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 1, 1-7
The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
for learning what wisdom and discipline are, for understanding words of deep meaning,
for acquiring a disciplined insight, uprightness, justice and fair dealing;
for teaching sound judgement to the simple, and knowledge and reflection to the young;
Let the wise listen and learn yet more, and a person of discernment will acquire the art of guidance.
for perceiving the meaning of proverbs and obscure sayings, the sayings of the sages and their riddles.
The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge; fools spurn wisdom and discipline.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
We begin the Book of Proverbs, a collection of sage reflections gathered over the centuries. Along with the Song of Songs and the Book of Wisdom, the Book of Proverbs is attributed to Solomon, considered the wise par excellence. As 1 Kings (5:9-14) amply recounts, Solomon knows how to uncover and show the laws that regulate the cosmos and human life. The theme that runs throughout the entire book can be summed up in the last verse of this passage: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." The author places human knowledge under the authority of the "fear of the Lord." "Fear" does not mean being afraid, but a recognition that we depend on God, from whom comes all wisdom. We cannot inherit wisdom or acquire it mechanically; rather, we acquire it through instruction. The task of the wise is to penetrate life’s and nature’s secrets in order to identify the laws that the Lord made so we may conform to them: "Let the wise also hear and gain in learning, and the discerning acquire skill to understand a proverb and a figure, the words of the wise and their riddles." The wise accept putting in the effort to search for wisdom, knowing that wisdom cannot be grasped once and for all. In this sense, wisdom reflection allows a degree of human autonomy that grants a great deal of confidence in human beings’ capacity to discern the laws that regulate the universe. Hence, these first verses insist upon the need for putting effort into comprehending. What is asked of the reader of this book is to put effort into knowing, understanding, acquiring wisdom, becoming wise and giving knowledge. Faith does not mean simply adhering to established truths. Faith asks of each one of us to take on the responsibility of growing in understanding so that faith may become a culture of life. If we want, the wise man in the Book of Proverbs invites us to put ourselves to the test of making the continuous effort of growing in wisdom and knowledge, so that our faith may contribute to progress and cultural development. Wisdom search shows that God has given humanity freedom, so that we may orient ourselves through research in the complexity of the universe, which we will never sufficiently comprehend.
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
