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The Gospel brings a significant message of hope, Pope Francis stated in his prepared text for the weekly general audience at Vatican City on April 16, 2025. "Because it tells us that wherever we are lost and however we are lost, God always comes looking for us!" he explained, emphasizing the hope derived from knowing that "the Father is waiting for us. He sees us from afar and he always leaves the door open."
Due to his recovery from double pneumonia and multiple infections, Pope Francis did not personally address the audience. Instead, the Vatican released the prepared texts for his weekly audiences, which have been focusing on “Jesus Christ our hope” during Holy Year 2025.
The pope's teachings have been examining Gospel stories of Jesus’ transformative encounters with individuals. With the April 16 text, Pope Francis began a new series exploring parables, encouraging the faithful to reflect on their place within these narratives.
The first segment centered on St. Luke’s account of the prodigal son, highlighting "the heart of the Gospel of Jesus, namely God’s mercy," wrote Pope Francis. The parable, along with those of the lost sheep and lost coin, was addressed to "the Pharisees and the scribes, who lamented that he ate with sinners," Pope Francis noted. He described it as a parable aimed at those who judge others yet are unaware of their own lost state.
"The Gospel is intended to give us a message of hope," Pope Francis wrote, explaining that when a child of God is lost, God seeks them out. He stressed that "love is always a commitment, there is always something that we must lose in order to go toward the other."
In discussing the parable, Pope Francis described how the younger son embodies a disregard for genuine love, thinking only of himself and neglecting the value of true relationships. "Only when we live for someone do we truly live," he stated.
He praised Rembrandt’s 17th-century painting, “The Return of the Prodigal Son,” for depicting the young man reborn, noting the father's hands in the painting as reflecting strength and tenderness, elements of forgiveness.
Pope Francis also addressed those represented by the eldest son in the parable, who stayed with his father but was emotionally distant. "Paradoxically, it is precisely the eldest son who in the end risks being left out because he does not share his father’s joy," wrote Pope Francis. He highlighted the father's approach of love without reproach, inviting the eldest son to celebrate and keep the door open.
Pope Francis concluded by inviting the faithful to reflect on their position within this narrative and to seek God’s grace to find their way back home.
