Pope Francis spoke to the thousands gathered in St. Peter's Square for his Wednesday general audience. He continued his catechesis on mercy, turning to the Gospel passage in Luke in which Jesus dines at the house of Simon, a Pharisee, and forgives a "sinful woman" who washes his feet with precious oils.
In his speech, the Pope said that the episode brings out a comparison between two figures: Simon, the faithful and zealous follower of the law, and the anonymous sinful woman, who expresses repentance.
"While the first judges others based on appearances, the second with her actions expresses her heart with sincerity," Francis said, noting that while Simon doesn't want to compromise himself or get involved in Jesus' life, the woman fully entrusts herself to the Lord "with love and veneration."
As a Pharisee, Simon finds it incomprehensible that Jesus allows himself to be "contaminated" by sinners, as was the common mentality at the time. "He thinks that if Jesus were really a prophet he must recognize and stay away from (sinners) to avoid being stained, as if they were lepers."
This attitude, Francis said, is typical of a certain understanding of religion which emphasizes the radical opposition between God and sin. However, the Pope stressed that the Word of God teaches us to distinguish between "the sin and the sinner."
When it comes to the Pharisee and the sinful woman, "Jesus sided with the latter," the Pope observed, explaining that since the Lord was free from "the prejudices which impede the expression of mercy," he allowed the woman to continue her act of love and repentance.