Memorial of St. Gregory the Great (540-604), pope and doctor of the Church Read more
Memorial of St. Gregory the Great (540-604), pope and doctor of the Church
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
Luke 4, 38-44
Leaving the synagogue he went to Simon's house. Now Simon's mother-in-law was in the grip of a high fever and they asked him to do something for her.
Standing over her he rebuked the fever and it left her. And she immediately got up and began to serve them.
At sunset all those who had friends suffering from diseases of one kind or another brought them to him, and laying his hands on each he cured them.
Devils too came out of many people, shouting, 'You are the Son of God.' But he warned them and would not allow them to speak because they knew that he was the Christ.
When daylight came he left the house and made his way to a lonely place. The crowds went to look for him, and when they had caught up with him they wanted to prevent him leaving them,
but he answered, 'I must proclaim the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns too, because that is what I was sent to do.'
And he continued his proclamation in the synagogues of Judaea.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
You will be holy,
because I am holy, thus says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Jesus left the synagogue and entered the house of Peter where the mother-in-law of the apostle was lying in the bed, ill. Jesus bent over her, rebuked the fever. And the fever, the evangelist writes, left her and the mother-in-law was freed. Jesus’ whole life had been bending towards the poor, the weak, and, in this case, toward an elderly woman. In her we see the many old people who are now surrounded by indifference and wickedness, and forced to remain prisoners of sadness waiting for a sad ending. The Lord Jesus, leaning over her, gave back strength so that she could rise from bed and begin to serve again. Old age is not a shipwreck; it is not a defeat. If accepted and helped, it can be a time of new vitality. Just think, for example, of prayer, which can be a new vocation rediscovered in the last years of life. The evangelist suggests that Jesus stayed at the house until the day’s end and that everyone brought the sick to the front door. Peter’s house, now Jesus’ house, essentially, became a reference point for the people of that city to bring the weak, the poor and the sick. All were going to knock on that door, sure that they would be answered. Should it not be that way for every Christian community? Should we not all be a real door of hope for those who seek comfort and help? Unfortunately, we are still far from this Gospel image. But where this happens, the Christian community relives the joy of the disciples when they saw men and women healed by the power of the Gospel of love. We have to distance ourselves from scepticismall rationalizedabout miracles. Of course, we must not only understand these as events “miraculous”. In truth, there are many ways in which miracles happen, and not just in the body. In the Gospels, even if there are only thirty-five miracles counted, we often talk about the “miracles, wonders and signs” performed by Jesus. They were the visible signs of the arrival of the kingdom of heaven among us, of the new world that Jesus inaugurated. Everything was bent on building a new world right now, where love, justice, peace, happiness and prosperity for all reigned. This power to do miracles and to build a new world was given by Jesus to his disciples of all time. Even to us. And Luke tells us from where comes this power to perform miracles and transform the world: “At daybreak he departed and went into a deserted place” to pray. This was the source of his strength. It is a great lesson for each of us. Turning to God in prayer at dawn means giving a good direction to the day and receiving from God the strength to witness to his love. Together with Jesus we will not be stuck in our habits. Jesus will take us with him to communicate the Gospel throughout the world.
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
