Pope Leo XIV: “Love God and Neighbor to Inherit Eternal Life”

During his Sunday Angelus address at Castel Gandolfo on July 13, Pope Leo XIV reflected on the Gospel question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” The Holy Father emphasized that eternal life comes as an inheritance from God rather than something earned or negotiated.

“This hope of the human heart is described as something to be ‘inherited’, not something to be gained by force, begged for, or negotiated,” the Pope explained to pilgrims gathered in Piazza della Libertà. “Eternal life, which God alone can give, is bestowed on us as an inheritance, as parents do with their children.”

The Pope highlighted Jesus’ response that we must follow God’s will by loving both God and neighbor. “When we do these two things, we respond to the Father’s love,” he said.

Pointing to Christ as our model, Pope Leo described authentic love as “generous, not possessive; a love that forgives without question; a love that reaches out and never abandons others.”

The Holy Father emphasized that eternal life is achieved not by “cheating death” but by “serving life, by caring for others in this, our time together.”

Following the Angelus prayer, the Pope greeted various pilgrim groups and acknowledged special visitors, including Carabinieri cadets from the Velletri School and participants in the Giffoni Film Festival. He also commemorated the beatification of Lycarion May, a Marist Brother martyred in 1909.

The Pope concluded by asking for continued prayers for peace and for those suffering from violence and war throughout the world.