READING OF THE DAY First reading from the Book of Jeremiah Jer 33:14-16
The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and Judah. In those days, in that time, I will raise up for David a just shoot ; he shall do what is right and just in the land. In those days Judah shall be safe and Jerusalem shall dwell secure; this is what they shall call her: “The LORD our justice.”
Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths. 5 Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. 6 Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. 7 Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good.
8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in his ways. 9 He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. 10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful toward those who keep the demands of his covenant. 11 For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
12 Who, then, are those who fear the Lord? He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.[b] 13 They will spend their days in prosperity, and their descendants will inherit the land. 14 The Lord confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them.
Second reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians 1 Thes 3:12—4:2
Brothers and sisters: May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we have for you, so as to strengthen your hearts, to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen.
Finally, brothers and sisters, we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that, as you received from us how you should conduct yourselves to please God and as you are conducting yourselves you do so even more. For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY From the Gospel according to Luke Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
Jesus said to his disciples: “There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on earth nations will be in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will die of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and to stand before the Son of Man.”
WORDS OF THE HOLY FATHER Today Advent begins, the liturgical time which prepares us for Christmas, inviting us to lift our gaze and open our hearts to welcome Jesus. During Advent we do not just live in anticipation of Christmas; we are also called to rekindle the anticipation of the glorious return of Christ — when he will return at the end of time — preparing ourselves, with consistent and courageous choices, for the final encounter with him. During these four weeks we are called to leave behind a resigned and routine way of life and to go forth, nourishing hope, nourishing dreams for a new future.
Inner listlessness comes from always turning around ourselves and being blocked by our own life, with its problems, its joy, and suffering, but always turning around ourselves. Advent invites us to a commitment to vigilance, looking beyond ourselves, expanding our mind and heart in order to open ourselves up to the needs of people, of brothers and sisters, and to the desire for a new world. It is the desire of many people tormented by hunger, by injustice and by war. It is the desire of the poor, the weak, the abandoned. This is a favourable time to open our hearts, to ask ourselves concrete questions about how and for whom we expend our lives. (Angelus, 2 December 2018)
FAUSTI - The sign of the Cross illuminates the whole of history. It is a journey that has as its end the full manifestation of the Mercy of God that comes to meet us. It is very important to know what is the aim of human existence. Because man doesn't consist of what he is, but of what he becomes. And he becomes that towards which he goes, and he goes towards that which he loves. Of "eccentric" nature, he is the "viator", he has his center outside himself and necessarily tends towards it. For this reason, dissatisfied of everything, he is always in searching and waiting for new something. . In the end he will be what he waits for, because he waits for what he loves. The anguish of those who do not expect anything, so widespread today, is the void place of God. No idol can occupy it. It shatters like Dagon before the presence (1 Sam 5:1). The Advent of God corresponds to man's expectation. God fills our desire with the gift of His Reality. The human history is a restless tending to Him, our natural space, it is appeased only in the encounter with Him. We are made for Him because He came for us. But when and how does He come to us? The Gospel reveals it to us: there are three of His comings: the past one, which is accomplished on the path of death and resurrection; the present one, which is realized in our being associated with His mystery; the future one anticipated for each one in death and extended to all at the end of the world. His first coming is the "module" of every personal and collective history, present and future. In Him the time has already been fulfilled: His destiny as Son of man is that of every man and of all humanity, which is synthesized in Him. His Advent, therefore, is not to be limited to the final time: instead, it confers to each time its definitive significance, associating it to the mystery of the Son of Man. His Death and Resurrection, the heart of the present and the future, gives us the key of reading of history. His past coming determines our faith; that future one our hope; that present one our charity. The past and the future stand to the present as the memory and the project for the action. The present, just as it is moved by the past towards its future, so it is drawn by it in accordance with a beloved memory that has become desired project. For intelligence, the past is more important, but for will, the future. But both have their reality in the present, in which they are united and give meaning and sense to human action. This piece is built on a contraposition. On the one hand, the great cosmic upheavals and men who die of their fear of dying, on the other hand the Word of the Lord that gives confidence and guarantees that precisely here our liberation happens. The coming of the Son of Man is not something terrible. It is the fulfillment of every desire: the meeting with the Lord. Our life is now hidden with Christ in God, and when Christ, He who is our Life, appears, we too will be manifested with Him in Glory (Col 3:3).He who loves the Lord cries out: "Marana - tha. Come, O Lord" And the Bridegroom says His yes: "Yes, I am indeed coming soon" (Rev 22:17-20).
Cosmic upheavals - and our own death - are natural events. Their tragic character is caused by our sin, which makes us read them with the glasses of our fear and makes us act accordingly. In reality, we go to meet the One who comes to give us the Kingdom, and He is the "End" itself of creation. Then history will have reached its fulfillment. We await the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will confirm us to the end, irreproachable in the day of Our Lord Jesus Christ: faithful is God, Who has called us to the communion of His Son Jesus Christ, Our Lord (1 Cor 1:7-9). The last day, both personal and collective, is always a sudden one. So God wants, because we live every present in a sensible way, as preparation for the encounter with Him: "Watch, at all times, praying". In fact, every moment is pregnant of future. No moment is neutral: it is the opportunity in which fidelity and witness are played. To pray (in Greek = to need) is necessary because man is need of God, he is precarious, he lives by His grace. If vigilance is the opposite of the heavy heart, prayer is the food, drink and joy that nourishes the awake heart. It is, in fact, the communion of a son with the Father. Vigilance and prayer make us stand upright: it is indeed our raising head before the One who comes, not as a judge, but as a brother.
READING OF THE DAY
RispondiEliminaFirst reading from the Book of Jeremiah
Jer 33:14-16
The days are coming, says the LORD,
when I will fulfill the promise
I made to the house of Israel and Judah.
In those days, in that time,
I will raise up for David a just shoot ;
he shall do what is right and just in the land.
In those days Judah shall be safe
and Jerusalem shall dwell secure;
this is what they shall call her:
“The LORD our justice.”
Show me your ways, Lord,
teach me your paths.
5 Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my Savior,
and my hope is in you all day long.
6 Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love,
for they are from of old.
7 Do not remember the sins of my youth
and my rebellious ways;
according to your love remember me,
for you, Lord, are good.
8 Good and upright is the Lord;
therefore he instructs sinners in his ways.
9 He guides the humble in what is right
and teaches them his way.
10 All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful
toward those who keep the demands of his covenant.
11 For the sake of your name, Lord,
forgive my iniquity, though it is great.
12 Who, then, are those who fear the Lord?
He will instruct them in the ways they should choose.[b]
13 They will spend their days in prosperity,
and their descendants will inherit the land.
14 The Lord confides in those who fear him;
he makes his covenant known to them.
Second reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians
1 Thes 3:12—4:2
Brothers and sisters:
May the Lord make you increase and abound in love
for one another and for all,
just as we have for you,
so as to strengthen your hearts,
to be blameless in holiness before our God and Father
at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his holy ones. Amen.
Finally, brothers and sisters,
we earnestly ask and exhort you in the Lord Jesus that,
as you received from us
how you should conduct yourselves to please God
and as you are conducting yourselves
you do so even more.
For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to Luke
Lk 21:25-28, 34-36
Jesus said to his disciples:
“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.
“Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy
from carousing and drunkenness
and the anxieties of daily life,
and that day catch you by surprise like a trap.
For that day will assault everyone
who lives on the face of the earth.
Be vigilant at all times
and pray that you have the strength
to escape the tribulations that are imminent
and to stand before the Son of Man.”
WORDS OF THE HOLY FATHER
RispondiEliminaToday Advent begins, the liturgical time which prepares us for Christmas, inviting us to lift our gaze and open our hearts to welcome Jesus. During Advent we do not just live in anticipation of Christmas; we are also called to rekindle the anticipation of the glorious return of Christ — when he will return at the end of time — preparing ourselves, with consistent and courageous choices, for the final encounter with him. During these four weeks we are called to leave behind a resigned and routine way of life and to go forth, nourishing hope, nourishing dreams for a new future.
Inner listlessness comes from always turning around ourselves and being blocked by our own life, with its problems, its joy, and suffering, but always turning around ourselves. Advent invites us to a commitment to vigilance, looking beyond ourselves, expanding our mind and heart in order to open ourselves up to the needs of people, of brothers and sisters, and to the desire for a new world. It is the desire of many people tormented by hunger, by injustice and by war. It is the desire of the poor, the weak, the abandoned. This is a favourable time to open our hearts, to ask ourselves concrete questions about how and for whom we expend our lives. (Angelus, 2 December 2018)
FAUSTI - The sign of the Cross illuminates the whole of history. It is a journey that has as its end the full manifestation of the Mercy of God that comes to meet us. It is very important to know what is the aim of human existence. Because man doesn't consist of what he is, but of what he becomes.
RispondiEliminaAnd he becomes that towards which he goes, and he goes towards that which he loves. Of "eccentric" nature, he is the "viator", he has his center outside himself and necessarily tends towards it. For this reason, dissatisfied of everything, he is always in searching and waiting for new something.
. In the end he will be what he waits for, because he waits for what he loves.
The anguish of those who do not expect anything, so widespread today, is the void place of God.
No idol can occupy it. It shatters like Dagon before the presence (1 Sam 5:1).
The Advent of God corresponds to man's expectation.
God fills our desire with the gift of His Reality.
The human history is a restless tending to Him, our natural space, it is appeased only in the encounter with Him. We are made for Him because He came for us. But when and how does He come to us?
The Gospel reveals it to us: there are three of His comings: the past one, which is accomplished on the path of death and resurrection; the present one, which is realized in our being associated with His mystery;
the future one anticipated for each one in death and extended to all at the end of the world.
His first coming is the "module" of every personal and collective history, present and future.
In Him the time has already been fulfilled: His destiny as Son of man is that of every man and of all humanity, which is synthesized in Him.
His Advent, therefore, is not to be limited to the final time: instead, it confers to each time its definitive significance, associating it to the mystery of the Son of Man.
His Death and Resurrection, the heart of the present and the future, gives us the key of reading of history.
His past coming determines our faith; that future one our hope;
that present one our charity.
The past and the future stand to the present as the memory and the project for the action.
The present, just as it is moved by the past towards its future, so it is drawn by it in accordance with a beloved memory that has become desired project.
For intelligence, the past is more important, but for will, the future.
But both have their reality in the present, in which they are united and give meaning and sense to human action.
This piece is built on a contraposition.
On the one hand, the great cosmic upheavals and men who die of their fear of dying, on the other hand the Word of the Lord that gives confidence and guarantees that precisely here our liberation happens. The coming of the Son of Man is not something terrible. It is the fulfillment of every desire: the meeting with the Lord.
Our life is now hidden with Christ in God, and when Christ, He who is our Life, appears, we too will be manifested with Him in Glory (Col 3:3).He who loves the Lord cries out: "Marana - tha. Come, O Lord" And the Bridegroom says His yes: "Yes, I am indeed coming soon" (Rev 22:17-20).
Cosmic upheavals - and our own death - are natural events.
RispondiEliminaTheir tragic character is caused by our sin, which makes us read them with the glasses of our fear and makes us act accordingly.
In reality, we go to meet the One who comes to give us the Kingdom, and He is the "End" itself of creation.
Then history will have reached its fulfillment.
We await the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will confirm us to the end, irreproachable in the day of Our Lord Jesus Christ: faithful is God, Who has called us to the communion of His Son Jesus Christ, Our Lord (1 Cor 1:7-9). The last day, both personal and collective, is always a sudden one.
So God wants, because we live every present in a sensible way, as preparation for the encounter with Him: "Watch, at all times, praying".
In fact, every moment is pregnant of future. No moment is neutral: it is the opportunity in which fidelity and witness are played. To pray (in Greek = to need) is necessary because man is need of God, he is precarious, he lives by His grace. If vigilance is the opposite of the heavy heart, prayer is the food, drink and joy that nourishes the awake heart. It is, in fact, the communion of a son with the Father. Vigilance and prayer make us stand upright: it is indeed our raising head before the One who comes, not as a judge, but as a brother.