Lectio Divina (465)
"Lectio divina is an authentic source of Christian spirituality recommended by our Rule. We therefore practice it every day, so that we may develop a deep and genuine love for it, and so that we may grow in the surpassing knowledge of Christ. In this way we shall put into practice the Apostle Paul’s commandment, which is mentioned in our Rule: “Let the sword of the spirit, the Word of God, live abundantly in your mouth and in your hearts; and whatever you must do, do it in the name of the Lord.”
Carmelite Constitutions (No. 82)
A soldier pierces Jesus’ heart
John 19:31-37
1. LECTIO
a) Opening prayer:
Lord Jesus, grant that we may stand before your Word in a listening attitude. Help us to stay calm, not to be superficial and distracted. If we meditate on your Word, then we shall, certainly, experience an invasion of tenderness, compassion and love that flows from your pierced heart on humanity. Grant that we may understand the symbolism of the blood and water flowing from your heart. Grant that we too may gather that blood and water so that we may share in your infinite passion of love and suffering when you underwent every physical and moral suffering. May our meditating on those symbols break our egoism, our self-centredness and our indifference. May the water and blood mentioned in today’s Gospel calm our anxieties and worries, take away our vainglory, purify our greediness, transform our fears into hopes and our darkness into light. As we open ourselves to the force of your Word, we say to you with all our heart and soul, “Jesus, you are truly the revelation of love”.
b) Reading of the Gospel:
31 It was the Day of Preparation, and to avoid the bodies' remaining on the cross during the Sabbath -- since that Sabbath was a day of special solemnity -- the Jews asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away. 32 Consequently the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with him and then of the other. 33 When they came to Jesus, they saw he was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs 34 one of the soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and water. 35 This is the evidence of one who saw it -- true evidence, and he knows that what he says is true -- and he gives it so that you may believe as well. 36 Because all this happened to fulfil the words of scripture: Not one bone of his will be broken; 37 and again, in another place scripture says: They will look to the one whom they have pierced.
c) A moment of silence:
Let the silence in this meeting with the Word be truly a prayer: a conversation with God, a listening to Him who reveals himself and calls you and invites you to be one with Him.
2. MEDITATIO
a) A key to the reading – content and division:
This passage of the Gospel begins with a mention of the Pasch of the Jews and with a request to Pilate (19,31). For the Evangelist such an event holds extraordinary importance. The centre of the Gospel passage is the piercing of the side whence flow blood and water. We should take note of the symbols in this passage: the blood symbolises death and love to the end; the water whence life comes is the symbol of love expressed and communicated. In the context of the Pasch, these symbols point to the blood of the Lamb who conquers death, and the water, source that purifies. These symbols seek to show that this love (the blood) saves by giving its entire life (water-Spirit). That which the Evangelist witnessed, is the basis of faith. The passage is organised thus: first the obligation of rest on the festive day which leads to the request made of Pilate that the bodies be taken down (19,31); there follows the scene on the cross when a soldier pierces Jesus’ side (19,32-34); finally the witness of the Evangelist, based on the Law and the Prophets (19,35-37).
b) The festive rest and the request to Pilate (19,31):
The Jewish leaders, because of the legal purity required by the Pasch now close at hand, and worried that the execution of the death of Jesus might profane the Sabbath or even the whole feast of the Pasch, «asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken away». They are not in the least aware that their Pasch has been substituted by Jesus’ Pasch. The mention of the bodies is significant. Mention is made not only of the body of Jesus, but also of the bodies of those crucified with him, as if to express Jesus’ solidarity with those crucified with him and with the whole of humanity.
Jesus’ body on the cross, that makes him one with humanity, is, for the Evangelist, God’s sanctuary (2,21). The bodies of those crucified could not remain on the cross on the Sabbath, since what was involved was the preparation for the most solemn feast in the Jewish tradition. Anyway, this feast will lose its traditional meaning and will be substituted by the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus.
«The Jews» put concrete requests before Pilate: that the legs of those crucified be broken so as to accelerate their death and thus avoid the problem that they pose at that particular time. None of these requests is carried out in the case of Jesus: the soldiers do not break his legs nor do they take him down from the cross.
c) The pierced side (19,32-33):
The soldiers break the legs of those with Jesus, but when they get to Jesus they see «he was already dead, and so instead of breaking his legs…» It is significant that the soldiers break the legs of those crucified with Jesus. They are still alive and now that Jesus is dead, they too can die. It is as though Jesus, by dying before them, through his death has opened the way for them to the Father and now they can follow him. By stating that they did not break the legs of Jesus, the Evangelist seems to be saying: No one can take life from Jesus, because he gave his life of himself (10:17ff; 19:30). «One of the soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and water». The reader may be surprised by the action of the soldier since Jesus was already dead. What need was there to pierce him? It seems that hostility goes on even after death. The piercing with the point of the lance wants to destroy him forever. This act of hatred allows Jesus to give the kind of love that produces life. This fact is extraordinarily important and contains great wealth of meaning. The blood that flows from Jesus’ side symbolises his death, which he accepts so as to save humanity; it is and expression of his glory and of his love to the end (1:14; 13:1); it is the gift of the shepherd for his sheep (10:11); it is the love of the friend who gives his life for his friends (15: 13). This supreme proof of love, which does not withdraw in the face of the suffering of death on a cross, is an object of contemplation for us on this solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. From his pierced side comes love, which love is his and at the same time inseparably that of the Father. The water that comes out also represents the Spirit, source of life. The blood and water witness to his love proclaimed and communicated. The allusion to the symbols of water and wine at the wedding feast of Cana is evident: the hour has come for Jesus to give the wine of his love. Now the definitive wedding has taken place. The law of supreme and sincere love (1:17) shown on the cross, echoed in his commandment, «love one another as I have loved you” (13:34), is poured out into the hearts of believers by the Spirit. The divine plan of love is fulfilled in Jesus in the outpouring of blood and water (19:28-30); now it is the time for men and women to realise its fulfilment. In this fulfilment, we shall be aided by the Spirit that flows from the pierced side of Jesus, transforming us into a new humanity, capable of loving and of becoming children of God (1: 12).
d) The witness of the Evangelist and of Scripture:
With the scene of Jesus pierced on the cross, the Evangelist gives proof of a great and solemn witness so that all who listen to him might come to believe. This final and supreme manifestation will form the foundation of the faith of future disciples. We should note that only here does the Evangelist address his readers with the plural “you”: «so that you may believe as well”.
Jesus’ pierced side on the cross is the great sign towards which all the persons mentioned throughout the Gospels converge, but above all, all the readers of today, to whom it is given to understand the full meaning of Jesus’ existence. The passage concerning the pierced side is, for the Evangelist, the key that explains the giving of oneself for the salvation of humanity. Even if such a sign may seem paradoxical to the modern reader, in God’s plan it becomes the manifestation of his saving power. Could not God have chosen another sign of his saving love? Why did he choose the sign of a man sentenced to death and death on a cross? What image of God do we see in this sign? God manifests himself solely in generous love capable of giving life.
e) A few questions:
- What place does the contemplation of the pierced heart of Jesus hold in your personal prayer? Do you allow yourself to be involved in the symbols of blood and water that express the mysterious gift of God to you and to humanity?
- Have you ever thought that at the time of greatest resistance to God and the death of Jesus, there begins the moment of grace, mercy, the gift of the Spirit and of the life of faith?
- How do you see your weaknesses? Do you see them as means of mercy, especially when you are ready to admit them? Do you not know that they may be instruments that God uses to evangelise your heart, to save you, to forgive you, and to give you new life to love in love?
- People who draw away from God, difficult young people, violence, hostility … often give rise within us of moans, discomfort, bitterness and scepticism. Have you ever thought that God may be saving people in their sins and beginning with their sins? Have you ever thought that so many men, women, young people who are in prison or in communities for drug addicts experience in those who help them a meeting with the Lord and thus feel loved and saved by him?
3. ORATIO
a) Isaiah 12:2; 4cd; 5-6
Look, he is the God of my salvation:
I shall have faith and not be afraid,
for Yahweh is my strength and my song,
he has been my salvation.'
'Praise Yahweh,
invoke his name.
Proclaim his deeds to the people,
declare his name sublime.
Sing of Yahweh,
for his works are majestic,
make them known throughout the world.
Cry and shout for joy,
you who live in Zion,
For the Holy One of Israel is among you in his greatness.'
b) Closing prayer:
At the end of this moment of listening to the Word, let us use the help of prayers that come from a loving and wise study of the Bible. Prayer begins with listening and leads to action «with a pure heart and right conscience». The title of the prayer is «That I may love, Lord!»: Is it an empty dream to imagine a united humanity, where all are glad to live with others and feel useful, understood and loved? How often people, yesterday, today and in the future, have had and will have such a dream, Lord! The need for unity and the desire for charity dwell in human nature. Love, the law that unites the universe, is the reason and vocation that You, Lord, entrust to everyone who comes to life. To live means to feel loved and to be able to love. When one feels lonely, empty, without love, it seems that life is worthless and colourless! How is it, then, Lord, that not all seek love, always, nor do they all live for others, nor are they capable of giving themselves? To give oneself to each other means transforming the existence of the world into gift. Grant, Lord, that I may understand and live this wonderful vocation of love! (Lucio Renna)
4. CONTEMPLATIO
On earth, the knowledge we can have of God is divine silence. Through the lectio divina our thirst for the Word is not quenched but is made more acute. St. Augustine said: «You find him only to seek him more avidly». When a heart is seduced by the Word, it feels as if it were dying if the encounter were to be deferred. This is what Teresa of Avila experienced: «Muero por que no muero» (I die because I do no die). To initiate this moment of contemplation, I would like to quote three sayings of Blessed Elisabeth of the Trinity. They are taken from a part entitled “ a hymn” to suffering, but we must not think that suffering was the Absolute in her life. Rather she says that we are called to “enter into the joy of the Lord”. The first thought is: «Suffering is such a great thing, such a divine thing! It seems to me that if the Blessed in heaven could envy us one thing, they would envy us this treasure. It is such a powerful lever on the heart of the good God!» (Letter to Mrs. Angles, 14 August 1904). The second thought is: «Suffering is a string that produces even sweeter sounds and she (the soul) likes to make it its instrument to move more deliciously the heart of God» (Retreat on How to find heaven on earth). The last thought is: «Nothing moves God’s heart like suffering. If we cannot desire or go to meet it, then at least we can accept the trials that God sends us. The more he loves a soul, the more he makes it suffer» (Diary, 17 March 1889). Why is it that Blessed Elisabeth of the Trinity sees in suffering «such a great thing, such a divine thing that moves the heart of God?» Because it is the road taken by Christ. Christ’s Pasch, passion and death on the one hand and resurrection on the other are one as are concave and convex.
Jesus calms the storm
Jesus sleeps in our boat
Mark 4:35-41
1. Opening prayer
Lord Jesus, send your Spirit to help us to read the Scriptures with the same mind that you read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In the light of the Word, written in the Bible, you helped them to discover the presence of God in the disturbing events of your sentence and death. Thus, the cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life and of resurrection.
Create in us silence so that we may listen to your voice in Creation and in the Scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor and suffering. May your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples from Emmaus, may experience the force of your resurrection and witness to others that you are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice and peace. We ask this of you, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed to us the Father and sent us your Spirit. Amen.
2. Reading
a) A key to the reading:
There are days when life is like a small boat lost among the waves of a rough sea. Everything around us looks dark, a storm is brewing. God is hidden, Jesus is absent, no one close to us can help, encourage. One feels like giving up!
Let us listen to the story of the calmed storm. As we read, let us pretend to be on the boat with Jesus and the disciples. Let us try to live with them what is happening and pay attention to Jesus’ attitude and the reaction of the disciples.
b) A division of the text to help us with the reading:
Mark 4:35-36: Jesus decides to cross over to the other side of the lake
Mark 4:37-38: A sudden storm endangers the life of all
Mark 4:39-40: Jesus calms the storm and criticises the lack of faith
Mark 4:41: Fear and lack of understanding on the part of the disciples
c) Text:
35 With the coming of evening that same day, he said to them, 'Let us cross over to the other side.' 36 And leaving the crowd behind they took him, just as he was, in the boat; and there were other boats with him. 37 Then it began to blow a great gale and the waves were breaking into the boat so that it was almost swamped. 38 But he was in the stern, his head on the cushion, asleep. 39 They woke him and said to him, 'Master, do you not care? We are lost!' And he woke up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, 'Quiet now! Be calm!' And the wind dropped, and there followed a great calm. 40 Then he said to them, 'Why are you so frightened? Have you still no faith?' 41 They were overcome with awe and said to one another, 'Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him.'
3. A moment of prayerful silence
so that the Word of God may penetrate and enlighten our life.
4. Some questions
to help us in our personal reflection.
a) What pleased you most in this text? Why?
b) What situation do Jesus and his disciples find themselves in, and what is their reaction?
c) What was the stormy sea in the times of Jesus? What is the stormy sea in the days Mark is writing his Gospel? What is the stormy sea for you today?
d) Read Isaiah 43:2 and Psalm 107(106),25-30, and compare these texts with the passage of the calmed storm. What can you conclude?
e) What does all this mean in our life today?
5. For those who wish to go deeper into the theme
a) The context that sheds light on the text:
A beautiful painting hung on a well-lit wall seems even more beautiful thanks to the colours of the wall that underscores the beauty. The same is true of the painting of the calmed storm. The wall of the context makes it more beautiful. Mark has just narrated two parables that bring out the mystery of the Kingdom present in the things of life (Mk 4:1-34). Now he begins to talk of the mystery of the Kingdom as present in the power exercised by Jesus for his disciples, for people and, above all, for the excluded and marginalized. Let us take a look at the sequence: Mark begins by presenting a Jesus who overcomes the sea, the symbol of chaos. In Jesus there is the power of a creator! (Mk 4:35-41). Immediately after that he shows a Jesus who overcomes and drives out evil spirits. In him there is a liberating power! (Mk 5:1-20). Finally, he describes at length the manner in which Jesus overcomes impurity and death. In him there is the power of life! (Mk 5:21-43). In Jesus there is a creating power that liberates, purifies and communicates life to those who approach him!
Mark is writing for the persecuted communities of the 70’s who feel like a small boat lost on the sea of life, with little hope of being able to reach the desired harbour of peace. Jesus seems to be asleep in their boat, because they do not feel the divine power to save them from persecution. In that desperate situation, Mark brings together various passages that underline the power with which Jesus is present in the communities. It is the victorious Jesus! They need not fear. This is the aim of the story of the calmed storm.
b) A commentary on the text:
Mark 4:35-36: The point of departure: “Let us cross over to the other side”.
It had been a heavy day with much work. There were so many people that Jesus, so as not to be crushed by the crowd, had to go into a boat to teach them by means of a parable (Mk 4:1). There were days when there was not even time to eat (Mk 3:20). When he finished telling the people the parable, Jesus said to his disciples: “Let us cross over to the other side!” And there and then, they took him in the boat. Jesus was so tired that he stretched out and went to sleep. This is the first frame that Mark presents to us. A beautiful frame and quite human.
Mark 4,37-38: The desperate situation: “Do you not care? We are lost!
The lake of Galilee is close to high mountains. Sometimes between the cracks in the rocks the wind blows hard on the lake and causes sudden storms. This is what happened. A strong wind blew on the sea causing a storm. The boat filled with water! The disciples were experienced fishermen. If they thought they were about to perish, then this meant that the situation was really dangerous! Jesus is not aware of anything and goes on sleeping. This deep sleep is not only the sign of immense weariness, it is also an expression of his quiet faith in God. The contrast between Jesus’ attitude and that of the two disciples is great!
Mark 4:9-40: Jesus’ reaction: “Have you still no faith?”
Jesus wakes up not because of the waves but because of the desperate cry of the disciples: “Master! Do you not care? We are lost!” Jesus gets up. First he faces the sea and says: “Quiet now! Be calm!” And the sea calms down. Then he turns to his disciples and says to them: “Why are you so frightened? Have you still no faith?” The impression one gets is that the sea did not need to be calmed since there was no danger. It is like when one goes to a house and a little dog by the side of the master of the house, barks at the guest. There is no need to be afraid because the master is there to control the situation.
The passage of the calmed storm recalls the exodus, when the crowd, without any fear, crossed the waters of the sea (Ex 14,22). It recalls the prophet Isaiah who said to the crowd: “should you pass through the waters, I shall be with you!” (Is 43:2). Jesus retraces the passage and fulfils it in the prophecy made in the Psalm when it says: “They cried out to Yahweh in their distress, he rescued them from their plight, he reduced the storm to a calm, and all the waters subsided, and he brought them, overjoyed at the stillness, to the port where they were bound!” (Ps 107(106):28-30).
Mark 4:41: The lack of knowledge of the disciples: “Who can this be?”
Jesus calms the sea and says: “Have you still no faith?” The disciples do not know what to say in reply and ask themselves “Who can this be? Even the wind and the sea obey him!” To them Jesus seems to be a stranger! In spite of the long time spent together, they do not really know who he is. Who can this be? With this question occupying their minds, the communities continued to read. And until today, this same question urges us to continue reading the Gospel. This is the desire to know Jesus more and more in our lives.
c) Further information: Who is Jesus?
Names and titles given to Jesus:
Mark begins his Gospel with the words: “The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Son of God” (Mk 1:1). At the end, at the time of the death of Jesus, a pagan soldier exclaims: “In truth this man was Son of God!” (Mk 15:39) Thus both at the beginning and the end of the Gospel, Jesus is called Son of God. Between the beginning and the end, many other names are attributed to Jesus, more that twenty! Here is the list of names and titles attributed to Jesus in the Gospel of Mark between the expression Son of God at the beginning (Mk 1:1) and that at the end (Mk 15:39):
* Messiah, Christ (that is, anointed) (Mk 1:1; 8:29; 14:61; 15:32)
* Lord (Mk 1:3; 5:19; 11:3)
* Beloved son (Mk 1:11; 9:7)
* Holy one of God (Mk 1:24)
* Nazarene (Mk 1:24; 10:47; 14:67; 16:6)
* Son of Man (Mk 2:10.28; 8:31.38; 9:9.12.31; 10:33.45; 13:26; 14:21.21.41.62)
* Bridegroom (Mk 2:19)
* Son of God (Mk 3:11)
* Son of the Most High (Mk 5:7)
* Carpenter (Mk 6:3)
* Son of Mary (Mk 6:3)
* Prophet (Mk 6:4.15; 8:28)
* Master (frequently)
* Good Master (Mk 10:17)
* Son of David (Mk 10:47.48; 12:35-37)
* Rabbunì (Mk 10:51)
* Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord (Mk 11:9)
* Rabbi (Mk 11:21)
* Son (Mk 13:32)
* Shepherd (Mk 14:27)
* Son of the Blessed One (Mk 14: 61)
* King of the Jews (Mk 15:2.9.18.26)
* King of Israel (Mk 15:32)
Jesus is greater than any of his titles or names:
Each name, title or attribute is an attempt to express what Jesus meant for some people. But a name, no matter how nice, will never unveil the mystery of a person and much less of the person of Jesus. Besides, some of these names, even the most important and traditional ones are questioned and doubted by Jesus himself. Thus, as we read on the Gospel, Mark constrains us to review our ideas and to ask ourselves each time once more: “In the last analysis, who is Jesus for me, for us?”
i) Some hoped that the Messiah would be the “Holy One of God” (Mk 1:24), that is a High Priest. The devil alludes to this hope, but Jesus orders him to keep silent! (Mk 1:24-25)
ii) Others hoped that the Messiah would be the Son of David. But Jesus himself questions this title: “How can the Scribes maintain that the Christ is the son of David? David himself calls him Lord” (Mk 12:35-37).
iii) Others hoped for a Messiah King. But when Pilate asks Jesus whether he is a king, Jesus neither affirms nor denies, but replies: “It is you who say it” (Mk 15:2). And when he was speaking of kings and rulers he insisted with his disciples: “Among you this is not to happen” (Mk 10:42-43).
iv) The same goes for the title of Messiah. Peter confesses that Jesus is the Messiah. But when Jesus draws the consequences and begins to speak of the cross, Peter will have none of it (Mk 8:31-33). Jesus is the Messiah, but not the kind that Peter imagined.
v) People possessed by evil spirits called Jesus “Son of God” (Mk 3:11) and “Son of the Most High” (Mk 5:7). But Jesus ordered the evil spirits to keep silent and leave the persons possessed (Mk 3:12; 5,8). Before the court, the enemies accuse Jesus and ask: “Are you the Christ, the Son of Blessed One?” He replies: “I am! And you will see the Son of man seated at the right hand of the Power and coming with clouds of heaven” (Mk 14:62). When he has to confirm the name, Jesus does not say that he is the Son of God, but that he is the Son of Man. Is this the same thing? One thing is sure: Jesus is not the Son of God in the way that the evil spirits (Mk 3:11; 5:7) and his enemies imagine (Mk 14:61). Then how is he the Son of God? The question remains an open ended one in the minds of the people, of the disciples and the readers!
Then, who is Jesus? The more we read the Gospel of Mark, the more all titles and criteria fall apart. Jesus is not any of these names, does not fit into any scheme, any title. He is greater than all of these. The more we read, the more we give up the idea of framing Jesus into some preconceived concept and accept him as he presents himself. Love seduces, the head does not! It is better to bow one’s head and adore and not fear when the sea breaks into a storm!
6. Praying with Psalm 107 (106): 21-43
If the waters stir, God will protect us!
Let them thank Yahweh for his faithful love,
for his wonders for the children of Adam!
Let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,
and recount with shouts of joy what he has done!
Voyagers on the sea in ships,
plying their trade on the great ocean,
have seen the works of Yahweh,
his wonders in the deep.
By his word he raised a storm-wind,
lashing up towering waves.
Up to the sky then down to the depths!
Their stomachs were turned to water;
they staggered and reeled like drunkards,
and all their skill went under.
They cried out to Yahweh in their distress,
he rescued them from their plight,
he reduced the storm to a calm,
and all the waters subsided,
and he brought them, overjoyed at the stillness,
to the port where they were bound.
Let them thank Yahweh for his faithful love,
for his wonders for the children of Adam!
Let them extol him in the assembly of the people,
and praise him in the council of elders.
He has turned rivers into desert,
bubbling springs into arid ground,
fertile country into salt-flats,
because the people living there were evil.
But he has turned desert into stretches of water,
arid ground into bubbling springs,
and has given the hungry a home,
where they have built themselves a city.
There they sow fields and plant vines,
and reap a harvest of their produce.
He blesses them and their numbers increase,
he keeps their cattle at full strength.
Their numbers had fallen, they had grown weak,
under pressure of disaster and hardship;
he covered princes in contempt,
left them to wander in trackless wastes.
But the needy he raises from their misery,
makes their families as numerous as sheep.
At the sight the honest rejoice,
and the wicked have nothing to say.
Who is wise? Such a one should take this to heart,
and come to understand Yahweh's faithful love.
7. Final Prayer
Lord Jesus, we thank for the word that has enabled us to understand better the will of the Father. May your Spirit enlighten our actions and grant us the strength to practice that which your Word has revealed to us. May we, like Mary, your mother, not only listen to but also practice the Word. You who live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.
Ordinary Time
1) Opening prayer
Father of everlasting goodness,
our origin and guide,
be close to us
and hear the prayers of all who praise You.
Forgive our sins and restore us to life.
Keep us safe in Your love.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
2) Gospel Reading - Matthew 17:1-9
Jesus took with Him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There in their presence He was transfigured: His face shone like the sun and His clothes became as dazzling as light. And suddenly Moses and Elijah appeared to them; they were talking with Him.
Then Peter spoke to Jesus. 'Lord,' he said, 'it is wonderful for us to be here; if You want me to, I will make three shelters here, one for You, one for Moses and one for Elijah.' He was still speaking when suddenly a bright cloud covered them with shadow, and suddenly from the cloud there came a voice which said, 'This is My Son, the Beloved; He enjoys My favor. Listen to Him.'
When they heard this, the disciples fell on their faces, overcome with fear. But Jesus came up and touched them, saying, 'Stand up, do not be afraid.' And when they raised their eyes they saw no one but Jesus. As they came down from the mountain Jesus gave them this order, 'Tell no one about this vision until the Son of man has risen from the dead.'
3) Reflection
• Today is the Feast of the Transfiguration of Jesus. The Transfiguration takes place after the first announcement of the Death of Jesus (Mt 16:21). This announcement disturbs the head of the Disciples, especially Peter (Mt 16:22-23). They were living among the poor, but the head was lost in the dominating ideology of that time. They were expecting a glorious Messiah. The cross was an impediment to believing in Jesus. The Transfiguration, where Jesus appears glorious on the top of the mountain, was for them a help to overcome the trauma of the Cross and to discover the true Messiah in Jesus. But even with this, many years afterwards, when the Good News was already diffused in Asia Minor and in Greece, the Cross continued to be for the Jews and for the Gentiles a great impediment to accepting Jesus as Messiah. “The Cross is foolishness and scandal!” as it was said (1Cor 1:23). One of the greatest efforts of the first Christians was to help people to become aware that the cross was not a scandal, nor foolishness, but rather the most beautiful and strongest expression of the wisdom of God (1Cor 1:22-31). Today’s Gospel contributes to this effort. It shows that Jesus fulfilled the prophecy and that the Cross was the way to Glory. There is no other way.
• Matthew 17:1-3: Jesus changes appearance. Jesus goes up to the top of the mountain. Luke adds that He goes there to pray (Lk 9:28). There, on the top of the mountain, Jesus appears in glory, before Peter, James and John. Together with Jesus Moses and Elijah also appear. The high mountain evokes Mount Sinai, where, in the past, God had manifested His will to the people, giving them the Tablets of the Law. The white clothes recall Moses who was radiant with light when he was speaking with God on the Mountain and received the Law from God, (Ex 34:29-35). Elijah and Moses, the two maximum authorities of the Old Testament, speak with Jesus. Moses represents the Law; Elijah, the prophecy. Luke tells us that the conversation was on the “Exodus” (the death) of Jesus in Jerusalem (Lk 9:31). Thus, it is clear that the Old Testament, that is the Law as well as the Prophets, already taught that for the Messiah, the way to Glory had to go through the Cross. There is no other way.
• Matthew 17: 4: It pleases Peter, but he does not understand. It pleases Peter and he wants to freeze that pleasant moment on the Mountain. He offers to build three tents. Mark says that Peter was afraid, and did not know what he was saying (Mk 9:6), and Luke adds that the Disciples were sleepy (Lk 9:32). They were like us: it is difficult for them to understand the Cross!
• Matthew 17:5-8: The voice from Heaven clarifies the facts. When Jesus is enveloped by the glory, there was a voice from Heaven which said, “This is My Son, the Beloved, He enjoys My favor. Listen to Him”. The expression “Beloved son” evokes the person of the Messiah Servant, announced by the Prophet Isaiah (cf. Isa 42:1). The expression “Listen to Him” evokes the prophecy which promised the coming of a new Moses (cf. Deut 18:15). In Jesus the prophecies of the Old Testament are being fulfilled, the disciples can no longer doubt. Jesus is truly the glorious Messiah and the way to arrive at the glory passes through the cross, according to everything announced in the prophecy of the Messiah Servant (Isa 53:3-9). The glory of the Transfiguration proves this. Moses and Elijah confirm it. The Father guarantees it. Jesus accepts it. Before everything which was taking place the Disciples were afraid and fell on their faces. Jesus gets close to them, touches them and says: “Stand up, do not be afraid”. The Disciples raised their eyes and saw only Jesus and nobody else. From now on, Jesus is the only revelation of God for us! Jesus, and He alone, is the key to understanding Scripture and Life.
• Matthew 17:9: To know how to keep silence. Jesus asks the disciples to tell no one about the vision until the Son of Man has risen from the dead. Mark says that they did not know what it meant to rise from the dead (Mk 9:10). In fact, the one who does not join suffering to the resurrection will not understand the significance of the Cross. The Cross of Jesus is the proof that life is stronger than death. The full understanding of the following of Jesus is not attained by theoretical instruction, but by practical commitment, walking with Him along the road of service, from Galilee until Jerusalem.
4) Personal questions
• Has your faith in Jesus given you some moment of transfiguration and of profound joy? How have these moments of joy given you strength in difficult moments?
• Today, how can you transfigure both your personal and your family life, and the community life of your neighborhood?
5) Concluding Prayer
The mountains melt like wax,
before the Lord of all the earth.
The heavens proclaim His saving justice,
all nations see His glory. (Ps 97:5-6)
On the Road to Emmaus
Looking for the key to an understanding of the Scriptures
Luke 24:13-35
1. Opening prayer
Lord Jesus, send Your Spirit to help us to read the Scriptures with the same mind that You read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In the light of the Word, written in the Bible, You helped them to discover the presence of God in the disturbing events of Your sentence and death. Thus, the cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life and of resurrection.
Create silence in us so that we may listen to Your voice in Creation and in the Scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor and suffering. May Your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, may experience the force of Your resurrection and witness to others that You are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice and peace. We ask this of You, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed the Father to us and sent us Your Spirit. Amen.
2. Reading
a) A key to guide the reading:
Let us read the text where Luke presents Jesus as interpreting the Scriptures. As we read, let us seek to discover the various steps taken by Jesus in the process of this interpretation, from the moment He meets the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, to the time the disciples meet with the community in Jerusalem.
b) A division of the text to assist a careful reading:
Lk 24:13-24: Jesus tries to find out what it is that is making the two disciples distressed.
Lk 24:25-27: Jesus sheds the light of Scripture on the situation of the two disciples.
Lk 24:28-32: Jesus shares the bread and celebrates with the disciples.
Lk 24:33-35: The two disciples go to Jerusalem and share their experience of the resurrection with the community.
c) The text:
13-24: Now that very same day, two of them were on their way to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking together about all that had happened. And it happened that as they were talking together and discussing it, Jesus Himself came up and walked by their side; but their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. He said to them, 'What are all these things that you are discussing as you walk along?' They stopped, their faces downcast. Then one of them, called Cleopas, answered Him, 'You must be the only person staying in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these last few days.' He asked, 'What things?' They answered, 'All about Jesus of Nazareth, who showed Himself a prophet powerful in action and speech before God and the whole people; and how our chief priests and our leaders handed Him over to be sentenced to death, and had Him crucified. Our own hope had been that He would be the one to set Israel free. And this is not all: two whole days have now gone by since it all happened; and some women from our group have astounded us: they went to the tomb in the early morning, and when they could not find the body, they came back to tell us they had seen a vision of angels who declared He was alive. Some of our friends went to the tomb and found everything exactly as the women had reported, but of Him they saw nothing.'
25-27: Then He said to them, 'You foolish men! So slow to believe all that the prophets have said! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer before entering into His glory?' Then, starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, He explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about Himself.
28-32: When they drew near to the village to which they were going, He made as if to go on; but they pressed Him to stay with them saying, 'It is nearly evening, and the day is almost over.' So He went in to stay with them. Now while He was with them at table, He took the bread and said the blessing; then He broke it and handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognized Him; but He had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, 'Did not our hearts burn within us as He talked to us on the road and explained the scriptures to us?'
33-35: They set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven assembled together with their companions, 34 who said to them, 'The Lord has indeed risen and has appeared to Simon.' 35 Then they told their story of what had happened on the way and how they had recognized Him at the breaking of bread.
3. A moment of prayerful silence
so that the Word of God may enter into us and enlighten our life.
4. Some questions
to help us in our personal reflection.
a) What part did you like best in this text? Why?
b) What steps did Jesus take in interpreting the Scriptures from the time He met the two friends on the road up to the time the disciples went to the community in Jerusalem?
c) In what type of situation does Jesus meet the two disciples?
d) What are the similarities and the differences between our present situation and that of the two disciples? What factors create a crisis of faith in our day and are the cause of sadness?
e) What was the effect of Jesus’ reading of the Bible on the life of the two disciples?
f) Which points in the interpretation made by Jesus are a critique of our way of reading the Bible, and which are a confirmation?
5. A key to the reading
for those who wish to go deeper into the text.
a) The context in which Luke is writing:
* Luke is writing in about the year 85 for the Greek community of Asia Minor, who were living in difficult circumstances, due to factors both external and internal. Internally, there were divergent tendencies that made life together difficult: ex-Pharisees who wanted to impose the law of Moses (Acts 15:1); those who followed John the Baptist more and who had not even heard of the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6); Jews who used the name of Jesus to drive out demons (Acts 19:13); and those who said they were followers of Peter, others of Paul, others of Apollo, and others of Christ (1Cor 1:12). Externally, persecution by the Roma Empire was growing (Rev 1:9-10; 2:3, 10, 13; 6:9-10; 12:16) plus the insidious infiltration of the dominant ideology of the Empire and of the official religion, much the same way communism today infiltrates all aspects of our life (Rev 2:14, 20; 13:14-16).
* Luke is writing to these communities that he may give them a sure direction in the midst of their difficulties and so that they may find the strength and light in living out their faith in Jesus. Luke writes a two volume work: the Gospel and Acts, and he has the same general aim, "to learn how well founded the teaching is that you have received" (Lk 1:4). One of his specific aims is to show, through the beautiful story of the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, how the community ought to read and interpret the Bible. In reality, those walking the streets of Emmaus were the communities (and all of us). Each of us is and all of us together are companions of Cleophas (Lk 24:18). With him we walk the streets of life, seeking a word of support and of guidance in the Word of God.
* The way Luke narrates the meeting of Jesus with the disciples on the way to Emmaus, tells us how the communities of his time used the Bible and practiced what we today call Lectio Divina or Prayerful Reading of the Bible. They used three steps in interpreting the Bible:
b) The steps or aspects used in the process of interpreting the Scriptures:
First step: Start from facts (Lk 24:13-24):
Jesus meets the two friends who are experiencing feelings of fear and dispersion, of lack of trust and dismay. They were fleeing. The force of death, the cross, had killed in them all hope. Jesus approaches them and walks with them. He listens to their conversation and says: "What matters are you discussing as you walk along?" The prevailing ideology prevents them from understanding and having a critical conscience. "Our own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free, but…" (Lk 24:21). What do those who suffer talk about today? What matters today put our faith in a state of crisis?
The first step is this: to approach people, listen to reality, problems; be capable of asking questions that help to look at reality more critically.
Second step: Make use of the Bible (Lk 24:25-27)
Jesus uses the Bible, not in order to give lessons on the Bible, but to shed light on the problem worrying the two friends, and thus shed light on the situation they were experiencing. With the help of the Bible, Jesus leads the two disciples into God’s plan and shows them that God has not allowed history to go astray. Jesus does not use the Bible as an expert who knows everything, but as a companion who wishes to help his friends to remember things they had forgotten, namely, Moses and the Prophets. Jesus does not give his friends the feeling of being ignorant, but seeks to create an ambient within which they can remember and thus arouse their memory.
The second step is this: with the help of the Bible, to shed light on the situation and transform the cross, symbol of death, into a symbol of life and of hope. In this manner, that which prevents us from seeing, becomes light and strength along our way.
Third step: Celebrating and sharing in community (Lk 24,28-32)
The Bible alone does not open their eyes but makes their hearts burn! (Lk 24:32). What opens the eyes of the friends and allows them to discover the presence of Jesus is the sharing of the bread, the communitarian gesture, the celebration. As soon as they recognize Jesus, He disappears. And they then experience the resurrection, they are reborn and walk on their own. Jesus does not take over His friends’ journey. He is not paternalistic. Now that they are risen, the disciples can walk on their own two feet.
The third step is this: we must know how to create a prayerful and fraternal atmosphere where the Spirit is free to act. It is the Spirit who allows us to discover and experience the Word of God in our lives and leads us to understand the meaning of Jesus’ words (Jn 14:26; 16:13). It is especially at this point of the celebration that the practice of basic ecclesial communities, sustained by the margins of the world, help us religious once more to come across and drink from the ancient well of Tradition.
Aim: To rise and go towards Jerusalem (Lk 24:33-35)
Everything has changed in the two disciples. They themselves rise, regain courage and go back to Jerusalem, where the forces of death that killed Jesus are still at work, but where also there are the forces of life in the sharing of the experience of the resurrection. Courage in place of fear. Return in place of flight. Faith in place of its absence. Hope in place of despair. A critical conscience in place of fatalism before power. Freedom in place of oppression. In a word, life in place of death! And in place of the news of the death of Jesus, the Good News of his Resurrection!
This is the aim of reading the Bible: to experience the presence of Jesus and of His Spirit in our midst. It is the Spirit who opens our eyes to the Bible and to reality and draws us to share the experience of the Resurrection, as it is true even to this day, in community meetings.
c) The new way of Jesus: a prayerful reading of the Bible:
* Often, it is not possible to understand whether the use of the OT in the Gospels comes from Jesus or an explanation given by early Christians who sought to express their faith in Jesus in this way. However, what cannot be denied is the frequent and constant use of the Bible by Jesus. A simple reading of the Gospels shows us that Jesus found His bearings in the Scriptures in the performance of His mission and in instructing His disciples and the crowd.
* At the root of Jesus’ reading of the Bible is his experience of God as Father. His intimate relationship with the Father gives Jesus a new criterion, which places Him in direct contact with the author of the Bible. Jesus looks for meaning at the very source. He does not go from the writings to their root, but from the root to the writings. The comparison of the photo, as described in the Lectio Divina of Easter Sunday, helps us to shed light on this topic. As by a miracle, the photo of the harsh face was lit up and acquired traits of great tenderness. The words, born of the lived experience of the son, transformed everything, without changing anything (see Lectio Divina for Easter Sunday).
* Thus, looking through the photos of the Old Testament, people in the time of Jesus, formed an idea of a very distant God, harsh, difficult to contact, whose name could not even be mouthed. But Jesus’ words and actions, born of His experience as Son, without changing even one word (Mt 5:18-19), transformed the whole meaning of the Old Testament. The God who seemed to be so distant and harsh acquires the features of a Father full of tenderness, always present, ready to welcome and liberate! This Good News of God, communicated by Jesus, is the new key to a re-reading of the whole of the Old Testament. The New Testament is a re-reading of the Old Testament done in the light of the new experience of God, revealed by Jesus. This different way of shedding light on life in the light of the Word of God, creates many conflicts for Him, because it renders the small of this world critical, while it makes the great uncomfortable.
* When interpreting the Bible to the people, Jesus revealed the traits of God’s face, the experience that He experienced of God as Father. To reveal God as Father was the source and aim of the Good News of Jesus. By His attitude, Jesus manifests God’s love for His disciples. He reveals the Father and incarnates His love! Jesus was able to say, "To have seen Me is to have seen the Father" (Jn 14:9). Hence, the Father’s Spirit was also with Jesus (Lk 4:18) and went with Him everywhere, from the incarnation (Lk 1:35) to the beginning of his mission (Lk 4:14), even to the end, his death and resurrection (Acts 1:8).
* Jesus, interpreter, educator and master, was a meaningful person in the life of His disciples. He influenced their lives forever. To interpret the Bible does not mean just to teach truth for the other to live by. The content that Jesus wished to convey was not limited to words, but included actions and His way of relating to people. The content is never separate from the person who communicates it. The goodness and love that emerge from His words are part of the content. They are His nature. Good content without goodness is like spilt milk.
6. Psalm 23 (22)
God is our inheritance forever
The Lord is my Shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters;
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil;
for Thou art with me;
Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life;
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
7. Final Prayer
Lord Jesus, we thank You for the word that has enabled us to understand better the will of the Father. May Your Spirit enlighten our actions and grant us the strength to practice what Your Word has revealed to us. May we, like Mary, Your mother, not only listen to but also practice the Word. You who live and reign with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit forever and ever. Amen.
Easter Time
1) Opening prayer
Lord our God, Father of all,
you sent your Son Jesus Christ among us
to reveal to us that you care about people
and that your love extends to all,
without any distinction of race or culture.
Give us a great respect for all people,
whatever way they come,
and let your Church embrace all cultures,
that Jesus may truly be
the Lord and Shepherd of all,
now and for ever.
2) Gospel Reading - John 10:11-18
I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd and the sheep do not belong to him, abandons the sheep as soon as he sees a wolf coming, and runs away, and then the wolf attacks and scatters the sheep; he runs away because he is only a hired man and has no concern for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd; I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for my sheep. And there are other sheep I have that are not of this fold, and I must lead these too. They too will listen to my voice, and there will be only one flock, one shepherd.
The Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me; I lay it down of my own free will, and as I have power to lay it down, so I have power to take it up again; and this is the command I have received from my Father.
3) Reflection
• The Gospel today presents the parable of the Good Shepherd. It is the continuation of the Gospel which we read yesterday (Sunday). It is difficult to understand the first part without the second. This is why we prefer to comment briefly on both (Jn 10: 1-18). The discourse on the Good Shepherd presents three comparisons linked among themselves:
1st comparison: Jesus speaks of the shepherd and of the thieves (Jn 10:1-5)
2nd comparison: Jesus is the door of the sheep (Jn 10: 6-10)
3rd comparison: Jesus is the Good Shepherd (Jn 10:11-18)
• John 10: 1-5: 1st comparison: to enter by the door and not by somewhere else. Jesus begins the discourse with the comparison of the door: “Anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate is a thief and a bandit! He who enters through the gate is the shepherd of the flock!” At that time, the shepherds took care of the flock the whole day. When night arrived they lead the sheep to a great community sheepfold, which was well protected against thieves and wolves. All the shepherds of the same region took their flocks there. A gatekeeper took care of them the whole night. The following day, early in the morning, the shepherd would go there, knocked with his hands on the gate and the gatekeeper would open. The shepherd would go in and call the sheep by name. The sheep recognized the voice of their shepherd would get up and go out following him to go to the pasture. The sheep of the other shepherds heard the voice, but would not move, because for them it was an unknown voice. From time to time, there was the danger of being attacked. The bandits would enter by a side path or jumped over the wall of the sheepfold, made of one rock on top of the other, in order to rob the sheep. They did not enter by the gate because the gatekeeper was there.
• John 10: 6-10: 2nd comparison: Jesus is the door. The audience, the Pharisees (Jn 9: 40-41), did not understand what it meant “to go in through the door”. Jesus then explained: “I am the gate of the sheepfold. All who have come before me are thieves and bandits”. Of whom is Jesus speaking in this phrase which is so hard? Probably, he was referring to the religious leaders who drew the people behind them but they did not respond to their expectations. They were not interested in the good of the people, but only in their own interest and in filling their pockets. They deceived the people and abandoned them to a worse situation. To enter through the gate is to act as Jesus acted. The fundamental criterion to discern who is shepherd and who is a thief is the defence of the life of the sheep. Jesus asks the people not to follow the persons who present themselves as shepherds, but who have no interest for the life of the people. “I have come in order that they have life and life in abundance!” This is the criterion!
• John 10: 11-15: 3rd comparison: Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Jesus changes the comparison. First he was the door of the flock. Now he is the Shepherd of the sheep. Everyone knew what a shepherd was and how he lived and worked. But Jesus is not just any shepherd but, he is the Good Shepherd! The image of the Good Shepherd comes from the Old Testament. Saying that he is the Good Shepherd, Jesus presents himself as the one who comes to fulfil the promises of the prophets and the expectations of the people; for example the beautiful prophecy of Ezekiel (Ex 34: 11-16). There are two points on which Jesus insists: (a) in the defence of the life of the sheep: the Good Shepherd gives his life for the life of the sheep. (b) In the mutual knowledge between the shepherd and the sheep: The shepherd knows his sheep and the sheep know the shepherd. Jesus says that the people have a particular perception and know who the Good Shepherd is. This was what the Pharisees did not accept. They despised or rejected the sheep and said they were damned and ignorant (Jn 7: 49; 9, 34). They thought they had the right and apt view to discern the things of God. In reality they were blind. The discourse on the Good Shepherd teaches two rules to cure this type of blindness, which is quite frequent: (i) to pay special attention to the reaction of the sheep, because they know the voice of the shepherd. (ii) To be very attentive to the attitude of the one who calls himself the shepherd to see if his interest is the life of the sheep, or not, and if he is capable to give his life for the life of the sheep.
• John 10: 16-18: The goal which Jesus wants to attain: one only flock and one only Shepherd. Jesus opens the horizon and says that he has other sheep that do not belong to this flock. They have not as yet heard the voice of Jesus, but when they will hear it, they will become aware that he is the shepherd and will follow him. This is the Ecumenical universal dimension.
4) Personal questions
• Shepherd – Pastoral. Does the Pastoral ministry in my Parish imitate the mission of Jesus as shepherd? And in my pastoral ministry which is my attitude? Am I a shepherd as Jesus?
• Have you had the experience of having been deceived by a false shepherd? How did you succeed in overcoming this?
5) Concluding Prayer
As a deer yearns for running streams,
so I yearn for you, my God.
I thirst for God, the living God;
when shall I go to see the face of God? (Ps 42:1-2)
Luke 23:50-56
The light of the Bridegroom, shines beyond the night
1. Prayer
Lord, on this day, there is only emptiness and solitude, absence and silence: a tomb, a lifeless body, and the dark of the night.
You are no longer visible, no word, no breathing. You are observing the Sabbath, in total rest. Where will I find You, now that I have lost You?
I will follow the women, I too will sit down together with them, in silence, to make ready the fragrances of love. From my heart, Lord, I will take the most delicate fragrances, the most precious, just as the woman did, when in her love she broke the alabaster jar and spread its perfume all around.
And I will call the Spirit, with the words of the bride, I will say again, “Awake, north wind, come, wind of the south! Breathe over my garden” (Song 4:16)
2. Reading
From the Gospel according to Luke (23:50-56)
Now there was a virtuous and righteous man named Joseph who, though he was a member of the council, had not consented to their plan of action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea and was awaiting the kingdom of God. He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. After he had taken the body down, he wrapped it in a linen cloth and laid him in a rock-hewn tomb in which no one had yet been buried. It was the day of preparation, and the sabbath was about to begin. The women who had come from Galilee with him followed behind, and when they had seen the tomb and the way in which his body was laid in it, they returned and prepared spices and perfumed oils. Then they rested on the sabbath according to the commandment.
3. Meditation
“Now”, a very simple expression, full of life and truth, marking the existing of a cry that breaks through the indifference, shakes us from our paralysis, and breaks through the veil. It stands in opposition to and as an escape from the great distance taken by the disciples of Jesus throughout His passion. Peter followed Him from afar (Lk 22:54); all those who knew Him and the women who had followed Him, looked on from a distance (Lk 23:49), but Joseph of Arimathea, steps forward, introduces himself to Pilate and asks for Jesus’ body. He is there, not listed among the absent, he is near, not standing at a distance, and he will never leave.
”It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning”. This gospel is situated in that moment that divides the dark of the night from the light of the new day. The Greek verb used by Luke seems to describe clearly the movement of this holy Saturday, that little by little emerges from the darkness and rises and grows beyond the light. In this resurrection movement we too are caught up, as we approach this scripture in faith. But, we have to choose, to remain in death, in the preparation, that is only preparation and not fulfillment, or accept to enter the movement in order to rise in the light. As the Lord says, “Awake, you who sleep, rise from the dead and Christ will shine on you” (Ep 5:14) using the same verb.
“who had come with Him from Galilee, followed”, These words are very beautiful, referring to the movement of the women, because they help us capture all the intensity of their participation in what was happening to Jesus. Indeed, Luke uses certain nuances, for example, using a form of the verb “to follow” that suggests greater intensity. The reference to “with Him” has the same effect. They went together, decisively, urged on by their love. Their journey, which began in Galilee, continues, even through death, and absence. Perhaps they feel that they are not alone and they begin to proclaim that He is present.
“and they saw the tomb”, It is wonderful to note that in the eyes of these women there is a light that is more powerful than the night! They can see beyond, they observe, they take note and they look intently and with real interest: in one word, they contemplate. The eyes of the heart open out to the reality of what is happening. As the gaze of Jesus reaches them, they bear within them His image, the face of that love that has visited and illumined their whole existence. Not even the drama of death and physical separation could extinguish the Sun that never sets, even though it is night.
“Then they returned”, As well as that, they still have the internal strength to make decisions, to do things, to set out once more on the way. They turn their backs on death, on absence, and they go home, like the victorious warrior. They carry no trophies, but in their hearts they bear a certainty, the courage of an ardent love.
“and prepared spices and ointments”. This was the task of the priests, as the Scriptures tell us (I Cr 9:30); it is a sacred duty, almost liturgical, almost like a prayer. The women of the Gospel, in fact, pray and succeed in transforming the night of death into a place of blessing, hope, loving and attentive care. No glance, no movement or gesture is without meaning for them. They prepare, or more precisely, as we see from the meaning of the corresponding Hebrew verb, they compose the perfumed aromas using all their wisdom to mix the necessary ingredients, in the right measure and proportion: a wholly feminine art, wholly maternal, born from within, from the womb, a privileged place of love. Holy Saturday, indeed, is like a womb that embraces life: an embrace that protects and nurtures the new creature that is about to be born.
“On the sabbath they rested”, What rest are we really talking about? What cessation, what suspension is coming about in the lives of these women in the depth of their hearts? The verb that Luke uses clearly suggests “silence”, a silence that turns into the main actor in this Sabbath, a Holy Saturday of waiting. There are no more words to be said, no declarations, no debate: all the world is silent, as the wind of the Holy Spirit blows (cf. Job 38:17) and the fragrance spreads. One song returns to the heart, in the night, (Ps 76:7): it is a song of love, repeated by the women, and with them, Joseph, and everyone, who like him, is not bound by the decisions and the actions of others (v.5) in this world. The words are the words that the Bride in the Song of Songs repeats, the last words, kept in reserve for the Beloved, when, right at the end of the book, she says: “Make haste, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or a young stag upon the mountains of spices”. (Song 8:14). This is the cry of the resurrection, the song of victory over death.
4. Questions for Reflection
Do I stand, perhaps, at a distance, not wanting to come any closer to Jesus, not wanting to look for Him, not wanting to wait for Him?
Would I be able to follow the women, and walk into the night, into death, into the emptiness?
Are my eyes open to see the place of the burial, the stone that hides the Lord Jesus? Can I experience contemplation, that is, can I see in some depth, beyond the surface? Do I believe in the presence of the Lord, stronger than the tomb and the rock?
Am I willing to go back, along with the women? That is, to go through a journey of conversion, change?
Is there space in me for silence, for the attention of the heart, for openness to God?
Do I feel arising within me the desire to proclaim the resurrection, the new life in Christ, all around me? Am I too, at least somewhat, like the women of the Gospel, who repeat the invitation of the Bridegroom, “Rise!”
5. Closing Prayer
Lord, for You the night is as clear as the day!
Song of Trust and Security in God
Protect me, O God, for in You I take refuge.
I say to the Lord, ‘You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from You.’
The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
You hold my lot.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
I have a goodly heritage.
I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
I keep the Lord always before me;
because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices;
my body also rests secure.
For You do not give me up to Sheol,
or let Your faithful one see the Pit.
You show me the path of life.
In Your presence there is fullness of joy;
in Your right hand are pleasures for evermore.
from Psalm 16
1) Opening prayer
Father,
guide us, as You guide creation
according to Your law of love.
May we love one another
and come to perfection
in the eternal life prepared for us.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
2) Gospel Reading - Luke 8:19-21
The mother of Jesus and his brothers came to him but were unable to join him because of the crowd. He was told, "Your mother and your brothers are standing outside and they wish to see you." He said to them in reply, "My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it."
3) Reflection
• The Gospel today presents the episode in which the relatives of Jesus and His mother want to speak with Him, but Jesus does not pay attention to them. Jesus had problems with His family. Sometimes the family helps one to live the Gospel and to participate in the community. Other times, the family prevents this. This is what happened to Jesus and this is what happens to us.
• Luke 8:19-20: The family looks for Jesus. The relatives reach the house where Jesus was staying.They had probably come from Nazareth. From there to Capernaum the distance is about 40 kilometers. His mother was with them. They probably did not enter because there were many people, but they sent somebody to tell Him: “Your mother and Your brothers are outside and want to see You”. According to the Gospel of Mark, the relatives do not want to see Jesus, they want to take Him back home (Mk 3:32). They thought that Jesus had lost His head (Mk 3:21). They were afraid, because according to what history says, the Romans watched very closely all that He did, in one way or other, with the people (cf. Ac 5:36-39). In Nazareth, up on the mountains He would have been safer than in Capernaum.
• Luke 8:21: The response of Jesus. The reaction of Jesus is clear: “My mother and My brothers are those who listen to the Word of God and put it into practice”. In Mark the reaction of Jesus is more concrete. Mark says: Looking around at those who were sitting there He said: “Look, My mother and My brothers! Anyone who does the will of God, he is My brother, sister and mother (Mk 3:34-35). Jesus extends His family! He does not permit the family to draw Him away from the mission: neither the family (Jn 7:3-6), nor Peter (Mk 8:33), nor the disciples (Mk 1:36-38), nor Herod (Lk 13:32), nor anybody else (Jn 10:18).
• It is the Word of God which creates a new family around Jesus: “My mother and My brothers are those who listen to the Word of God, and put it into practice.” A good commentary on this episode is what the Gospel of John says in the Prologue: “He was in the world that had come into being through Him and the world did not recognize Him. He came to His own and His own people did not accept Him”. But to those who did accept Him He gave them power to become children of God: to those who believed in His name, who were born not from human stock or human desire, or human will, but from God Himself. And the Word became flesh, He lived among us; and we saw His glory, the glory that He has from the Father as only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth. (Jn 1:10-14). The family, the relatives, do not understand Jesus (Jn 7:3-5; Mk 3:21), they do not form part of the new family. Only those who receive the Word, that is, who believe in Jesus, form part of the new family. These are born of God and form part of God’s Family.
• The situation of the family at the time of Jesus. In the time of Jesus, the political social and economic moment or the religious ideology, everything conspired in favor of weakening the central values of the clan, of the community. The concern for the problems of the family prevented persons from being united in the community. Rather, in order that the Kingdom of God could manifest itself anew, in the community life of the people, persons had to go beyond, to pass the narrow limits of the small family and open themselves to the large family, toward the community. Jesus gives the example. When His own family tried to take hold of Him, Jesus reacted and extended the family (Mk 3:33-35). He created the community.
• The brothers and the sisters of Jesus. The expression “brothers and sisters of Jesus” causes much polemics among Catholics and Protestants. Basing themselves on this and on other texts, the Protestants say that Jesus had more brothers and sisters and that Mary had more sons! The Catholics say that Mary did not have other sons. What should we think about this? In the first place, both positions: that of the Catholics as well as that of the Protestants, start from the arguments drawn from the bible and from the traditions of their respective Churches. Because of this, it is not convenient to discuss on this question with only intellectual arguments. Because here it is a question of the convictions that they have and which have to do with faith and sentiments. The intellectual argument alone does not succeed in changing a conviction of the heart! Rather, it irritates and draws away! And even if I do not agree with the opinion of the other person, I must respect it. In the second place, instead of discussing texts, both we Catholics, and the Protestants, should unite together to fight in defense of life, created by God, a life totally disfigured by poverty, injustice, by the lack of faith. We should recall some phrase of Jesus: “I have come so that they may have life and life in abundance” (Jn 10:10). “So that all may be one so that the world will believe that it was You who sent Me” (Jn 17:21). “Do not prevent them! Anyone who is not against us is for us” (Mk 9:39.40).
4) Personal questions
• Does your family help or make it difficult for you to participate in the Christian community?
• How do you assume your commitment in the Christian community without prejudice for the family or for the community?
5) Concluding Prayer
Teach me, Yahweh, the way of Your will,
and I will observe it.
Give me understanding and I will observe Your Law,
and keep it wholeheartedly. (Ps 119:33-34)
1) Opening prayer
Almighty God,
our creator and guide,
may we serve You with all our hearts
and know Your forgiveness in our lives.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
2) Gospel Reading - Luke 7:31-35
Jesus said to the crowds: “To what shall I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are like children who sit in the marketplace and call to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, but you did not dance. We sang a dirge, but you did not weep.’ For John the Baptist came neither eating food nor drinking wine, and you said, ‘He is possessed by a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking and you said, ‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”
3) Reflection
• In today’s Gospel we see the originality of the Good News which opens the way for people who are attached to ancient forms of faith who feel lost and do not understand anything more of God’s action. In order to hide their lack of openness and of understanding they defend and seek childish pretexts to justify their attitude of lack of acceptance. Jesus reacts with a parable to denounce the confusion of His enemies: “You are similar to children who do not know what they want”.
• Luke 7:31: To whom, then, shall I compare you? Jesus is struck by the reaction of the people and say: “What comparison, then, can I find for the people of this generation? What are they like?” When something is evident and the persons, out of ignorance or because of bad will, do not perceive things and do not want to perceive them, it is good to find an evident comparison which will reveal their incoherence and the ill will. And Jesus is a Master in finding comparisons which speak for themselves.
• Luke 7:32: Like children without judgment. The comparison which Jesus finds is this one. You are like “those children, shouting to one another while they sit in the market place: we played the pipes for you, and you would not dance; we sang dirges and you would not cry!” Spoiled children, all over the world, have the same reaction. They complain when others do not do and act as they say. The reason for Jesus’ complaint is the arbitrary way with which people in the past reacted before John the Baptist and how they react now before Jesus.
• Luke 7:33-34: Their opinion on John and on Jesus. “For John the Baptist has come, not eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say: he is possessed. The Son of man has come eating and drinking, and you say: look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners”. Jesus was a disciple of John the Baptist; He believed in him and was baptized by him. On the occasion of this Baptism in the Jordan, He had the revelation of the Father regarding His mission as Messiah-Servant (Mk 1:10). At the same time, Jesus stressed the difference between Him and John. John was more severe, more ascetical, did not eat nor drink. He remained in the desert and threatened the people with the punishment of the Last Judgment (Lk 3:7-9). Because of this, people said that he was possessed. Jesus was more welcoming; He ate and drank like everybody else. He went through the towns and entered the houses of the people; He accepted the tax collectors and the prostitutes. This is why they said that He was a glutton and a drunkard. Even considering His words regarding “the men of this generation” (Lk 7:31), in a general way, probably, Jesus had in mind the opinion of the religious authority who did not believe in Jesus (Mk 11:29-33).
• Luke 7:35: The obvious conclusion to which Jesus arrives. And Jesus ends drawing this conclusion: “Yet, wisdom is justified by all her children”. The lack of seriousness and of coherence is clearly seen in the opinion given on Jesus and on John. The bad will is so evident that it needs no proof. That recalls the response of Job to his friends who believe that they are wise: “Will no one teach you to be quiet! - the only wisdom that becomes you!” (Job 13:5).
4) Personal questions
• When I express my opinion on others, am I like the Pharisees and the scribes who gave their opinion on Jesus and John? They expressed only their preconceptions and said nothing on the persons whom they judged.
• Do you know any groups in the Church who would merit the parable of Jesus?
5) Concluding Prayer
How blessed the nation whose God is Yahweh,
the people He has chosen as His heritage.
From heaven Yahweh looks down,
He sees all the children of Adam. (Ps 33,12-13)
1) Opening prayer
Almighty God,
our creator and guide,
may we serve you with all our hearts
and know your forgiveness in our lives.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
2) Gospel Reading - Luke 7,11-17
It happened that soon afterwards Jesus went to a town called Nain, accompanied by his disciples and a great number of people.
Now when he was near the gate of the town there was a dead man being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a considerable number of the townspeople was with her.
When the Lord saw her he felt sorry for her and said to her, ‘Don’t cry.’ Then he went up and touched the bier and the bearers stood still, and he said, ‘Young man, I tell you: get up.’ And the dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him to his mother.
Everyone was filled with awe and glorified God saying, ‘A great prophet has risen up among us; God has visited his people.’ And this view of him spread throughout Judaea and all over the countryside.
3) Reflection
• Today’s Gospel presents the episode of the resurrection of the son of the widow of Nain. The literary context of this episode of the VII chapter of Luke helps one to understand. The Evangelist wants to show that Jesus opens the road, revealing the novelty of God which is presented to us in the announcement of the Good News. And in this way the transformation and openness take place: Jesus accepts the request of a foreigner, a non Jew (Lk 7, 1-10) and resurrects the son of a widow (Lk 7, 11-17). The way in which Jesus reveals the Kingdom surprises the Jewish brothers who were not accustomed to such great openness. Even John the Baptist is surprised and orders to go and ask: “Are you the one who is to come or are we to expect someone else?” (Lk 7, 18-30). Jesus denounces the incoherence of his patricians: “They are like children shouting to one another without knowing what they want!” (Lk 7, 31-35). And finally, there is the openness of Jesus toward women (7, 36-50).
• Luke 7, 11-12: The meeting of the two processions. “Jesus went to a town called Nain. His disciples and a great crowd were going with him. When he was close to the gate of the town, there was a dead man being carried out to the cemetery, the only son of his mother and she was a widow.” Luke is like a painter. With few words he succeeds to paint a very beautiful picture on the encounter of the two processions: the procession of death which is going out of the city and accompanies the widow who is taking her only son towards the cemetery; the procession of life which enters the city and accompanies Jesus. The two meet in the small square at the side of the gate of the town of Nain.
• Luke 7,13: Compassion begins to act here. “When the Lord saw her, he felt sorry for her and said to her: “Do not cry!” It is compassion which moves Jesus to speak and to act. Compassion signifies literally: “to suffer with”, to assume or make ours the suffering of the other person, identifying oneself with the person, feeling the pain, the suffering. It is compassion which puts into action the power of Jesus, the power of life over death, the creative power.
• Luke 7,14-15: “Young man, I tell you, get up!” Jesus gets near the bier and says: “Young men, I tell you, get up!” And the dead man sat up and began to talk; and Jesus gave him to his mother”. Sometimes, at the moment of a great sorrow caused by the death of a loved person, people say: “In Jesus’ time, when he walked on this earth there was hope not to lose a loved person because Jesus could resurrect her”. These persons consider the episode of the resurrection of the son of the widow of Nain as an event of the past which arouses nostalgia and also certain envy. The intention of the Gospel, instead, is not, that of arousing nostalgia or envy, but rather of helping us to experience better the living presence of Jesus in our midst. It is the same Jesus, who continues alive in our midst, capable of overcoming death and the sorrow of death. He is with us today, and in the face of the problems of sorrow which strike us, he tells us: “I tell you, get up!”
• Luke 7, 16-17: The repercussion. “Everyone was filled with awe and glorified God saying: ‘A great prophet has risen up among us; God has visited his people”. The fame of these events spread throughout Judaea and all over the countryside”. It is the prophet who was announced by Moses (Dt 18, 15). It is God who comes to visit us and the “Father of orphans and protector of the widows” (Ps 68, 6: Judith 9, 11).
4) Personal questions
• Compassion moves Jesus to resurrect the son of the widow. Does the suffering, the sorrow of others produce in me the same compassion? What do I do to help the others to overcome the sorrow and to create a new life?
• God visited his people. Do I perceive the many visits of God in my life and in the life of the people?
5) Concluding Prayer
Serve Yahweh with gladness,
come into his presence with songs of joy!
Be sure that Yahweh is God, he made us,
we belong to him, his people, the flock of his sheepfold. (Ps 100,2-3)
Introduction
The eternal and uncreated Word became human words to nourish us with his divine Life. Like a beautiful stained glass window, the words of the Bible let the Light of God shine through and illuminate us.
The Bible is like a sacrament; a visible sign of an invisible grace, it has a human aspect, the words and the divine life within it. The sacramental reality of the Bible tells us that through its words we are able:
1. to receive God himself
God is an uncreated being, which is beyond the grasp of our understanding. Through the human words of the Bible we are able to receive his divine life.
2. to understand his words through our senses and intellect
We use our senses, vision and hearing, to grasp the human cover of the words we read, and our intellect and will work together to gain the necessary understanding of a text.
3. to be nourished by his words in our hearts
The words of the Bible are carrying a divine life which nourishes primarily our heart or spirit. The words transcend our senses and intellect to reach this highest region of our being and transform it into God himself.
Without being aware of it, we may have a sterile attitude in the face of a text. The aim of the text is to transform us, however, we may remain at a level of reception that seems to nurture our intellect but does not lead to true conversion. The Word then does not attain its goal because of our distorted approach, we are no longer receiving a Sacrament but looking at a text. And, considering only the text, we are no longer in touch with the untreated incarnate Word, Jesus. Instead of listening, we stay on the level of a good explanation of the text or, even worse, that of simply projecting our own subjective feelings — i.e. our problems and desires — onto it. If Scripture is to nurture us, in both soul and spirit, we must be determined to let ourselves be disturbed, converted, jostled, and enlightened by what we read, instead of looking for what may comfort us.
There is a big difference between, on the one hand, "understanding" the Word of God and, on the other hand, "knowing" it. Understanding the Word leads to what Saint Paul said3: I know what I should do, but I do not do it; the Word is unable to incarnate itself in my acts and in my life.
Inversely, we can say we truly know the Word when, through an authentic and miraculous daily conversion, it really is incarnated in our lives. This is "miraculous" because it is an operation that touches the will and heals it. The will truly is ill in the sense that there exists a chasm between our intellect and our will, we know what we should do, but the will does not follow through. Saint Paul noted this when he said:
I do not do what I think is right.
When approaching the Bible, two levels must be distinguished:
1. the level of understanding
2. the level of listening
In order to understand a text, one must make use of all the tools the intellect has to offer, for example diverse methods of exegesis. However, this is far from a true Lectio Divina, we need to listen to what the Lord says to us through the text. The first step leads us to understand the meaning(s) of the text. In the second step, its task is to be the instrument of the One who wants to speak to me today and nurture me. The text is destined to become a Sacrament. The Untreated Word became flesh; it became a human word, not in the sense of being diminished or diluted, but in the sense that the Uncreated Word used the human word as a Sacrament to come to us and bond himself to us. We can analyze the material dimension of this sacrament (the literal, created human aspect of the text), but this will never give us God! It will give us an understanding of the text, a widening of the icon which constitutes its material dimension, but it will not give us the Untreated Light. Both levels need to be maintained simultaneously. The aim is not to submit to what is irrational but "sacramentalise" what is rational, to make it transparent so that the Uncreated Light may come through. Although we can make an excellent and bright analysis of a text, we are called to do something quite different. We have not yet gone into the process of simple Lectio Divina!
We can base all of Lectio Divina and its necessity on the words of the Lord: "apart from me you are not able to do anything" (Jn 15:5) and on the inner attitude of the Son of man described in Jn 5:19a-20: "Verily, verily, I say to you, The Son is not able to do anything of himself, if he does not see the Father doing it for whatever He does, these things the Son also does in a like manner; for the Father loves the Son, and shows him all that he himself is doing". These words are said in reference to the Son of man, and consequently they refer to all men. We must "see the Father doing"; Lectio Divina allows this. The essential point is for us to introduce all our conscious activity into this movement, to slowly submit it to God's influence and to his action. This is the very basis of Christian life and of Lectio Divina. If we do not do this, we are simply self-constructing our own personal being, our activities, our daily programme, our Christianity, and doing so in vain. We should meditate for a long time on the seriousness of Christ's words: "apart from me you are not able to do anything" (Jn 15:5). And, as a consequence: "I will show you my will each day and will give you what you need for putting it into practice". Anyone wanting to build Christian life or prayer life without these foundations is fooling himself, he is running away and straying.
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Jean Khoury
The primary impulse of Lectio Divina is to introduce us into a relationship of divine friendship with the Lord, to allow him to speak to us and to (progressively) tell us all things: "No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you" (Jn 15:15). Telling everything to another person truly is a sign of love. "(...) the Father loves the Son, and shows to him all what he himself is doing" (Jn 5:20a). lectio Divina is the eminent place where Christ-God will be able to speak to us, today, and tell us what he wants us to do. He will explain it to us: "and beginning from Moses, and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things about himself" (Lk 24:27).
It is impossible to assert that one should live by blind faith alone, opposing it to the understanding we get from the Word of God. Faith finds its sustenance in God's Word. If this Word is absent, faith becomes very meagre. Conversely, the Word of God, above all else, can fortify it. Faith is, firstly, the belief in a word that has been given. God speaks every day, he wants to speak to us: that is the basis of our faith. He will not say anything to us other than his Son, his Word, that he will give to us by little mouthfuls, in packages of light. We have a right, that of listening each day to the Lord who speaks to us and guides us. He wants his Word to remain in us; on this condition alone can we bear fruit that will remain for eternal life, "if you remain in me, and my words in you may remain, you may ask whatever you wish, and it shall be done to you. In this way my Father will be glorified, that you will bear much fruit, and you shall become my disciples" (Jn 15:7-8). We need to maintain a living and daily contact with the Word so that it may be active in our lives. People (and I am thinking particularly of those consecrated to God) who do not frequent the Word of God assiduously and on a daily basis let their faith and their dynamism die down, and easily slip away toward a human project and human thoughts. Their joy of living for God and of giving themselves to him, recedes before a lifestyle, which may be very active but where there is no place for God, it is without sap and without light. One's faith is directly proportional to one's contact with the Word of God. As the Psalm says: "Those who look to Yahweh, are radiant" (Ps 34:5). Looking to God means seeing His Face; now, His Face is His Son, the Son who speaks in the Scriptures; His Face can only be seen securely in the Scriptures. This is how the life of God shines forth. Listening to God implies becoming familiar with his way of thinking, getting used to thinking like him, seeing things as he does.
Memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi
1) Opening prayer
O God, by whose gift Saint Francis was conformed to Christ in poverty and humility, grant that, by walking in Francis' footsteps, we may follow your Son, and, through joyful charity, come to be united with you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
2) Gospel Reading - Matthew 11: 25-30
At that time Jesus exclaimed, 'I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do.
Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
'Come to me, all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.'
3) Reflection
• In the Gospel we will listen to the invitation of Jesus: “Learn from me for I am meek and humble of heart”. The Gospel shows the tenderness with which Jesus welcomes and accepts the little ones. He wanted the poor to find rest and peace in him.
• The context of chapters 11 and 12 of Matthew. In this context it is stressed and made evident that the poor are the only ones to understand and to accept the wisdom of the Kingdom. Many people did not understand this preference of Jesus for the poor and the excluded.
John the Baptist, who looked at Jesus with the eyes of the past had doubts (Mt 11: 1-15)
b) The people, who looked at Jesus with their own interests were not capable of understanding Him (Mt 11: 16-19).
c) The great cities around the lake which listened to Jesus’ preaching and saw the miracles did not want to open themselves to his message (Mt 11: 20-24).
d) The wise and the doctors who judged everything according to their own science were not capable of understanding the preaching of Jesus (Mt 11: 25).
e) Not even his relatives understood Him (Mt 12: 46-50).
f) Only the little ones understood Him and accepted the Good News of the Kingdom (Mt 11: 25-30).
g) The others want sacrifice, but Jesus wants mercy (Mt 12: 1-8).
h) The reaction against Jesus impels the Pharisees to want to kill Him (Mt 12: 9-14).
i) They said that Jesus was Beelzebul (Mt 12: 22-32).
j) But Jesus did not draw back. He continues to assume the mission of Servant, as described in the prophecies (Mt 12: 15-21). This is why He was persecuted and condemned to death.
• Matthew 11: 25-26: Only the little ones understand and accept the Good News of the Kingdom. Jesus addresses a prayer to the Father: “I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do!” The wise and the doctors of that time had created a series of laws which they imposed upon the people in the name of God. They thought that God demanded this observance from the people. But the law of love, brought by Jesus, said the contrary. What is important is not what we do for God, but rather what God, in his great love, does for us! People understood the words of Jesus and were filled with joy. The wise thought that Jesus was not right. They could not understand this teaching which modified the relationship of the people of God.
• Matthew 11: 27: The origin of the New Law: The Son knows the Father. Jesus, the Son, knows the Father. He knows what the Father wanted when, centuries before, He gave the Law to Moses. What the Father wants to tell us, He handed to Jesus, and Jesus revealed it to the little ones because they opened themselves up to his message. Today, also, Jesus continues to teach many things to the poor and to the little ones. The wise and the intelligent do well if they become pupils of the little ones!
• Matthew 11: 28-30: “Come to me all you who labor and are overburdened, and I will give you rest”. Jesus invites all those who are tired to find rest in him. These are the people who are tired under the weight of the impositions and the observances which the law of purity demanded. And He says: “Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart”. Many times this phrase has been manipulated to ask people to submit themselves, to be passive. What Jesus wants to say is the contrary. He asks people to leave aside the professors of religion of that time, to rest and to begin to learn from him, Jesus, who is “gentle and humble of heart”. Jesus does not do like the Scribes who pride themselves on their own science, but He is like the people who live humiliated and exploited. Jesus, the new teacher, knows from experience what happens in the heart of the people and how much the people suffer.
• The invitation of divine wisdom to all those who seek it. Jesus invites all those who are oppressed under the weight of the observance of the law to find rest in him, because He is gentle and humble of heart, capable of relieving and consoling the people who suffer, who feel tired and depressed (Mt 11: 25-30). In this invitation resounds the beautiful words of Isaiah who consoled the people who lived in exile (Is 55: 1-3). This invitation is bound to divine wisdom, which invites persons to the encounter with her (Ws 24: 19), saying: “her ways are filled with delight; her paths all lead to contentment” (Pr 3: 17). And he adds: “Wisdom brings up her own children and cares for those who seek her. Whoever loves her, loves life, those who seek her early will be filled with joy” (Si 4: 11-12). This invitation reveals a very important characteristic of the feminine face of God: tenderness and acceptance which consoles and gives life to people and leads them to feel well. Jesus is the protection and the maternal womb which the Father offers to people who are tired (cfr. Is 66: 10-13).
4) Personal questions
• What produces tension in you and what gives you peace? For you, to live in community, is it a source of tension or of peace?
• How can these words of Jesus help our community to be a place of rest for our life?
5) Concluding Prayer
Yahweh is tenderness and pity,
slow to anger and rich in faithful love;
his indignation does not last for ever,
nor his resentment remain for all time. (Ps 103: 8-9)
Attentive to the events.
Jesus teaches to read the signs of the times
Luke 12, 49-59
Opening prayer
Shaddai, God of the mountain,
You who make of our fragile life
the rock of Your dwelling place,
lead our mind
to strike the rock of the desert,
so that water may gush to quench our thirst.
May the poverty of our feelings
cover us as with a mantle in the darkness of the night
and may it open our heart to hear the echo of silence
until the dawn,
wrapping us with the light of the new morning,
may bring us,
with the spent embers of the fire of the shepherds of the Absolute
who have kept vigil for us close to the divine Master,
the flavor of the holy memory.
1. LECTIO
a) The text:
Jesus said to his disciples: "I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law." He also said to the crowds, "When you see (a) cloud rising in the west you say immediately that it is going to rain - and so it does; and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south you say that it is going to be hot - and so it is. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky; why do you not know how to interpret the present time? "Why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? If you are to go with your opponent before a magistrate, make an effort to settle the matter on the way; otherwise your opponent will turn you over to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the constable, and the constable throw you into prison. I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny."
b) A moment of silence:
Let us allow the voice of the Word to resonate within us.
2. MEDITATIO
a) Some questions:
- I have come to bring fire to the earth: Fire presupposes a vehemence of sentiment and a center of life because where there is light, heat, force, movement, there is life, and not a life which is stagnant, but a life which is continuously nourished. Does the fire of the life of God burn in me?
- Why not judge for yourselves what is upright? The invitation to discern personally is even more urgent in a world in which opinions run after each other and form a “mass”… How much do I allow myself to be conditioned by the judgments and criteria chosen by others?
- Make an effort to settle with him on the way… You are walking to go to the tribunal because you think you are right, but the opponent also has the same certainty. How do I feel before the one who I feel is hostile toward me? Do I feel sure of myself to the point of going to the tribunal or rather do I try to agree with my opponent on the way?
b) Detailed Analysis of the Text:
v. 49. I have come to bring fire to the earth; and how I wish it were blazing already! The fire which is not extinguished comes from Heaven, it is the fire of the Spirit which makes of all things that exist, the luminous and warm expression of the divine Presence among us. The Baptism of love. The light is born, the bread is born, the water is born, God is born! The cross, a new Bethlehem, house of the perfect bread, a new Emmaus, the hostel of the broken bread, a new Bethany, house of the perfumed bread offered to men forever.
v. 50. There is a baptism I must still receive; and what constraint I am under until it is completed! Anguish, the symptom of those fears which from within get hold of one and disfigure, distort and leave without breath, Jesus also experienced this. What can one do against anguish? Nothing can be done but only wait so that what is good is fulfilled and that the fears be involved in the event itself. Anguish clasps tightly and can demolish every possibility of interior movement. The anguish of the one who trusts and accepts life, even if it clasps the person tightly in a terrible vice like grip, does not demolish, but rather fortifies in so far as it renders the waiting free or devoid of illusions and of easy hopes.
v, 51. Do you suppose that I am here to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. Man seeks peace. But what peace? The peace of “do not disturb me”, the peace of “let us not make problems”, the peace of “everything is fine”, a superficial peace. This peace is the earthly peace. Jesus has come to bring us the true peace, the fullness of the gifts of God. This peace then, is no longer called peace, but in so far as it is against the apparent peace, it is called, in the eyes of man “division”. It can well be said that the peace of Christ elects or chooses and in so far as it elects, it distinguishes, like a magnet which with its magnetic field attracts to itself what is of the same “nature”, but it does not attract anything which is not of a similar nature.
vv. 52-53. For from now on, a household of five will be divided: three against two and two against three; father opposed to son, son to father, mother to daughter, daughter to mother, mother-in-law to daughter-in-law, daughter-in-law to mother-in-law. Everything which divides does not come from God, because in God there is unity. But, in His name it is possible to go beyond the natural commandment. Honor your father and mother, says the ancient law, and the new law, which is that of love without limit, even says: He who loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. Division in this case can be understood as the priority of love, a hierarchy of values. To God, the source of life corresponds to the first place. To the father and the mother who have accepted, welcomed life, goes the second place… Such an order is in the logical nature of that order. It is not an honor to the father and the mother to disobey God or to love Christ less, because the love for father and mother is a love of response, the love of God is generating love.
vv. 54-55. He said again to the crowds, “When you see a cloud looming up in the west you say at once that rain is coming, and so it does. When the wind is from the south you say it is going to be hot, and it is. Before reproaching the crowds, Jesus appreciates the good that they are capable of doing. If a cloud comes from the west, it is rain that comes. Man has this certainty as a result that he has been observing the natural phenomena up to the point of formulating laws. If the wind comes from the south, it will be hot. Confirmed and reflected upon, it regulates the consequences for us.
v. 56. Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the face of the earth and the sky. How is it you do not know how to interpret these times? Why not use the same criteria for the events of the present moment? History speaks for itself. Why not evaluate it on the basis of experience? The logic which binds premises and consequences is the same one on human events and on supernatural ones. The world of relationships, the world of religious convictions, the world of human expectations… everything is subject to the same law. Then, if Christ has been expected for centuries as the fulfillment of the promises of God, and if this Jesus of Nazareth fulfills the works of faith with the finger of God, why doubt that the Kingdom of God has arrived? This is hypocrisy. It is not to want to admit God’s fidelity and to insist and persist in waiting for the fulfillment of what we have seen.
v. 57. Why not judge for yourselves what is upright? What is upright can always be judged. It does not serve to wait for the judgment of others, and just the same, we are always bound to the thought, and the words, of others, to what happens and to what is projected, to perspectives of success and to thousands of hesitations. To trust one’s correct judgment is wise!
v. 58. When you are going to court with your opponent, make an effort to settle with him on the way, or he may drag you before the judge and the judge hand you over to the officer and the officer have you thrown into prison. The wisdom and the judgment of Jesus are directed toward something truly useful. Do not expect to receive justice, because no one is just to the point of being able to avoid being condemned to prison. We are all sinners! Therefore, instead of appealing to a false justice, that for which you consider yourself worthy to be absolved, it is better to appeal to harmony. Try to reach an agreement so as not to be led before the judge. You judge the facts and conclude that it is always better not to feel oneself free from guilt. Saint Paul says it: Neither do I judge myself… my judge is the Lord.
v. 59. I tell you, you will not get out till you have paid the very last penny. Who has no debts? Why do we want to live our life in a court to constantly decide who is guilty and who is innocent? Would it not be better to live simply, in agreement and harmony with everyone, since all seek to want what is good and all have fragility and weakness as the coin with which to pay?
c) Reflection:
If we too could bring fire to the earth of our heart! A fire capable of extending itself without causing a great fire, but creating cordial bonds of union and a lively exchange… The one who plays with fire will certainly have his hands burnt, but what a great benefit for all. Fire divides, it creates circles of encounter and barriers of inaccessible passages. Like in all divine things we find ourselves in at a crossroads: with Christ or against Him. Yes, because we must never forget that He is a sign of contradiction for all times, a stumbling stone for those who look to the top expecting miracles and prodigies and a corner stone for the one who looks at His tired hands and grasps tightly the hands of a carpenter trying to construct the house of hope, the Church. A time of grace: How not recognize it? If you go by a lighted fire, you feel the heat. Christ is the lighted fire or flame! If you cross a torrent flowing with water, on a suffocating hot day of summer, you feel the freshness and feel attracted by the movement of the water which comes toward you to quench your thirst and to give you moments of relief. Christ is the water which gushes out for eternal life! If at night you listen to the silence, you cannot but feel anxious waiting for the light of the new day which will rise. Christ is the Sun who rises! It is the word which at night is silence and in the East it becomes a syllable of a new dialogue. Why not become aware that it is just that all hostility falls and walk with anyone recognizing him as a brother? If you consider him an enemy, you are going to seek justice… If you consider him as a brother, the thought comes to your mind to take care of him and to walk together on a part of the road, to share with him your anguishes and your anxieties, and to listen to him about his difficulties.
3. ORATIO
Psalm 32
How blessed are those whose offense is forgiven,
whose sin blotted out.
How blessed are those to whom Yahweh imputes no guilt,
whose spirit harbors no deceit.
I said not a word,
but my bones wasted away from groaning all the day;
day and night Your hand lay heavy upon me;
my heart grew parched as stubble in summer drought.
I made my sin known to You,
did not conceal my guilt.
I said, "I shall confess my offense to Yahweh."
And You, for Your part,
took away my guilt,
forgave my sin.
That is why each of Your faithful ones
prays to You in time of distress.
Even if great floods overflow,
they will never reach Your faithful.
You are a refuge for me,
You guard me in trouble,
with songs of deliverance You surround me.
I shall instruct you
and teach you the way to go;
I shall not take my eyes off you.
Be not like a horse or a mule;
that does not understand bridle or bit;
if you advance to master them,
there is no means of bringing them near.
Countless troubles are in store for the wicked,
but one who trusts in Yahweh
is enfolded in His faithful love.
Rejoice in Yahweh,
exult all you upright,
shout for joy,
you honest of heart.
4. CONTEMPLATIO
Lord, You who search into my heart and make of my fears the paths to create the newness of gifts, enter into my anguish. There where I lose my hope and where the tremor devours me, there where every spark of grace burns my securities and makes of me a pile of ashes, there enkindle anew the fire of Your love. Give a look or gaze capable of penetrating reality and of fixing it on Your gaze which waits for me beyond the veil of all appearances. Do not allow that I be driven away from my desire of communion. And also there where in Your name I would find opposition, resistance, adversity, may be able to enter into the anguish of division to maintain alive the flame of the encounter with You!
he Raising of the Widow’s Only Son Jesus was moved with great compassion
Lk 7,11-17
1. OPENING PRAYER
O Holy Spirit, soul of my soul, I adore you. Enlighten me, guide me, strengthen me, console me, teach me always to do the will of the Father. Help me to know what you desire: I promise to submit to everything that you want from me and to accept all that you allow to happen to me.
Amen.
(Card. Désiré Mercier)
2. READING
a) A Key to the Reading
Today’s gospel gives us the story of the raising of the son of the widow of Nain. A look at the literary context of the 7th chapter of the Gospel of Luke will help us to understand this episode. The evangelist wishes to show that Jesus opens the way for us by showing us something of what is new about God as it comes to us in the proclamation of the Good News. This is how transformation and openness come about: Jesus listens to the prayer of a foreigner, a non-Jew (Lk 7:1-10) and raises the son of a widow (Lk 7:11-17) The way in which Jesus reveals the Reign of God comes as a surprise to the Jewish brethren who were not used to this kind of openness. It is a surprise also to John the Baptist who sends messengers to ask, Are you the one who is to come or are we to wait for another (Lk 7:18-30). Jesus mocks the fickleness of his contemporaries: They are like children sitting in the market-place and calling to one another,“We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.”’(Lk 7:31-35). At the end we see Jesus’ openness to women (Lk 7:36-50)
b) Reading
From the Gospel according to Luke (7:11-17)
11 Soon afterwards* he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him.12As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town.13When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, ‘Do not weep.’14Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, ‘Young man, I say to you, rise!’15The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus* gave him to his mother.16Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has risen among us!’ and ‘God has looked favourably on his people!’17This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.
c) A division of the text that will help our reading
Lk 7,11-12: The meeting of the two processions
Lk 7,13: Compassion in action
Lk 7,14-15: "Young man, I say to you, rise!"
Lk 7,16-17: The repercussions
c) The Text: Luke 7,11-17
11 Soon afterwards* he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him.1
2As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town.
13When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, ‘Do not weep.’14Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, ‘Young man, I say to you, rise!’
15The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.
16Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has risen among us!’ and ‘God has looked favourably on his people!’17This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country.
3. A MOMENT OF PRAYERFUL SILENCE
So that the Word of God may enter us and give light to our lives.
4. SOME QUESTIONS
To help our meditation and prayer.
- The text tells us that there were two groups of people. Which of them caught the attention of Jesus?
- Compassion moved Jesus to raise the son of the widow to life. Does the pain of others move me to the same kind of compassion?
- What do I do to help others to overcome their pain and open out to a new life?
- God visited his people. Am I aware of the many visits of God in my life and in the life of the people?
- Am I appreciative, and do I praise and thank God for the very many good things I have received?
5. FOR THOSE WHO WISH TO HAVE A DEEPER GRASP OF THE TEXT
a) Commentary on the text
Lk 7,11-12: The meeting of the two processions
” Soon afterwards he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town”.
Luke is like a painter. With very few words he manages to paint a very beautiful picture of the meeting of two crowds or processions, the funeral procession that leaves the city and accompanies the widow bringing her only son to the cemetery; the procession of the crowd that was heading for the city accompanying Jesus. The two meet in the small square near the gate of the city of Nain.
Lc 7,13: Compassion in action
“13When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, ‘Do not weep”.It was compassion that moved Jesus to speak and to act. Compassion means, literally, to suffer-with, to take on the pain of the other person, to be identified with the other person and to feel the other person’s pain. It was compassion that ignited the power in Jesus, the power of life over death, the power of creation.
Lc 7,14-15: "Young man, I tell you, rise!"
Jesus went nearer to the bier and said, “Young man, I tell you, rise”. The dead man “sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother”. Sometimes, when there is great suffering because of the death of a loved-one, people say, “In the time of Jesus, when Jesus walked on this earth, there was the hope of not losing a loved-one because Jesus could bring people back to life”. Such people think of the raising of the widow’s son in Nain as something that happened in the past, that makes us think about the past and have a certain envy. However the intention of the Gospel is not to get us thinking about the past or to produce any kind of envy, but rather to help us come to a better experience of the living presence of Jesus among us. It is the same Jesus, who has power to overcome death and the pain of death, and who continues to be alive in our midst. He is with us today and in the face of the problems that are capable of dragging us down he says again, “I tell you, Rise!”
Lk 7,16-17: The repercussions
“16Fear seized all of them; and they glorified God, saying, ‘A great prophet has risen among us!’ and ‘God has looked favourably on his people!’ 17This word about him spread throughout Judea and all the surrounding country. This was the prophet that was foretold by Moses (Dt 18,15).The God who comes to visit us is “the Father of orphans and the protector of widows” (Ps 68,6; cfr. Jud 9,11).
6. PRAYER – Psalm 68,4-8
4 Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
lift up a song to him who rides upon the clouds*—
his name is the Lord—
be exultant before him.
5 Father of orphans and protector of widows
is God in his holy habitation.
6 God gives the desolate a home to live in;
he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
but the rebellious live in a parched land.
7 O God, when you went out before your people,
when you marched through the wilderness,
8 the earth quaked, the heavens poured down rain
at the presence of God, the God of Sinai,
at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
7. CLOSING PRAYER
Lord Jesus, we thank you for your Word that has helped us to see the will of the Father more clearly. Let your Spirit enlighten our actions and enable us to carry our what your Word has helped us to see. May we, just like Mary, your Mother, not only listen to your Word but also put it into practice. You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.
