Memorial of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. Read more
Memorial of the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.
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
Acts 5,27-33
When they had brought them in to face the Sanhedrin, the high priest demanded an explanation. 'We gave you a strong warning', he said, 'not to preach in this name, and what have you done? You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and seem determined to fix the guilt for this man's death on us.' In reply Peter and the apostles said, 'Obedience to God comes before obedience to men; it was the God of our ancestors who raised up Jesus, whom you executed by hanging on a tree. By his own right hand God has now raised him up to be leader and Saviour, to give repentance and forgiveness of sins through him to Israel. We are witnesses to this, we and the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.' This so infuriated them that they wanted to put them to death.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
I give you a new commandment,
that you love one another.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The apostles are led back into the Sanhedrin before the leaders of the people. This time it is not just Peter and John who are dragged into court, but all the apostles. It is the entire Church that is being accused. Their reprimand is based on the fact that the apostles did not obey the order given by the leaders of the people not to preach the Gospel any more: "We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name." The high priest, who, perhaps out of fear does not even speak Jesus’ name, nonetheless wants to stop the growth of the community. In fact, esteem for this new group of believers was spreading among the people, and many were coming to take part in it. The apostles’ response to the accusation made by the Sanhedrin is unanimous and firm. Luke emphasizes the fact that "Peter and the apostles" answered together. And this time Peter does not submit to the Sanhedrin’s judgment the problem of whether it is right to obey humans rather than God. Instead, concisely and without hesitation, he says, "We must obey God rather than any human authority." We could say that it is the entire Christian community that expresses itself with these words before the Sanhedrin. In fact, in the Christian community it is the Spirit that guides and authorizes the communication of the Gospel to the entire city. The words spoken by Peter - and by all the apostles with him - are a summary of the mystery of salvation brought by Jesus to all men and women. This passage emphasizes the fact that Jesus was raised up to the right hand of God and now wields his saving power for all, with no one excluded. It was on account of this mystery of salvation that he came down to earth, and they, the apostles, are witnesses because of the Holy Spirit that has been poured out in their hearts. Unlike the apostles, who act freely and with strength of spirit because they are moved by the spirit, the members of the Sanhedrin, who are moved by jealously at what they see happening, react abruptly: "they were enraged and wanted to kill them." Only the intervention of Gamaliel, as is told in the next part of the text - keeps them from doing so. But clearly it is impossible to stop the Word of God.
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
