Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
This is the Gospel of the poor,
liberation for the imprisoned,
sight for the blind,
freedom for the oppressed.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Amos 2,6-10.13-16
Yahweh says this: For the three crimes, the four crimes of Israel, I have made my decree and will not relent: because they have sold the upright for silver and the poor for a pair of sandals, because they have crushed the heads of the weak into the dust and thrust the rights of the oppressed to one side, father and son sleeping with the same girl and thus profaning my holy name, lying down beside every altar on clothes acquired as pledges, and drinking the wine of the people they have fined in the house of their god. Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before them, he who was as tall as the cedars, as strong as the oaks; I who destroyed his fruit above ground and his roots below. It was I who brought you up from Egypt and for forty years led you through the desert to take possession of the Amorite's country; Very well! Like a cart overloaded with sheaves I shall crush you where you stand; flight will be cut off for the swift, the strong will have no chance to exert his strength nor the warrior be able to save his life; the archer will not stand his ground, the swift of foot will not escape, nor will the horseman save his life; even the bravest of warriors will jettison his arms and run away, that day! -declares Yahweh!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
This oracle of the prophet is caused by the crimes committed against the poor in Israel. Israel is blamed for seven sins, all marked by social injustice, such as the sale of human beings for money, the brutality in trampling the poor "into the dust of the earth," immorality in behaviour, denial of the rights of the poor, the misappropriation of the assets of the sanctuary. For those who live in fullness and abundance, the lives of others and in particular of the poor often have no value. The Gospel parable of the Good Samaritan is an ancient story that spans the entire history and geography of the planet. How much violence towards the poor! The prophets often denounce it. At times even believers are blind to the brutality toward the poor and the weak. Amos understands the imperative to publicly denounce this situation. It is the style typical of the prophets: the proclamation of the Word of God turns always to denouncing injustice and violence toward others, particularly if they are poor and weak. For Israel - as well as for Jesus’ disciples - there is a heavy aggravating factor for they have been helped and delivered by the Lord. God - notes Amos - had freed Israel from the Amorites (the inhabitants of the land of Canaan), a strong and warlike people, because it is God who saves his needy and enslaved people. He also sent witnesses of his word, Nazirites and prophets. But Israel, after being freed, has become proud and no longer remembers the mercy and help of the Lord; Israel has despised the Nazirites (men consecrated to the Lord) and has behaved in an arrogant manner, trampling the weak and poor. They totally forgot what God had done when Israel was poor. The forgetfulness of the mercy God has shown us, makes us arrogant, violent and cruel. Therefore God will humble Israel ("I will press you down in your place") until they recognize their nakedness and needs. The seven final images show that what is believed to be one’s strength, is, in truth, doomed to failure. Yesterday, as today, the power of believers lies in God only.
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
