Memory of St. Michael the Archangel. The Ethiopian Church, one of the first among the African churches, venerates him as its protector. Read more
Memory of St. Michael the Archangel. The Ethiopian Church, one of the first among the African churches, venerates him as its protector.
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
John 1, 47-51
When Jesus saw Nathanael coming he said of him, 'There, truly, is an Israelite in whom there is no deception.'
Nathanael asked, 'How do you know me?' Jesus replied, 'Before Philip came to call you, I saw you under the fig tree.'
Nathanael answered, 'Rabbi, you are the Son of God, you are the king of Israel.'
Jesus replied, 'You believe that just because I said: I saw you under the fig tree. You are going to see greater things than that.'
And then he added, 'In all truth I tell you, you will see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending over the Son of man.'
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If you believe, you will see the glory of God,
thus says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Today the liturgy remembers the angels and messengers of the Lord: Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. In the biblical tradition the testimonies of these three archangels are many. They mark important moments in the history of salvation even in the Christian centuries. The image of the archangel Michael fighting against evil to save believers crosses centuries and also Christian lands that keep his memory in numerous churches. The angel Gabriel, who is in the presence of God, intervened at the moment of Jesus’ incarnation. And the angel Raphael, who accompanied Tobias on his journey, continues to protect believers. As the Letter to the Hebrews sums up, "Are not all angels' spirits in the divine service, sent to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?" (1:14). God entrusts them with the task of transmitting his will. It is true that Paul reminds us that there is only "one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus" (1 Tim 2:5); however, the Churches declare the role of these messengers in the history of salvation. Through them we are ensured of God’s constant presence to each of us. Furthermore in their presence, before God’s heavenly throne, they celebrate an uninterrupted celestial liturgy. We join this Divine Liturgy every time we celebrate the Eucharist and proclaim God three times holy. The Gospel passage we heard is one in which the angels, with their "ascending and descending," witness to God’s constant presence in our lives. Thus, believers should not fear chance or the dark forces of nature that invade the world and human hearts. The Lord does not abandon us. The Lord, with his angels, surrounds us so that nothing may remove us from him and that we do not become prey to the forces of the Enemy, the Prince of Evil.
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
