Memory of Lazarus of Bethany. Prayer for all those who are gravely ill and for the dying. Memory of those who have died of AIDS. Read more
Memory of Lazarus of Bethany. Prayer for all those who are gravely ill and for the dying. Memory of those who have died of AIDS.
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
Matthew 1, 1-17
Roll of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham:
Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers,
Judah fathered Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered Ram,
Ram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, Nahshon fathered Salmon,
Salmon fathered Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse;
and Jesse fathered King David. David fathered Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah's wife,
Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, Abijah fathered Asa,
Asa fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered Joram, Joram fathered Uzziah,
Uzziah fathered Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah,
Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered Amon, Amon fathered Josiah;
and Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers. Then the deportation to Babylon took place.
After the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah fathered Shealtiel, Shealtiel fathered Zerubbabel,
Zerubbabel fathered Abiud, Abiud fathered Eliakim, Eliakim fathered Azor,
Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, Achim fathered Eliud,
Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, Matthan fathered Jacob;
and Jacob fathered Joseph the husband of Mary; of her was born Jesus who is called Christ.
The sum of generations is therefore: fourteen from Abraham to David; fourteen from David to the Babylonian deportation; and fourteen from the Babylonian deportation to Christ.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Starting today the liturgy helps us to get closer to the mystery of Christmas. In these next days we will be presented with passages from the gospels of Jesus’ childhood that are reported solely by Matthew and Luke. Different from the Gospel of John, which opens with the description of the divine origins of Jesus, and from Mark who starts it with the preaching of John the Baptist, Matthew and Luke describe some episodes of the birth and childhood of Jesus. Matthew opens his Gospel with the recitation of the genealogical tree of Jesus. Luke reports his genealogy too but only at the end of chapter three. The two lists are different, from David to Joseph, and coincide only in two names. But this is because Matthew chooses the dynastic instead of the natural succession, which is preferred by Luke. Through the list of these names, Matthew wants to lead readers to discover that Jesus is “the son of David” and “the son of Abraham,” two titles that present Jesus as the fulfilment of the promise of God. The plan of salvation that God is implementing and has its apex in the birth of Jesus is not improvised. The Lord has begun to prepare his plan from long ago, from Abraham and David. Through the succession of generations, the Lord has guided the history of Israel until its completion: “Joseph, the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.” This Gospel, which at a first glance may appear like a dry list of names, reminds us that Jesus does not live outside of human history, indeed, by just being inside it Jesus is its fulfilment. It is not without meaning that in Matthew’s list after the names that go from Abraham to David (vv. 1-11) only the first two (Salathiel and Zerubbabel) and the last two (Joseph and Mary) are known while the others are unknown. Though they did not do any extraordinary deed, they are part of the story of the love of God. If this was true for them, it can also be true for us. In Jesus, every generation can find solace and salvation; he is not the prerogative of a particular culture, or of a particular race, or of a single civilization. Whoever follows him belongs to the great story of God. As the apostle Paul writes, Jesus re-assumes in himself everything. It is not a coincidence, then, that the genealogy also reveals the presence of some pagan women, like Ruth and Rahab, or women who are guilty of misconduct, like Tamar and Uriah’s wife. Jesus is the “king” of Israel and of all human beings. Jesus is the one who saves and redeems the just and the sinner, men and women, no one is excluded from his mercy. The only condition is to welcome it. Therefore, in the genealogy of Matthew, if we want, we can add our names and those of our loved ones or of the people we meet. The Lord has chosen to walk beside us; the Lord is truly the Emmanuel, God with us.
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
