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
1 Kings 2,1-4.10-12
As David's life drew to its close he laid this charge on his son Solomon, 'I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong and show yourself a man. Observe the injunctions of Yahweh your God, following his ways and keeping his laws, his commandments, his ordinances and his decrees, as stands written in the Law of Moses, so that you may be successful in everything you do and undertake, and that Yahweh may fulfil the promise which he made me, "If your sons are careful how they behave, and walk loyally before me with all their heart and soul, you will never want for a man on the throne of Israel." So David fell asleep with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. David was king of Israel for a period of forty years: he reigned at Hebron for seven years, and in Jerusalem for thirty-three. Solomon then sat on the throne of David, and his sovereignty was securely established.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
I give you a new commandment,
that you love one another.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The First Book of Kings begins with the narrative of Solomon’s succession to David. The author points out, however, the difficulty of this process. Because of the pride of Adonijah and his accomplices, individual interests prevail over those of the group and thus pose an alternative not so much to David as to the Lord, the true "shepherd" of Israel. David, who rose to the throne when he was thirty, has been king for forty years. He is an old man, but also tired and of shaky health. The sacred author notes that because of David’s weakness Adonijah" exalted himself," he, who after the death of the brothers Ammon and Absalom, was the firstborn. He thinks that it is his right to occupy the throne instead of David. His plan, which also seems reasonable, provides a careful strategy of alliances. But the truth is that Adonijah not only misunderstands that the true leader of Israel is the Lord, but does not even try to know his will. He relies instead only on his strength, his strategy, his personal ability to access the rule of the kingdom which he believes is rightfully his. Far from his thoughts is the love for the people and even more distant the belief that he must rely on the Lord to be his servant. He is guided only by ambition. The fear of this coup pushes the prophet Nathan, who well knows the heart of God, to intervene and block Adonijah. In addition, the prophet knows that God chooses the small and the last to perform his works. He was next to David at the time of Solomon’s birth (2 Sam 12:24-25), and remembers that David had made a solemn oath in favour of Solomon. The prophet also convinces Bathsheba to intercede with David in favour of Solomon. David then speaks explicitly and indicates Solomon as his successor; therefore he orders that his mule be given to Solomon and conduct him until the fountain of Gihon. Here Solomon is anointed king by the priests. The anointing with oil, the proclamation of the consecration with the sound of the trumpet and the people’s acclamation, ratify Solomon’s ascent to the throne. Once again, the Lord, through the word of the prophet, guides the history of Israel, choosing not the legitimate heir, but the last one, the smallest. It is a constant in the history of biblical revelation. It shows that it is the Lord who continues to lead his people.
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
