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
Luke 7,36-50
One of the Pharisees invited him to a meal. When he arrived at the Pharisee's house and took his place at table, suddenly a woman came in, who had a bad name in the town. She had heard he was dining with the Pharisee and had brought with her an alabaster jar of ointment. She waited behind him at his feet, weeping, and her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them away with her hair; then she covered his feet with kisses and anointed them with the ointment. When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, 'If this man were a prophet, he would know who this woman is and what sort of person it is who is touching him and what a bad name she has.' Then Jesus took him up and said, 'Simon, I have something to say to you.' He replied, 'Say on, Master.' 'There was once a creditor who had two men in his debt; one owed him five hundred denarii, the other fifty. They were unable to pay, so he let them both off. Which of them will love him more?' Simon answered, 'The one who was let off more, I suppose.' Jesus said, 'You are right.' Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, 'You see this woman? I came into your house, and you poured no water over my feet, but she has poured out her tears over my feet and wiped them away with her hair. You gave me no kiss, but she has been covering my feet with kisses ever since I came in. You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. For this reason I tell you that her sins, many as they are, have been forgiven her, because she has shown such great love. It is someone who is forgiven little who shows little love.' Then he said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.' Those who were with him at table began to say to themselves, 'Who is this man, that even forgives sins?' But he said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
I give you a new commandment,
that you love one another.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
While Jesus is at table--invited by Simon the Pharisee--a prostitute comes close to him. She lies down next to him and anoints his feet with perfume while crying. The scene is undoubtedly unique, in all aspects. And one can understand well the reaction of those present, given the customs of the time. In Israel women did not enjoy any consideration. They could not speak in the synagogue or participate in public life and they could not give testimony at trials. One can understand therefore the huffy attitude of those present when faced with Jesus' welcoming of the woman, who was also a sinner. The reaction of annoyance toward this woman, which upsets the meal, is also a severe judgment toward Jesus who does not realize who the woman is and lets her continue in her action anyhow. In the least Jesus appears as a naïve person who does not understand the reality of life. In reality, it was they, those present, who did not understand that woman, her desire to be forgiven, and the love of Jesus. Jesuswho reads the secrets of heartsunderstood the love of that woman. He welcomed and forgave her. To make them understand his feelings he recounts the short parable of the two debtors: one who had to pay 500 denarii and the other, 50. Neither one of them could pay the debt. And both of them are pardoned regardless. Jesus then asks Simon the Pharisee, which of the two loves the master more. The answer is clear: "The one for whom he cancelled the greater debt!" The parable supposes that the two, both the Pharisee and the sinful woman, have received something from Jesus. The Pharisee responds by inviting him home. The sinful woman gets closer and wets his feet with tears and spreads perfume on them. The woman's awareness of her sin corresponded to the need that she had to be forgiven. Jesus invites us to not think we are right or not very sinful. Just the opposite he calls us to open our eyes to our sin and to feel, like that sinful woman, the need to be forgiven. Yes, we too need to hear: "Your sins are forgiven you." And we will understand even more the words that Jesus says on that occasion, "Her many sins were forgiven, for she has loved much." Love, in fact, erases sins and changes our lives.
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!
