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
Proverbs 13, 1-25
A wise child listens to a father's discipline, a cynic will not listen to reproof.
The fruit of the mouth provides a good meal, but the soul of the treacherous feeds on violence.
A guard on the mouth makes life secure, whoever talks too much is lost.
The idler hungers but has no food; hard workers get their fill.
The upright hates a lying word, but the wicked slanders and defames.
Uprightness stands guard over one whose way is honest, sin causes the ruin of the wicked.
There are some who, on nothing, pretend to be rich, some, with great wealth, pretend to be poor.
The ransom for life is a person's wealth; but the poor will not hear the reproof.
The light of the upright is joyful, the lamp of the wicked goes out.
Insolence breeds only disputes, wisdom lies with those who take advice.
A sudden fortune will dwindle away, accumulation little by little is the way to riches.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
Contempt for the word is self-destructive, respect for the commandment wins salvation.
The teaching of the wise is a life-giving fountain for eluding the snares of death.
Good sense wins favour, but the way of the treacherous is hard.
Anyone of discretion acts by the light of knowledge, the fool parades his folly.
A bad messenger falls into misfortune, a trusty messenger brings healing.
Whoever rejects discipline wins poverty and scorn; for anyone who accepts correction: honour.
Desire fulfilled is sweet to the soul; fools are loth to turn -- from evil.
Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, whoever mixes with fools will be ruined.
Evil will pursue the sinner, but good will reward the upright.
The good bequeaths a heritage to children's children, the wealth of the sinner is stored away for the upright.
Though the farms of the poor yield much food, some perish for lack of justice.
Whoever fails to use the stick hates his child; whoever is free with correction loves him.
The upright eats to the full, the belly of the wicked goes empty.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
We are still reading an indistinct, unconnected series of proverbs. The theme of discipline returns at the beginning and end of the chapter: "A wise child loves discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to rebuke...Those who spare the rod hate their children, but those who love them are diligent to discipline them." Leaving aside the rod, which it is better not to use, today there is almost no discipline at all, and this is bad for everyone. The lack of discipline is bad for both the young, who grow up without a sure guide, at the mercy of themselves and the messages they get from other places, and those who are older, who are annoyed by any sort of remark made about them. The surer we are of ourselves, the more we are selfish individualists. Even in our lives and our communities we sometimes accept the worldly logic of false respect, which keeps us from offering any criticism to our neighbours, in the name of a false understanding of liberty, which in turn is often the result of an excessive love for ourselves. On this issue, the Bible can seem out-of-date, but in truth it contains great wisdom that would help us to live together in a more human and civil way, and accept that we have fathers and mothers who are trying to raise their children instead of leaving them abandoned to themselves. The Church can truly be a place of generous maternity that welcomes, understands, and corrects. Another theme covered in the chapter touches once again on the importance of words. Indeed, discipline is made up of words. We need to know how to use words, not to gossip, not to spread lies and petty stories, because "the righteous hate falsehood." "By insolence the heedless make strife, but wisdom is with those who take advice." Insolence and wisdom are opposed: it is better to take advice than be bothered by the remarks that are made about us. Unfortunately, insolence is a large part of the societies in which we live. This is why we see constant strife and constant violence, and we grow used to it as if it were normal. Violence great and small is born in the heart, grows in arguments and quarrels, and ends with actions that cannot be controlled. We should never scorn words, because they have the strength to do good or evil: "The clever do all things intelligently, but the fool displays folly." We need to think and reflect so that we can speak and act for the good, keeping our instincts from pushing us towards evil. We all need greater wisdom, which is gained by meditating on the word of God and through prayer, both of which give peace to our hearts.
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
