Memorial of the Saints Addai and Mari, founders of the Chaldean church. Prayer for Christians in Iraq. Read more
Memorial of the Saints Addai and Mari, founders of the Chaldean church. Prayer for Christians in Iraq.
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Jude 1,20-25
But you, my dear friends, must build yourselves up on the foundation of your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves within the love of God and wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to give you eternal life. To some you must be compassionate because they are wavering; others you must save by snatching them from the fire; to others again you must be compassionate but wary, hating even the tunic stained by their bodies. To him who can keep you from falling and bring you safe to his glorious presence, innocent and joyful, to the only God, our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, authority and power, before all ages, now and for ever. Amen.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If you believe, you will see the glory of God,
thus says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
After describing at length and also condemning the work of false teachers, the apostle Jude does not want believers to be surprised too much about what happens. One could say: scandalized yes, but not astonished. And taking the image of the house, he calls believers to continue to build the spiritual house which is the community. The responsibility of each believer resounds in these words. We are distant from a conception, which we could define today by the word "clerical." The community is everyone’s and everyone is responsible for it. Belonging to an "ethnic group" is not enough. Each believer will be accountable to God for his or her work in the Church. And the apostle singles out a few that everyone should practice. Above all, prayer. It is a priestly task of the entire community; no one can exclude himself from this essential "work" to build up the Church. Practicing prayer defeats at its base the individualistic idea of father and helps us walk toward the other work, which is to "preserve oneself in the love of God." In this expression is expressed that synergy which establishes itself among God and believers to implant love on this earth. This is not about any love, but rather about the love of God infused in the hearts of believers. There is a peculiarity of Christians in living the love that characterizes them. Perhaps it is the greatest treasure we can show the world. No one else can do it. Thus, Christians live and await God’s mercy, that is, the fullness of the Kingdom. It is a waiting that is full of works that which requires a great generosity by everyone. The apostle calls the disciples to take care of one’s brothers and sisters with care. It is this gospel love that we are called to live. And from it we will be recognized as disciples of Jesus. The apostle concludes with a praise to God to whom he entrusts the believers. Not only does he "preserve them from every fall," but he takes care of them to the point of "to make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory with rejoicing." The apostle gathers, in one single gaze, the entire history of the Church and sees its conclusion, when the Church will be without stain and full of the joy of saints. Jude knows well that his exhortations and warnings are important because they are written with the authority of the Lord, but he is well aware that only the Lord is the good and strong Shepherd who can guide and protect the Church. For this reason, his exhortations transform into prayer. And the prayer becomes the strongest help that he can give the Christians he writes too. It is an invitation also to us so we can learn to prayer for each other and for others.
Prayer is the heart of the life of the Community of Sant'Egidio and is its absolute priority. At the end of the day, every the Community of Sant'Egidio, large or small, gathers around the Lord to listen to his Word. The Word of God and the prayer are, in fact, the very basis of the whole life of the Community. The disciples cannot do other than remain at the feet of Jesus, as did Mary of Bethany, to receive his love and learn his ways (Phil. 2:5).
So every evening, when the Community returns to the feet of the Lord, it repeats the words of the anonymous disciple: " Lord, teach us how to pray". Jesus, Master of prayer, continues to answer: "When you pray, say: Abba, Father". It is not a simple exhortation, it is much more. With these words Jesus lets the disciples participate in his own relationship with the Father. Therefore in prayer, the fact of being children of the Father who is in heaven, comes before the words we may say. So praying is above all a way of being! That is to say we are children who turn with faith to the Father, certain that they will be heard.
Jesus teaches us to call God "Our Father". And not simply "Father" or "My Father". Disciples, even when they pray on their own, are never isolated nor they are orphans; they are always members of the Lord's family.
In praying together, beside the mystery of being children of God, there is also the mystery of brotherhood, as the Father of the Church said: "You cannot have God as father without having the church as mother". When praying together, the Holy Spirit assembles the disciples in the upper room together with Mary, the Lord's mother, so that they may direct their gaze towards the Lord's face and learn from Him the secret of his Heart.
The Communities of Sant'Egidio all over the world gather in the various places of prayer and lay before the Lord the hopes and the sufferings of the tired, exhausted crowds of which the Gospel speaks ( Mat. 9: 3-7 ), In these ancient crowds we can see the huge masses of the modern cities, the millions of refugees who continue to flee their countries, the poor, relegated to the very fringe of life and all those who are waiting for someone to take care of them. Praying together includes the cry, the invocation, the aspiration, the desire for peace, the healing and salvation of the men and women of this world. Prayer is never in vain; it rises ceaselessly to the Lord so that anguish is turned into hope, tears into joy, despair into happiness, and solitude into communion. May the Kingdom of God come soon among people!
For the sick, in memory of the dead, for peace
