Most Holy Trinity (year A)

(2 Cor 13:11–13)

11 Finally, brothers and sisters, rejoice, strive for perfection, encourage one another, be of one mind, live in peace, and the God of love and peace will be with you.

12 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints send you their greetings.

13 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. 

This is the grand finale of St Paul’s Second Letter to the Corinthians. It is a marvellous summary of how the path to Christian holiness is fulfilled within the community.

“Rejoice”. For there to be joy, the truth of Christ must dwell in your hearts, and there must be pure faith in God. In this certainty, the Christian must always grow. Can a person maintain joy whilst living in a world of suffering and sin? The answer is yes, because when one is in the joy of God, everything else becomes bearable; everything else is transformed into a hymn of honour and glory to the Lord our God. Jesus Christ sent his own into the world to bring this certainty.

“Strive for perfection”. Baptism does not make us perfect; it sets us on the path to perfection. Each of us will be responsible for ourselves in order to attain the perfection to which the Lord calls us. Perfection is the attainment of the way of life of Christ within us. To live as Christ lived does not mean to do the things he did, but to obey the Heavenly Father as he obeyed.

“Encourage one another”. On the path towards perfection, we are not alone. We walk together with others; we form a community; we are a people marching towards the attainment of the promised land, which for us is paradise. On this long journey, which is at times hard and tiring, we must support one another, encourage one another, and offer a helping hand to help and be helped. Sometimes a single word, a gentle reminder, or a word of encouragement is enough to prevent the other person from becoming disheartened, losing courage, or turning back. Encouragement must be a fruit of love that flows from our hearts filled with Jesus Christ. If Jesus is not in our hearts, we cannot offer encouragement; such encouragement could prove harmful to the other person, as it might be misinterpreted as a harsh judgement, or worse, as humiliation. When, however, the love of Christ overflows within us, the other person sees it, grasps it, and can allow themselves to be saved by it, resuming the path of perfection towards the attainment of salvation.

“Have the same attitude”. This is the attitude of “likeable” people who know how to show empathy. All too often our Christian community presents an unfriendly face, and those who are very devout and practising often come across as unfriendly. It is certainly not authentic devotion if going to Mass so often and spending so much time in church results in an unfriendly demeanour, so that when faced with others, instead of “feeling together”, we clash. Our encounter with God must enable us to have the same mind, to become likeable, capable of good relationships with others. We know what these shared sentiments must be: they are those that were in the heart of Christ Jesus, namely, to be among our brothers and sisters as one who serves, not as one who is served.

“Live in peace”. There is no letter of Paul that does not echo this invitation, that is not a heartfelt appeal for peace. Peace is a gift from God, but like every gift, it depends on the will of man, who must be the one to desire to preserve the peace that God has placed in his heart.  

“And the God of love and peace will be with you.” By bringing about peace, believers will have the joy of  experiencing God’s presence among them. God offers Himself first; if man opens the door to Him, He remains in his heart and in his life. If, on the other hand, man closes the door to Him—and he can close it at any moment—God leaves His dwelling place and Satan takes His place, settling in the heart of man and leading him towards evil.

“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.” This blessing, or prayer—one of the most beautiful Trinitarian texts in the New Testament—has become the opening greeting in the Holy Mass.

In the original Greek, there is no verb corresponding to the “be” in the English translation. The liturgy uses the singular “is” because it is a single reality: the Trinitarian mystery. The grace of the Lord Jesus is one and the same as the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. They are not three things that add up but a single reality, and so the Greek text, correctly, does not use the verb. The Latin is a perfect copy of the Greek: “Dominus vobiscum”, that is, “The Lord be with you”. The verb ‘to be’ is not there.

The formula “The Lord be with you” seems more assertive (that is, it affirms a reality) than a wish. Since in the Eucharistic celebration we are gathered as a community of believers, as the Body of Christ, then “The Lord be with you” becomes an acknowledgement of reality: The Lord is present because we, his members, are gathered together to form his body, which is the Church.

Charis (grace), agapē (divine love), and koinōnìa (communion). The three divine Persons are characterised by these three aspects, which are, however, almost synonymous. Grace, love and communion signify being together with affection, friendship and goodness, and the community can constitute itself as the Church of God only if it continually receives this style that unites the Trinitarian life. The Church is the reflection of the Trinity; the Church can be the Church only if it lives by Trinitarian love.

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, true God and true Man in the Trinitarian mystery

The prophetic discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All generations will call me blessed

 Catholics and Protestants compared – In defence of the faith

 The Church and Israel according to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

Pentecost (year A)

(1 Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13)

1 Corinthians 12:3 ...no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit;

1 Corinthians 12:5 there are different kinds of service, but the same Lord;

1 Corinthians 12:6 there are different kinds of working, but the same God works all things in all people.

1 Corinthians 12:7 And to each is given a special manifestation of the Spirit for the common good:

All those who are not under the guidance of the Holy Spirit can do nothing but allow themselves to be moved and carried away by their impulses. The Holy Spirit, on the other hand, leads to the true confession of who Jesus is. Whoever is in the Spirit sees everything according to the truth. If they do not see according to the truth, they are not in the Spirit. Therefore, whoever is in the Holy Spirit cannot speak a lie about Christ. Likewise, no one can speak the truth about Christ unless under the working of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, any spirit that does not lead us to love Jesus is not a good spirit, whatever manifestation it may have. If it does not lead us to love Jesus, it is from the devil. Any spirit that does not lead to loving Christ leads to perdition.

“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit. And there are varieties of service, but the same Lord. And there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who works all things in all” (vv. 4–6). There is mention three times of diversity and three times of unity. Unity is attributed to the Spirit, who is the Holy Spirit; to the Lord, who is Jesus; and to God, who is the Father. In essence, the Trinity forms the backdrop to our diversity and unity, for the Trinity is the primary source of diversity and unity. Diversity is necessary for relationship, for love. In love, diversity becomes unity. Since God is love, then love requires diversity; and diversity is the very place of union, whereas for us, generally, diversity is the place of conflict, because we do not accept diversity. Today, people seek to abolish diversity. There is unity in non-identity, in the destruction of the person.

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.” Here we have the word charismatōn. It derives from the same root as the term “grace” – charis – meaning “manifestations of grace” and therefore “gifts”. The charism itself is a particular grace through which we can manifest God’s riches to the world. A charism is grace because it is given freely to man. No one can take personal pride in it, precisely because it is a charism, that is, a grace bestowed.

Having established this first truth, Paul immediately affirms another. Whilst there are many charisms, there is only one Author: the Holy Spirit of God. Why does Paul feel the need to emphasise this truth? The pagans believed that a person’s various gifts were to be attributed to different gods, one of whom gave wisdom, another strength, and so on. Lest the Christians should think that something similar applied to the various gifts bestowed upon them, the Apostle warns them that, although the gifts are diverse, there is but one Spirit from whom they proceed. Furthermore, by saying that the Spirit is the sole source of the grace within us, he wishes to invite the Corinthians to recognise the Lordship of God in every work He accomplishes through us.

“There are different kinds of ministry.” Ministry, diakoniōn, means: diaconies, services. Thus he introduces another concept: every charism, every gift we have, is a service to others.

“There is but one Lord.” All these services are established and governed by the supreme will of the one Head of the Church: the Lord Jesus. Thus, all our service finds its origin in Jesus, who made himself a servant to all; and every gift finds its model in Jesus.

“And there are various kinds of working.” The term “works” translates the term energēmātōn, which derives from the word normally used to denote “work”. Even the works we perform in the service of the Kingdom of God must be traced back to God the Almighty Father, who from on high strengthens our will and infuses energy and vigour into the body so that we may act in accordance with God. It is God who stirs up both the will and the action.

“But there is but one God.” For the third time, Paul asserts that there can be no divisions among men based on “gifts”, for it is the same God who bestows the gifts in all their diversity. And precisely because all gifts proceed from God, they can be directed only towards a purpose worthy of God. Every person is an instrument in God’s hands. If God uses one instrument for one thing and another instrument for another, can the instrument perhaps become jealous, act with envy, or ask the Lord why He uses me and not the other, or why He uses the other and not me?

If God has ordained that one person should exercise a ministry with a particular charism and another should act according to a different ministry and with an equally distinct charism, who is man to say to God: ‘Why have you made me this way and why have you made me different from others?’ If it is God who works in us, then it is right to pray to the Lord that he may act in us according to the gift with which he has enriched us, but also that he may strengthen the gift with which he has enriched others.

In these verses we find the profound framework of the structure of community life and also of married life, namely diversity and unity. These are not a threat to one another, but are necessary for one another; otherwise, it is impossible to live. This is a vast subject because it applies both on a strictly personal level and on a social level. These are fundamental values in which the destiny of humanity is at stake, that is, how we live out who we are.

“Now to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (v. 7). Any gift that does not lead to the common good is no longer a gift; it would be a gift, but we are using it in the opposite way. Everything I have and am serves to love God and my neighbour, and whatever does not lead in this direction we are misappropriating, and therefore using it in a diabolical way. All gifts are gifts from God, but we can make right or wrong use of them.

A ministry, a gift, a charism, a grace is not for the person who receives it; it is for the common good. Everyone must feel enriched by the charism of another. From this principle set out by Paul arises a serious problem of conscience for every Christian. If the charism of another is for my benefit, can I neglect it, can I refuse to make use of it if it is necessary for me?

To ignore another’s charism, to make no use of it, to refuse to allow this charism to bear abundant fruit is a sin that turns against me. If another’s charism is for me, by depriving myself of it, I deprive myself of the nourishment I need. Rejecting another’s charism—and above all, rejecting it out of a guilty conscience—places me in serious danger of failing in my Christian life, because I deprive myself of the support and nourishment that the Lord has placed at my side.

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, true God and true Man in the mystery of the Trinity

The prophetic discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All generations will call me blessed

 Catholics and Protestants compared – In defence of the faith

 The Church and Israel according to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

Ascension of the Lord (year A)

(Mt 28:16–20)

Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 

Matthew 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” 

Verses 19–20 are devoted to the mission entrusted to the apostles, who are to go out into the world clothed in the same authority as Jesus Christ. It is a mission with specific objectives and the means to achieve them. First and foremost is proselytism, as indicated by the verb ‘mathēteusate’, ‘to make disciples’ through making known. The aim of the mission is ‘to make disciples’. The Christian is a disciple, one who establishes a close and personal relationship with Christ: the disciple bonds with the person of the teacher and commits to sharing his very vision of life. The apostles must go to every people. They must leave Galilee. They must go beyond the borders of Israel. The whole world awaits them. They must teach all nations.

Thus, God’s message is not addressed to a single people, but to all nations, so that no nation may claim or assert that it is God’s chosen one. When a people thinks it has God on its side, it uses Him to dominate others. When a people feels itself to be the chosen people, it is always dangerous, because in the name of this election it believes it has a duty towards other peoples: to dominate them. On the US one-dollar bill it says “In God we trust”, as if they had mistaken God for the Federal Reserve. Their resource lies in the dollar, not in God. Make “all” peoples [my] disciples – says Jesus – so that no people may claim superiority over others.

Secondly, there is baptism, which serves as an instrument of incorporation into the new faith. Baptism is administered “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. It is, therefore, an instrument that leads the new believer into the bosom of the Trinity, placing them in close relationship with it, whose life they now share. Indeed, baptism is “in” the name; it is an entering “into the name”, entering into a relationship of fidelity. The mission is conceived as gathering the nations around the proclamation of salvation, to lead them all back into the bosom of God, who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. At the same time, “name” in the singular (not “names”) emphasises the uniqueness of the three Persons of the Trinity.

The third aspect is teaching, expressed by the verb “didáskō”. This concerns all the things that Jesus commanded. The apostles must not limit themselves to baptising. They must teach those who have been baptised how to fulfil God’s will. Their teaching must be twofold, in every respect like that of Jesus: through word and deed. They must show visibly – and not merely by hearing – how to observe all that Jesus commanded. If teaching lacks the visible dimension, it is no longer true teaching; rather, it is incomplete teaching. It bears no fruit. Just as Christ taught, so must they teach the whole world. This is the law of true evangelisation. All the rest is sterile theory.

Now Jesus makes them a great promise: “And behold, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” He will be with them until the end of the ages. With this faith, the Apostles must present themselves before every person. The presence of Jesus is not merely one of companionship. It is an active presence. Jesus will work in them and through them his great works of salvation and redemption. Yesterday and today, tomorrow and always, this is how the evangelisation of the nations must be carried out.

The Gospel of Matthew ends as it began. At the beginning, the name of Emmanuel, God with us, was announced to us, as had been foretold by the prophet Isaiah (Mt 1:23). Now he assures us that that prophecy has become a permanent reality: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” In other words, Jesus continues to be Emmanuel, God with us. History is made up of many ‘days’ and every day Jesus is with us. It is not every other day, or days in between: every day, in the everyday reality of life. What a tragedy it is to have relegated the Lord to heaven and not to have realised that the Lord is with us every day, a Lord whom we believe has not fallen silent with time, but who continues to speak even if he is not heard.

In concluding his Gospel, Matthew formulated Jesus’ final words to his disciples on the model of the closing words of the Hebrew Bible, which ends with the Second Book of Chronicles, with the words of Cyrus, King of Persia, the one who granted freedom to the Jews deported to Babylon: 

2 Chronicles 36:23 ‘Thus says Cyrus, king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has commanded me to build him a temple in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever among you belongs to his people, may his God be with him, and let him go!’

By Cyrus’ decree, the Israelites were invited to leave Babylon, the land of captivity, and go to Judea, the land of freedom; with Jesus, the disciples must go out from Judea to all nations. Cyrus’ decree was to go and build a temple; through the apostles, Jesus will build a new temple – the Church – and this is the extraordinary conclusion of this Gospel.

Furthermore, the Gospel of Matthew begins with the words: “Biblos geneseōs Iēsou Christou” (Mt 1:1), “The Book of the Genealogy of Jesus Christ”. In other words, it begins with the words of the first book of the Bible (Genesis), and concludes with those of the last book of the Hebrew Bible (2 Chronicles): it is a way of encapsulating the entire history of the people of Israel in Jesus. From the beginning of the Bible to the end of the Bible, everything is encapsulated in Jesus, and now it is not over; we must roll up our sleeves – and, conscious that he is present, go out to all people.

Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man in the Trinitarian Mystery

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All Generations Will Call Me Blessed

 Catholics and Protestants Compared – In Defence of the Faith

 The Church and Israel According to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

6th Easter Sunday (year A)

(John 14:15-21)

John 14:15 If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

John 14:16 I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you forever,

John 14:17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14:18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

John 14:19 A little while longer and the world will no longer see me; but you will see me, because I live and you will live.

John 14:20 On that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you in me, and I in you.

John 14:21 Whoever receives my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves me. Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and reveal myself to him.

Love comes first, and then the keeping of the commandments. One loves Christ, and for this reason one keeps the commandments. Love for Christ is an overwhelming force. When this force is in the heart, one is even capable of martyrdom. If we allow ourselves to be taken by the love of Christ, in this love we will rediscover love for ourselves, and in rediscovering love for ourselves we will also rediscover the right love for others. Whoever does not allow themselves to be won over by the love of Christ will never be able to keep his commandments. The commandments in themselves are an obligation, a duty, a burden. But through the love of Jesus, the commandments are transformed into a desire, into a will. We give our lives to Jesus so that Jesus may love through us. But who can create in us the love for Christ and thus the love to fulfil his will?

If we wish to love Jesus, if we ask him to become our very life, he comes to our aid and fulfils our desire. How? Jesus will pray to the Father, and the Father will give us another Paraclete, so that he may remain with us always. The Paraclete is the Advocate, but also the Teacher, the Helper, the Support, the Inspirer, the Guide, the One who takes us by the hand and leads us to Christ, so that in Christ, with Christ, through Christ, we may have access to the Father. The Paraclete is the ‘fruit’ of the prayer of Jesus Christ. The Father gives him to all who love Christ and keep his commandments. 

The Holy Spirit is given through the sacraments. He acts in the sacraments. He regenerates us and makes us children in the Son. He makes us witnesses of Christ. He consecrates us and makes us priests of Christ. Through the Holy Spirit acting within him, the priest forgives sins and transforms a piece of bread and a few drops of wine into the Body and Blood of Christ the Lord. The Holy Spirit acts – as was once taught – “Ex opere operato non ex opera operantis”. This teaching is true. Otherwise, we would have no certainty regarding the validity of any sacrament. One thing that is rarely taught, however, is this: conversion, the drawing to Christ, and the sanctification of people take place through the Holy Spirit acting within the Christian, whoever they may be – a lay faithful or a priest. The love of Christ living within the Christian becomes and is transformed in them into the power of the Holy Spirit, and the Spirit draws them to Christ, converts them to Him, conforms them to Him, and makes them like Him. The stronger the love of Christ within us, the greater is the power of the Holy Spirit at work within us.

The Paraclete Spirit is the Spirit of truth. In the Spirit we know the truth of the Father and the truth of the Son. The Spirit is also our truth. If we are in the Holy Spirit, we know one another. If we are not in the Spirit, we will never be able to know one another. But why can the world not receive the Spirit of truth? Because the world is under the power of the prince of this world, who is a spirit of deception and falsehood. Those who live in the world must first leave the world behind. Having abandoned the world and allowed themselves to be seized by Christ, they love Christ, observe his commandments, and receive the Spirit of truth. What happened on the day of Pentecost must happen every day.

For us, receiving the Holy Spirit does not require leaving the world. A mere two or three years of attending catechism classes is enough. A rational education in the truths of our holy faith is enough. This is utter folly. If one does not leave the world, one does not receive the Spirit! The Spirit does not work in those who remain in the world; He works in those who leave the world. The Christian is called to leave the world, that is, to leave sin, lies, falsehood and idols. Conversion from idols to God is an indispensable condition for the Holy Spirit to act and work in us and through us.

Being in darkness, the world neither sees nor knows the Spirit of truth. The disciples will know the Holy Spirit because the Spirit will remain with them and be within them. The Holy Spirit will be the soul of their soul, the heart of their heart, the spirit of their spirit, the feeling of their feelings, the will of their will, the thought of their thoughts. They will know Him because He will dwell within them, abide in them, and make Himself known to them. Knowledge of the Holy Spirit does not come about through rational means. Rather, it comes through the spiritual transformation of our entire life. Only He can bring about this transformation. 

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man in the Trinitarian Mystery

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All Generations Will Call Me Blessed

Catholics and Protestants Compared – In Defence of the Faith

The Church and Israel According to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

5th Easter Sunday (year A)

(John 14:1-12)

John 14:1 ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.

John 14:2 In my Father’s house there are many rooms. If it were not so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you;

John 14:3 and when I have gone and prepared a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me, so that where I am, you may be too.

John 14:4 And you know the way to the place where I am going.’

John 14:5 Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?’

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus is about to leave his disciples. His death on the cross will surely trouble their hearts, shake their faith, and purify it of all the imperfections that had accumulated upon it over the years. Faith must be shaken from time to time; otherwise, the dust of the superstructures that the minds and thoughts of men constantly add to it becomes too great. The death on the cross of Jesus Christ, the Messiah, must shake the faith of the people of the Covenant in order to give it its proper and true heavenly dimension. Every earthly thought must be measured against faith in the crucified and risen Messiah. It is a grace when our faith is shaken by God. A faith that is not pure, not aligned with God’s thoughts, always produces turmoil. If Jesus’ disciples wish to have a purified faith, they must begin to believe in the crucified Messiah. This is where the true journey of faith begins for every person.

Jesus presents his death as a round-trip journey. But where is Jesus going, and why is he going? He is going to his Father’s house. He is going to prepare a place for his disciples. In his Father’s house there are many mansions, many places. No one can count them. These places, however, must be prepared and assigned. Jesus goes, prepares the places, and assigns a specific place to each of his own. Everyone in Heaven can have their own home or dwelling. Heaven has no limit of space.

Jesus does not merely leave, does not merely go, does not merely prepare a place for each of his own, but he returns. He returns to take all his disciples with him. Where he is, they too must be. Where he dwells, they must dwell. This is the truth of love: eternal communion; being one with the beloved for all eternity. A love that divides, separates, or fades away is not love. Love is endless. Only Jesus can bestow eternity and truth upon our love. Those without Christ will never know the truth and eternity of his love. They cannot, because only Christ is eternity and truth. Our society has lost the truth and eternity of love. This means it has lost Christ.

The disciples already know – or at least ought to know – where Jesus is about to go and also the path he must take. The place is the Father’s house, his Heaven. The path is the cross. It is the cross that is the ladder by which Jesus ascends to his Father. Jesus had pointed to this path both as his own path and as the path of every one of his disciples. However, this path was impossible for them to accept, as their faith had not yet been shaken by the death on the cross.

Thomas says with extreme clarity and simplicity that they do not know where Jesus is going. If one does not know where the other is about to go, how can one know the path he must take? To Thomas, Jesus replies with equal simplicity: “I am the way, the truth and the life”. “I am the way”: In the Old Testament, the way was the Law, but Jesus is the way that brings to fulfilment every other path previously laid out. It is the perfect, complete way, to which nothing can be added and nothing taken away. Whoever wishes to go to the Father must walk in his Word.

“I am the truth”: Truth is the very essence of God, which is the essence of Christ Jesus. It is the essence of both his divinity and his humanity. Jesus is the truth that makes us conform to him. No one else is the truth. Whoever wishes to be true, to become true, must be made a partaker of this one and only truth that makes every person true.

“I am the life”: Jesus’ life is eternal life; it is the life of God, which must be shared with all who believe in his name. Jesus is the new tree of life. Whoever feeds on him becomes eternal life, just as Christ is eternal life. Whoever does not feed on him will never become eternal life. They will remain in their falsehood and in their death.

Now Jesus speaks a thought that deserves our full attention: “No one comes to the Father except through me.” This statement allows for no exceptions. Whoever wishes to go to God must do so through Christ, through his way, his truth, his life. Whoever does not wish to go to God through Jesus Christ simply does not go to God. Jesus Christ is not one of many paths leading to the Father. He is the only way. There are no others. This means that no religion possesses the way, the truth, and the life to reach the Father. Only Christ is the way, the truth, and the life. All religions, at best, are impure, imperfect, and unfulfilled ways, truths, and lives—not brought to their fulfilment—or they are even false and deceitful ways, truths, and lives. Not even the Old Testament is the way, the truth and the life. It is an incomplete way. It lacks the truth and eternal life. Truth and eternal life are given by Christ.

Today, many children of the Church no longer possess this faith. They do not know that salvation is to be accomplished today. It is today that salvation is found only in Christ. No one else can make the true man. Where the true man is not made, there salvation is not fulfilled. The true man must be built on earth, in history. This is the mission of the Church.  

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man in the Trinitarian Mystery

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All Generations Will Call Me Blessed

Catholics and Protestants Compared – In Defence of the Faith

The Church and Israel According to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

4th Easter Sunday (year A)

(1 Peter 2:20b–25)

(Psalm 22)

1 Peter 2:20 ... But if, whilst doing good, you endure suffering patiently, this is pleasing to God.

1 Peter 2:21 For to this you have been called, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his footsteps:

1 Peter 2:22 he committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth,

1 Peter 2:23 when he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but entrusted himself to him who judges justly.

1 Peter 2:24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that, having died to sin, we might live for righteousness; 

1 Peter 2:25 By his wounds you have been healed. You were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

It is a grace for those who know God to suffer unjustly. It is not the suffering itself that is grace, but the opportunity that God grants, through the injustice endured, to be freed from one’s own pride. What glory would there be, in fact, in enduring suffering because we have done wrong? If one suffers because one has sinned, having transgressed the law of God and of men, this affliction or suffering is not by grace, but by fault. This suffering, if lived in conversion, in the patience of Christ, becomes and is transformed into grace. It is grace, however, insofar as it helps to redeem one’s own guilt; it also helps to free us from our pride, if all is accepted in humility. Glory does not lie in punishment, but in the redemption of punishment and in the holiness that arises from punishment redeemed and sanctified by the humility with which it is lived.

“But if, whilst doing good, you endure suffering with patience, this will be pleasing before God.” The Christian must not do evil. The Christian is one who lives in truth, in the holiness of Christ, in the imitation of Christ. He must remain in goodness, and from the goodness in which he dwells he must bear every suffering with patience. This is the path of his sanctification, as it was also for Christ.

Peter now says that this is our calling (v. 21). Suffering is intended to free us from all vainglory, pride and spiritual arrogance. “For Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you might follow in his footsteps”: There is a difference between us and Christ, and it is a great one. We suffer because of our sins and our iniquities. We suffer for ourselves. Christ, on the other hand, did not suffer for his own sins. Christ suffered for us. For our sake, he endured the Passion, the cross and death. By suffering for us, he left us an example, so that we might follow him along the Way of the Cross, carrying our own cross. Christ is our model. He suffered as a righteous man, because of the justice he proclaimed. This is the truth of Christ, and these are the footsteps we must follow.

Jesus always remained in the greatest righteousness: that of loving always, of not repaying evil with evil, or insults with insults, refraining from any threat of vengeance. He responded to evil with good, to hatred with love, to insults with prayer, to abuse with forgiveness. This is the example He has left us. Jesus “entrusted his cause to the one who judges righteously”: it will be the Father who defends his cause. God, however, defends Christ’s cause in the divine way, not in the human way. The divine way is the glorious resurrection of his body and the transformation of his body of flesh into a body of spirit, so that the risen Christ now dies no more.

Christians too are called to entrust their cause into God’s hands. The Lord will know what to do and when to do it to restore the righteous to their rightful place, the righteous who now suffer unjustly because of human sin. Whoever gives their life to God, whether in joy or in suffering, will have their life safeguarded by God. How? No one will ever know this. This knowledge belongs to God alone and to no one else.

Thus Peter continues: “He bore our sins in his body on the wood of the cross”: Jesus is not merely an example of how to endure suffering. He is also the sacrament of eternal life. Jesus did not bear his own sins on the wood of the cross. He was innocent, holy, without blemish. On the cross, in his body, he bore our sins, to remove them from the world. He removed them by hanging them on the cross, nailing them to it, and thus destroyed them forever. Whoever wishes to may now destroy their own sins. They destroy them by having them forgiven in the name of Christ, but also by bearing the root of pride and lust upon the cross of suffering. Every Christian is called to make this truth their own, “so that, no longer living for sin, we might live for righteousness”: Christ bore our sins on the cross to take them away, so that we might no longer live for sin, but for righteousness.

What is righteousness? It is the perfect fulfilment of the Father’s will in our lives. We live to fulfil the Father’s will. We live to realise the Word in our lives. We can do this thanks to Christ who bore our sins on the cross, in his body, to take them away from the world. After Christ died on the cross, anyone who wants and desires it can live without sin; they can live exclusively for righteousness. “By his wounds you have been healed”: We have been healed from the wounds of sin. If we have been healed, we can live as healthy people, and we live as healthy people by doing God’s will. If we have been healed, we can carry the cross as Christ did; we can go all the way in fulfilling God’s will. If we have been healed, we can master and submit to God’s will every impulse of pride, vainglory and arrogance. If we have been healed, we can face suffering by carrying our own cross, just as Christ did.

“You were like sheep going astray”: without Christ, one is like a stray sheep, without a shepherd, a sheep left to its own devices, exposed to every temptation and every sin. This is the condition of those who do not know the Lord. They are without a fold, without a shepherd, without pasture, without a destination, constantly exposed to being killed. Without Christ, one is already in the realm of darkness and evil. “But now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls”: By embracing the faith, by receiving the Word, Christ is welcomed as Shepherd and Guardian, guide and support of one’s soul. With Christ, Shepherd and Guardian, the Christian soul walks in safety. This is why Psalm 22 says: “The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want; he leads me to green pastures; he restores my soul by still waters. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.” 

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, True God and True Man in the Trinitarian Mystery

The Prophetic Discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All Generations Will Call Me Blessed

Catholics and Protestants Compared – In Defence of the Faith

The Church and Israel According to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

Third Easter Sunday (year A)

Psalm 15

Psalm 15:1 A Miktam. A psalm of David. Protect me, O God; in you I take refuge. 

Psalm 15:2 I said to God, ‘You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.’

Psalm 15:3 My love is for the saints who are on the earth, the noble ones.

Psalm 15:4 Let others hasten to build idols; I will not pour out their blood libations, nor will I utter their names with my lips.

Psalm 15:5 The Lord is my portion and my cup; in your hands is my life.

Psalms 15:6 For me the lot has fallen on delightful places; my inheritance is splendid.

‘Miktām’ is a word of some debate. It derives from ‘katam’ (to engrave, to carve). It indicates something that has been carved and is therefore a permanent inscription, carved because of its importance. The Septuagint translates it as “stēlographia” (an engraved inscription); stēlē was the word for “tombstone” (referring to the inscription carved upon it). Therefore, “miktām” indicates that this type of Psalm (there are several miktām Psalms), although connected with death, points towards the hope of resurrection. This is particularly true of Psalm 15, but can also be found in the others; in any case, what is “carved” in these Psalms must be gleaned from reading the Psalm itself.

Miktām has also been understood as a psalm to be recited in a low voice, almost in silence, with great humility, because in this psalm we ask God not to leave us in the tomb of death (v. 10). St Jerome, in fact, translates “Of David” as: “Humilis et simplicis David”.

It is a psalm of trust; it is the prayer in which a man of God expresses his trust in the Lord. Protection is sought from God. One wishes to take refuge in God: “Protect me, O God: in you I take refuge”. The righteous take refuge in God and ask for his protection. Note the twofold movement: a) on the one hand, God protects the faithful (a descending movement); b) on the other, the faithful entrust themselves totally to God (ascending movement). This psalm, we might almost say, describes the concept of the Sacraments, that is, the meeting point between God’s grace descending (thus the Lord at work) and man drawing upon that grace and worshipping God.

“You are my Lord; without you I have no good.” Here is the faith of the righteous, of the God-fearing. God is his Lord. “Without you I have no good.” This man’s good lies solely in the Lord. Nothing would be good for him without the highest good, which is God, who is not only the source from which good comes, but is “the good”, is “the only good”. This is true profession of faith.

“For the saints, who are on earth, noble men, is all my love.” The “saints” and the “noble men” are the people with whom the righteous man, the one consecrated to God, associates. He recognises the value found in communion with the saints, with those whom God has set apart, and in whom His holiness is reflected.

The new CEI translation (that of 2008) renders it as: “to the idols of the land, to the mighty gods went all my favour”, rendering the text—which is already difficult in Hebrew—utterly incomprehensible. It is difficult to understand how qeḏôšîm can be translated as “idols” rather than “saints”. Yet the translations of the LXX and the Vulgate had made a very clear choice, and this is the one that emerged in the 1974 CEI translation: “For the saints, who are on earth, noble men, is all my love”.

“Let others hasten to build idols: I will not pour out their libations of blood nor utter their names with my lips.” It is a profession of faith made in reverse. The devout worshipper of the true God undertakes not to encourage idolatrous worship. One of the characteristics of idolatry is the “libation of blood”, which may also refer to human sacrifice, especially of children. There must be no communion whatsoever with idols. The distance must be absolute. Not even their name must be uttered. On the lips of the true worshipper there must be only the name of his God. Idols do not deserve the honour of being named.

“The Lord is my portion and my cup; in your hands is my life.”

Here we find priestly symbols. We know that in the division of the land of Canaan following the conquest, the tribe of Levi did not have a specific territory but only cities of residence. Those consecrated to worship were not to be involved in social structures, but were to act as intermediaries between God and the people. The priests’ land was God himself, and this concretely meant the right to receive the tithes offered by the tribes for their sustenance. The psalmist, therefore, through imagery, expresses this dedication of the priest to his God.

1.  The Lord is for him a “portion of inheritance”, that is, “a part of a territory”. 

2.  The Lord is for him his “cup”, that is, his host, his family member who welcomes him.

The “cup” is a sign of God’s hospitality towards his faithful. It is God who offers the cup, just as – from a strictly human perspective – it is the one who receives guests into his own home who offers them the cup. At the Last Supper, who offers the cup? It is Jesus, the host; he is the guest in the Latin sense (for the Romans, in fact, the guest is the one who hosts and not the one who is hosted).

For the righteous and pious man, the Lord is his portion of inheritance and his cup. The inheritance of the righteous is not the earth, nor the things of this world. His inheritance is the Lord alone. The Lord alone is his cup of salvation, of true life. This man expects nothing from the earth. It is the Lord, in the present and in the future, who is his life, his well-being, his prosperity; for this reason, his life is in the hands of his God. This is total surrender; he wishes to belong solely to God, always in his hands.

“My lot has fallen on delightful places; my inheritance is splendid.” The “lot” was the drawing of lots using sticks of varying lengths, signifying that judgement on a difficult matter was left to God. We might also understand it as: “My destiny is in Your hands.” For the psalmist, the Lord is a “delightful place”; He is the most beautiful, prosperous and precious land of all the territories obtained by the various tribes. For the psalmist, the Lord is a “magnificent inheritance”, the most important asset to be safeguarded and passed on. This is a vision of great faith. God is seen as the only true good, the one that will never fail. The concept of the land shifts from its concrete meaning to become the place of encounter with God. In a spiritual sense, it is the search for God that will last until the end of our lives.

This is also a truth of the Church, yet believed by few, lived by few. It is a faith that is simply overwhelming, for it frees us from all anxieties concerning the things of this world and gives our lives a divine breath.  

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation – an exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers – Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ, true God and true Man in the mystery of the Trinity

The prophetic discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24–25)

All generations will call me blessed

Catholics and Protestants compared – In defence of the faith

The Church and Israel according to St Paul – Romans 9–11

(Available on Amazon)

(1Cor 10,1-6.10-12)

3rd Sunday in Lent (year C)

1Corinthians 10:1 For I do not want you to be ignorant, O brethren, that our fathers were all under the cloud, all crossed the sea,

1Corinthians 10:2 all were baptized in relation to Moses in the cloud and in the sea,

Paul, in this passage, refers us to the history of the past, to the lesson of history. He reminds us of the deeper meaning of history, which is the history of salvation. It is said that history is a teacher of life, but the pupils learn nothing. Paul instead says that from the history of Israel one must learn. The history of Israel is not just any history, but it is a way in which divine revelation was historically manifested. Revelation, in fact, was not manifested through the explanation of concepts, but through certain historical facts that are then also read and interpreted. The history of Israel is an exemplary history, so it is right and proper, if one wants to understand Jesus Christ, to see all the sacred history that prepares him. Among other things, this also accustoms us to reading our own little personal history, which is also salvation history because the Lord walks with us.

"For I do not want you to be ignorant": The Corinthians were supposed to know the facts narrated here, but the apostle wants them to know the typological significance that these facts have, and which is not to be ignored. Jesus Christ is the end result of a long journey, and we must know the journey that preceded it. Paul is very respectful of Israel's history and feels he must tell it. He refers us to these examples from the past that are extraordinary events, but they are also events of sin, and yet always instructive because they show what God's way is.

"Our fathers". Christians can consider the ancient Israelites as their fathers, because the Church succeeded the synagogue, and they are the true heirs and children of Abraham.

"They were all": Three times Paul repeats this expression. As if to say that salvation had been given to all. For all were led by the cloud, that is, by the presence of God, and all crossed the sea. All gained freedom from slavery and all were guided by God on the way to the promised land. Hence, on God's part, no exclusion, no preference towards some at the expense of others. He brought all his people out of Egypt, for all he parted the sea, for all he willed the cloud. All were in the condition of grace and truth that would enable them to conquer the promised land and possess it forever.

This universality of grace and truth for Paul is akin to a baptism. There is an immersion also of the children of Israel, even though their baptism is merely a figure of that instituted by Jesus Christ. However, there is a true immersion of the Israelites in the sea and in the 'cloud' and this immersion for them is true salvation, true deliverance.

Israel lived under the cloud, that mysterious cloud that guided the Israelites through the desert and sheltered them from the sun: signifying the presence of God, the Shekinah. To be under the cloud is to be under God's protection. They crossed the sea and were baptised: the passage from the land of slavery, which is Egypt, to the promised land, takes place through the crossing of the Red Sea, and this is a baptism because it signifies the detachment from the slavery of Egypt, liberation and purification, and the journey to the promised land.

"To be of Moses". Moses, the mediator of the old covenant, was a figure of Jesus Christ, and the Israelites led by him to the promised land were a figure of the Christians led by Jesus Christ to heaven. Now, just as Christians through baptism are incorporated into Jesus Christ and made subject to him as their Lord, whose laws they are bound to observe, so for the Israelites the mysterious cloud and the crossing of the Red Sea were a kind of baptism, whereby they remained subject to Moses and obliged to observe his laws. From that moment on, the people were separated from Egypt forever and belonged to the God who liberated them and to the prophet-mediator whom God gave them as their leader.

The mysterious cloud, a perceptible sign of God's presence, and of the favour He bestowed on His people, was a figure of the Holy Spirit, who is given in the baptism of Jesus Christ, and similarly the dry-foot passage through the Red Sea and the consequent deliverance from the bondage of Pharaoh, were figures of our deliverance from the bondage of sin through the waters of baptism.

Having stated this truth, Paul reminds us that it is not enough to come out of Egypt to have the promised land. The going out is one thing, the conquest and possession of the land is another. Between going out and conquering the land, there is a whole desert to cross. For the Israelites, the desert lasted for forty years; for Christians it lasts their whole life.

With baptism we come out of the slavery of sin, with a life of perseverance striving to conquer the kingdom of heaven we walk towards the glorious resurrection that will take place on the last day.

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation - exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers - Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ true God and true Man in the Trinitarian mystery

The prophetic discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24-25)

All generations will call me blessed

 Catholics and Protestants compared - In defence of the faith

(Buyable on Amazon) 

Ps 17 (18)

This monumental ode, which the title attributes to David, is a Te Deum of the king of Israel, it is his hymn of thanksgiving to God because he has been delivered from all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. David acknowledges that God alone was his Deliverer, his Saviour.

David begins with a profession of love (v. 2). He shouts to the world his love for the Lord. The word he uses is 'rāḥam', meaning to love very tenderly, as in the case of a mother's love. The Lord is his strength. David is weak as a man. With God, who is his strength, he is strong. It is God's strength that makes him strong. This truth applies to every man. Every man is weak, and remains so unless God becomes his strength.

God for David is everything (v.3). The Lord for David is rock, fortress. He is his Deliverer. He is the rock in which he takes refuge. He is the shield that defends him from the enemy. The Lord is his mighty salvation and his bulwark. The Lord is simply his life, his protection, his defence. It is a true declaration of love and truth.

David's salvation is from the Lord (v. 4). It is not from his worthiness. The Lord is worthy of praise. God cannot but be praised. He does everything well. It is enough for David to call upon the Lord and he will be saved from his enemies. Always the Lord answers when David calls upon him. David's salvation is from his prayer, from his invocation.

Then David describes from what dangers the Lord delivered him. He was surrounded by billows of death, like a drowning man swept away by waves. He was overwhelmed by raging torrents. From these things no one can free himself. From these things only the Lord delivers and saves.

David's winning weapon is faith that is transformed into heartfelt prayer to be raised to the Lord, because only the Lord could help him, and it is to Him that David cries out in his distress. This is what David does: in his distress, he does not lose himself, he does not lose his faith, he remains whole. He turns his faith into prayer. He invokes the Lord. He cries out to Him. He asks Him for help and succour. God hears David's voice, hears it from his temple. His cry reaches him.

God becomes angry because He sees His elect in danger. The Lord's anger produces an upheaval of the whole earth. The earth trembles and shakes. The foundations of the mountains shake. It is as if a mighty earthquake turned the globe upside down. The spiritual fact is translated into such a profound upheaval of nature that one has the impression that creation itself is about to cease to exist. In this catastrophe that strikes terror, the righteous is rescued.

The Lord frees David because he loves him. Here is the secret of the answer to the prayer: the Lord loves David (v. 20). The Lord loves David because David loves the Lord. Prayer is a relationship of love between man and God. David invokes God's love. God's love responds and draws him to safety.

"Wholesome have I been with him, and I have guarded myself from guilt" (v. 24). David's conscience testifies for him. David prayed with an upright conscience, with a pure heart. This he says not only to God, but to every man. Everyone must know that the righteous is truly righteous. The world must know the integrity of God's children. We have a duty to confess it. It is on integrity that truly human relationships can be built. Without integrity, every relationship is tightened on falsehood and lies.

"The way of God is straight, the word of the Lord is tried by fire" (v. 31). What is the secret because God is with David? It is David's abiding in the Word of God. David has a certainty: the way indicated by the Word of God is straight. One only has to follow it. This certainty is lacking in the hearts of many today. Many do not believe in the purity of God's Word. Many think that it is now outdated. Modernity cannot stand under the Word of God.

"For who is God, if not the Lord? Or who is rock, if not our God?" Now David professes his faith in the Lord for all to know. Is there any other God but the Lord? God alone is the Lord. God alone is the rock of salvation. To seek another God is idolatry. This profession of faith must always be made aloud (remember the 'Creed'). Convinced people are needed. A faith hidden in the heart is dead. A seed placed in the ground springs up and reveals the nature of the tree. Faith that is in the heart must sprout up and reveal its nature of truth, holiness, righteousness, love and hope. A faith that does not reveal its nature is dead. It is a useless faith.

"He grants his king great victories; he shows himself faithful to his anointed, to David and his seed for ever" (v. 51). In this Psalm, David sees himself as the work of God's hands. That is why he blesses him, praises him, magnifies him. God's faithfulness and great favours for David do not end with David. God's faithfulness is for all his descendants. We know that David's descendants are Jesus Christ. With Jesus God is faithful for ever. With the other descendants, God will be faithful if they are faithful to Jesus Christ.

Here, then, the figure of David disappears to make way for that of the perfect king in whom the saving action that God offers the world is concentrated. In the light of this reinterpretation, the ode entered the Christian liturgy as a victory song of Christ, the 'son of David', over the forces of evil and as a hymn of the salvation he offered.

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation - exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers - Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ true God and true Man in the Trinitarian mystery

The prophetic discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24-25)

All generations will call me blessed

 Catholics and Protestants compared - In defence of the faith

(Buyable on Amazon)