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
Luke 16, 1-8
He also said to his disciples, 'There was a rich man and he had a steward who was denounced to him for being wasteful with his property.
He called for the man and said, "What is this I hear about you? Draw me up an account of your stewardship because you are not to be my steward any longer."
Then the steward said to himself, "Now that my master is taking the stewardship from me, what am I to do? Dig? I am not strong enough. Go begging? I should be too ashamed.
Ah, I know what I will do to make sure that when I am dismissed from office there will be some to welcome me into their homes."
'Then he called his master's debtors one by one. To the first he said, "How much do you owe my master?"
"One hundred measures of oil," he said. The steward said, "Here, take your bond; sit down and quickly write fifty."
To another he said, "And you, sir, how much do you owe?" "One hundred measures of wheat," he said. The steward said, "Here, take your bond and write eighty."
'The master praised the dishonest steward for his astuteness. For the children of this world are more astute in dealing with their own kind than are the children of light.'
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Whoever reads the Gospel frequently must of necessity come across parables. It is one of Jesus’ favourite ways of teaching. As a good and attentive master, he wanted the disciples to understand his words not as abstract teaching, but rather as applicable to actual daily life. For this reason, he prefers the language of parables, full of symbolism and reality. Again he is inspired by a real situation: a steward accused of mismanagement is called by his master to present his accounts before being removed. At this point, Jesus describes the astuteness of this steward in providing for his future. He calls the debtors of his master and, for each, significantly reduces the amount they owe. Obviously, all the debtors will be grateful to him once his master will remove him. In concluding, Jesus praises the unfaithful steward: “The children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than are the children of light.” Surely, Jesus does not want to urge his listeners to cheat the master, as did the steward. The parable aims to underline the skill and the foresight of the steward regarding the future that awaits him. To earn the kingdom of God, Jesus asks his disciples to work in every way with the same cunning manner, so to speak, as that of the steward. Unfortunately, disciples often adopt an attitude of resignation when faced with the events of life and instead do not use the same energy as that of the unfaithful steward, neither for saving themselves nor to achieve a world that is more just. Jesus notes that those who reason with the mentality of the world do all to assure themselves of a future free of problems. Often, instead, “the children of the light” - his disciples - do not pay the same attention or have the same passion to secure the kingdom of heaven. The Gospel urges us also to love creatively and not to resign ourselves or even less lazily relax in the face of difficulties. In this context, we can again understand the exhortation of Jesus to his disciples, “Be wise as serpents and simple as doves” (Mt 10:16). We must be aware that an active commitment is expected from us to increase love and peace among all.
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
