He encouraged all present to allow the Gospel to challenge complacency and to inspire a deeper commitment to love in everyday life.
