Pray with the Pope Reflection - May 2026

Fr. Edmund Lo, SJ

Thursday, May 7, 2026

My brothers and sisters: In this month of May, Pope Leo invites us to pray that everyone, from large producers to small consumers, be committed to avoid wasting food, and to ensure that everyone has access to quality food. The foundation of this month’s prayer intention is what we call the “universal destination of goods” in the Church’s social doctrine. Everything belongs to God, and we have been given them as stewards. All is gift. All is created for the flourishing of everyone.

Any kind of excess, be it wealth or food, does not deservedly belong to the person who earns or owns it, but that it belongs to those who, through no fault of their own, lack the necessity in life to flourish.

St. Basil the Great, one of the Church Fathers, famously said:

“The bread you are holding back belongs to the hungry;

the cloak you keep locked in your chest belongs to the naked;

the shoes rotting in your house belong to the barefoot;

the money you bury in the ground belongs to the poor.”

Let us pray for a transformation of our inner eyes of faith, to see that all is indeed gift.

Let us also pray that our hearts not be hardened, to think that the suffering of others is their own business but not mine.

Finally, let us pray also for a greater freedom in our hearts, so that we unclench our fists and give more freely. May God bless you today.