READING OF THE DAY First reading from the Book of Habakkuk HAB 1:2-3; 2:2-4
How long, O LORD? I cry for help but you do not listen! I cry out to you, "Violence!" but you do not intervene. Why do you let me see ruin; why must I look at misery? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and clamorous discord. Then the LORD answered me and said: Write down the vision clearly upon the tablets, so that one can read it readily. For the vision still has its time, presses on to fulfillment, and will not disappoint; if it delays, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not be late. The rash one has no integrity; but the just one, because of his faith, shall live.
Second reading from the Second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy 2 TM 1:6-8, 13-14
Beloved: I remind you, to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control. So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God.
Take as your norm the sound words that you heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard this rich trust with the help of the Holy Spirit that dwells within us.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY From the Gospel according to Luke LK 17:5-10
The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith." The Lord replied, "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.
"Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, 'Come here immediately and take your place at table'? Would he not rather say to him, 'Prepare something for me to eat. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and drink when I am finished'? Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.'"
WORDS OF THE HOLY FATHER It seems that we can all make this our invocation. Let us too, like the Apostles, say to the Lord: “Increase our faith!”. And how does the Lord answer us? He responds: “If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this sycamine tree, ‘Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea’, and it would obey you”. A mustard seed is tiny, yet Jesus says that faith this size, small but true and sincere, suffices to achieve what is humanly impossible, unthinkable. And it is true! We all know people who are simple, humble, but whose faith is so strong it can move mountains! Let us think, for example, of some mothers and fathers who face very difficult situations; or of some sick, and even gravely ill, people who transmit serenity to those who come to visit them. And how do we draw from this strength? We draw it from God in prayer. Prayer is the breath of faith: in a relationship of trust, in a relationship of love, dialogue cannot be left out, and prayer is the dialogue of the soul with God. (Angelus, 6 October 2013)
FAUSTI - The whole journey to Jerusalem contains a Catechism that develops the requests of the Our Father: "Your Name be sanctified" (chap. 11) "Thy Kingdom come" (cc.12/13) "Give us the bread" (c 14) "Forgive us" (c.15) "As we forgive" (c 16) "Let us not yield, let us not lose faith" (c.17). Luke does not contain the question "Your Will be done". Jesus is the only one to accomplish it (c 22, 42), satisfying all the other requests, even in our name. This part, which begins from the Apostles' request for an increase of faith and culminates in enlightenment (18:43), shows the faith as the possibility of the impossible, love and gratuitousness, a path of purification, which makes us know how and when the Kingdom comes, lives of trust and humility, makes us children, capable to decide for the Son who goes to Jerusalem to give His life and makes us come to the light as new men. The Apostles are the disciples who, having learned from the Teacher, receive His same commission: they are sent to carry the Lord's Mercy beyond the circle of the community, to the ends of the earth. The Apostles feel inadequate for their task because they have little faith. Faith is the personal experience of the Father's Mercy, the origin of the mission to the brothers and sisters. It must be asked as the daily bread and forgiveness. After prayer: "Teach us to pray" (11:1), this is the typical prayer of the believer, especially of the Apostle: "Increase our faith!". With it everything is obtained. Everything is possible for those who believe, because nothing is impossible for God (1:37). The Lord explains that faith is like a small seed, but with vital force and such as to move a tree into the sea. For it, St. Paul says: "I can do everything in Him who gives me strength" (Phil 4:13), because my powerlessness is filled with the very power of God. To believe is to stop trusting in oneself and to let it may be He who acts. That is why "when I am weak, it is then that I am strong" (St. Paul 2 Cor 12:10). We now proceed from the personal faith of the Apostle to his apostolic work of proclaiming to others. He is compared to the servant, or rather, to the slave, because he does not belong to himself. This slavery of his is the highest realization of the freedom to love: it makes him like his Lord, entirely of the Father and of his brothers and sisters. Just as the slave belongs to his master who enslaves him, so does the Apostle belongs to his Lord Who gives him the freedom to be like Him, his collaborator, associated with His ministry. This slavery for love is total liberation from selfishness: "You, in fact, brethren, are called to freedom" and this does not consist in living according to selfishness, but in being, through charity, slaves to one another. The two typical actions of the Apostle are: the proclamation (sower) and the care of the brothers (shepherd). Whoever "ploughs or pastures" does it not for of a disgraceful profit, but because he is driven by the love of his Lord , dead for all. For Paul, the highest reward is to preach the Gospel freely. The Apostle is associated to the ministry of Grace and Mercy of his Lord for the world. The origin of his service is faith, as the personal experience of the One who loved him and gave himself for him (Gal 2:20). For this reason it is not in the logic of giving and having, but in that of free gift. The love he has experienced makes him free to serve as his Lord.
READING OF THE DAY
RispondiEliminaFirst reading from the Book of Habakkuk
HAB 1:2-3; 2:2-4
How long, O LORD? I cry for help
but you do not listen!
I cry out to you, "Violence!"
but you do not intervene.
Why do you let me see ruin;
why must I look at misery?
Destruction and violence are before me;
there is strife, and clamorous discord.
Then the LORD answered me and said:
Write down the vision clearly upon the tablets,
so that one can read it readily.
For the vision still has its time,
presses on to fulfillment, and will not disappoint;
if it delays, wait for it,
it will surely come, it will not be late.
The rash one has no integrity;
but the just one, because of his faith, shall live.
Second reading from the Second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy
2 TM 1:6-8, 13-14
Beloved:
I remind you, to stir into flame
the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.
For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice
but rather of power and love and self-control.
So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord,
nor of me, a prisoner for his sake;
but bear your share of hardship for the gospel
with the strength that comes from God.
Take as your norm the sound words that you heard from me,
in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.
Guard this rich trust with the help of the Holy Spirit
that dwells within us.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to Luke
LK 17:5-10
The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith."
The Lord replied,
"If you have faith the size of a mustard seed,
you would say to this mulberry tree,
'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you.
"Who among you would say to your servant
who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field,
'Come here immediately and take your place at table'?
Would he not rather say to him,
'Prepare something for me to eat.
Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink.
You may eat and drink when I am finished'?
Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded?
So should it be with you.
When you have done all you have been commanded,
say, 'We are unprofitable servants;
we have done what we were obliged to do.'"
WORDS OF THE HOLY FATHER
It seems that we can all make this our invocation. Let us too, like the Apostles, say to the Lord: “Increase our faith!”. And how does the Lord answer us? He responds: “If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this sycamine tree, ‘Be rooted up, and be planted in the sea’, and it would obey you”. A mustard seed is tiny, yet Jesus says that faith this size, small but true and sincere, suffices to achieve what is humanly impossible, unthinkable. And it is true! We all know people who are simple, humble, but whose faith is so strong it can move mountains! Let us think, for example, of some mothers and fathers who face very difficult situations; or of some sick, and even gravely ill, people who transmit serenity to those who come to visit them. And how do we draw from this strength? We draw it from God in prayer. Prayer is the breath of faith: in a relationship of trust, in a relationship of love, dialogue cannot be left out, and prayer is the dialogue of the soul with God. (Angelus, 6 October 2013)
FAUSTI - The whole journey to Jerusalem contains a Catechism that develops the requests of the Our Father:
RispondiElimina"Your Name be sanctified" (chap. 11)
"Thy Kingdom come" (cc.12/13)
"Give us the bread" (c 14)
"Forgive us" (c.15)
"As we forgive" (c 16)
"Let us not yield, let us not lose faith" (c.17).
Luke does not contain the question "Your Will be done". Jesus is the only one to accomplish it (c 22, 42), satisfying all the other requests, even in our name.
This part, which begins from the Apostles' request for an increase of faith and culminates in enlightenment (18:43), shows the faith as the possibility of the impossible, love and gratuitousness, a path of purification, which makes us know how and when the Kingdom comes, lives of trust and humility, makes us children, capable to decide for the Son who goes to Jerusalem to give His life and makes us come to the light as new men.
The Apostles are the disciples who, having learned from the Teacher, receive His same commission: they are sent to carry the Lord's Mercy beyond the circle of the community, to the ends of the earth.
The Apostles feel inadequate for their task because they have little faith.
Faith is the personal experience of the Father's Mercy, the origin of the mission to the brothers and sisters.
It must be asked as the daily bread and forgiveness. After prayer: "Teach us to pray" (11:1),
this is the typical prayer of the believer, especially of the Apostle: "Increase our faith!".
With it everything is obtained. Everything is possible for those who believe, because nothing is impossible for God (1:37).
The Lord explains that faith is like a small seed, but with vital force and such as to move a tree into the sea.
For it, St. Paul says: "I can do everything in Him who gives me strength" (Phil 4:13), because my powerlessness is filled with the very power of God.
To believe is to stop trusting in oneself and to let it may be He who acts.
That is why "when I am weak, it is then that I am strong" (St. Paul 2 Cor 12:10).
We now proceed from the personal faith of the Apostle to his apostolic work of proclaiming to others.
He is compared to the servant, or rather, to the slave, because he does not belong to himself.
This slavery of his is the highest realization of the freedom to love: it makes him like his Lord, entirely of the Father and of his brothers and sisters.
Just as the slave belongs to his master who enslaves him, so does the Apostle belongs to his Lord Who gives him the freedom to be like Him, his collaborator, associated with His ministry.
This slavery for love is total liberation from selfishness:
"You, in fact, brethren, are called to freedom" and this does not consist in living according to selfishness, but in being, through charity, slaves to one another.
The two typical actions of the Apostle are: the proclamation (sower) and the care of the brothers (shepherd).
Whoever "ploughs or pastures" does it not for of a disgraceful profit, but because he is driven by the love of his Lord , dead for all.
For Paul, the highest reward is to preach the Gospel freely.
The Apostle is associated to the ministry of Grace and Mercy of his Lord for the world.
The origin of his service is faith, as the personal experience of the One who loved him and gave himself for him (Gal 2:20).
For this reason it is not in the logic of giving and having, but in that of free gift.
The love he has experienced makes him free to serve as his Lord.