Remembrance of Saint Pancratius (+304), who died a martyr for the love of the Gospel when he was 14 years old. Prayer for younger generations so that they may meet the Gospel and the Lord

Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

You are a chosen race,
a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
a people acquired by God
to proclaim his marvellous works.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

John 16,12-15

I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you to bear now. However, when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking of his own accord, but will say only what he has been told; and he will reveal to you the things to come. He will glorify me, since all he reveals to you will be taken from what is mine. Everything the Father has is mine; that is why I said: all he reveals to you will be taken from what is mine.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

You will be holy,
because I am holy, thus says the Lord.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

"I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now." There is no rebuke in these words. Jesus thinks that the disciples are not able to bear the full weight of the Gospel. The Gospel certainly does not require wise or intelligent people, nor is Jesus looking for powerful, strong people to entrust them with his mission. Rather he seems to be doing just the opposite. His word is not a lofty doctrine or a complex ideology that only a few are able to understand or deepen. From his teaching flows a simple and strong energy that fills the hearts of those who receive it and transforms their lives. Everyone can welcome and live the Gospel. It is a strong word, full of energy, overflowing in mercy. The disciples are asked only to allow this word to work and not to hold it back, not to put obstacles to it. The Holy Spirit "will guide [you] into all the truth," says Jesus. It will be the Spirit that will make us discover the limits and banalities of our narrow visions. The Spirit frees us from our pettiness, closures and avarice. If we let the Spirit guide us, we will discover future things, meaning that we will be able to dream for a different tomorrow for the world. The Spirit is the source of life and inspiration. The Spirit makes the disciples be craftsmen of the common future for all peoples that Jesus came to open on earth. Father Aleksandr Men', a priest killed in Moscow at the beginning of the Nineties, said that we are still at the beginning of understanding the Gospel, that we need to understand many words in all their depth. And John XXIII years before and close to death said: "It is not the Gospel that changes, it is us who start to understand it better." This is the work of the Spirit still today and throughout generations.