word made life
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord (Mt 11:9)
In a broader view, the story of us all, with its losses and contradictions, shadows and flashes of light, arrive at this nodal center: Jesus Christ , King, beginning and end of all , "all things were created through him and for him" .
"It is he who has freed us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of his Son" , Paul says, freed by a king 'loser'.
Today's Gospel has the theater Calvary : not at the center stands a majestic throne, but a cross, the scaffold of the slaves. Where there the cross, there is no place for signs of strength. This is why Jesus Christ wants to be recognized as King only through a free membership, without any coercion or imposition: it is only a matter of love.
This is our king. It recognizes those who love : the mother of the convicted women, John. Recognizes the thief crucified with him who abandons himself to his mercy and forgiveness obtains: "Today you will be with me in paradise" .
It is now, especially Christians, to set his life in a new way: any suffering can become an opportunity for growth and salvation.
From love is the light and strength to pray with the words Psalm: "peace reigns, Lord reigns" .
Testimony of the Word lived
With two young ladies of the parish coming from a girl dying they are assisting: a prostitute and called Eliete. At the door I met the doctor coming out. "Father - I said - this poor child will have at most two or three days of life. Be very careful though, because it is a contagious venereal disease." I find an eighteen physically defeat, with nearly all the wounds on the body. Eliete tells me a painful story: never having experienced true love, it ended up on the sidewalk in order to survive. It expresses the desire go to confession to receive the Eucharist: "I want to die as a child of God, even though I am a great sinner."
However, before giving her the Anointing of the Sick, remembering the words of the doctor, I feel paralyzed by fear. But a voice rings inside me: You are a priest for all, even for her. Seeking to overcome the fear of losing their good reputation and I do my duty. Eliete smiles, ready for the final meeting, but I can not convince me that that creature has to die in the prime of life. "What if Jesus will heal, what would you do?" I ask. "Going back to my house and tell them that it is better to starve to death rather than live in this hell." We ask all in the name of Jesus for the grace of healing. After some time the two people who watched me lead the surprising news: Eliete has healed, he left for ever that place of pain and has returned home to her family.
(EP, Brazil)
(from "Walking Together" - see Witnessing the Word, as proposed in the parish)
(see Remarks to the Word of Claudio Arletti)
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