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
Hebrews 10, 19-31
We have then, brothers, complete confidence through the blood of Jesus in entering the sanctuary,
by a new way which he has opened for us, a living opening through the curtain, that is to say, his flesh.
And we have the high priest over all the sanctuary of God.
So as we go in, let us be sincere in heart and filled with faith, our hearts sprinkled and free from any trace of bad conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
Let us keep firm in the hope we profess, because the one who made the promise is trustworthy.
Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works.
Do not absent yourself from your own assemblies, as some do, but encourage each other; the more so as you see the Day drawing near.
If, after we have been given knowledge of the truth, we should deliberately commit any sins, then there is no longer any sacrifice for them.
There is left only the dreadful prospect of judgement and of the fiery wrath that is to devour your enemies.
Anyone who disregards the Law of Moses is ruthlessly put to death on the word of two witnesses or three;
and you may be sure that anyone who tramples on the Son of God, and who treats the blood of the covenant which sanctified him as if it were not holy, and who insults the Spirit of grace, will be condemned to a far severer punishment.
We are all aware who it was that said: Vengeance is mine; I will pay them back. And again: The Lord will vindicate his people.
It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Concluding the doctrinal discussion on Jesus as high priest, the author reminds believers of the consequences that they must draw. Union with the “flesh” of Christ, with His body, admits us into the sanctuary where He has entered. In these words, it is easy to intuit that the author is speaking of the Eucharist understood as the most direct route for entering the sanctuary, that is, for directly and personally encountering the Lord. Communion with the Body of Christ is the direct communion with God and therefore with all the brothers and sisters. The author uses the term “parrhesia” which indicates, in the context of ancient Greece, the “liberty to say everything”, that is, the right to be citizens by full title of the city. To receive the right to “parrhesia” means having the freedom to turn to God without intermediaries, and, therefore, to be able to speak with Him with the total confidence of children. It is the “road” that Jesus has opened for us and which the Letter exhorts us to travel without fear: “Let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” To live in community, participating in the Holy Liturgy, in the fellowship, in the love for the most poor, in engagement so that the life of all may be more serene, all this means travelling the path that Jesus has opened for us. For this reason, the Letter exhorts believers to spur each other “into love” and to be generous in “good works.” Those who neglect the common meetings are warned that by doing so they take themselves far away from the sanctuary, from God himself. The danger of apostasy, that is, of abandoning faith, even before it is a theoretical question, is a problem of the heart, or better, of entrusting one’s life to the Lord. And one needs to understand that the abandonment does not come in an unforeseen manner; it begins by missing common events, remaining in silence, until slipping little by little into a rupture of communion. In this way warns the Letter one has “spurned the Son of God” and has “outraged the Spirit of grace.” And unfortunately prevarication may become irremediable and it is a tragedy for those who allow themselves to be swept away.
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
