Pope Francis: 'Put The Needs Of The Poor Ahead Of Our Own'

Long a champion of the poor and vulnerable, Pope Francis went one step further during the Sunday Angelus message at the Vatican when he told his followers that, “Jesus teaches us to put the needs of the poor ahead of our own,” according to the National Catholic Register. “Our needs, even if legitimate, will never be so urgent as those of the poor, who lack the necessities of life," he added.

Pope Francis denounced unnecessary luxuries early on in his career, choosing to drive a humble Ford Focus rather than a more opulent car, living in the Vatican guesthouse rather than the Apostolic Palace, and famously declaring, "Oh, how I would like a poor Church, and for the poor."

The rest of the Angelus focused on the parable of Jesus feeding the multitudes with loaves and fishes. “Compassion, sharing, Eucharist: This is the path Jesus indicates for us in this Gospel,” he said, according to Today's Catholic News. “It is a path that leads us to face the needs of this world with brotherhood, but one that leads us beyond this world because it starts with God the father and returns to him.”