Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
This is the Gospel of the poor,
liberation for the imprisoned,
sight for the blind,
freedom for the oppressed.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
1 Samuel 1,1-8
There was a man of Ramathaim, a Zuphite from the highlands of Ephraim whose name was Elkanah son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. He had two wives, one called Hannah, the other Peninnah; Peninnah had children but Hannah had none. Every year this man used to go up from his town to worship, and to sacrifice to Yahweh Sabaoth at Shiloh. (The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there as priests of Yahweh.) One day Elkanah offered a sacrifice. Now he used to give portions to Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters; to Hannah, however, he would give only one portion: for, although he loved Hannah more, Yahweh had made her barren. Furthermore, her rival would taunt and provoke her, because Yahweh had made her womb barren. And this went on year after year; every time they went up to the temple of Yahweh she used to taunt her. On that day she wept and would not eat anything; so her husband Elkanah said, 'Hannah, why are you crying? Why are you not eating anything? Why are you so sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?'
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
In the first four weeks of Ordinary Time of the even year, the Eucharistic liturgy proposes the reading of the first and second books of Samuel. At the end of the book of Judges, Israel is a community in religious decline (chapters 17-18) and in the throes of moral chaos (chapters 19-21), without having the ability, or rather the will, to get out of this situation. Israel occupies a small area of a few square kilometres at whose centre is Shiloh with the Ark of the Covenant. Surrounded by people ruled by kings, Israel asks for a king who can protect, defend, rally and liberate them. The entire book of Samuel is about Israel holding out for a king, David, who will establish his kingdom extending from Egypt to the Euphrates. The story of David’s kingship over Israel, however, starts with the story of a barren and embittered woman named Hannah (1:2). The story of Israel’s transition from difficulty to wellbeing does not begin with a grand theory, nor in a splendid palace, but with a childless woman without a future. In effect, Israel’s expectation (which will culminate with David) begins with this barren and desperate woman’s expectation. The author wants to emphasize that Israel’s future kingdom depends entirely on God. The family of Elkanah, who also had a great past as one can guess from its genealogy, however, is destined to have no future whatsoever. Furthermore, it seems that God wills Hannah’s barrenness. In short, the situation seems hopeless. To add insult to injury, Hannah’s rival, Peninnah, the second wife of Elkanah, ridicules her for her barrenness. At the sacrificial meals in the sanctuary, she probably pointed out to Hannah that her husband was giving her multiple portions (for her and her sons), whereas he was only giving one portion to Hannah. Despite her husband’s love, Hannah is terribly depressed and desperate, even to the point of losing her appetite. She understands that only the Lord can help her.
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
