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Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday told Catholics to rejoice, and not be jealous, when non-Catholics or other Christians do good.
“God can do good and even amazing things outside the circle” of the Catholic Church, the pope said during his midday Angelus address.
The pope quoted St. Augustine who said that just as there could be non-Catholic elements within the Catholic Church, “so there may be something which is Catholic outside the Catholic Church.”
Pope Benedict said Catholics “must not be jealous, but should rejoice if someone outside the community does good in the name of Christ.”
The pope said that also sometimes, within the Catholic community, people have a difficult time recognizing the good that others accomplish.
“We must all always appreciate each other and value each other, praising the Lord for the infinite creativity with which he works in the church and in the world.”
He also touched upon the Second Reading during the Mass in which St. James rebukes those who “trust in the riches accumulated by dint of oppression.”
“The words of the apostle James,” said the pope, are a warning against the “vain desire for material goods.” Instead they are a “powerful call” to use wealth “in the perspective of solidarity and the common good, always acting with fairness and morality, at all level.”
In conclusion, Pope Benedict commended all those present to the Blessed Virgin Mary so that all Catholics may “rejoice in every good gesture and initiative, without envy or jealously.”
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