Pope Francis: 'Not every part of Christian life is a party.'

Pope Francis took some time during his May 30 early morning mass from his residence at Domus Sanctae Marthae, to remind Christians, that even though Jesus promises the faithful great joy, life will not be all sunshine and roses.

Embrace your Faith

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - "We have to tell the truth: not every part of Christian life is a party. Not all of it!"

Heed the calls of Pope Francis, fight world hunger today.

The Pope reminded the gathered that the joy provided by Jesus is the promise of a light at the end of the tunnel, and receiving the strength and hope to get through difficult times, including illness, family troubles, financial hardships

The Pope said that Christians will face "many problems, we have many. But Jesus tells us, 'Do not be afraid!'"

These problems may lead to grief, one which leads to despair, and another that is at peace with the joy of hope that Jesus provides. When people try to "buy joy, worldly happiness," they encounter "the sadness that happens to all of us," he said. "In the end, there is an emptiness in us, a sadness."

"This is the sadness of bad happiness," he said.

Pope Francis read from the Gospel of St. John (16:20-24) when Jesus told his disciples that the "will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy."

It is through Christ alone that we can find this joy, he said. The joys that Christ provides can never be taken away, and can allow Christians to endure all of life's tragedies with a peaceful heart.

"If you are at peace, you have the seed of this joy that will come," he said. "Think about what comes after with the Lord; afterwards comes joy, after the darkness comes the sun."

It is true that only true, pure joy can be found in Christ. Spread the joy of the Lord today by donating a Bible.

---

'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'