MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU AND GRANT YOU PEACE

MARY, MOTHER OF GOD - Luke 2:16-21

We begin the New Year in the company of Mary, the “mother of the Lord” (Lk 1:43). It is with her that we ask God’s blessings, mainly the good wine of love and peace.

In the Catholic Church, the first day of the Year is a day of prayer for peace and of reflection on what should be done to bring peace into our world. For the World Day of Peace, Pope Francis guides us on a reflection about politics and peace, affirming that “Good politics is at the service of peace” (see http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/peace/documents/papa-francesco_20181208_messaggio-52giornatamondiale-pace2019.pdf). A good politician is someone who is committed to building a society based on justice, without exploitation and oppression. At the heart of his decisions and his actions, a good politician tries to put into practice the great commandment of love.

In his message to the World Day of Peace, Pope Francis quotes the “Beatitudes of the Politician”, “proposed by Vietnamese Cardinal François-Xavier Nguyễn Vãn Thuận, a faithful witness to the Gospel who died in 2002: 

Blessed be the politician with a lofty sense and deep understanding of his role.
Blessed be the politician who personally exemplifies credibility.
Blessed be the politician who works for the common good and not his or her own interest. 

Blessed be the politician who remains consistent.
Blessed be the politician who works for unity.
Blessed be the politician who works to accomplish radical change. 

Blessed be the politician who is capable of listening. 

Blessed be the politician who is without fear.”

Psalm 67:2-3,5,6,8

And we can ask God’s blessings with the Psalm 67

O God, be gracious and bless us.

O God, be gracious and bless us

  and let your face shed its light upon us.

So will your ways be known upon earth

  and all nations learn your saving help.

O God, be gracious and bless us.

Let the nations be glad and exult

  for you rule the world with justice.

With fairness you rule the peoples,

  you guide the nations on earth.

O God, be gracious and bless us.

Let the peoples praise you, O God;

  let all the peoples praise you.

May God still give us his blessing

  till the ends of the earth revere him.

O God, be gracious and bless us.

May the Lord bless you all and give a New Year full of his graces. May he grant you peace.

JESUS REMAINED BEHIND IN JERUSALEM

THE FEAST OF THE HOLY FAMILY - Lk 2:41-52

Jesus’ family, which we call the Holy Family, was a very special family, yet in so many ways it was a family like many others. Joseph and Mary had to struggle and work hard in order to survive and to provide for Jesus the best they could. As a carpenter - self-employed or working for others, maybe even in the huge projects of King Herod - Joseph would not have an easy life. With him, Jesus learned the craft; that’s why he would be known as the “carpenter” (Mk 6:3).

We know nothing about the daily life of Jesus’ family. This Sunday’s gospel gives us a glimpse of the relationship between Jesus, Mary and Joseph. They were a devout family who followed the religious traditions of their people and who initiated Jesus in the ways of the Lord. It was the duty of every adult Jew to participate in the Passover celebration. And so, each year, big crowds went on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the big feast. Jesus’ parents kept to the tradition and every year “used to go to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover”. Being the only child, it was probable that, most of the times, Jesus was taken as well. At thirteen years of age, he would undergo the rite of passage Bar Mitzvah, thus being considered an adult, responsible for his own acts. The Gospel presents Jesus at the age of twelve, still under the tutelage of his parents, but already becoming an adult. He accompanied his parents on the pilgrimage to Jerusalem and there he became so carried away by the Temple and its liturgy that he forgot everything else. It was as if all his dreams were fulfilled and he didn’t need anything else. There, in the Temple, he found the purpose of his life, and he remained.

Reading this Sunday’s gospel, we get the impression that Joseph and Mary considered Jesus as being already a responsible adult, allowing him freedom of movement so that he could be with relatives or with friends who came from Galilee or even from Nazareth. So, until they found out that he had remained behind, they did not worry too much. Then, they returned to Jerusalem in search of him, and, to their big surprise, they found him in the Temple in conversation with the great teachers of the law. And everybody was “astounded at his intelligence and his replies”. While all the onlookers saw in him a child prodigy, his mother was not pleased and reproached him that he had been so irresponsible, causing them so much trouble. Hearing his mother’s complaint, Jesus was surprised that Mary and Joseph could not understand his attitude: “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be busy with my Father’s affairs?” In his answer, Jesus already shows awareness of his vocation and clearly tells his mother that one day he will leave home and family to be only at the service of the “Father”. For this, he would live and die. 

Meanwhile, "Jesus went down with them to Nazareth and was submissive to them.”

A HOLY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF YOU

With the ecstasy of Mary

and the simplicity of Joseph,

let’s approach the baby Jesus

born poor and humble,

ignored by the wise and powerful,

but recognized, loved

and adored

by those who are touched

by the mystery of life

in which they experience

the wonders of the Lord

who saves us.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year, full of Jesus' blessings - Fr. José

Mu kupokelela ipalo nga Maria

na mu kuicefya nga Yosefu,

natupalamine Yesu mwana,

uwafyelwe umupina,

kabili uwasulilwe ku bamano na bamaka,

lelo bamwishibe, bamutemenwe

no kumupepa

kuli abo bonse abakumishiwe

ku bwile bwa bumi

umo basanga ifisungusho fya Mfumu

uwaisa mu kutupususha.

Musefye Noel ne cimwemwe, kabili Yesu Mwana amufumfumwine amapalo. - Fr. José

MARY IS PROCLAIMED BLESSED

IV SUNDAY OF ADVENT - Luke 1:39-45

After being informed by the angel that her relative Elizabeth was pregnant, Mary wasted no time and with strong resolution, she “set out and went as quickly as she could to a town in the hill country of Judah”. It was a difficult journey, a journey that would not be done by a young woman, unless under very pressing circumstances. Did Mary venture to go alone? There is no way of knowing, but it is well possible and probable that she went with some family member or friend or she might have joined a group of people going to Jerusalem. In doing the journey from Nazareth to “the hill country of Judah”, in the South, Mary showed the determination and courage fo someone who is strongly motivated. At all costs, she needed to go and contemplate the wonders which the Lord had done in Elizabeth for the sake of his people. And she had to share her secret with someone who had also been graced and favoured. Carrying with her the mystery of God’s love, she felt the need to be with someone who had also embraced the mystery, so that her words of joy, praise, and thanksgiving would find echo and response. 

Upon hearing Mary's greeting, Elizabeth felt the child leaping in her bosom with joy and, there and then, she was filled with the Holy Spirit, making it possible for her to recognise that Mary was the mother of the Lord.

There are people who try to ignore Mary or to despise her role in God’s plan of salvation, speaking of her as a common woman. Elizabeth, guided by the Holy Spirit was able to recognise her dignity and her role. Mary is not a simple villager from Nazareth or an ordinary woman from any other village or town, but she is the chosen one of the Lord. That’s why Elizabeth proclaimed her "blessed among women" and she is blessed because she "believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”

In order to share in Mary’s blessing, we must have the same attitude of faith, accepting God’s word and putting into practice in our lives. Only this attitude of faith enables us to recognise and to accept God’s gift of grace and love. With Mary, let us prepare ourselves, guided by the Holy Spirit, to welcome Jesus in our lives. May he be born in our hearts.

JOHN’S MESSAGE

III SUNDAY OF ADVENT - Luke 3:10-18

This Sunday’s gospel presents the teaching of John the Baptist. In the desert, his life was hard and difficult. Anyway, it is always difficult to survive in the desert, even though people like the Bedouin live a nomadic life in the desert. The people of Israel had made that experience and the life in the desert always remained as a kind of ideal: a life in which people entrust themselves to the Lord and allow him to be the shepherd that guides and protects them. In spite of appearing like a crazy person, people recognised in John a person touched by God and moved by his Spirit and they went to him to hear his message and to accept his advice. When people are weighed down by a life full of hardships, they are ready to go anywhere looking for relief. When they feel lost, they look for the meaning and purpose of their lives and they are ready to make sacrifices in order to find it. And so they crossed the desert and went down to the Jordan River so that they could receive guidance from John.

Luke presents three groups of people going to John: the people in general, the tax collectors and the soldiers; and all of them asked the same question: "What should we do?" That is the same question that people go on asking: What should we do to get out of this mess which we are in? The question implies that we are responsible for our own lives and that the outcome depends on what we do.  If we dream of a different world and want it to be a world of justice and peace, then we must ask: What should we do? However, the question is only meaningful if we are ready to do what needs to be done. In his answer to the question, John gave an indication of what is essential, presenting three attitudes that we must put into practice: 

1. Share what we have with the neediest. We must put an end to our selfishness, accepting that we are responsible for the fate of the others. We must pay attention to the most vulnerable so that they do not feel abandoned and ignored in their suffering.
2. Practice justice in the demands we make on others. We must put an end to the exploitation of others so that we enrich ourselves and consider us superior to all the others. The world belongs to all and is not my private property.
3. Practice non-violence, never using authority to oppress others, but putting ourselves at the service of peace. We must put an end to oppression on the ones who depend on us and we must stop behaving as if we are the lords who must always be obeyed.

John's advice is simple and workable. Although it must be enacted by each individual, this adice has a communitarian and social dimension. And if we want to build a fair and peaceful society, we must act upon this advice and change it into policies in our society. 

John did not work any miracles that might attract the crowds, but they were ready to endure the hardships of the desert just to listen to his word - a simple, sincere and direct word, full of truth, which touched the hearts of people. John’s word is a word that confronts and judges us, leading us to face our actions and our motives for those actions. 

John was an honourable, sincere and honest man, who was well aware of his mission and of the limits of that mission. And so he plainly spoke the truth about himself:

“I baptise you with water, but someone is coming, someone who is more powerful than I am, and I am not fit to undo the strap of his sandals; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire”. This Someone - the Christ- will baptise us with the Holy Spirit, thus making us children of God.

JOHN, THE VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS

II SUNDAY OF ADVENT - Luke 3:1-6

In order to write his gospel, Luke searched carefully (Lk 1:3), so that he would transmit the truth and not some fairy tales. For us to understand that he is narrating something that truly happened, he gives us the narratives historical setting. Presenting John the Baptist and his prophetic ministry, he tells us that John started his preaching “in the fifteenth year of Tiberius Caesar’s reign” (Lk 3:1). Tiberius was the Roman emperor, as his rule was exercised in Judea by the governor Pontius Pilate, while Herod Antipas, son of Herod the Great, was the tetrarch of Galilee, and his half-brother Philip “tetrarch of the lands of Ituraea and Trachonitis”. Luke gives us also the names of the religious authorities: Annas and Caiaphas. They would play a big role in Jesus’ passion and death. With this kind of introduction to the ministry of John, which immediately preceded the ministry of Jesus, Luke makes it clear that he is not giving us myths, but historical facts. If we read the Bible attentively, we can easily discover that history has played a major role in God’s revelation, since he always presented himself as the one who is always present and always acts in history. Our faith has an essential historical dimension because our God is present and active in human history and this reaches its summit in the incarnation.

After the historical introduction, Luke presents John the Baptist, as the voice from the wilderness, which cries out as a lonely voice that finally reaches the ears and hearts of many. John is the prophet of the desert, whose life was a protest against the status quo of the religious institution and the religious life in Judea. His message was a call to repentance for all those who were ready to listen. At the same time, his words were full of hope, because he announced that the coming of the Lord was at hand.

John’s message is repeated today. It comes as a protest and a denunciation, being thus a call to repentance: “Prepare a way for the Lord, make his paths straight.” If we do so, then “all mankind shall see the salvation of God.”

MAKE MORE AND MORE PROGRESS, ACCORDING TO GOD’S WILL

I SUNDAY OF ADVENT - Luke 21:25-28,34-36

Advent is always a time full of hope in which we look forward together with Mary to the coming of Jesus. This Sunday's readings present us with some basic attitudes which we should cultivate, especially during this Advent time.

In the Gospel, Jesus advises us to pay attention to what is happening about us. It is so easy to lead a distracted life, not paying attention to the signs that appear along the way, mainly the danger signs. We live as if everything is running smoothly. However, Jesus gives us a strong warning: we will pass through widespread situations of crisis, uncertainty and anguish that may lead us into despair, causing us to do acts of true madness. The world will feel threatened and people will be at a loss on how to deal with such menace, in such a way that there will be “men dying of fear”. In fact, humanity has faced catastrophe so many times that it got used to it until the day it will reach its climax. However, Jesus’ warning is not in order to instil fear, but in order to strengthen us and fill us with hope.

In the first reading, Jeremiah announces that there will be a time of “honesty and integrity in the land”. There will be a time for salvation when we “shall dwell in confidence” and peace. And city we will live in will be called “The Lord is our righteousness” (Jer 33:14-16). Such a time will be brought in by the Messiah, who will come to establish God’s Kingdom.

And Jesus speaks of the Son of Man “coming in a cloud with power and great glory” to establish his kingdom, a kingdom of justice and peace. He will come to put under his feet all the powers of evil. He will come as judge and Saviour. That will be a time of liberation, in which we will be filled with joy and pride because God our Father will grant us the inheritance promised to us as his children. Indeed, we can “stand erect” and hold our “heads high”, and we will join all the saints singing God’s praises.

Finally, Jesus advises us to “stay awake, praying at all times”. We will go through difficult times and on our own only we will not have “the strength to survive all that is going to happen, and to stand with confidence before the Son of Man.” It is so easy to go astray and so we must be on the watch, not allowing our hearts to “be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life”. We may fall into a “trap”, accepting false values as the true ones and taking this passing world for the eternal.

In the second reading, Paul advises us to grow in holiness: “Finally, brothers, we urge you and appeal to you in the Lord Jesus to make more and more progress in the kind of life that you are meant to live: the life that God wants” (1 Tes 4:1). May the Lord grant us his grace, so that we grow more and more in love.

TO HIM BE GLORY AND POWER FOREVER AND EVER

XXXIV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME: CHRIST THE KING - John 18:33-37

We end the liturgical year with the celebration of the solemnity of Christ the King, in which we proclaim him as King of the Universe. And we may ask ourselves what does that mean? Throughout history, the experience of being under a king has not been always a happy experience. What kind of a king is Jesus? Most of the times, we associate kingship with dominion and oppression. Kings impose themselves impose themselves on people and are jealous of their authority and position. That’s why Jesus warned his disciples not to be like the rulers of the earth: “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you” (Mk 10:42-43). And proposing himself as the model for their leadership, Jesus told them: “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45). In fact, Jesus never showed interest in political power and, when people tried to make him a king, he went into hiding. He did not come to be an earthly king and to impose himself on people, if necessary by force, as it had been the case with King Herod and with Emperor Augustus. Jesus’ kingship is of a completely different order and he makes it very clear to Pilate when he tells him: “My kingdom is not of this world” (Jn 18:36). And he explains it to the governor. He came into Jerusalem on a donkey, like the poor peasants. And he has no army to fight for him. He is completely at the mercy of those who have power. Nobody needs to be afraid of him, because he does not constitute a threat to anybody. Indeed, looking at history and at the presence of Christ in history, we may ask ourselves why is he perceived as a threat for the propagators of ideologies and the holders of power. Why so many of his disciples are being ostracised and persecuted? Christians have never been a threat to the State. 

To Pilate, Jesus explained his kingship: he came to be king of those who search for the truth and are only content with the truth.  In a similar manner, he had told the Jews: “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn 8:31-32). Freedom, justice and peace will be achieved only if we become pursuers of the truth.

It is easy to see that Pilate did not care about the truth,  as he did not wait for Jesus’ answer to his question on the truth and as he was ready to condemn Jesus on trumped-up charges. Ignoring and despising the truth, he was ready to commit an injustice condemning the guiltless and blameless Christ.

Jesus presented himself as king, only during his trial, when there was no possibility of being misunderstood. On top of his cross, they wrote: “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” (Jn 19:19), thus presenting the official reason for his condemnation. Such statement presents on one side Jesus’ claim that he is king and on the other side the false accusation that he is the king of the Jews.

The first reading taken from the book of Daniel and the second reading taken from the book of revelation helps us to understand the claim that Jesus is King of the Universe. He is that human being - the Son of man - on whom it “was conferred sovereignty, glory and kingship, and men of all peoples, nations and languages became his servants” (Dan 7:14) and he is “the First-Born from the dead, the Ruler of the kings of the earth” (Rev 1:5). He is human and divine and in him, humanity will find salvation, making of “us a line of kings, priests to serve his God and Father; to him, then, be glory and power forever and ever. Amen” (Rev 1:6).

COME, LORD JESUS!

XXXIII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 13:24-32

Will the universe come to an end? If so, then when and how will it happen? To the first question, even scientists give an affirmative answer. As for the date and the manner of that event, the imagination goes wild. On that, Jesus was very clear to his disciples: “As for that day or hour, nobody knows it, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son; no one but the Father” (Mk 13:32). So we should not waste our time involving ourselves in guessing possible dates for the end of the world. Those who do that end up as a laughing stock.

Jesus said that “the powers in the heavens will be shaken” and there will be “a time of anguish” (Dan 12:1) or a time of “tribulation” (Mk 13:24). However, the stress is put on the coming of the Son of Man (that is Jesus Christ), who will come full of power and glory to gather his people and deliver them. For the faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, the end of the world will not be a moment of horror and terror, but a great time of joy, as they become partakers of the glorious victory of Christ. With his coming, Jesus Christ will bring in the New World, a new creation, where there will be no suffering and no tears, but only the joyous cries of victory, because the powers of oppression and death have disappeared and God will reign supreme, being “all in all” (1 Co 15:28).

Jesus advises us to pay attention to the signs of the Lord’s proximity so that we are prepared to answer his call and to welcome his coming. If he surprises us and finds us unprepared, we will be left to our own fate, far from him with whom there are life and salvation.

Christians look forward to that time with eagerness, which is well expressed in a very simple prayer at the end to the book of Revelation: “Come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev 22:20).

With the Psalmist, we pray: “Preserve me, God, I take refuge in you” (Ps 16:1)

THE LORD THWARTS THE PATH OF THE WICKED

XXXII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 12:38-44

In this Sunday’s liturgy, the widows come to the forefront. In the first reading, we hear about the widow who lived in the Phoenician city of Sarepta. She had a son, she was poor to the point of starving and she was a foreigner, living in Sarepta near Sidon. In spite of being a pagan, she welcomed Elijah and shared with him the last food she had, trusting in God’s promise conveyed to her by the prophet who had run away for his own safety from the unfaithful people of Israel. Jesus would use the example of the widow of Sarepta as an indictment against those who refused to believe him. The outsiders (the pagans) proved to be more willing to listen to the message of salvation than the members of the people of God. This remains as a warning to us. We should not be overconfident, taking God for granted and thinking that belonging to the Christian Church is enough guarantee of salvation.

In the Gospel, we are presented with another widow, who, in spite was extremely poor, offered to God everything she had, thus putting herself totally in God’s hands. Humanly speaking, her attitude looks like foolishness. How could she give the little she had, without thinking about the day of tomorrow? The poor don’t think about tomorrow, leaving that to God. They are like the birds who have no stores to gather their food and live day by day, getting whatever they can find (Mt 6:26). They put their lives in the hands of God and entrust themselves to him. The widow knew how precarious her life was and in that precariousness, she knew that her life depended on God’s mercy and on the people’s compassion. Giving all she had, she gave herself, making a profession of faith in God’s care and love. That’s why Jesus praised her and presented her as an example that brings out the vain show-off of the rich who, although giving a lot, don’t feel at all the pinch of their offering. Offering what they don’t need, they don’t offer themselves.

The passage of the widow’s offering comes immediately after Jesus’ denunciation of the Scribes. They were experts of the Scriptures and doctors of the Law, thus having a big influence on the people and being highly respected. They were people full of themselves, proud and arrogant, living on the people and exploiting the widows pretending to console them. The Scribes put on a mask of holiness, demanding to be recognised as masters. Because of that, “the more severe will be the sentence they receive” (Mk 12:40).

“It is the Lord who loves the just,

the Lord, who protects the stranger.

The Lord upholds the widow and orphan

but thwarts the path of the wicked.” (Ps 146:8-9).

LOVE IS THE FULFILMENT OF THE LAW

XXXI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 12:28-34

Life, happiness and prosperity is something everybody dreams about and tries hard to achieve. All try to find a way out of suffering and pain and would like to find a remedy for hardships and death. In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses put forward the correct approach in order to achieve a meaningful life: “If you fear the Lord your God all the days of your life and if you keep all his laws and commandments which I lay on you” (Dt 6:2), then you will find life. “Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom” (Job 28:28). “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (Pro 1:8). This fear of the Lord does not mean the trembling of the slave, but the respect and the obedience of the children, who fear to offend and despise their parents’ love. First of all, we need to put God in the centre of our lives and to recognise him as the only source of being. God must be the point of reference for our life and our behaviour. The words that express this belief have reverberated throughout the ages, being repeated in the Jewish daily prayers in the morning and in the evening:

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart”.

The Jews call this confession of faith Shema, from the first word: Hear! We must profess that YHWH alone is God and we must dedicate ourselves to him, loving him with all our being, hearts and souls.

The scholars of the Holy Scriptures, who dedicated themselves mainly to the study of the Law of Moses, several times, tried to catch Jesus off guard. And some of the more sincere ones wanted to verify if he knew the basics and if his message was in accordance with the Law. Hence the question, "What is the first of all the commandments?" That is, what are the essential requirements for moral behaviour that is worthy of God and in accordance with his will? Jesus proclaims the Shema and then clearly states that the love of God implies loving our neighbours, quoting Lev 19:18: “you shall love your neighbour as yourself”.

“God is love” (1 Jn 4:8) and he has created us in his image and likeness; hence we cannot live without love. It is love, which leads to the total surrender of ourselves, that makes us truly human. From God we receive our being, acting and loving and we cannot be a true image of God without love; we must love God and our neighbour, that is all those we meet and all those we must come close to. Loving God and loving others is the same love. So much so that Jesus will acknowledge as done to him all the deeds of love we do to others and will regard the contempt, violence, oppression and injustice done to others as being done to him. In the end, we will be judged solely by the commandment of love. This love is not a passion that leads to transient self-satisfaction, but it is a commitment that leads to doing everything for the good of others. The love of God demands the love of our neighbour, therefore having social and political implications. St. Paul wrote: 

"Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."(Rom 13:8-10).

WE ARE BLIND PEOPLE, SEARCHING FOR LIGHT

XXX SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 10:46-52

This Sunday, the Gospel of Mark presents the healing of Bartimaeus, near Jericho, a southern town, near the Dead Sea. Like Jesus, he was on the road. Well, not really on the road but by the roadside. Sitting, he was begging from the passers-by a little coin or any small thing that might help him to survive. He passed his days seated by the roadside, lest he becomes a nuisance and a hindrance. He depended on the kindness of those who felt pity for him and he should not overdo it and become an occasion of stumbling for others. By the roadside, he lived as someone who hardly has the right to live as if he has been cursed. Blind, he lives in darkness, with no hope of finding the light. We may even guess that he had accepted his fate with resignation, knowing that there is no remedy for his handicap. However, one day, everything changed. He got his chance and he did not allow it to pass by but grabbed it with all his power. Hearing a strange noise of a passing crowd, he sensed that something was happening or someone very special was passing. And he asked. Once he got the answer, nobody could stop him. Full of hope, he cried out: "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me." 

This blind man is the paradigm of all of us who live in darkness, at the edge of the road, without knowing the way that leads us to light and life. We are blind and we cannot see the light which comes from God, giving sense and meaning to our lives. In this modern or post-modern society, our blindness to God’s presence and God’s wonderful works is becoming deeper and deeper. Full of ourselves, we remain by the roadside, unable to join the followers of Jesus. Like Bartimaeus, we need to shout: “Lord, have pity on me”. And when Jesus asks us, "What do you want me to do for you?”, we are going to reply: "Lord, let me see.” Yes, let me see the truth and feel your love. May I find salvation in you. May I find meaning and purpose for my life. May I see the way to follow you.

THOSE IN LEADERSHIP MUST BE AT THE SERVICE OF ALL

XXIX SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 10:35-45

We may think that the Church should be holy and blameless, without stains from corruption and depravation and without the power struggles which undermine her credibility. However, we should know that the Church is a source of holiness for her members, who are sinners, only because of her head, Christ, who is the redeemer and saviour. We can easily be scandalised when we see the dirty tricks used by leaders who have a grudge against other leaders in the Church or simply because they want to increase their sphere of influence.  However, this is as old as the Church, as we are told in this Sunday’s gospel. 

The two brothers, James and John, approached Jesus with a request that left all the others full of indignation, what shows that all of them had the same deep hidden desire for a position of influence and power. Throughout the history of the Church, we can find plenty of leaders - popes and bishops - who looked for power, putting on their heads the crown of royalty and imposing their will by the power of the sword, and they did all this in the name of Christ. However, by doing that, they were betraying Jesus Christ. 

The narrative of the temptations makes it very clear that Jesus rejected power as the way to establish the Kingdom of God. When he suspected that people wanted to make him king, he went into hiding. To the apostles and to us, Jesus put himself forward as an example: he did not come to be served, but to serve, and to serve to the point of giving his life for the salvation of all. 

Whenever the Church accepts power and exercises authority in the manner of the rulers of this world, it is diverting from the path that leads to salvation. In the Church, according to Jesus, authority should be exercised solely as a service, and the leaders must become the slaves of all.

Let us ask the Lord to give us a humble heart to serve. Let us pray for the pope and the bishops asking for them the humility to serve.

*****

WORLD MISSION DAY

Together with young people, let us bring the Gospel to all 

“Every man and woman is a mission; that is the reason for our life on this earth. To be attracted and to be sent are two movements that our hearts, especially when we are young, feel as interior forces of love; they hold out promise for our future and they give direction to our lives. More than anyone else, young people feel the power of life breaking in upon us and attracting us. To live out joyfully our responsibility for the world is a great challenge. I am well aware of lights and shadows of youth; when I think back to my youth and my family, I remember the strength of my hope for a better future. The fact that we are not in this world by our own choice makes us sense that there is an initiative that precedes us and makes us exist. Each one of us is called to reflect on this fact: “I am a mission on this Earth; that is the reason why I am here in this world” (Evangelii Gaudium, 273). 

We proclaim Jesus Christ 

The Church, by proclaiming what she freely received (cf. Mt 10:8; Acts 3:6), can share with you young people the way and truth which give meaning to our life on this earth. Jesus Christ, who died and rose for us, appeals to our freedom and challenges us to seek, discover and proclaim this message of truth and fulfilment. Dear young people, do not be afraid of Christ and his Church! For there we find the treasure that fills life with joy. I can tell you this from my own experience: thanks to faith, I found the sure foundation of my dreams and the strength to realize them. I have seen great suffering and poverty mar the faces of so many of our brothers and sisters. And yet, for those who stand by Jesus, evil is an incentive to ever greater love. Many men and women, and many young people, have generously sacrificed themselves, even at times to martyrdom, out of love for the Gospel and service to their brothers and sisters. From the cross of Jesus we learn the divine logic of self-sacrifice (cf. 1 Cor 1:17-25) as a proclamation of the Gospel for the life of the world (cf. Jn 3:16). To be set afire by the love of Christ is to be consumed by that fire, to grow in understanding by its light and to be warmed by its love (cf. 2 Cor 5:14). At the school of the saints, who open us to the vast horizons of God, I invite you never to stop wondering: “What would Christ do if he were in my place?” (Pope Francis, Message for the World Mission Day).

RICHES CANNOT BUY SALVATION

XXVIII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 10:17-30

This Sunday’s gospel challenges us to make a reflection on wealth and to examine our attitudes towards wealth. The society we live in is intent on creating wealth and the creation of wealth is an essential requirement for the welfare of people. The creation of wealth goes together with work and with the improvement of the living conditions. In order to finish with the scourge of poverty, we must create wealth. However, the creation of wealth is always tainted by the danger of selfishness and exploitation, easily becoming a temptation that separates us from God and turns us against the others. Instead of being a tool at the service of the community, it easily becomes a god, always thirsty for the sweat and the blood of those who produce it. We do not look only for the needed wealth to bring well-being to all, but we put all our minds and hearts on the search for ever bigger profits.

Profit has become the engine that moves the whole society, influencing education, the accepted values, the politically correct and economy. In the market economy, which we are in, profit determines the expansion of the business, its survival or its failure. The rule of profit is a ruthless and compassionless rule, in which workers are valued simply by the amount and the quality of their output. The search for profit leads to an increasing substitution of the worker for the machine, leaving many unemployed. The unbridled search for profit enslaves more and more people, kept at the mercy of profit creation. At any moment, they can be disposed of.

It is not surprising that Jesus used harsh words against wealth when it becomes the god that we serve. One cannot serve God and money (Mt 6:24).

It happened that a rich man, concerned with his own salvation, went to Jesus, looking for the best way to get it. Being a good man, faithful to the commandments, he wanted to do better and to excel. Jesus recognised his desire and invited him to put aside everything that might prevent him from being a true disciple: “Go and sell everything you own and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” However, he found the price too high and “went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth”.

When the heart clings to wealth, the eyes cannot see beyond the wealth and power, the influence and well-being it provides. Wealth puts easily at risk the freedom of spirit and heart, making us slaves who enslave the others, demanding obedience and service. With such an attitude, we cannot enter the kingdom of God.  Hence, "it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God." (Mk 10,25). Nevertheless, God has the power to transform the rich by giving them a heart of poor, that is a heart caring and compassionate, able to share and to be at the service of others, mainly the weak and the suffering.

GOD’S PROJECT FOR MARRIAGE

XXVII SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Genesis 2:18-24

In today’s language of the politically correct, we do not know any more what marriage is. With the ideology of the gender spreading evermore abroad, there are people who want to consider any union between two people sealed with a recognised contract as marriage. And we find gay and lesbian marriages being celebrated, promoted and given the same rights as true marriage between two heterosexual people. For a Christian marriage is more than a contract; indeed, it is a sacrament, that is a covenant of love open to life. A homosexual relationship is by definition a relationship that has closed its doors to life. It is an investment at zero profit, with no possibility of continuation and development. In such a relationship, both of them are centred exclusively on themselves, enclosed in a dungeon which does not allow to look into the future.

God has a different project for human beings, that’s why he made them man and woman, needing each other in order to become complete and to go on giving the life that they freely received.

We have read Genesis 2:4b-25 as the story of creation, where God is presented as a potter, working with the clay to create man, and then as a magician to create the woman out of the man. However, instead of reading this passage as a factual narrative of the creation, we should listen to it as a reflexion on the relationship between man and woman and as a presentation of the big guidelines on marriage.

Human beings are linked to the whole creation; it is as if they come from the clay of the ground. However, they have something special that sets them aside, since in them there is a spirit - the breath of God. Having created the man, God provided him with everything needed for his wellbeing. Since the beginning, God never deserted man but remained attentive to his deepest needs. Doing that, God noticed that the man was not happy and he realised that “it is not good that the man should be alone” and so he decided to “make him a helper as his partner” (Gn 2:18). Man and woman are called to be partners and to help each other. In God’s plan, there is a reciprocity that cannot be ignored. It is looking into each other, that each one of them recognises himself/ herself. One is the mirror of the other. They are the same, yet different, and it is in their difference, that each one becomes the completion of the other. The woman was taken to the man by God as if he is the marriage maker. And when he received the woman, he recognised immediately that “this at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh” (Gn 2:23), meaning, we are the same: body, mind, heart and soul. They have the same dignity and the same rights; they have received the same call and were entrusted with the same mission; and they were presented with the same promise of salvation and eternal life (see 1 Cor 11:11-12).

Then, in a short sentence, Genesis 2:24, we find God’s plan for marriage: “Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh”. And these words are so important, that Jesus repeated them and so did Paul (Ef 5:31). God’s project is that “they become one flesh”. This being one flesh implies the sexual relationship but it goes far beyond it. God’s project speaks of a communion of body, heart and soul that will make of them the true images of God. This project can be accomplished in two steps: a) leave, b) cling. They must leave, in order to start anew. They must break with the past and all that tied them to the past. They cannot depend on their parents any longer. They have to stand on their own, being committed to each and responsible for each other. And they must break with all kinds of individualism and selfishness. Without this first step, the second one will become impossible. Then, they must cling to each other. And this implies a process because it cannot happen all at once. In order to be united in an ever-deepening communion, they must have respect for each other, that is, they must affirm each other, bringing out the best in each other. They must learn to listen to each other, they must be able to dialogue and to share everything. Thus, walking together through the path of life, they will become one, every day they will become more and more one. 

This project of God can only be carried out with God’s grace. Let’s ask God’s blessings upon all married couples, so that they may be true witnesses of God’s love.

ANYONE WHO IS NOT AGAINST US IS FOR US

XXVI SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - Mark 9:38-43,45,47-48

In any group and in any movement, the members are always tempted to surround themselves with walls, so that they exclude everybody who does not belong to them. There are the ones within, who share the same values and, therefore, have the same rights and the ones without, who cannot be recognised and accepted, because they do not belong to the group. These outsiders are demonised in such a way that we cannot find good in them and we cannot grant them the right to do good. It is as if we have the monopoly of the truth, of goodness and of salvation. We are guided by a tribalist mentality, in which those who do not belong to our tribe (our group) are seen as our enemies, who must be ignored, despised and even fought.

This Sunday’s gospel shows the apostles having a similar attitude. John approached Jesus and told him: “Master, we saw a man who is not one of us casting out devils in your name; and because he was not one of us we tried to stop him” (Mk 9:38). Because he was “not one of us”, he could not do anything good and he should be stopped, when he tried. Certainly, the apostles thought that they should protect their identity, that is, what makes them different and worthy of recognition. Jesus would not have any of that: “You must not stop him: no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me. Anyone who is not against us is for us” (Mk 9:39-40). We must recognise goodness wherever we find it. In any culture and in any religion, we can find people who do good and who allow themselves to be guided by the Spirit of God.

This Sunday’s gospel deals with another topic - a very important topic, which has become extremely relevant in our times, mainly these last times. Mark presents a saying from Jesus about scandal and abuse, mainly abuse of the “little ones”. 

Reading the daily papers, listening to the radio, watching tv or searching the internet, we find a nearly daily menu of news, commentaries and talks about sex scandals in the Church. For too long, the people involved in the sexual abuse of those entrusted to them have gone not only unpunished but even protected by those in higher authority. Instead of protecting the vulnerable being abused, the perpetrators were protected and their crimes were covered up. In this way, the poison was being spread, giving the idea that the ones doing so were untouchable. Surely, the perpetrators of child sexual abuse are sinners who need salvation like all sinners. However, salvation is given only to those who recognise their sin, ask for forgiveness and engage themselves to walk on the road of conversion. If we just cover the dung that is hidden, it will cause everything to get rotten and nauseating.

All of us are sinners and are in need of conversion, but there are certain things that should never be found among those who felt the call to be shepherds of God’s people. That’s why Jesus used very harsh words, saying:

“But anyone who is an obstacle to bring down one of these little ones who have faith would be better thrown into the sea with a great millstone round his neck” (Mk 9:42).

When a big scandal took place in Corinth, Paul was quick to give the punishment, expelling the man from the community (1 Cor 5:1-5). Later on, when he showed repentance, Paul accepted him back. However, our main concern should be always to protect the ones who are being abused and cannot protect themselves. And crimes must be treated as crimes. As Christians, we are called to make penance for all the sinners and to pray for their conversion. We must examine as well the kind of people we accept in the seminaries and who are admitted to the priesthood.

Jesus advises each one of us to be strict with himself/ herself in order to follow the demands of the Gospel. We must stay or throw away whatever leads us to abandon our commitment to the Gospel and to Jesus Christ so that we remain faithful to Jesus’ way.

TO BE THE SERVANT OF ALL

XXV SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - James 3:16-4:3

Throughout the history of humankind, wars have been always there. It seems that people are not able to live without fighting, moved by a strong desire to destroy the others, whom they see as enemies. We may ask ourselves why is it like that. The apostle James gives a straightforward answer: 

“Where do these wars and battles between yourselves first start? Isn’t it precisely in the desires fighting inside your own selves? You want something and you haven’t got it; so you are prepared to kill. You have an ambition that you cannot satisfy; so you fight to get your way by force” (James 4:1-2)

We are moved by jealousy and ambition, and “Wherever you find jealousy and ambition, you find disharmony, and wicked things of every kind being done” (James 3:16). We cannot see someone who is better off than us, as if those have stolen from us, and then we want to reclaim it and get it back, even by force. If the other does not give up willingly, we are ready to silence him, so that we will no more be confronted by him. We feel threatened by the others and, in order to overcome that fear, we get rid of the threatener. Since the beginning, it has been like that. Cain considered his brother to be better off than him. Then, his jealousy and envy became hatred and he couldn’t stop worrying about that; instead of a brother, he started seeing an enemy that should be destroyed. And so he killed him.

We do not accept ourselves with our limitations and then, in order to measure how we are faring, we compare ourselves to others and blame them for our shortcomings. Like Cain, we make ourselves the victims and react against the aggressor. In the end, Cain was the only aggressor and he stopped at nothing to get rid of his brother.

We are in need of the wisdom that comes from God, the one that “makes for peace, and is kindly and considerate; it is full of compassion and shows itself by doing good; nor is there any trace of partiality or hypocrisy in it” (James 3:17).

We may think that the Church is or should be immune from enmity and infighting, but is not so. And this Sunday’s gospel puts it very clearly. On their journey through Galilee, the apostles, unwilling to understand and to accept Jesus’ prophecy of his impending death, started quarrelling about who would take the first places: “they had been arguing which of them was the greatest”. Within the Church, there is as much ambition as in the world and this ambition brings all kinds of infighting, creating factions, which are ready to use any means to obtain influence and power. If they cannot get it, they are ready to betray or to go into war. There are people who see themselves in danger and are ready to destroy their supposed enemy. The desires and the passions within ourselves make us blind to our faults, while wide opening our eyes to the shortcomings of the others.

Jesus has a completely different attitude and presents us with a different way of life: “If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all” (Mk 9:35).