29 June, St. Peter and St. Paul
The Holy Father inaugurated officially last night the "Year of St. Paul" with an ecumenical celebration at the basilica of St. Paul outside the walls, in the presence of the patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I and many other leaders of orthodox and protestant churches. In the homily, Benedict XVI explained the reason behind the idea of the Year of St. Paul: Paul has been constituted by God as "the Teacher of the Gentile Nations", not only of the people of his own time, but of all nations throughout the centuries, including our own. Paul is today the Teacher of our Nations, therefore we ought to read him, listen to him, know what he says. We should take full advantage of this opportunity the Church is giving us to know the mind and heart of St. Paul.
Peter and Paul were people of very different backgrounds: Paul was a Jew from Tarsus, a Roman citizen, who had studied at the feet of the great Jewish Rabbi Gamaliel. He was passionate about his religion, we would call him today a Jewish fundamentalist, burning with zeal for the religion of his ancestors. He saw the threat posed to Judaism by the preaching of the Good News of JESUS, and he tried to stop this sect from spreading, participating in the murder of many innocent Christians - at least by his vocal support - and passing into action by delivering Christians to the Jewish courts. "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" said the Lord to him, reminding him of his cruel treatment of Christians.
Peter, on the other hand, was a simple, uneducated fisherman, impetuous but a bit slow in understanding what was happening before his own eyes. He says to JESUS, "Away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man", and we all know how he betrayed JESUS out of fear for his life. Yet, the Lord who chooses what is weak to confound the strong, chose him to become the rock on which to build His Church: "You are Peter and on this rock I shall build my Church. And the gates of the underworld can never hold out against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in heaven, whatever you loose on earth shall be considered looed in heaven".
Two very different people, yet united by a common purpose, a common love. The source of all of Peter's and Paul's actions and deeds is their burning zeal for the Good News, and their impetuous love for JESUS Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour and Redeemer of mankind. Theirs was not a faith based on ideas, but on the living experience of the power of God in JESUS. Three times Peter is asked by JESUS, "Do you love me?" and three times Peter answers, "Yes Lord you know that I love you"; Paul met JESUS on the way to Damascus, he was captured by Him, and became his doulos, servant, loving Him with all the passion of his heart.
Let us then today renew our faith in JESUS: a faith not based on ideas or on family tradition or habit but a living faith, with a passion for God and for His Church, ready to shed our own blood for JESUS, as both Peter and Paul did in the distant 67 AD.
There is an incident in John's life that highlights the mission and the greatness of the man who defined himself simply "a voice" speaking from the wilderness.
John's disciples had noted with apprehension and perhaps anger that the "man" to whom John had paid some time back an outstanding tribute, that man and his disciples were now baptising with such success that the "whole world" was going after him. What was John going to do about it? To their astonishment, John's face lit up as he said, "Now my joy is complete, for He must increase and I must decrease".
It is Christ that matters, not His messengers; it is Christ who must be preached, not our ideas; it is the mind of Christ that must rule over the hearts of people, not our mind. This is what Paul meant when he said repeatedly that we must acquire "the mind of Christ": we must think like Him, love like Him, act like Him. JESUS must increase in our mind, we must decrease: but we often hold on fiercely to what we think, to what we want, to the ways we have traced for ourselves. We are not prepared, often, to put on Christ, to have the mind of Christ.
To have the mind of Christ is more than to imitate Christ: it is to be Christ, having been sealed in Baptism by the Spirit with the "image of the Son", who truly resides in our being. We are the image of God because JESUS in us is the perfect likeness of the Father. There is no surprise then that the refrain of the Psalm today is, "I thank you Lord for the wonder of my being".
Let us thank the Lord, keeping before us the rough, humble, powerful figure of John the Baptist, rejoicing only when the Name of JESUS is praised and blessed, not our own name: He must increase, we must decrease.
This Sunday resounds with the comforting words of JESUS: "Do not be afraid", repeated three times over the short reading of the Gospel. Fear is in the heart of everyone: Jeremiah expressed it well when he said, "Terror from every side": fear from people who are there to harm us as much as they can with their nastiness, ungratefulness, mocking remarks. Look in the depths of your heart, and there you will discover fear seated as on a throne: fear from people, from diseases, from failures, from death, from hell - the second death. People are fearful, countries are fearful, the world is encircled by fear.
"Do not be afraid", the Lord repeats to us today, as He did when he spoke to Paul in Corinth, encouraging him to place his trust in Him: "Do not be afraid, but speak, for I am with you". This is the source of Christian calm and serenity, the Lord is with us, or, the Gospel of today teaches us, the Divine Providence of God surrounds our life in this dangerous world.
Epicurus, the Greek philosopher, believed in the existence of the gods, but he was not bothered with them, because, he taught, they are not concerned with us; they made this universe as in a child's game, and now they are pursuing other interests. He taught we should not rely on them, but grasp whatever pleasure we can from this life, for there is no tomorrow.
How different is this teaching from the one the Son of God had revealed to us: God loves us so much that He did not spare His only Son but gave Him up for us all; God is so close to us that He knows the numer of the hair on our head, God cares for the world so much that He calls the stars by their name, that He feeds the birds of the air and makes beautiful the lilies of the fields. The love of God surrounds the whole universe, and works in the depths of our heart. Let us abandon ourselves completely to Divine Providence, putting our trust in Him: the Lord is with me, whom shall I fear? You Lord are my lamp, with you I will scale any wall!
Do not be afraid: open wide the doors of your heart to Christ. When you are worried, concerned, afraid, cling to the Lord in prayer and He will rescue you. A famous writer comforted himself in the dark periods of his life with these words: "God exists, Christ is risen, hence everything is well".
A few days ago we celebrated the feast of St. Anthony, who died at the age of 36, consumed by his work for the Kingdom of God, like JESUS. Anthony was not a man happy with half measures, with mediocrity: JESUS would probably have nicknamed him "boanerges", son of thunder, for his zeal for the Lord. He had chosen the religious life at a young age,but the turning moment was when the broken bodies of six franciscan friars were brought back to Lisbon, received with immense popular commotion. The heart of the young Anthony was moved, and he decided to become a franciscan, to be able to go to Morocco, preach there to the Muslims, and find martyrdom.
The Lord had other plans for him, and although he did go to Africa, he had to be sent back soon after because of illness. But his generous spirit found other ways to burn itself out for the love of God and neighbour.
The readings today present the urgency of working for God's kingdom, and we are also invited to respond with the same passion and enthusiasm that Anthony had. "The harvest is rich, but the labourers are few": we ought not to think that JESUS is referring to priests, for the whole people of God is a people of priests, prophets, and kings. The labourers that are few are the true Christians who are willing to spread the word of God in their families, in their places of work, in their church community, even in their countries and abroad. We are the bearers of a great message of hope and we ought to pass it on around us.
Scriptures today also speak of the desert: the people of the Exodus, David, Elijah, John the Baptist, JESUS, all had experience of the desert. The desert was for them the place of their meeting God. Human beings today, as always, are crossing their own desert towards the promised land. The desert is the place where we can learn 5 truths about ourselves:
1- Life is hard, it is a place of purification, of carrying the cross;
2- You are going to die: the desert presents this truth starkly at every turn, hence we are always aware of the mortality and impermanence of our condition. Things that appear so important suddenly become meaningless;
3- You are not that important: the vast and intractable desert help us discover humility as the source of truth and happiness in our life.
4- You are not in control: the desert is unpredictable and cannot be easily manipulated. We experience our own powerlessness and the sense of dependency from God. It makes sense to abandon ourselves completely in Divine Providence.
5- Your life is not about you: the solitude and silence of the desert help s to discover the presence of God and of the other as essential to our own existence. It was in the desert that Moses, Elijah, and the Fathers discovered God; it was in the desert that Israel became a people.
Let us today commit ourselves to the service of God and of our neighbour with great generosity, as we together, the people of God in our generation, cross the desert of life with the clear purpose of reaching the promised land.
Anthony burnt himself out for God, at the age of 36. He was bright, eloquent, generous, he could have been very successful in the world; but he gave his life to God with great enthusiasm, toiling for his brethren at the imitation of JESUS and dying for their sake. A great way of spending our short life here on earth. "Lord, we have left everything and followed you: what's in it for us?"; "Truly I say to you, you will have a hundred-fold more in this life and then the eternal life in heaven".
Anthony, a portughese, had initially joined the Augustinians; but when the bodies of six franciscan friars were brought back from Morocco, having suffered martyrdom there, he burned with the desire to emulate them, and joined the Franciscans so that he too could go to Morocco, preach to the Muslims, and give up his life for JESUS in martyrdom. One can admire the clarity of his commitment to JESUS and the generosity of his heart. God had other plans: he had just arrived in Africa when he became so ill that his companions sent him back to Portugal. The boat that carried him encountered such a strong storm that it landed not in Portugal but thousands o fmiles away, in Sicily.
From Sicily, Anthony travelled to Assisi, where he encountered St. Francis and the two embraced, one already acknowledged by everyone as a great saint, the other totally unknown. He then lived quietly, immersed in prayer and studies in a hermitage attached to a Franciscan house, until God presented this young, holy man to the world by a providential accident. The Franciscans of Forli' had been preparing for a solemn ordination of some of their young religious, and everything was ready for the ceremony, or nearly, since the official preacher for the occasion had failed to turn up! The Superior, in a panic, told Anthony to preach at the Mass and would not listen to any of Anthony's objections. The sermon was outstanding, acclaimed by everyone, and the Superiors realised the immense gifts of this young priest from Portugal.
Anthony became an itinerant preacher, powerful in words and deed, truly burning with love for God and for his neighbour. His eloquence was so great that even the fish were said to enjoy it. He did not spare himself, but gave himself up for JESUS, the Church, his brethren.
He died at the age of 36, and given his immense reputation in the Christian world, was acclaimed a saint one year later! He was proclaimed Doctor of the Church in 1946.
"Deo servire, regnare est": let us spend our life for God, what else can be better?
"I set before you today a blessing and a curse: a blessing if you obey the commandments of the Lord our God, a curse if you disobey the commandments of the Lord your God": you must choose, a curse or a blessing, death or life, disaster or happiness.
This is the stark, simple choice we all are called to make without escape, since even a non-choice is a choice. How many of us try to find the easiest way of building our house, in the abundant sand of the valley; it is far more difficult to build higher up, on the rock. It is easy to follw the futile endeavours of the majority, the fashionable ideas and beliefs, the least demanding way of living our life. Sin is attractive, especially the sin that takes control of our passions, greed, pride, sexual immorality.
Building on rock is to place all our trust in God, our rock, obeying His commands, doing His Will in all things, clinging to Him in love. God is our Creator, our Saviour, our Sanctifier: embracing Him means to embrace holiness and utter bliss, security and solidity. Difficulties - storms, winds, rain - are sure to come to all: often an illness, or a death, or a tragedy, or unemployment, or difficult children, or many other testing events. It is possible to see the despair of people who have built on sand when trouble arrives; and the serenity and calm and trust in God of people who have built on the Rock, our Lord and God.
We already have a house built on the rock, the Church: "You are Peter, and on this rock I shall build my Church". The Church is our sure place, inside it not outside. It is not much help when storms come if they find us outside the Church pointing at all her failures; we need to be in, in humility and working with others to contribute our little towards the great Kingdom of God.
Today is the first of the month of June, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of JESUS: let us contemplate the infinite love of the Lamb of God who offered Himself on the Cross for our sake. The Cross is the true Rock, empurpled by the Blood of the Son, the most powerful symbol of the love of God for each of us.
Morality is justice, is to "acknowledge" with our will in freedom the order of being, is to acknowledge "being" for what it is, is - therefore - to live in the truth, for truth is being in its order. Holiness is to pursue justice, and justice, ultimately, is pure love of God and of neighbour. If we do give God all that belongs to God, then our heart must be given to Him, all our love, and the more we love Him the more just we become. Christ became our justice since He gave God His own self on the cross representing fallen humanity; yet, the act of supreme justice was also the act of supreme love of God and of neighbour.
Jesus reveals to us the easiest way of getting to heaven, of becoming the "greatest": John and James had the idea that being first meant occupying exalted positions in the Kingdom, having a superior place above all others. JESUS says, instead that greatness is justice, is to recognise the infinite value of all others and of putting oneself to the service of others: greatness is to be the servant of all, is to wash the feet of others, is to give the life for others, in the imitation of the Son of Man.
Let us today strive to live in the truth, acknowledging God, neighbour, and all things in the universe in their order and paying to them the homage, respect, and love they deserve.
The disciples had been discussing who was the "greatest" among them, possibly thinking of the honours in the imminent establishment of the Kingdom; they were booking their positions around the soon to be declared Messiah. JESUS patiently instructs them, by taking a little child and inviting the disciples to adopt the attitude of the child, one of complete dependance and trust. The way to holiness, to greatness, is to become small, to see - like the child - everyone taller and greater, and therefore to put oneself at the service of everyone.
By acknowledging profoundly our own nothingness - our being little children before the Almighty God - we are enabled to consider others as greater than ourselves, and hence we place ourselves at their service, like JESUS who came not to be served but to serve and to give His life for all. He was the suffering "servant", the foot-washer, the One who chose the stable of Bethlehem, the unknown village of Nazareth, the cross of Calvary.
It takes little, therefore, to become holy: become the servant of all, respect the infinity dignity of all, care for all, pray for all, do not rest until your brother has been persuaded to cling to God with all his heart, mind, and soul. Let us pray today the Source of Holiness, the Holy Spirit, to open our eyes over our true nothingness and to grant us holiness, that spirit of humility that prompt us to serve God and our neighbour joyfully and without reservation.
This is the most beautiful feast of the Christian calendar, a feast uniquely "Christian", celebrating the unity of God in the three Persons who make up the Trinity. Today we rejoce over the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: we contemplate them in their essentail nature - as far as our very limited intelligence can see - and in their work for the world, seeing in the Father the powerful Creator of all that there is, in the Son, our Wisdom and our Redeemer, in the Holy Spirit the source of our sanctification and of love.
Metaphors and similes abound when we speak of the mystery of God, but we may be forgiven if we attempt to explain very basic ideas by using the following comparison. Let us think of our street, and of the house in the street where Smith lives. We pass the house often, we may look at it from the outside, and what we know is simply that Smith lives there. Imagine that one fine day, master Smith comes out of the house and says to us to follow him into the house, to introduce us to the rest of the family. And so we meet the father, the son, and the mother, the whole family. The Smith house has now become a far richer house, since we now know that there is a family of three there, and that they love each other, etc. It was through the good services of master Smith that we have now a more perfect knowledge of the Smith household.
The Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, has revealed to us the great mystery of God, the fact that the One God is in fact in three Persons. He has spoken to us of the greatness of the Father, of the great love the Father has for each of us, of the eternal plan the Father has for us and of the need to pray the Father constantly and to do His Will in all things. He spoke to us of the Holy Spirit, who is our Advocate and Guide, who will remain with us until the end of times. The Son revealed Himself to us through His life, His words, His deeds.
Already in Genesis, we have the beautiful story of the three Visitors meeting Abraham at Mamre, under the oak tree, in the heat of the day: though They are three, they speak as one, and they are addressed to as one. At the end of the meal, they bring joy to the household by the promise of the birth of Isaac within the year. The famous painting by Rublev, has an empty place at table, better the apparently empty place is in effect the place of the one who looks at the painting, who contemplates the great things the Persons of the Blessed Trinity have done for us.
It is clear that the revelation of the Blessed Trinity has enriched immensely our understanding of God, becoming a source of profound joy and love for Him in the three Persons. But this closeness to the mystery of God is not merely based on an intellectual understanding, but it has become a real perception through the waters of Baptism. In Baptism, in fact, we "perceive" God in His trinitarian reality, confusedly but "really": we perceive the infinite power of the Father, the supreme Wisdom of the Son, our Truth, and the infinite love of the Holy Spirit. It is this perception that gives unshakeable faith and love to all those who accept JESUS and His Sacraments.
Let us pray often to the Blessed Trinity. It is good to teach children - and ourselves first - to begin each day and to end each day with the sign of the Cross; it is like putting on an armour of protection for the day and for the night, a walking with the three Persons of the Blessed Trinity in the day and in the night. The recitation of the Creed is also so beneficial in order to increase our faith and our love for the Trinity.
St. James was right: we have difficulty in paying "respect" to the poor, in treating them as equal, loving them "as we love ourselves". It is easy enough to love the poor of the world, the impersonal mass of needy, starving people of the world; our problem begins with the poor we encounter, the poor who come to our churches, to our doors, to our functions. We find it distressing, humiliating; we are drawn into thinking that such beings are poor because they want to be poor by not doing enough for themselves, by neglecting the possibilities for work and for a decent and upright standard of life.
Early Christians took a realistic view of the problem. They had been assured by JESUS that "the poor will be always with us", hence they began by caring and loving not the "poor of the world", but the poor among their midst, the widows and the orphans, the sick and the afflicted in their communities. The gifts brought to the altar were meant for the poor, especially, and deacons and deaconesses were immediately responsible for bringing relief to the poor of the community. Early churches in richer areas of the Empire kept a keen eye on their brothers and sisters in the poorest regions, sending money and gifts to alleviate their poverty.
Do we have the same interest for the local poor? Do we keep an eye on the troubled spots of the world, with a view of helping, as Christian communities? A parish community, actively involved in raising funds and looking after the poor, would bring upon itself the blessing of God in terms of personal graces, of vocations, of closer bonds of love among the parishioners. Chirst was rich and became poor to save us: the church is rich in grace, and it should be poor in material wealth. It is the way to becoming influential, efficient, persuasive in the great business of saving souls. Religious, in particular, because of their vow of poverty should consider themselves as the poorest of the poor - for they renounce to everything and cannot call "mine" any material thing whatsoever - and live joyfully the way of life of Christ who was truly poor, having not even a pillow to rest His head on!
St. James was right: we have difficulty in paying "respect" to the poor, in treating them as equal, loving them "as we love ourselves". It is easy enough to love the poor of the world, the impersonal mass of needy, starving people of the world; our problem begins with the poor we encounter, the poor who come to our churches, to our doors, to our functions. We find it distressing, humiliating; we are drawn into thinking that such beings are poor because they want to be poor by not doing enough for themselves, by neglecting the possibilities for work and for a decent and upright standard of life.
Early Christians took a realistic view of the problem. They had been assured by JESUS that "the poor will be always with us", hence they began by caring and loving not the "poor of the world", but the poor among their midst, the widows and the orphans, the sick and the afflicted in their communities. The gifts brought to the altar were meant for the poor, especially, and deacons and deaconesses were immediately responsible for bringing relief to the poor of the community. Early churches in richer areas of the Empire kept a keen eye on their brothers and sisters in the poorest regions, sending money and gifts to alleviate their poverty.
Do we have the same interest for the local poor? Do we keep an eye on the troubled spots of the world, with a view of helping, as Christian communities? A parish community, actively involved in raising funds and looking after the poor, would bring upon itself the blessing of God in terms of personal graces, of vocations, of closer bonds of love among the parishioners. Chirst was rich and became poor to save us: the church is rich in grace, and it should be poor in material wealth. It is the way to becoming influential, efficient, persuasive in the great business of saving souls. Religious, in particular, because of their vow of poverty should consider themselves as the poorest of the poor - for they renounce to everything and cannot call "mine" any material thing whatsoever - and live joyfully the way of life of Christ who was truly poor, having not even a pillow to rest His head on!
On the feast of St. Matthias, one of brothers here at the Rosmini Centre is today renewing his vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. It is a great occasion for him, since he is consecrating himself entirely to God, imitating the form of life of the Son of God, who chose for Himself, while here on earth, to be chaste, poor, and obedient.
In effect, such words go far beyond their restricted meaning: Christ was chaste in the greater sense that He gave Himself to everyone, that He sought the interests of everyone, loving everyone and sacrificing Himself for everyone. Chastity in Christ is His perfect gift of Himself to the human race of all times, to the point of death on the Cross.
Christ was poor because of His absolute dependence from the Father, trusting in Divine Providence, abandoning Himself entirely into the loving hands of His Father in Heaven. In His spirit, He remained free from all things, He was indifferent to events, people, situations the Father put before Him, always willing to accept them for the greater glory of His Father.
Christ was obedient to the Will of His Father: "My food is to do the Will of my Father... In all things I do what pleases the Father... I have come not to do my will but the Will of my Father..." He sought the Will of the Father and carried it out perfectly. His "consummatum est" at the end of His life manifested His fulfilment of the Divine Will right to the end.
The three words, chastity-poverty-obedience, express the whole form of life of the Son of God. He chose it for Himself as the most perfect; we, who desire to imitate Christ in all things, imitate it as the most perfect form of life for ourselves, following the long tradition that stretches back to His disciples and that will last until the end of the world.
We thank God, today, for our brother who is professing to follow Christ by embracing His form of life, and we pray that he may remain faithful to his commitment, as a prophetic reminder to the people of God of the reality of the Heavenly things which we shall all share in God's everlasting Kingdom.
We are preparing for Pentecost, being with Mary and the Apostles in the Upper Room in prayer and expectation for the coming of the "Gift from on High", the Holy Spirit.
In the readings of the day we discover the utter "docility" of Paul to the voice of the Spirit. The Spirit spoke to Paul on many occasions as He speaks to us, not in a confused and ambiguous manner, but clearly in the depths of our heart. It was Amos who compared the voice of God speaking to us to the roars of the lion, forceful and loud.
Paul was docile, obedient to the indications of the Spirit, even when the Spirit had led him to Jerusalem where tribulations, arrest, persecutions had awaited him. He knew, other Christians knew and tried to stop him from going there, but he obeyed the Spirit.
We too must learn to listen to the voice of the Spirit, and to obey it with a generous heart. The Spirit speaks to us in the depths of our heart, during periods of prayer, reflection, meditation, silence. Non in commotione Dominus: the Lord is not to be found in noise and distraction, but in silentio et in spe. We are bound to be lost when we do our will, when we follow purely the indications of the flesh, when we act out of pride and of self-sufficiency.
Obedience to the Spirit gives us the guarantee of being one with the Will of the Father, and with the Will of the One who said, "Thy Will be done" or "I always do that which pleases the Father". JESUS prayed for unity of all believers: it will become reality only when all Christians, obedient to the voice of the Spirit, will do what the Father wants. Our union will be a union of "wills" doing precisely what the Blessed Trinity wants from us.
There is lovely American painting of an embrace between the Father in Heaven and of His Beloved Son on His return from this world. One can imagine the missing words, "Mission accomplished!", humanity has been saved, redeemed by the Blood of the Son, and the Church has been established, with the further mission of spreading the immense benefits procured to all by JESUS.
Ascension celebrates the glorification of the Son now seated at the right hand of the Father; it celebrates also the ascension of an immense crowd of saved souls, now in the joy of heaven, as St. John says in the Apocalypse. The great hope is, that we too shall join the Blessed Trinity at the moment of our death - our own ascension.
We are gazing today at the heavens - quae sursum sunt quaerite, quae sursum sunt sapite, seek the things of heaven, taste the things of heaven - that is the summit we are aiming at, that is the end and purpose of our life. We need to keep an eye on the end, so as not to get lost on the way.
But, we need to keep our feet firmly on the ground: "Why are you men from Galilee standing here looking into the sky?": the mission left to us from JESUS is clear, "You shall be My witnesses... to the ends of the earth"; and again, "Go, make disciples of all the nations, baptise them... I am with you always, yes to the end of time".
Each of us has a mission, to bring people to Christ. We must do it with urgency, cheerfulness, commitment, beginning from ourselves, our families, our friends, and, as far as we can, bringing Christ to our country, and to the whole world. It is a question of being "witnesses", with our life and our words - always animated by the Spirit of JESUS, in sincerity and faith. We have got work to do: it is not good to "spare" ourselves, to deviate in order to enjoy the things of this world as though this is our final abode.
Christ has promised to go to heaven "to prepare a mansion" for each of us; He promised also that He will come to us, at the hour of our death, to take us to heaven with Him. What an astonishing promise! Let us today think of our true "homeland", while, at the same time, committing ourselves to harder work, in hope and charity, for the spreading of the Kingdom of God here on earth.
After the great disappointment in Athens, Paul goes to Corinth "with great fear and trembling". As far as we know he never set foot again in that ancient cultural capital of the world, where the beautiful words preached by him originating from pure, natural reasoning according to truth had been laughed at by the arrogance of human rebellion against truth.
He is now in Corinth, a splendid city - totius Greciae lumen - notorious for its immoral life. A married couple joins him in the work of preaching the Good News, Aquila and Priscilla, who offer him hospitality and a job in the same trade, allowing Paul to "earn his bread with the work of his hands". It is quite impressive to think that the greatest Apostle of all times "earned his bread" with hard work, day or night, so as not to become a burden on others and to avoid hindering the progress of the Gospel by the possibility of people misinterpreting his motives. His giving the message of salvation was truly "free of charge": he had received it freely, he gives it freely. What an example to the bureaucratic manner some priests administer the Sacraments, as though these are their possession and the source of their income!
Today is the feast of St. Joseph the Worker: another example of a man who worked hard all his life to earn his bread and to look after his holy Family; JESUS learned from him, and He Himself worked hard while in Nazareth and exhausted Himself during the three years of His public life, giving freely and tirelessly.
Time is precious and it is a most pressing duty that we do not waste it in any way. We should not feel pity for ourselves too readily: most of the workers of the world have most demanding jobs, taking up the whole of their day, with a few weeks only for some rest. Formation is all about learning to work hard, tirelessly, performing our duties to perfection, and bringing about the Kingdom by words and example. God "worked" six days, and rested on the seventh: we ought to imitate the creative outpouring of God's love in His wonderful works.
Lydia was the first convert in "european" soil. From the account in Acts, she appears as a sophisticated business woman in "the purple-dye trade", a devout woman who joins other Jewish people in prayer by the river outside the gates of Philippi. It was there that God opened her eyes and her heart into accepting the Good News of JESUS preached by Paul. And she insists that Paul takes up residence in her house, which became the first "church" in Europe.
The tradition of women becoming bearers of Christ in their local community has a solid pedigree in Scriptures, from Mary Magdalen who was the first witness of the Resurrection and who was sent to bring the Good News to the Apostles, to Lydia who opens up her house for the sake of the Gospel. Many parishes today can bear witness to the support and involvement of women in the spreading of the Good News through the many activities for the benefit of others; and there is little doubt about the power of the prayer that goes up to God incessantly from convents everywhere.
As the Easter season draws to a close, JESUS reminds us of the constant real presence among us of the Holy Spirit, sent by the Father and by the Son to guide us, to enlighten us, to comfort us. The Spirit is present in the Church, not only through the authoritative teaching of the Magisterium, but through the countless acts of faith and love originating from the hearts of believers. It is the Spirit who moves people into worshipping God and offering their life for the salvation of others. He is the Paraclete, the consoler, the advocate who pleads for us to the Father, defending us from the fierce attacks of the "prince of this world". He is the Spirit of truth, melting away our insincerity, hypocrisy, double life, making our life as clear as spring waters. Let us assent to the work of the Spirit in us, let us welcome Him in the depths of our heart: "Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and kindle in them the fire of your love".
"If you love Me you will keep my commandments", says the Lord in today's gospel. He made it easy for us by reducing the commandments to only two: "Love God with all your heart, mind, and strength; Love your neighbour as you love yourself". If we keep these two commandments, the blessed Trinity will make a home in our heart.
Holiness is loving God: but, how do we know we love God? There are regular church-goers who get very enthusiastic when they say how much they love God, and yet the same persons have only slight problems with lying, with adultery, with divorce, with abortion. Loving God means doing the Will of God in all things, hence the two elements, loving God and doing His Will, are practically the same. We can add that loving God must mean talking to God at all times, that is, having a full life of prayer, participating from the heart in the encounter with the Blessed Trinity at Mass, and marking the moments of our daily routine with conversation with God.
Love of neighbour is perhaps even more difficult. It is true that we may find it easy to love the neighbour of the world, especially those who are far from us; but we ought to begin from loving our closest neighbour - ourselves - and then the people who are closest to us, from family members to the people we are in daily contact with, in church, in communities, in our social environment.
There is a love of oneself which is only selfishness, egoism, which makes it impossible for us to relate truthfully to God and to the others. We become the centre of the universe, hence we live a constant lie that leads ultimately to despair. True and pure love of oneself implies the recognition that we are in the image of God, hence infinitely worthy of respect; moreover, with Baptism we have become truly the son/daughter of the Father, and JESUS is our Brother, and the Holy Spirit is the "lover" within our heart. "I thank you Lord for the wonder of my being", and it is from this starting point that we begin reaching out to our brothers and sisters, respecting them, loving them. But yet again, our love must be practical: we respect and love our neighbour when we do not slander them, gossip about them, when we do not lie to them, when we become truly concerned about their state, their condition.
The Apostles rejoiced when they heard that Samaria had accepted the Word of God: Samaria meant Samaritans which meant hatred! Yet, the Jewish Apostles rejoiced: true love of neighbour destroyed all barriers to discover only brothers/sisters and a people acceptable to God.
A final point from today's readings: Peter urges us to be prepared to give a reason for our belief. This means that we must be engaged with non-Catholics "with courtesy and respect" but with full knowledge of our faith. Intellectual charity is not a luxury for a few, but it is part of our being Christian and of our loving our neighbour. Hence, the urgency and the grave responsibility of studying Scriptures, the Fathers, the Magisterium of the Church.
"The prince of this world is on his way": human sinfulness, the sin of the wolrd, is not a static reality but is on the move all the time, trying to conquer and to spread. The devil is most active, and there are times when his power seems overwhelming, like at the time of the Passion and Death of the Lord. We ought to be vigilant, especially today when we may be led to the conclusion that the devil does not exist or that "good" is spreading fast at the expense of evil. The idea of a cosmic battle between the opposing forces of good and evil seems to make sense only in the imaginary world of films.
Yet, JESUS is fully aware of the power of evil, as He is aware of His own glorious victory. He knows that it is His Father's Will that He should redeem humanity by means of the supreme act of love, the giving of His own life. Victory is assured, but it is through His precious Blood, Redemption is achieved, but through the Cross.
In Acts, we find Paul towards the end of his first missionary journey. He had "grown" into his mission from the days when Barnabas had called on him to help with the great numbers of believers at Antioch. He is now confident and assured, full of zeal and charged with the power of the Holy Spirit. The "prince of this world" does not ignore him and creates problems for him everywhere, but especially in Lystra, where he is stoned to near death. The Lord gives him strength to survive the terrible ordeal, and he is back in his missionary work, knowing full well that the devil will do his best to hinder progress and to turn people against the Gospel.
"We all have to experience many hardships before we enter the kingdom of God": this is the reality for everyone, for JESUS as for Paul, as for each of us. Christian life is a serious matter, full of difficulties and crosses. We should not be surprised, especially when such negative features come our way. The saints had hard lives: St. john of the Cross was beaten, tortured, put in prison by the religious members of his own Order; St. Padre Pio had to endure attacks from many religious quarters, and so on. We ought to persuade ourselves that the way to the resurrection is through the cross, hence we should not be surprised, we should not complain, we should not feel despondent when tribulations come our way. Let us embrace the cross gladly, knowing that the Father in heaven will provide us with strength, and with profound inner joy.
There can be little doubt that Paul performed a great miracle at Lystra: at his command - in a loud voice - a man crippled from birth was made to stand and walk, to the utter amazement of the pagan crowd who rushed to make a sacrifice believing Paul and Barnabas to be gods - Hermes and Zeus. Paul's sermon to them is a beautiful example of how to reach out to pagans.
Miracles, therefore, do happen, on two conditions: Paul "saw that the man had the faith to be cured" feeling the presence of the supernatural, and he himself had no doubt that God would bring healing to the crippled at his words of command. Again, we find that true, strong faith is required and miracles do happen by the grace of God and the benefit of our brethren. But, how did Paul know that God would bring about a miracle? The answer must be in his closeness to God, as explained by JESUS in the gospel.
JESUS said, "If anyone loves Me he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we shall come to him, and make our home with him": at the table of the Blessed Trinity - as hinted by Rublev's icon - we become the family of God, and we acquire the power of God. "If anyone believes in Me, he will perform the same works as I do Myself, he will perform even greater works..." God put certainty in Paul's heart, and he spoke with authority and performed the great miracle. How weak is, instead, our faith, how lukewarm our familiarity with God. It is true that faith is given at baptism, but we must then work on it, listening to the voice of the Spirit, obeying his promptings, growing in a life of prayer and communion with God. Virtues are, in a sense, infused in us at Baptism, but then we need to work tirelessly to make them real and operative in our daily life.
"Lord increase our little faith": let us desire it, ask for it, knowing that faith is not an unknown mysterious entity but a real participation in prayer and in love with the three Persons of the Blessed Trinity who are always at work in the depth of our soul.
It would be disastrous to embark on a journey without knowing how to get to the desired end; one would walk aimlessly, following paths which seem easy and appealing initially but which do not lead anywhere or, even worse, which lead to dangerous ravines without a way out. If we wish to climb a mountain we need to know well all the paths that lead us to the summit. The same is with our life: whether we want it or not, we all are embarked on a journey, from birth to death: the question is, "Where are we going? What is the meaning of this journey? What is the desired end?"
There is a story in the life of St. Philip Neri, the great Apostle of Rome. One day, after Mass, a bright young man came up to him saying, "Fr. Philip, I have just fulfilled the dream of my life: I have finally become a doctor!" Fr. Philip congratulated him, then said, "And now, what are your plans?" to which the young doctor replied, "Well, I'll open up a surgery and I will make a name for myself". "And then?", asked Philip; and the young man replied, "I will become rich, buy a big property, and get a wife and have children"; "And then?", continued Philip. "I'll get old like everyone else, enjoy family and money, take a tour of the world"; "And then?" asked Philip again. "And then... and then I imagine I will die!" replied the young doctor, who thought Philip questioning would finally come to an end; but Philip continued, "And then?" And it was at this point that the young man understood the whole series of repetitive questions: to do things well, he needed to have first the overall purpose of the whole journey, which does not end with death but it goes into eternal life with God. This is the meaning of the motto of a famous school in London, "Respice finem": Keep constantly in mind the end.
The Lord today tells us both what the end of our journey in life is and the sure way or path to reach it. There is no other way, so it is of fundamental importance that we learn it and we embark on it, without getting lost in other paths. Where are we going? JESUS says, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God and trust in Me. There are many rooms in my Father's house... I am now going to prepare a place for you... and then I shall return to take you with Me, so that where I am you may be too". So Heaven is our final destination, Heaven is the summit of the mountain we are climbing even now, Heaven is our home: and Heaven is being with JESUS, with God the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, in an eternal life of joy and happiness - no tears, no worries, no ugliness.
How do we get there? Thomas asked of JESUS the same question: "How can we know the way?" JESUS replied, "I am the Way, the Truth, the Life. No one can come to the Father except through Me". JESUS is the Way, the only Way, which means that the path we need to take in life is the path JESUS: His example, His teaching, His life and death, His resurrection. We need to know JESUS, by reading the Gospels; we need to love JESUS by living the Sacraments, where we meet Him in His real Self, especially in the eucharist. Open wide the door of your heart to Christ, this is the lasting message of John Paul II, especially to young people. Let us heed his words and make Christ the "keystone" of our life.
Scriptures, for the Apostles as for the Jews, meant only what we call the Old Testament. The early Christians read the Scriptures in their gatherings, that is, read the Old Testament. It was only with time, as some of the Apostles began writings letters to the churches or sayings about JESUS which were read during their liturgical acts of worship, that the body of writings which we call the New Testament began to be formed. The New Testament was born in early Christian communities by their reading it as Scriptures during worship. The letters of Paul, the canonical gospels, etc. were read during the Eucharistic Services, thus acquiring the status of Scriptures; the apocryphal writings never achieved such status since they were never read in public worship - the Christians of the time knowing full well their dubious origin.
This is why the preaching of the Apostles centred so heavily, at the beginning, on the Old Testament: it is true that early Christians could not contain their joy at seeing fulfilled in JESUS all the prophecies scattered throughout the writings of the Old Testament - JESUS Himself had given such a lesson to the two disciples of Emmaus. The fact was, however, that at the beginning they only had the Old Testament as Scriptures. The martyr Justin wrote much later, in 130AD approximately, that at their Sunday eucharistic gatherings early Christians read "as long as time permits" from the Old Testament and from the "memoirs of the Apostles" (the New Testament).
The sermon of Paul in the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia is centred on the idea that all of God's promises had been fulfilled in JESUS, a descendant of the House of David. Paul uses "salvation history" of the chosen people to highlight God's loving care for fallen humanity. It is moving to see how close God is to us as the years move on: this intervention does not apply only to Old Testament times, but to our own times, and our own life: God is personally involved in our history, "speaking" to us in "various ways and many times", bidding us to repentance, to grasp the favourable time, to prepare for important religious/spiritual moments in our life. God is truly at work in our life; the sooner we become aware of this fact the better we will be able to respond in awe and obedience.
"And there are other sheep I have that are not of this fold, and these I have to lead as well. They too will listen to my voice, and there will be only one flock, and one shepherd". The very early Church was "Jewish", and it did not dawn on them that pagans too may one day become Church - hence they kept all the prohibitions and rules against pagans like all other Jews.
The Good Shepherd used the first Pope - the visible Shepherd of the Church on earth after Christ's ascension - to break down the barriers against pagans and to welcome them into the fold. The story of the conversion of the pagan Cornelius and of his entire pagan household at the hands of Peter, in obedience to the command of the Holy Spirit, became the starting point of that peace between Jews and Gentiles that made of two one people, the people of God.
There is no doubt that it will be the Good Shepherd again - through the visible shepherd, the Pope - who will bring about the unity of the flock, divided at the moment into many denominations and sects. The words of JESUS put on the Pope a huge responsibility to work towards communion, at the command of the Spirit: we too must be prepared to listen to the Spirit and to work towards the unity JESUS prayed for.
The readings today give us an opportunity to assess our attitude towards Christian unity, to see whether we are truly open or whether we let our prejudices and suspicions against Christians of other denominations take hold of our minds and hearts. They are sheep of the same flock, entitled to receive the full benefits of being led by the Good Shepherd. This is not to say that we need compromise the teaching of the Magisterium, but it calls for a radical change in our hearts so that we recognise in each of them our Christian brothers and sisters.
Acts 2, 14. 36-41; 1 Peter 2, 25-30; John 10, 1-10
Today is Sunday of the Good Shepherd, the appropriate time to ask God to send labourers to His vineyard, to send good shepherds of His flock, hence it has been also marked as "Vocation Sunday", a special day of prayer for vocations to the priesthood.
In the Old Testament, the Almighty God was called the Good Shepherd: "The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want, fresh and green are the pastures where He gives me repose..." In the New Testament, JESUS applies the title to Himself; "I Am the good shepherd, and I know my sheep, and I give my life for the sheep". Christ gave His life for the sheep, against the assaults of fierce wolves, in obedience to the Will of the Father, to save the sheep that had gone astray, ourselves, lost sheep in this confusing and dangerous world.
When the Lord went to Heaven, He did not leave His Church without a visible shepherd, but appointed Peter, as we can see from today's readings. In Acts, it is Peter who stands up to preach for the first time the Good News of salvation, converting three thousand people in a day: "Hearing this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the apostles, 'What must we do, brothers?' 'You must repent", Peter answered". And later, Peter urges them all, "Save yourselves from this perverse generation". Clear words, clear guidance, no compromise, no dilution: repent, save yourself from this perverse generation.
The Pope is the good shepherd, representing in a visible form the only one shepherd of the flock, JESUS. His teachings, therefore, are authoritative; we must make an effort to know what the Pope is saying to us all the time, guiding us on our journey: "Feed my sheep", JESUS said to Peter three times. Bishops and priests are also true shepherds, bishops in their own right in communion with the Pope, priests in communion with their bishops. St. Augustine, echoeing Ezekiel, has fierce words against shepherds who fatten themselves at the expense of the sheep, who neglect the sheep to look after their own interests. Today, some of the shepherds have fallen short of their great ministry, giving grave scandal to the sheep. We ought to pray for them, knowing that Christ, the one true Shepherd, is the Holy One and that He is the One who leads His Church through the storms of this world.
Acts 9, 31-42; John 6, 60-69
Peter's beautiful confession of faith is shared by many followers of JESUS, and perhaps by ourselves as well: "LORD, to whom shall we go? Only You have words of eternal life, and we believe and we know that You are the Holy One of God". This profession is at the very core of Christianity for it contains the firmest persuasion, based on supernatural experience, that Christ is God and that all His words give eternal life to the one who accepts them in humble faith.
It is not surprising to read today in Acts, how this confession led Peter to perform two beautiful miracles. As the leader of the Church "Peter visited one place after the other" confirming the brethren in their faith. He strengthened the power of his words by miracles. The first is the healing of a paralytic who had been bedridden for eight years: "Aeneas, JESUS Christ cures you, get up and fold up your sleeping mat": the same words used often by JESUS, a firm faith in the absolute power of the name JESUS. The second miracle is again a repetition of miracles operated by JESUS: a woman disciple called Tabitha committed to Christ and to helping the poor widows of the town, her death, the coming of Peter, his authoritative words over the dead body: "Tabitha, stand up!" And Tabitha "opened her eyes, looked at Peter and sat up".
It was St. Augustine who said that the power of the preaching and of the liturgical actions in the early Church was supported by an abundance of miracles that helped spread Christianity peacefully in a world that opposed it often in a violent fashion. Miracles, however, have always been with us, often associated with holy people, like St. Padre Pio, and John Paul II - according to his trusted secretary. Miracles do happen in some charismatic gatherings because of the intensity of the faith on the part of some. We tend usually to pray for a miracle but with no real conviction. We tend to use words such as,"If it is your Will... If it is God's Will..." often out of lack of real trust and total confidence in God. When nothing happens we cheer ourselves up with the words, "Clearly, it was not God's Will".
Peter, following the example of JESUS, gave "commands" indicating a most absolute faith in the power of God. His heart and life was entirely committed to Him, in tune with His divine Will, and able to feel inwardly the certainty of the manifestation of God's power through his words and actions. We need perhaps to strengthen our reliance in God, asking Him, "Lord increase my little faith": the greater our faith, the closer we are to God; and our being closer to God may well bring about miracles for the sake of the Kingdom.
Acts 9, 1-20; John 6, 52-59
Paul often speaks of Baptism as the sacrament that transforms our darkness into light: "You were darkness once, now you are light in the Lord". He urges us to live in the light, to do all things in the light, to be children of the light. It is no wonder that St. Justin, writing at about 130 AD about the beliefs and practices of early Christians, refers to Baptism as the Sacrament of Illumination.
Paul wrote about baptism as light as a direct result of his conversion: on his way to Damascus to persecute Christians he saw the great light and spoke to JESUS. He became blind, "Even with his eyes wide open he could see nothing at all", the meeting with the Light had convicted him of his total darkness, and he had to be led into Damascus "by the hand". Yet, he was a most faithful Jew, obedient to the Law; even then he was totally blind!
Paul remained in total darkness for three days, until Ananias came and baptised him. The "scales that fell off his eyes" indicate the corruption of our human nature. It is Christ, the Light of the world, who gives supernatural grace and full understanding. Christ is our Wisdom, and Christians become the city built on a hill, visible to all for its light.
The greatest understanding is that there is a glorious life after death, and if we cling to JESUS, the Bread of Life, we shall live forever in the joy and bliss of Heaven. Let us approach the Eucharist with great faith, knowing that it is indeed the Bread of Angels", the food that has come down from Heaven to strengthen us and to help us walk with determination through life "in the light of Christ".
Acts 8, 1-8; John 6, 35-40
"I have come from heaven not to do my own will, but to do the will of the one who sent me": from the moment of His conception to the moment of His ascension JESUS dedicated Himself to the generous fulfilment of the Will of the Father. We ought to do likewise, since the only way we can show our love for God is to do His Will in all things: "I always do what is pleasing to my Father".
We know what is the Will of God for us in most cases: obedience to the two great commandments and to the other commandments in Scriptures: "Love God with all your heart, mind, strength; love thy neighbour as you love yourself; honour your parents; do not commit adultery, etc. We also know the Will of God with regards to the Church, the immaculate Bride of the Son of God, loved by JESUS to the point of giving up His life for Her: we too are expected to love Her with all our strength, to the point of being willing to shed our blood for her sake. Loving the Church means clinging to the teaching of the Magisterium, unreservedly, in all matters theological, moral, liturgical - without choosing and picking what suits us!
The Will of God is also made clear to us by providential events in our life which we need to read with a "spirit of inteligence" knowing that our God is a God of order, harmony, divine reason, a God who has planned and created all things for a purpose which is being fulfilled in accordance with His infinite Wisdom and Love. We ought to commit ourselves with the most generous spirit to whatever we are called to do by reason of our state, condition, duties in life, at rest with God and always in the attitude of the young Samuel, "Speak Lord, your servant is listening".
Acts 7, 51 - 8, 1; John 6, 30-35
Words are powerful, but are not sufficient usually to make a lasting impact in the life of people; we need actions, facts as well as words. It was Paul VI who said that people today need witnesses more than preachers. The New Testament always combine the power of the words of JESUS to His mighty deeds, referring not only to His miracles but also to the power of His life. It was not sufficient for God to tell us that there is life after death, He went through suffering and death and resurrection to provide a full evidence. Blessed Rosmini teaches that the power behind the rapid spread of Christianity in a hostile pagan world was not merely the preaching of the Apostles; the Sacraments - the liturgical actions of the community - gave it the power required to transform the whole world.
JESUS, in today's reading, reveals Himself as the "bread of life": "I Am the Bread of Life. He who comes to Me will never be hungry; he who believes in Me will never thirst". It is the first of the I AM sayings, through which we are given a revelation of the identity of JESUS. He is indeed the One who overcomes all our longings, desires; who satisfies our quest for meaning and happiness; who gives rest to our restless mind and heart.
The truth that JESUS is the only food for our soul is not left at the level of words: the Eucharist is the action that gives power and solidity and real experience. JESUS in the Eucharist is truly the Bread of life: we can experience it any time we join the community of believers in the most sacred action of the Mass. Participation at Mass is immensely rewarding, since it is around the altar that we experience the real power of God in our life, quenching our thirst and satisfying our hunger.
Exodus 32, 7-14; John 5, 31-47
How could the Jewish people be persuaded that the hand-made "golden calf" had brought freedom to them, having witnessed miracles and wonders that no other people had ever seen? The human heart is fickle and forgetful, and longing for immediate pleasures. More than persuasion or belief it was the case of the people "rising to play and dance" like their neighbouring tribes. It was a going astray which would not have lasted, but which brought great shame for the wilful rebellion against God.
This is the reality of every sin: we know well in our heart that God is God and that His laws are the right path, yet we choose temporarily the immediate pleasures of life declaring them our "gods", i.e., submitting to them. It may happen that we become hardened in our rebellion, and so God disappears from our sight. In the case of the Jewish people, there was the immense contrast of the people dancing and playing sinfully at the foot of the mountain at the same time as the Almighty God was most near to them, in the act of giving them the rules of life. We also must expect temptation during periods of closeness to God: "My son - says the Bible - as you approach to serve God remain in fear and trembling and prepare yourself for temptation".
The closeness of JESUS to the Jewish people was met with a rebellious attitude on the part of many of them, who refused the light, the life, the salvation coming from him in flowing streams: "You have never heard the Father's voice, His word finds no home in you because you do not believe in the one He has sent... You study the Scriptures yet you refuse to come to me for life... You have no love of God in you, you refuse to accept Me... Moses will be your accuser". Living in the presence of God physically is not a guarantee of salvation for us.
The greatness of Moses was in his profound understanding of the compassion of God and of the weakness of his people: this was the root of his success as an intercessor: "The Lord relented"; let us also put our full trust in the love of God, interceding for our sins and for the sins of others.
Isaiah 49, 8-15; John 5, 17-30
It is easy to embarrass Jehovah' Witnesses using today's Gospel. Chapter 5 is indeed a most clear declaration of the divinity of JESUS, equal to the Father. Here are some lines:
- "The Son does what He sees the Father doing... Whatever the Father does the Son does too" ;
- "The Father loves the Son and shows Him everything He does himself... As the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son gives life to anyone He chooses"; "The Father has entrusted all judgment to the Son, so that all may honour the Son as they honour the Father".
The power the Son has is the same identical power the Father has; it is not surprising to read that the Jews thought He was blaspheming making Himself "equal to God". They were right in their interpretation, wrong in their behaviour towards the Son of God, who was teaching them with authority and mighty works.
JESUS was not another "great man" - like Muhammed or Buddha or Gandhi. We would not bend our knees before him, nor would we belong to a religion that has man as the originator. The amazing fact of Christianity is that the Son of God came into this earth, was born a Jew, walked with us for 33 years, and gave His life for the salvation of the world. He was God and all His works and teachings were divine; Christianity was founded by God-made-man in JESUS, it is a divine religion. This is why we humbly bend our knees before Christ, and we listen in awe to His words; this is why we pronounce with our lips, "JESUS", and we believe at the same time that He is God.
No man could ever have fulfilled the desires of our heart: only JESUS can. Let us commit ourselves to Him with all our heart, mind, and strength, loving Him, listening to Him, following Him. He is God.
Ezekiel 47, 1-9.12; John 5, 1-16
The Old Testament is fully revealed in the New Testament: the passage from Ezekiel today is fully understood in the person of JESUS. The abundant waters flowing from the right hand of the Temple and increasing rapidly giving life and abundance of fruits and of living things can be fully grasped when we consider the pierced side of the Crucified Lord - the right side of the Temple of His Body - from where "blood and water" came out.
The gospel deals again with the healing powers of water, sanctified by the presence of JESUS. The waters of the pool at the Sheep Gate had always had limited healing powers bestowed by the grace of God, but with JESUS abundance of life is poured out, healing the long suffering crippled man, even without a profession of faith on his part; contact with JESUS with an open mind brings healing.
The waters of Baptism have healing power, "in spirit and in truth": it is through Baptism that we pass from death to life, from darkness to light - all originating from the water that came out from the pierced side of Christ on the Cross. And with water, blood also - the sustaining sacrament of the Eucharist, nourishment for the soul for all eternity.
Washed clean by the water, sanctified by the water, having become alive through the water, we ought now to show signs of abundant life - in the fruits we produce, in the inner joy of the soul, in our assured conviction to be part of the Kingdom of love and grace. We should banish all negative feelings of loneliness, despair, boredom, restlessness.
Baptism was a living sacrament for early Chrstians: they lived before God because of the Sacrament, rejecting darkness, works of death, desires of the flesh. It was a once and for life Sacrament; Confession was permitted only once in a lifetime and was called the "second plank" of salvation. We need to recover the full meaning of our baptismal life.
Isaiah 65, 17-21; John 4, 43-54
God is worth of our belief. For hundreds of years, the Jewish people had only promises from God, about a future state of blessedness in the Kingdom the Messiah would come to establish. The passage from Isaiah is one example: "Now I create new heavens and a new earth... I now create Jerusalem "Joy" and her people "Gladness". No more sound of weeping or the sound of cries..."
But we are restless, always wanting to be convinced by the hard evidence of the present, as though God's words do not possess the stability and solidity of everlasting power. We have had moments in our life which brought to our being the definite conviction of God's presence, of His love for us, of His intervention in our favour. Many people are quite ready to acknowledge this. Yet, "you will not believe unless you see signs and wonders" as JESUS says to the distraught father, a court official, who asks of Him to bring his son back to full health.
The court official believed JESUS' promise, "Go home, your son will live": he believed Him because he had come to know that JESUS was God, hence trust-worthy, faithful. He did not need to see the miracle there before his own eyes, he did not doubt God's promise even if it did not fall within his own immediate experience. And God's promise came to pass, and all God's promises will come to pass. The Kingdom will reach full maturity, there will be new heavens and a new earth, God will wipe away every tear from our eyes, we shall see God face to face conversing with Him in the joys of heaven. Let us lift up our heads and look with confidence to the future: we know that it has been arrayed with wonderful promises by the Almighty God, and He is faithful.
1Sam. 16, 6-7.10-13; Eph. 5, 8-14; John 9, 1-41
We have lost the sense of the extreme value of Baptism in our life. This royal Sacrament is mentioned often enough in the Liturgy and in documents but it is often seen as something done in the distant past, important then for entry into the Church, but of little attention after until perhaps we are again reminded of it during preparation for Confirmation. Yet, it is Baptism the core of the readings during Lent: the narratives of Nicodemus, of the Samaritan Woman, and today of the Man born blind. The Liturgy of the Easter Vigil is centred on Baptism.
Why is Baptism so important? "You were darkness once, but now you are light in the Lord": how? Through Baptism. And again, "Wake up from your sleep, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you": how? Through Baptism. It is through Baptism that we pass from death to life, from darkness to light; it is through Baptism that we are cleansed from the stain of the original sin; it is through Baptism that we become sons/daughters of God, temples of the Blessed Trinity; it is through Baptism that we become living branches of the Vine, bricks of God's building, living cells of the Body of Christ.
In Baptism we ascend "from glory to glory": from being in the image of God to becoming in His likeness; from relating to God as a blind person relates to colours and objects - negatively - to "perceiving" Him in a real, positive way through the Humanity of JESUS. We are enabled to perceive God as Supreme Creator, as infinite Wisdom, as eternal Love, not ideally but really. Faith is kindled in us at Baptism, by the real action of God on our intellective soul who creates in us new supernatural faculties - a new feeling, a new intellect, a new will. We are "born anew", we pass from death to life.
The blind man of the Gospel has to wash himself in the waters of Siloam; we have to wash ourselves in the waters of Baptism and then we can see. Baptism was called the "Sacrament of Illumination", we truly are given the means for understanding life and death, suffering and pain, the past, the present, and the future. Without Baptism we would be in total darkness and confusion: what is the meaning of everything? what is the future? where do we come from and where are we going? Life in Christ through Baptism has the "luminous" answers: we can see!
Hosea 14, 2-10; Mark 12, 28-34
Judaism is the religion of the "commandments", all 637 of them, ranging from the lofty ones like the Ten commandments to the minute ones like not dragging chairs across a room or not lighting fires on a Sabbath. There is a hierarchy, since most of them are like fences put around to protect each of the Ten Commandments; but we know how much the religious Jew values them all. The Law is like a father and Bar Mitzva and Bat Mitzva means precisely "son/daughter of the Commandments", fostering on young people the belief that obedience to the Commandments is a beautiful relation of love and security.
But which of the 637 Commandments is the greatest? There had been many learned answers in the past, some in full agreement with JESUS' reply to the scribe. Love God and love neighbour: this is the summary of all 637 commandments. As to the first, the pious Jew will carry it around with him, even sewn in jackets or put on the dorrposts of the house (mezuzah); the "shema" expressing it most clearly contains the words every dying Jew would like to be able to recite. The festival of Simchat Torah is the occasion of the great rejoicing of the people over the gift by God of the Commandments, carried around the synagogue with songs and festive noises.
The second commandment is not so clear, since for many Jews it meant only love your neighbour Jew, not foreigners nor Samaritans! JESUS completed its meaning by expaining it like in the parable of the Good Samaritan, or when He said, "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you", a universal and self-sacrificing love for our brothers and sisters, irrespective of race, religions, colour of skin, intelligence, etc.
It was Hosea who preached love above all things, and who left a most intimate account of the love of God for the unfaithful Israel. Hosea knew that the mechanical observance of the commandments does little to please God, who wants instead our tender love and full trust in Him. "I am like a cypress ever green", says the Lord: it is from Him that all fruitfulness shall come.
Jer. 7, 23-28; Lk. 11, 14-23
What would have happened if the Jewish people had fully accepted JESUS as Messiah and Son of God? Would the acceptance have brought about the Kingdom in its fulness, with Jerusalem, perhaps, at the centre of the world and the Roman Empire subject to Christ? It is impossible to know, but what is certain is the fact that if we obey God and live according to His Will then all things will be right: "Listen to my voice, then I will be your God and you shall be my people. Follow right to the end the way that I mark out for you, and you will prosper".
Would Paul, Peter, Francis, Teresa, Rosmini had exchanged ever their love for God and for their neighbour for an easier life without God? It is unthinkable, since they had deep in their hearts the fulfilment of all their desires, true happiness in the midst of apparent misfortune, suffering, and even death. God always gives the 100% in this life to His faithful followers, and they know it! Our "few fishes, and few loaves" offered to God become the source of immense fruitfulness and joy; we gain always in following JESUS.
The study of the Scriptures, the attachment to Tradition and to the Magisterium, worship and the Sacraments, should bring us to Christ, into His Kingdom: we should enter and persevere without regrets, with enthusiasm and joy. We are guaranteed "prosperity", blessedness, eternal life. We arrive at our own perfect fulfilment by following the paths - the commandments - traced out by God for us. This is not esoteric teaching, wishful thinking: it is God's promise - constantly repeated in the Old Testament and, especially, revealed at a far deeper level, by the Son of God when He walked our earth. Truly, the "kingdom of God has overtaken" us, is in our midst.
Dan. 3, 25.34-43; Mt. 18, 21-35
It is a loss to both Protestant and Jewish readers of the Old Testament Bible that they do not have the present passage which is a moving prayer asking for forgiveness for the sins of the people, nor do they have the famous prayer of the three young men from the middle of the fiery furnace. It is Azarias who takes up the prayer recited probably during public worship at the time of the Exile: it is a prayer that acknowledges the loving care of God and the persistent unfaithfulness of the people, a prayer to God to deal "gently" with His people as He is "gentle and very merciful". The highest moment of the prayer is the expression, "May it be Your Will that we follow You whole-heartedly, since those who put their trust in You will not be disappointed": holiness comes from God, we need only respond to His constant grace.
The passage in Matthew also deals with the early Christian people and the need to learn to forgive each other as God has forgiven us. Already in the Our Father JESUS had taught forgiveness on the example of the generous forgiveness the Father gives us: "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us". Now He teaches us to forgive "seventy-seven" times, always, and backs this teaching with a parable, the one about the servant who owed his Master "ten thousand talents", an enormous sum, impossible to repay.
The servant is forgiven, yet the same servant is not willing to deal likewise with one of his fellow servants who had a small debt: "He seized him by the throat and began to throttle him". We may well recognise ourselves in the unforgiving servant, small-minded, selfish, always ready to judge and to condemn others - forgetting the huge debt God has forgiven us in JESUS.
Let us today examine our conscience and learn to be generous in our forgiveness, to deal gently and with compassion with others: "Forgive your brother from your heart".
2Kings 5, 1-15; Lk 4, 24-30
JESUS reminds the people of Nazareth of the universal love and compassion of God, the Creator of all. Naaman was a foreigner, yet he found grace before God who healed him through the prophet Elisha. It was true that the people of Israel were the peple of the promise, the "chosen" people; but we cannot bind God's hands in any way, since He is the God of all His creatures. Pentecost was the day when the whole human race became effectively the "chosen" race; on that day Israel became one of the many entrusted with God's promises and His salvation.
It is not easy to break through the barriers of individualism, of family, of nationhood, of culture, of religion: we relish our little "comfort zone", we feel secure and look at the outside with apprehension and fear. How many people say, "I only care for my family" or "I detest all other religions or races or cultures". Christ came to teach us that God is the loving Father of all, and we all are brothers and sisters. On the day of Pentecost, people of all nationalities understood God's message of salvation and were baptised; and that message spread rapidly, breaking down all barriers: from Jerusalem to Samaria, to the end of the world.
The climax of the healing of Naaman in the humble waters of the Jordan was his confession of faith, "I now know that there is no other God but the God of Israel". He even takes the soil of Israel to Syria so as to worship the new found God. JESUS' revelation to human kind is equally that the God of Israel is indeed the only and true God of all, and He has come to reveal Him to us, to tell us what is our God like. The answer is, "God is love": the love manifested in the Incarnation of the Son, the love of the Son who walked our earth for 33 years, the love of His Passion and Death on the cross. Moreover, the infinitely rich love of the three Persons of the Blessed Trinity, the truly astonishing and heart-warming mystery of our faith.
Ex. 17, 3-7; Rom. 5, 1-2. 5-8; John 4, 5-42
The Samaritan woman is the type of the soul "thirsting" for God without knowing it. The level of her thoughts is horizontal, her eyes fixed on the things of this world, hence she has great difficulty in grasping the higher spiritual meaning of JESUS' words. She comes to draw water to quench her thirst, as she had done throughout her life, seeking after pleasure, one husband after the other, only temporary, fleeting moments of satisfaction. Her thirst is still there, within her - and she will not be able to estinguish it until she gets the "living water" which is Christ Himself. The reading from Exodus shows the Jewish people "tormented by thirst"; they do get water from the rock, but it is still not the "living water", Christ. Augustine'a cry, "Lord you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find rest in You" is the cry of the Samaritan woman, and of every man and woman.
The sinful woman is embraced by Christ, without a word of condemnation. He reveals Himself to her progressively, always animated by love - and she feels it, she feels welcome, accepted as she is, and is therefore open to receive His divine words. She is led to recognise Him as a prophet, speaking on God's behalf, and then as the Messiah, the Son of God. Her prayer, "Give me me some of that [living] water, so that I may never get thirsty", expresses her initial faith in Him. The fact that she forgot her "water jar" at the well and went straight away to announce Christ proves that she had began to pass from the merely horizontal interests to the supernatural ones.
The Lord begins at the level we are at, and then leads us to His level gently: JESUS' words to the woman become progressively more essential and supernatural. He knew that the human heart is ultimately always seeking for Truth and Love, and He leads her there, explaining the meaning of true worship: "Those who worship must worship in Spirit and Truth", by revealing His identity, "I am He".
Christ alone can quench our thirst for happiness, and true worship is the place of the encounter. If in preaching we "preach" Christ, in worship we "experience" the power of Christ: true worship in the Spirit is the golden means of contacting the same Humanity of Christ seen by the Samaritan woman 2000 years ago - the source of life and the spring of living waters in our heart; for grace is nothing else but the gentle action of the Humanity of Christ on our soul.
Gen. 37, 3-4, 12-13, 17-28; Mt. 21, 33-43.45-46
The first reading presents the trials of Joseph at the hands of his own brothers: sent by the father, Joseph goes to visit them, only to be stripped, beaten, put into a well to die. The Son of God also was sent by the Father, to His passion and death at the hands of the very people who should have welcomed Him.
In Joseph's case, he became the saviour of his family; JESUS, instead, became the Saviour of every man and woman. But it was through betrayal, suffering, giving up their life that they achieved salvation. Joseph, then, became the type of Christ, of the Innocent who redeemed mankind by His Blood.
It was Job who lamented most eloquently the suffering of the innocent: why does God permit it? Is He not meant to side with His faithful people, to protect them from all dangers, to reward them even in this life? But God, in His wisdom, knows that the freely taken decisions of others often cause pain and suffering to His innocent ones He will not interfere with human freedom, with human responsibilities: He could certainly have taken out of existence the wicked brothers in Joseph's case or the whole religious class in the case of His Son. He could have stopped Judas from betraying JESUS, or forced Pilate to let JESUS go free. He did not, to respect that gift which makes us more like God - our freedom.
The greatness of God's wisdom is revealed by the fact that He always manages to draw the greatest possible good from our evil actions; the devil has never the last word, even when he seems to have won: what greater victory for the devil than the sight of the Son of God crucified by the same people He had come to save? Yet, that crucifixion became the greatest victory for God, who saved mankind precisely by the Blood of His Son.
Rejections even on the part of people dear to us may well come our way causing great distress; we need to put our trust in God, since He will take care of us in the most unexpected way. Let us trust Him, remaining faithful, like Joseph and, moreover, like our Saviour: "My food is to do the Will of my Father in heaven - I always do what pleases Him most".
Isa. 1, 10. 16-20; Mt. 23, 1-12
"To us, Lord, the look of shame belongs": the people of God had been unfaithful to the covenant, had often rejected it with their sinful actions, ignoring the warnings of the prophets. "Integrity, Lord, is yours": God had been faithful, protecting His people and blessing them, defending them from their enemies. The Lord is faithful and we are unfaithful, this is the reality of our own life. We know that God acts justly with us, filling us with His grace, with His compassion, His love: often we choose sinfully to pursue the things of this world contrary to the Will of God.
Lent is a period when we become aware of our sinfulness and hence we wear "the look of shame"; it is a blessed time, the beginning of our conversion - since there cannot be return to God before the realisation that we are indeed far from Him. It was Blessed Rosmini who spoke of his "enormous vices and great sins", even though we know he did not stain his baptismal innocence: but the closer to the Light, the more clearly all our little sins are spotted and considered "enormous".
Let us then keep the "new covenant" we entered into with God at our own baptism: God will treat us as sons/daughters, loving and protecting us and rewarding us with eternal life; we, for our part, must obey His commandments, remain faithful to His teaching, be a holy member of the Church.
The words of the Gospel, "Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate... do not judge, do not condemn and you will not be judged, condemned" fits in well with the reading from Daniel. We have sinned, yet the Lord will welcome us back and re-instate us to full sonship if only we repent, we say to Him that we are truly sorry. God's compassion is this turning back from sin and embracing God with a heart full of sorrow for having offended Him, knowing that God will always take us back, in this life. And even more: the Lord is actively prompting us all the time, with the power of His Spirit, to stay faithful to Him.
How can we judge and condemn our brothers and sisters? We must see them always as better than we are, and we cannot know all the intricate sources for their behaviour, and even sins: we cannot see as God sees each of us, with all our conditioning and history since childhood. Our judgment of others cannot be in accordance with the truth since the facts escape our limited knowledge; hence let us always be compassionate, generous, welcoming. It is the way God deals with us; we must try to imitate His compassion and love.
Dan. 9, 4-10; Lk. 6, 36-38
"To us, Lord, the look of shame belongs": the people of God had been unfaithful to the covenant, had often rejected it with their sinful actions, ignoring the warnings of the prophets. "Integrity, Lord, is yours": God had been faithful, protecting His people and blessing them, defending them from their enemies. The Lord is faithful and we are unfaithful, this is the reality of our own life. We know that God acts justly with us, filling us with His grace, with His compassion, His love: often we choose sinfully to pursue the things of this world contrary to the Will of God.
Lent is a period when we become aware of our sinfulness and hence we wear "the look of shame"; it is a blessed time, the beginning of our conversion - since there cannot be return to God before the realisation that we are indeed far from Him. It was Blessed Rosmini who spoke of his "enormous vices and great sins", even though we know he did not stain his baptismal innocence: but the closer to the Light, the more clearly all our little sins are spotted and considered "enormous".
Let us then keep the "new covenant" we entered into with God at our own baptism: God will treat us as sons/daughters, loving and protecting us and rewarding us with eternal life; we, for our part, must obey His commandments, remain faithful to His teaching, be a holy member of the Church.
The words of the Gospel, "Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate... do not judge, do not condemn and you will not be judged, condemned" fits in well with the reading from Daniel. We have sinned, yet the Lord will welcome us back and re-instate us to full sonship if only we repent, we say to Him that we are truly sorry. God's compassion is this turning back from sin and embracing God with a heart full of sorrow for having offended Him, knowing that God will always take us back, in this life. And even more: the Lord is actively prompting us all the time, with the power of His Spirit, to stay faithful to Him.
How can we judge and condemn our brothers and sisters? We must see them always as better than we are, and we cannot know all the intricate sources for their behaviour, and even sins: we cannot see as God sees each of us, with all our conditioning and history since childhood. Our judgment of others cannot be in accordance with the truth since the facts escape our limited knowledge; hence let us always be compassionate, generous, welcoming. It is the way God deals with us; we must try to imitate His compassion and love.
Gen. 12, 1-4; 2Tim. 1, 8-10; Mt. 17, 1-9
Everyone would be able perhaps to call to mind a beautiful time that ended too soon, or moments so rich of pleasant emotions yet so brief. It is hard to leave such experiences behind to immerse ourselves again into the routine life, with all its anxiety, troubles, suffering. The personal experience of life is indeed one that is characterised more by the negative than the positive. There are moments of pleasure, even of joy, but these are few and brief. Life is generally for everyone a cross to bear.
Today's gospel gives us a glimpse of heaven: JESUS is up on a high mountain with His favourite three disciples, Peter, James, and John and is transfigured in their presence. His face "shone like the sun and His clothes became as white as the light", and He is in the company of Moses and Elijah, and then the Father speaks to Him in the presence of the Holy Spirit. Heaven is indeed the presence of the Blessed Trinity.
Tha glimpse of heaven will remain forever in the mind of His disciples, and Peter will recall it in one of his letters much later. It was he who expressed the feelings of everyone when he said, "Lord, it is wonderful for us to be here" and he wished he could stay there for eternity. Heaven, we learn from the Scriptures, is a condition of infinite joy and blessedness, a place that has no tears, no hatred, no suffering, nor death. It is pure, undiluted joy - not only for the spiritual soul but also for the physical body through the senses. It will be "wonderful" to be there for eternity.
The present life is, therefore, temporary, a test, a preparation for the true life to come. Eternal life is where we all are directed to, but will it be heaven or hell? It depends on the way we follow the Lord in this life. If we obey Him, if we keep the commandments, especially the two greatest ones, then heaven will be ours. The present life is the life at the foot of the mountain, full of troubles and fears, a true cross to bear; we must face up to it with determination and courage, carrying the cross and ready to follow JESUS all the way to Calvary.
We also may be given moments of "heaven" in this life: pure spiritual joy, union with God in deepest love; but we know that these gracious moments will be short and that are divine encouragements so as to be able to carry the cross till the end. Our true "homeland" is heaven, and it is there that we should raise our minds and hearts often so as to give meaning to our present difficulties. He who climbs a mountain must keep his eyes and mind on the summit to conquer, without being side-tracked by irrelevant views; the hardships he encounters are meaningful since it is through them that he will arrive at the desired end.
It is St. Paul who invites us to "look for the heavenly things, to taste the things of heaven", to think often of heaven, so that we may become able to resist the temporary pleasures and distractions of the present world that lead us to hell. It is encouraging to know that whenever we recite the Hail Mary, we beg Mary to be present near us "now and at the hour of our death": will Mary fail to be there and to lead our soul to heaven having begged her to do so all our life?
Ez. 18, 21-28; Mt. 5, 20-26
During the early centuries, the priest at Mass, after the homily, would invite all public sinners to leave the church. Mass, it was felt, was too holy an event, and therefore they could only join in standing in penance outside the doors of the church. With time, it often happened that nearly everyone left the church, acknowledging their own unworthiness before the sacred Presence; hence the idea of the iconostasis or a separation "wall" (often only a curtain) between the sanctuary and the people.
The gospel today invites us to make peace with our neighbour before making the offer to God, stressing the importance of being "reconciled" with everyone before taking part to the most Holy Mysteries. The tradition of exchanging the sign of peace just before the Offertory is still present in some Rites. In the Roman tradition, the sign of peace, instead, has always preceded the immediate reception of the Eucharist, and for a clear purpose. It signifies the unity of those taking part to the Eucharist, it is the "holy kiss" to be exchanged between brothers and sisters in the Lord. It is not a sign of repentance, of asking pardon from each other. It is a joyful manifestation of our unity in the Lord.
The passage from Ezekiel stresses personal responsibility for our sins; we are not condemned for the sins of our fathers but for our own sins, a great leap forward in Jewish ethical thinking. But once we are truly sorry for the sins we commit, then there is full life in us: "He shall certainly live; he shall not die". The grace of the Sacrament of Penance restores us to life again, and we can sit at the banquet with our brothers and sisters - like the prodigal son, fully dressed and with sandals and a ring, with our dignity of children of God restored, in full harmony with all the members of the Body of Christ.
Gen. 2, 7-9. 3, 1-7; Rom. 5, 12.17-19; Mt. 4, 1-11
Temptation and sin are the topics from today's readings. Two different things: one can be tempted without necessarily falling into sin. Temptation is the inspection of the mind on the alternatives to doing the right thing, with some inner or outer force prodding us to choose the wrong alternative. The will, however, reigns supreme since it has to make the decision using the freedom it has.
Sin is the result of the final decision made by the will choosing the wrong thing knowingly and freely. It is always an act of deception, for we cannot sin if we do not know fully what the right thing to do is; when we sin we know and we want to do it nonetheless, calling good what we know is evil. Sin is always going against the Will of God manifested in our soul and in the Scriptures and doctrines of the Church.
There is a very lighthearted approach to temptation today: we all admit to temptation, and we even boast about falling in it. The idea of sin is no longer associated with an evil conscience and corruption of the human person. One boasts openly about adultery, sex outside marriage, homesexual acts, divorce, abortion, etc. The "golden lies" of our time, according to the myth of Plato, are becoming the golden truths: there is nothing wrong with so many of the actions labelled once as "sins"; abortion, divorce, homosexuality, euthanasia are associated with progress and rights of a civilised society.
Sin is immensely damaging as we can see from the appalling and lasting consequences of the "original sin". Sin was the cause of losing everything and gaining only troubles and pain. This is the case with each mortal sin we commit since we lose the friendship with God which is the source of everything good in our life. Moreover, reparation for sin caused the passion and death of the Son of God: truly God does not abandon us in the utter desperate situation we find ourselves after sin, but redeems us, gives us life again, washes us clean in the Blood of His Son.
As we begin Lent, we may wish to think about the dark reality of sin in our life: "Father I have sinned against heaven and against you"! and resolve to get up and go to the Father in confession, for it is in the great sacrament of confession that we embrace the Father once again and are clothed with the finest clothes and are re-established in our dignity of children of God.
Deut. 30, 15-20; Lk. 9, 22-25
On this second day of Lent, JESUS points to the cross: "The Son of Man is destined to suffer grieviously..." He did not look for the cross, His interaction with life, people, events brought it to Him. This is why He is telling us today that it is in the nature of things that if we "cling" to God with all our heart, the cross will come, but with the cross also the resurrection and the glorification. The opposite is not a life without a cross, but a life with heavy crosses that bring despair and loneliness, a life which is death, a "curse".
To lose one's life for the sake of JESUS is to follow Him on the cross, is to engage in the hard, patient work of the purification of our conscience, of the acquisition of virtues, of the union and love of God. It is to devote oneself to holiness, to the "great business" of saving one's soul: "What gain is it for a man to have won the whole world and to have lost or ruined his very self?"
"If anyone wants to be a follower of mine...": we are His followers, there is no other way for us but the way of the cross. It may seem gloomy, unattractive, and why should anyone wish to follow a cross? The alternative is that life itself is always and for everyone a cross, full of problems, anxiety, broken relations, selfish desires, a "curse" or a "disaster", as Deuteronomy says. It leads to a death full of despair. We can witness this daily in the life of all those who have chosen to be away from God, even though they may have money, fame, power. Life is difficult for everyone, as the old Job was fond of saying; life without God is despair and utter loneliness.
Let us choose life, blessing, the resurrection, and our own glorfication - through the unavoidable cross. Let us"renounce" ourselves, that is, let us rid ourselves of all sinful desires and attitudes and actions, to be closer to JESUS on the cross, like Mary was. She suffered immensely at the foot of the Cross, yet she was rewarded with the infinite joy of Her Son's resurrection, sitting now with Him in the glory of Heaven for eternity.
Joel 2, 12-18; Mt. 6, 1-6.16-18
The dramatic command at the start of Joel's call to repentance, "Now, now come back to Me with all your heart" will resound throughout the long period of Lent. Now, not tomorrow; at this moment, not later: let's turn to God with all our heart, mind, and strength.
JESUS proclaims the necessity of living in the truth - this is the essence of conversion; being Christian means necessarily being committed to God and to each other, truly in perfect correspondence between external behaviour and internal conviction. Prayer, fasting, almsgiving must be done from the heart - not for convenience, "to be seen by men", to wrap ourselves in splendid clothes being empty and full of corruption inside, like white-washed tombs.
The Father sees all that is done in secret: we cannot lie to God, He sees into the most profound depth of our soul. This, for some, is a fearful thought; but not for true Christians, who enjoy the thought of having the eyes of God always on them. For they know that the Father is full of compassion and love, always prompting us, through the Spirit, to follow His ways, to live according to the teachings of His Son, the only Way to fulfil our human potential.
Prayer in secret, almsgiving in secret, fasting in secret: the insistence is indicative of the tendency we have to act in discordance with ourselves, pretending to be what we are not, living, therefore, hypocritically. JESUS is teaching us to acquire progressively the habit of living the truth fully, of living in the truth - like John the Baptist, like Mary, like all the great Saints. They acted in tune with their deepest convictions, which were based on God's words and teachings.
This is, perhaps, the distinguishing mark of the true Christian in today's world, full of false glamour, outlandish claims, efforts to appear, transient fashions. Today we withdraw with Christ into the desert of Lent to learn from Him the essential in our life: our absolute poverty filled by the infinite love of God. The "remember man that you are dust and into dust you shall return" or "Repent and believe the Good News" have the same meaning: our utter poverty - we have received everything - is constantly filled by the grace and love of God.
Zeph. 2, 3; 3, 12-13; 1Cor. 1, 26-31; Mt. 5, 1-12
It was Nietchze who said that Christianity has wasted two thousand years of human history, giving predominance to that which is weak, sick, poor, despised, joyless. His dream age was the time before Christ, when men competed against each other, driven by a powerful will, strength, ambition, insofferent of all weak and sick people. The Roman Empire, in its glorious days of conquest and proud affirmation of all natural human powers was the way humanity would have found a splendid maturity. Nietchze did not know, bu we do of the dreadful consequences for mankind of the pursuit of his ideas in practice: extermination camps, world war, hatred, and destruction.
JESUS, today, is teaching the opposite way. As He sits on the hill overlooking the lake of Galilee, He speaks to people of all generations, teaching them the "secret" of being happy, truly happy in this world and for eternity. He gives us today the "elixir" of life: do you want to be happy? do you want to be "blessed"? This is the way, the only way, since I AM the Way: be poor in the depth of your heart, be gentle, be close to those who suffer, pursue justice, be merciful, be pure, pursue peace, bear patiently difficulties and persecutions for the sake of God.
Gandhi understood JESUS' secret and carried the Beatitudes with him, reading them to the crowds as he was travelling up and down India. Mother Teresa understood the Beatitudes, and so have all the saints. We need to think seriously about this most important issue in our own life and in the life of the people we love: happiness is indeed the most valued possession, we do all things to achieve happiness. The Lord is telling us that the way of the Beatitudes is the only way to happiness: He should know, since He made us!
Happiness, then, is to be poor in spirit: detached from all earthly things, knowing that only God matters, loving all things for the sake of God and of our brothers, not being slaves of money, of material goods. True poverty in spirit is to acknowledge and love God with all our heart, mind, and strength.
Happiness is to be gentle, compassionate, merciful, peaceful, acknowledging the infinite dignity of all and putting ourselves at the service of others, willing to wash the feet of others, to be last to promote others. It is to love our neighbour as we love ourselves.
The Lord teaches that the practice of the two commandments of love will not be easy, that we will encounter all kinds of difficulties: "people will abuse you, persecute you, speak all kinds of calumny against you". But we know that the way to happiness is one and therefore we must "rejoice and be glad, for our reward will be great in heaven".
2 Sam. 11, 1-10. 13-17; Mk 4, 26-34
The Kingdom of God is the reality that had a small beginning and it will last for ever, and no one will ever be able to stop it from growing to its fulness and perfect beauty. Many earthly powers have tried and will try to destroy it, but to no avail; after temporary setbacks, the Kingdom shows again its power and might and fecundity. Many within the Kingdom itself have tried and will try to damage it by their sinful life; yet, the power of the Kingdom prevails always over the evil or weakness of human nature.
The first reading today shows the dreadful sin of David, adultery, deceit, murder. The grace of God, however, prevailed, and it was David who composed that moving psalm which begins with the words, "Take pity on me o Lord in your great mercy". Like the sinful David, many Christians have damaged the Kingdom by their sinful life, even Popes, Bishops, and Priests. Yet, the power of God has prevailed over the consequences of their sinful actions and God has drawn good out of evil, defeating the devil even as he thinks he has won a victory!
The two parables in the gospel are two precious gems confronting us with the great mystery of the Kingdom. The sower goes out to scatter the seed, then he goes home, and the seed works by itself, growing progressively, without the help of the sower who can only go out and verify its gentle growth, till the harvest. The Word of God is scattered by us, but then it grows in the hearts of people by its own strength, in a gentle but sure way. Christ has sown the kingdom on earth: it is growing by itself, through the centuries, till harvest time at the end.
The mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, grows into a big shrub: like the kingdom, which, from small beginnings will reach the perfect state that will last for ever. It is God again who does the working, who gives power: and it is God again who gives us the guarantee of a perfect end for the Church, safely driven to the desired harbour of heaven by Christ Himself.