EVERYDAY PRAYER

Sunday Vigil
Word of god every day

Sunday Vigil

Memorial of Saint Ambrose († 397), bishop of Milan. Pastor of his people, he remained strong in the face of the emperor's arrogance Read more

Libretto DEL GIORNO
Sunday Vigil
Saturday, December 7

Memorial of Saint Ambrose († 397), bishop of Milan. Pastor of his people, he remained strong in the face of the emperor’s arrogance


Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Matthew 9, 35-10,1.5-8

Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.

And when he saw the crowds he felt sorry for them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.

Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers to his harvest.'

He summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.

These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them as follows: 'Do not make your way to gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town;

go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.

And as you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.

Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from virulent skin-diseases, drive out devils. You received without charge, give without charge.

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

If you believe, you will see the glory of God,
thus says the Lord.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

In this Gospel passage, we see Jesus going about all cities and villages “proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness.” With this phrase, the evangelist synthesizes Jesus’ mission and offers to the Christian communities a clear vision of their mission, following their Master. Matthew adds Jesus’ response to the people: “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” It is out of compassion for this tired and helpless crowd that Jesus calls the Disciples and entrusts to them their evangelic mission. God’s compassion for the crowds of this world needs to be made manifest through the Church and every disciple, even today. This Gospel passage continues to question the Christian communities on how they are compassionate to the crowds of this world, to the poor, the elderly, the sick, the prisoners, the gypsies, the immigrants and refugees. Their number is countless. For this reason, Jesus calls his disciples—even us today— to invoke the Father to send forth labourers of mercy: “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few!” Therefore, Jesus himself chooses twelve out of his disciples, one for every tribe of Israel, so that none of them is deprived of the Gospel. Indeed, the disciples are a heterogeneous group of individuals. In the Christian community, what counts is not where we come from, our culture, our race, or our belonging, but only our willingness to follow Jesus’ call. Indeed, the Twelve Apostles are recognized from the others as people who stay with Jesus. From that moment on, they become witnesses of the Gospel and participants in God’s dream: making true the universal fraternity among all peoples. Thus, they receive the power to change hearts, to defeat evil, to gather together with the weak, to love those who despair, and to bring forth the Kingdom of love. This real power does not come from money, from bags, tunics, or earthly things, but from the limitless love that God has poured into their hearts. As Jesus sends them into the world, he tells them, “You received without payment; give without payment.” This is an extraordinary commandment opposed to the mercantile mentality in which people are wrapped up, even today. Christians are called to rediscover and witness to the gratuity of gift that is the essential part of Gospel love. This first mission Matthew describes in his Gospel is emblematic for every Christian generation: there is no other way for Jesus’ disciples. We, too, are called to live literally the passion for the weak that this Gospel page communicates to us.

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR

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!

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR