Dialogo e Solstizio

Aug 20, 2026 Written by don Giuseppe Nespeca

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Angolo dell'apripista

Lamp of Faith, Oil of Charity. Do not absolutize the present, losing the sense of Expectation - but the Today that goes towards Tomorrow (in working Faith)

Jesus recounts the parable of the ten virgins invited to a wedding feast, symbol of the Kingdom of Heaven.

In Jesus’ time it was customary for weddings to be celebrated at night; so the procession of guests took place with lit lamps. Some of the bridesmaids are foolish: they take their lamps but do not take the oil with them; the wise ones instead take the oil with them together with their lamps. The bridegroom is late, late in coming, and they all fall asleep. When a voice alerts them that the bridegroom is about to arrive, in that moment, the foolish ones realize that they do not have oil for their lamps; they ask the wise ones for some, but the latter reply that they cannot give away any oil, because there would not be enough for them all. While the foolish maidens go to buy oil, the bridegroom arrives. The wise maidens enter the banquet hall with him, and the door is closed. The others arrive too late and are turned away.

It is clear that with this parable, Jesus wants to tell us that we must be prepared for the encounter with him. Not only for the final encounter, but also for the everyday great and small encounters, with a view to that encounter for which the lamp of faith is not enough; we also need the oil of charity and good works. As the Apostle Paul says, the faith that truly unites us to Jesus is, “faith working through love” (Gal 5:6). It is what is represented by the behaviour of the wise maidens. Being wise and prudent means not waiting until the last moment to correspond to God’s grace, but to do so actively and immediately, starting right now. “I… yes, I will convert soon…”. “Convert today! Change your life today!”. “Yes, yes, tomorrow”. And the same thing is said tomorrow, and so it never arrives. Today! If we want to be ready for the final encounter with the Lord, we must cooperate with him now and perform good deeds inspired by his love.

We know that unfortunately it happens that we forget the purpose of our life, that is, the definitive appointment with God, thus losing the sense of expectation and making the present absolute. When one makes the present absolute, one looks only to the present, losing the sense of expectation, which is so beautiful and so necessary, and also pulls us away from the contradictions of the moment. This attitude — when one loses the sense of expectation — precludes any view of the hereafter: we do everything as if we will never depart for the other life.

And so we care only about possessing, about emerging, about establishing ourselves… And always more. If we allow ourselves to be led by what seems most attractive to us, by what we like, by seeking our interests, our life becomes sterile; we do not accumulate any reserve of oil for our lamp, and it will be extinguished before the encounter with the Lord. We must live today, but a today that goes towards tomorrow, towards that encounter, a present full of hope. If, on the other hand, we are vigilant and correspond to God’s grace by doing good, we can serenely await the bridegroom’s coming. The Lord will be able to come even while we are sleeping: this will not worry us, because we have the reserve of oil accumulated through our daily good works, accumulated with that expectation of the Lord, that he may come as soon as possible and that he may come to take us with him.

Let us invoke the intercession of Mary Most Holy, that she may help us to live an active faith, as she did: [faith] is the shining lamp with which we can pass through the night beyond death and reach the great feast of life.

[Pope Francis, Angelus 8 November 2020]

88 Last modified on Thursday, 20 August 2026 02:56

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don Giuseppe Nespeca

Giuseppe Nespeca è architetto e sacerdote. Cultore della Sacra scrittura è autore della raccolta "Due Fuochi due Vie - Religione e Fede, Vangeli e Tao"; coautore del libro "Dialogo e Solstizio".

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Many saints experienced the night of faith and God’s silence — when we knock and God does not respond — and these saints were persevering (Pope Francis)

Tanti santi e sante hanno sperimentato la notte della fede e il silenzio di Dio – quando noi bussiamo e Dio non risponde – e questi santi sono stati perseveranti (Papa Francesco)

In some passages of Scripture it seems to be first and foremost Jesus’ prayer, his intimacy with the Father, that governs everything (Pope Francis)

In qualche pagina della Scrittura sembra essere anzitutto la preghiera di Gesù, la sua intimità con il Padre, a governare tutto (Papa Francesco)

It is necessary to know how to be silent, to create spaces of solitude or, better still, of meeting reserved for intimacy with the Lord. It is necessary to know how to contemplate. Today's man feels a great need not to limit himself to pure material concerns, and instead to supplement his technical culture with superior and detoxifying inputs from the world of the spirit [John Paul II]

Occorre saper fare silenzio, creare spazi di solitudine o, meglio, di incontro riservato ad un’intimità col Signore. Occorre saper contemplare. L’uomo d’oggi sente molto il bisogno di non limitarsi alle pure preoccupazioni materiali, e di integrare invece la propria cultura tecnica con superiori e disintossicanti apporti provenienti dal mondo dello spirito [Giovanni Paolo II]

This can only take place on the basis of an intimate encounter with God, an encounter which has become a communion of will, even affecting my feelings (Pope Benedict)

Questo può realizzarsi solo a partire dall'intimo incontro con Dio, un incontro che è diventato comunione di volontà arrivando fino a toccare il sentimento (Papa Benedetto)

He is “the very stone which the builders rejected” (cf. Mt 21:42), because they judged him to be hostile to the law and a danger to public order [Pope Benedict]

Egli è “la pietra che i costruttori hanno scartato” (cfr Mt 21,42), perché l’hanno giudicato nemico della legge e pericoloso per l’ordine pubblico [Papa Benedetto]

"His" in a very literal sense: the One whom only the Son knows as Father, and by whom alone He is mutually known. We are now on the same ground, from which the prologue of the Gospel of John will later arise (Pope John Paul II)

“Suo” in senso quanto mai letterale: Colui che solo il Figlio conosce come Padre, e dal quale soltanto è reciprocamente conosciuto. Ci troviamo ormai sullo stesso terreno, dal quale più tardi sorgerà il prologo del Vangelo di Giovanni (Papa Giovanni Paolo II)

That 'always seeing the face of the Father' is the highest manifestation of the worship of God. It can be said to constitute that 'heavenly liturgy', performed on behalf of the whole universe [John Paul II]

Quel “vedere sempre la faccia del Padre” è la manifestazione più alta dell’adorazione di Dio. Si può dire che essa costituisce quella “liturgia celeste”, compiuta a nome di tutto l’universo [Giovanni Paolo II]

But what moves me even more strongly to proclaim the urgency of missionary evangelization is the fact that it is the primary service which the Church can render to every individual and to all humanity [Redemptoris Missio n.2]

Ma ciò che ancor più mi spinge a proclamare l'urgenza dell'evangelizzazione missionaria è che essa costituisce il primo servizio che la chiesa può rendere a ciascun uomo e all'intera umanità [Redemptoris Missio n.2]

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