Memorial of Saint Peter Damian (1007-1072). Faithful to his monastic vocation, he loved the entire Church and spent his life reforming it. Memory of the monks in every part of the world Read more
Memorial of Saint Peter Damian (1007-1072). Faithful to his monastic vocation, he loved the entire Church and spent his life reforming it. Memory of the monks in every part of the world
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
I am the good shepherd,
my sheep listen to my voice,
and they become
one flock and one fold.
.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Mark 8, 27-33
Jesus and his disciples left for the villages round Caesarea Philippi. On the way he put this question to his disciples, 'Who do people say I am?'
And they told him, 'John the Baptist, others Elijah, others again, one of the prophets.'
'But you,' he asked them, 'who do you say I am?' Peter spoke up and said to him, 'You are the Christ.'
And he gave them strict orders not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them that the Son of man was destined to suffer grievously, and to be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be put to death, and after three days to rise again;
and he said all this quite openly. Then, taking him aside, Peter tried to rebuke him.
But, turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said to him, 'Get behind me, Satan! You are thinking not as God thinks, but as human beings do.'
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
I give you a new commandment,
that you love one another.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Jesus is with his disciples in the pagan territory of the Tetrarchy of Philip, where the city of Caesarea stood; it was named in this way by Philip after Caesar Augustus. Here, maybe because he was far from the Jews, Jesus could freely deal with the messianic issue, with no fear of being misunderstood by people or of causing reactions by the Pharisees. When close to the city, Jesus questioned the disciples on the rumours about himself: “Who do people say that I am?” In the Gospel of Mark, this question of Jesus is so relevant that it is right in the actual centre of the narration. And it is paramount even today: “Who is Jesus?” I believe that in this difficult and confused time, our generation should again answer this question. Jesus is at the northern border of Palestine, about 30 miles northeast of the lake. The evangelist seems to suggest that Jesus’ trip to Jerusalem started from here. Its beginning is marked by Peter’s profession of faith. The disciples answered Jesus’ question and reported what people said about him. But Jesus seemed to be little interested in this. Indeed he turned to the disciples and asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter’s answer is clear: “You are the Messiah.” Messiah means the consecrated, the one sent by God. Peter did well confessing his faith. This is the right way to start the trip. It is also the right way for us to live at this time in a renewed way. Nevertheless, it is still a weak faith which should be nourished by the Gospel. Jesus, in fact, is forced to disown Peter harshly, immediately after. In fact Peter opposed the prophecy of the passion, that is, the establishment of the kingdom through the Messiah’s death. The total rejection of the passion prevents Peter from listening even to the resurrection announcement, which is equally clear in the Master’s words. Self-sufficiency and pride prevent Peter from fully welcoming the Gospel. Jesus could only firmly reject Peter’s words. And, with unprecedented harshness, Jesus compared him to the prince of evil, Satan: “Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” Jesus invited the apostle to get back to following him, to resume listening, not letting himself be guided by his own thinking and beliefs. Peter, the first among the apostles, was called to be again the first among disciples, among those who listen. We should all be “behind Jesus” in order to listen and to keep thinking according to God and not according to human beings.
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
