EVERYDAY PRAYER

Memory of the Poor
Word of god every day
Libretto DEL GIORNO
Memory of the Poor
Monday, November 11


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

Wisdom 1,1-7

Love uprightness you who are rulers on earth, be properly disposed towards the Lord and seek him in simplicity of heart; for he will be found by those who do not put him to the test, revealing himself to those who do not mistrust him. Perverse thoughts, however, separate people from God, and power, when put to the test, confounds the stupid. Wisdom will never enter the soul of a wrong-doer, nor dwell in a body enslaved to sin; for the holy spirit of instruction flees deceitfulness, recoils from unintelligent thoughts, is thwarted by the onset of vice. Wisdom is a spirit friendly to humanity, though she will not let a blasphemer's words go unpunished; since God observes the very soul and accurately surveys the heart, listening to every word. For the spirit of the Lord fills the world, and that which holds everything together knows every word said.

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

The book of Wisdom begins with a call that seems to be the cornerstone of the entire message: "Love righteousness, you rulers of the earth" (v. 1). The author-a man full of faith in the "God of our fathers" who perhaps lived in Alexandria-bases the invitation on God himself. Whoever loves righteousness puts him or herself on the same level of acting as God because God himself is righteousness and God acts righteously with men and women. The search for righteousness, therefore, is the task the book of Wisdom entrusts to its readers. Only in the search for righteousness, as God does, can one comprehend the complexity of history and not be overtaken by evil. A life lived according to righteousness leaves open the door of divine wisdom, that word which guides thoughts and actions and teaches the way of goodness. Wisdom and the Spirit of the Lord are put in close relationship. In the New Testament this will become clearer in the gift of the Holy Spirit, that Wisdom of God given to men and women. The expression of the divine condescendence and his link with human beings is full of spiritual and human meaning: "For wisdom is a kindly spirit" (v. 6). God seeks in all ways to reach us with his word and love; he reads our hearts to help us on the path of goodness, so that by preserving our tongues from slander and grumbling we can love life and do good.

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR

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!

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR