Today, I would like to focus on the prayer of thanksgiving. And I take my cue from an episode recounted by the Evangelist Luke. While Jesus was on the way, ten lepers approached Him, begging: “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” (17:13). We know that those who had leprosy suffered not only physically, but also from social marginalization and religious marginalization. They were marginalized. Jesus did not back off from meeting them. Sometimes, he went beyond the limitations imposed by the law and touched the sick — which was not permitted — he embraced and healed them. In this case, there was no contact. From a distance, Jesus invited them to present themselves to the priests (v. 14), who were designated by law to certify any healings that had occurred. Jesus said nothing else. He listened to their prayer, he heard their cry for mercy, and he sent them immediately to the priests.

Those 10 lepers trusted, they did not remain there until they were cured, no: they trusted and they went immediately, and while they were on their way, all 10 of them were cured. The priests would have therefore been able to verify their healing and readmit them to normal life. But here is the most important point: only one in the group, before going to the priests, returned to thank Jesus and to praise God for the grace received. Only one, the other nine continued on their way. And Jesus points out that that man was a Samaritan, a sort of “heretic” for the Jews of that time. Jesus comments: “Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” (17:18). This narrative is touching.

This narrative, so to speak, divides the world in two: those who do not give thanks and those who do; those who take everything as if it is owed them, and those who welcome everything as a gift, as grace. The Catechism says: “every event and need can become an offering of thanksgiving” (n. 2638). The prayer of thanksgiving always begins from here: from the recognition that grace precedes us. We were thought of before we learned how to think; we were loved before we learned how to love; we were desired before our hearts conceived a desire. If we view life like this, then “thank you” becomes the driving force of our day. And how often we even forget to say “thank you”.

For us Christians, thanksgiving was the name given to the most essential Sacrament there is: the Eucharist . In fact, the Greek word means precisely this: thanksgiving . Eucharist: thanksgiving. Christians, as all believers, bless God for the gift of life. To live is above all to have received life. All of us are born because someone wanted us to have life. And this is only the first of a long series of debts that we incur by living. Debts of gratitude. During our lives, more than one person has gazed on us with pure eyes, gratuitously. Often, these people are educators, catechists, persons who carried out their roles above and beyond what was required of them. And they stirred gratitude within us. Even friendship is a gift for which we should always be grateful.

This “thank you” that we must say continually, this thanks that Christians share with everyone, grows in the encounter with Jesus. The Gospels attest that when Jesus passed by, he often stirred joy and praise to God in those who met Him. The Gospel accounts of Christmas are filled with prayerful people whose hearts are greatly moved by the coming of the Saviour. And we too were called to participate in this immense jubilation. The episode of the ten lepers who are healed also suggests this. Naturally, they were all happy about having recovered their health, thus being allowed to end that unending forced quarantine that excluded them from the community. But among them, there was one who experienced an additional joy: in addition to being healed, he rejoices at the encounter with Jesus. He is not only freed from evil, but he now possesses the certainty of being loved. This is the crux: when you thank someone, you express the certainty that you are loved. And this is a huge step: to have the certainty that you are loved. It is the discovery of love as the force that governs the world. Dante would say: the Love that “moves the sun and other stars” (Paradise, XXIII, 145). We are no longer vagabonds wandering aimlessly here and there, no: we have a home, we dwell in Christ, and from that “dwelling” we contemplate the rest of the world which appears infinitely more beautiful to us. We are children of love, we are brothers and sisters of love. We are men and women of grace.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, let us seek to remain always in the joy of the encounter with Jesus. Let us cultivate joyfulness. The devil, instead, after having deluded us — with whatever temptation — always leaves us sad and alone. If we are in Christ, there is no sin and no threat that can ever prevent us from continuing our journey with joy, along with many fellow travel companions.

Above all, let us not forget to thank: if we are bearers of gratitude, the world itself will become better, even if only a little bit, but that is enough to transmit a bit of hope. The world needs hope. And with gratitude, with this attitude of thanksgiving, we transmit a bit of hope. Everything is united and everything is connected, and each one can do their part wherever they are. The path to happiness is the one that Saint Paul described at the end of one of his letters: “Pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit” (1Thess 5:17-19). Do not quench the Spirit, what a beautiful project of life! Not quenching the Spirit that we have within leads us to gratitude.

[Pope Francis, General Audience 30 December 2020]

(Lk 17:7-10)

Increase Faith? The Gift is not a material alms, but an Appeal. Therefore Jesus doesn’t even answer - nevertheless he makes us reflect on the results of the eventual adhesion.

A minimum involvement would suffice and extraordinary results would be produced in the world (v.6); in communities, in families, in personal life.

We would achieve the impossible and important. The real problems would be solved. Even the simplest actions would be transformed.

Very provocative words, those of Jesus, that neither condemn a priori nor demonize the Way contrary to his.

But he puts us on notice about how things work in the pyramidal environment (vv.7-9).

«When you have done all that you have been "ordered"...» (v.10).

The Lord alludes to the obedience of the Torah, and would like to free us from the obsessive, limiting, petty and anxiety-inducing yoke of the ancient Law. 

It produces impoverishment of souls.

It’s as if the Lord were saying:

«Try along to follow the predictable, plastered, shock-free model... Try and you will see on your skin what inconclusiveness, what lacerations and disasters it produces!».

In a perspective of Faith and human growth in Christ, the standard scheme (limiting) «subjected-Sovereign» must be abandoned.

It removes expressive richness from the Announcement and from life.

The welcoming-likeness Faith will lead us instead to grow from ‘useless’ slaves to Sons; collaborators and allies of the Father.

From narrow submissive and obedient slaves, to family members, friends and consanguineous-resembling.

Otherwise we will remain in the childish condition of big kids and roundsmen «of no account» (v.10) who do not express themselves or reinterpret, but remain subjected and do only "what they must".

The religion of merits and roles is deleterious; it produces malaise, it goes on by inertia and with a defensive attitude.

It does not reinvent the present, nor does it open the future.

It does not listen to needs, rather it pushes us to imprint relationships on the basis of selfishness, even spiritual.

Here we no longer look at what spontaneously appears - forcing our faculties to all predictable, conformist assessments.

Life therefore impoverishes, desertifying itself, because it’s intimidated.

Becoming an absurd farce that Jesus doesn’t want: a jumble of swampy attitudes, unable to reactivate us - inattentive to special actions that turn routine into adventure.

To paraphrase the encyclical Brothers All, in those conditions it would sound «like madness» also to elaborate «great goals for the development of our entire human family» (n.16).

There would be no sense of the Mystery, never perceiving it in the furrows of history: we would drag ourselves into remedies, protecting only the usual grind newspaper.

Therefore no unexpected change, no unexplained transformation, no exceptional recovery (v.6).

No unpredictability would see the ‘sacred’ in the thousand situations that Providence invents, stimulating new answers.

The mystic Ibn Ata Allah - Master of the two Sciences [wisdom of analysis and experience of mystical inebriation] - argued:

«If you want that the door of the fear is opened to you, look at what from you goes to Him. If you want that the door of the Hope is opened to you, look at what comes from Him to you».

[Tuesday 32nd wk. in O.T.  November 12, 2024]

Lk 17:7-10 (1-10)

Forgiveness and Faith: Living Encounter

Eccentric free-for-all: Sacrament of humanity as such

(Lk 17:1-6)

The knowledge of God is not a confiscated commodity or an acquired and already foreclosed science: it moves from one action to another, unceasingly; it is realised in an ever-living Encounter, which does not freeze or dissolve us.

Typical, the experience of the "little ones" [mikròi v.2]. From the earliest communities of faith, they were those who lacked security and energy; unstable and without support.

From time immemorial, "Little Ones" have been the incipients; the new ones, who have heard of Christian brotherhood, but who are sometimes forced to stand in line, aside, or give up the journey.

But the criterion of welcome, tolerance, communion even of material goods, was the first and main catalyst for the growth of the assemblies.

Moreover, the source and meaning of all the formulas and signs of the liturgy.

The existential and ideal centre in which to converge. For a proactive and in itself transformative Faith.

In the Spirit of the Master, even for us the conciliation of friction is not simply a work of magnanimity.

It is the beginning of the future world. The beginning of an unforeseeable and unspeakable adventure. And we with it suddenly reborn: coming into frank contact in Christ. He who does not extinguish us at all.

Hence the Christian forgiveness of children, which is not... "looking positive", and "turning a blind eye": rather, Newness of God that creates an environment of Grace, propulsive, with enormous possibilities.

Force that breaks through and paradoxically lets the dark poles meet, instead of shaking them off. Genuinely eliminating useless comparisons, words and ballasts, which block the transparent Exodus.

Dynamics that guide one to the indispensable and unavoidable: waves to shift one's gaze. Teaching to notice one's own hysterics, to know oneself, to face anxiety, its reason; to manage situations and moments of crisis.

Mouldable virtue that places one in intimate listening to the personal essence.

Hence, solid, wide-ranging empathy that introduces new energies; it brings together one's own deep states, even standard life arousing other knowledge, different perspectives, unexpected relationships.

Thus without too much struggle it renews us, and curbs the loss of veracity [typical, that in favour of circumstantial manners]. It accentuates the capacity and horizons of Peace - crumbling primates, swampy balances.

The discovery of new sides of the being that we are, conveys a sense of better wholeness, then spontaneously curbs external influences, dissolves prejudices, does not make one act on an emotional, impulsive basis.

Rather, it puts us in a position to reveal the hidden and astounding meaning of being. It unfolds the crucial horizon.

Activating 'Forgiveness' is gratuitously a surrender of one's character range, of all lost dignity, and far beyond.

By laying down feelings, the art of tolerance expands the [also intimate] gaze. It enhances and strengthens the dull sides; those we ourselves had detested.

In this eccentric way it transforms those considered distant or mediocre [mikroi] into outriders, and brilliant inventors. For what was unthought of yesterday will be clarifying and driving tomorrow.

Confusions will make sense - precisely because of the thinking of minds in crisis, and because of the action of the despised, intruders, outside of all spin and predictability.

Life of pure Faith in the Spirit: i.e., the imagination of the 'weak'... in power.

Because it is the paradoxical mechanism that makes the crossroads of history assess, activates passions, creates sharing, solves real problems.

And so it supplants difficult moments forwards (bringing us back to the true path) by orienting reality to the concrete good.

By making it fly towards itself.

The 'win-or-lose' alternative is false: we must get out of it. It is in such 'emptiness' and Silence that God makes His way.

Mystery of Presence, overflowing. New Covenant.

Increasing Faith: a dull, intimidated life, or the door of Hope

(Lk 17:5-10)

Perhaps we too have been inculcated with the idea that faith must be asked for, so God will increase it for us. Instead, we have a say, but not in the sense of a plea to Heaven.

Faith is a gift, but in the sense of a relational, face-to-face proposal and initiative; that asks for welcoming perception. Hence it does not grow by dropping a package - like a precipice, or by infusion from above. Even forcing it and convincing the Father.

Nor is it mere assent linked to good-naturedness. It is not a baggage of notions that some have and prove right; others less so, or not at all.

In falling in love one can be more or less involved!

Faith is not believing that God exists, but adhering to a springing suggestion that (without imposition) guides us to disregard reputation.

The person of Faith cares not for expense or risk, even for the lives of others. He holds particular mores in abeyance; he does not put circle affections first. He forgives without limit.

Often we agree only in part and accept a little bit - perhaps until love goes all the way, or calls us into question.

Thus the head, the quirks, the concatenation of values, and the small world to which we are attached.

Increasing Faith? The Gift is not a gift, but an Appeal.

That is why Jesus does not even respond to such a ridiculous request - nevertheless, it makes one wonder about the results of possible adherence.

All it would take is the slightest involvement and there would be extraordinary results in the world (v.6); in the community, in families and in personal lives.

We would achieve the impossible and important. Real problems would be solved. Even the simplest actions would be transformed.

Then there are great events planted in every man's heart, which we perhaps consider unrealisable: e.g. universal brotherhood, victory over fame, a dignified and beautiful life for all, a world and a Church without volatile, corrupt and vain characters.

Because we consider them impossible situations, we don't even begin to build them - we immediately drop our arms.

But maturation is the result of secret sides, not of impermeable mental armour.

As a Nobel Prize winner said: 'The innocent did not know that their project was impossible, so they realised it'.

And it is not that after a life spent in service - at the orders of the Principal - in the afterlife we will finally command, on the basis of the rank we have earned [although this too may have been passed on to us].

One of the wonders that Faith in Christ accomplishes in us - here and now - is to make us aware of the beauty and joy of having the freedom to come down from the pedestals we have already identified, in order to favour the full life (of all).

And at the 'end of the month' - at the 'reckoning' or the 'pay' - we will not finally become bosses - at least in heaven!

Because God is Communion, conviviality of differences; and He does not accept the servant-master scheme, even as a reward.

Very provocative words, those of Jesus, that neither condemn a priori nor demonise the Way contrary to his.

But he does warn us about how things work in a pyramid scheme (vv.7-9).

"When you have done all that you have been 'commanded'..." (v.10).

The Lord alludes to the obedience of the Torah and would like to free us from the obsessive, limiting, petty and anxiety-inducing yoke of the ancient religious Law. 

It produces artificial and fake hierarchies, social collapse, impoverishment of souls.

It is as if the Lord were saying:

"Try as you might to follow the predictable, pious, correct, plastered, jerkless model....

Try it and you will see for yourself what inconclusiveness, what lacerations and disasters it produces.

Experience it, and you will realise, and definitively!".

In a perspective of Faith and human growth in Christ, one must abandon the standard limiting "subject-subject" model imposed by Moses.

How boring! Person and Friendship do not bank!

And after the first discoveries, there is no going back to cultivating restraints - otherwise compulsory behaviour will get us into big trouble.

They will take away expressive richness from the proclamation and from life.

Perhaps we already know what it means to feel like numbers, to copy the (histrionic) emancipation of others and consequently seek external compensations; or to fill ourselves with ulterior motives, thus make-up and spoil.

"Try settling for official, conformist and normalised religiosity, instead of engaging in the search and discovery without compensation; in the Exodus and the adventure of adhering to a level-headed Love! You will see what an impediment to breakthroughs, what a degradation of relationships, what a life folded and filled with resentments all around, insulting and empty!".

Instead, the reception-faith will lead us to grow from useless slaves to Sons; co-workers and allies of the Father.

From crude submissive and slavishly obedient, to family, friends, and kinsmen-friends.

Otherwise we will remain in the puerile condition of children and servants "of no account" (v.10) who neither express themselves nor reinterpret, but remain submissive and do only "what they must".

The religion of merits and roles is deleterious; it produces malaise. It manages the real estate empire but moves forward by inertia and with a defensive attitude.

It does not reinvent the present, nor does it open up the future.

It does not listen to needs, rather it pushes us to shape relationships on the basis of selfishness, even spiritual selfishness.

Here, we no longer look at what spontaneously arises - forcing our faculties to evaluations that are all predictable, conformist.

Life therefore becomes impoverished, desertifying itself, because it is intimidated.

Becoming an absurd farce that Jesus does not want: a jumble of swampy attitudes, incapable of reactivating us - inattentive to the special actions that turn routine into adventure.Paraphrasing the encyclical Brothers All, in those conditions it would sound "like a delirium" even to elaborate "great objectives for the development of all humanity" (no.16).

We would lack a sense of the Mystery, never perceived in the furrows of history: we would drag ourselves into the remedies, protecting only the trance.

The relationship of Friendship and Gratuity would be replaced by an induced model (and in Italy we know it well, unfortunately).

A model that then does not allow one to meet oneself and others; indeed, it would even deform the relationship with God.

Salaried employees - less human and less unique - means less 'divine': everything is already known, guided and foreseen as in the plots of puppets on a stage.

No unexpected changes; no inexplicable transformations.

No exceptional recovery, no astonishing human and cultural prodigy (v.6).

No unpredictability that sees the 'sacred' in the thousands of situations that Providence invents, stimulating new responses.

The mystic Ibn Ata Allah - Master of the two sciences [wisdom of analysis and experience of mystical intoxication] - claimed:

"If you want the door of fear to be opened to you, look at what goes from you to Him. If you want the door of Hope to be opened to you, look at what comes to you from Him'.

To internalise and live the message:

What would you like to do for God? How do you live Hope?

35. This proper way of serving others also leads to humility. The one who serves does not consider himself superior to the one served, however miserable his situation at the moment may be. Christ took the lowest place in the world—the Cross—and by this radical humility he redeemed us and constantly comes to our aid. Those who are in a position to help others will realize that in doing so they themselves receive help; being able to help others is no merit or achievement of their own. This duty is a grace. The more we do for others, the more we understand and can appropriate the words of Christ: “We are useless servants” (Lk 17:10). We recognize that we are not acting on the basis of any superiority or greater personal efficiency, but because the Lord has graciously enabled us to do so. There are times when the burden of need and our own limitations might tempt us to become discouraged. But precisely then we are helped by the knowledge that, in the end, we are only instruments in the Lord's hands; and this knowledge frees us from the presumption of thinking that we alone are personally responsible for building a better world. In all humility we will do what we can, and in all humility we will entrust the rest to the Lord. It is God who governs the world, not we. We offer him our service only to the extent that we can, and for as long as he grants us the strength. To do all we can with what strength we have, however, is the task which keeps the good servant of Jesus Christ always at work: “The love of Christ urges us on” (2 Cor 5:14).

[Pope Benedict, Deus Caritas est]

1. “We are unworthy servants” (Lk 17:10).

These words of Christ surely kept echoing in the hearts of the Apostles when, obedient to his command, they set out on the highways of the world in order to proclaim the Gospel. They travelled from one city to another, from one region to the next, spending themselves in the service of the Kingdom and always taking to heart the admonition of Jesus: “When you have done all that is commanded you, say: 'We are unworthy servants; we have done only what was our duty'” (Lk 17:10).

The Apostles handed on this same realization to their disciples, including those who first crossed the Adriatic Sea and brought the Gospel to Roman Dalmatia, to the people who then dwelt along this beautiful coast and in the other, no less beautiful, lands reaching as far as Pannonia. The faith thus began to spread among your ancestors, who in turn handed it down to you. This has been a long historical process, which goes back to the time of Saint Paul and which had a forceful new beginning in the seventh century, with the arrival of the Croatian people.

Today we want to thank the Most Holy Trinity for the Baptism received by your ancestors. Christianity arrived here from the East and from Italy, from Rome, and it shaped your national tradition. Remembering this evokes a lively and deep sense of gratitude to Divine Providence for this two-fold gift: first and foremost, the gift of your call to faith, and then the gift of the fruits which that faith has borne in your culture and your way of life.

Along the Croatian coast, down the centuries, there arose wonderful architectural masterpieces, which inspired awe in countless people in every age. Everyone could enjoy this splendid heritage, standing out amid the lovely countryside. Tragically, as a result of war, many of these treasures have been destroyed or damaged. The eye of man can no longer rejoice in them. How can we not feel regret for this?

2. “We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty”. Jesus’ words raise questions which cannot be avoided: have we really done what was our duty? And what must we do now? What tasks lie before us? What resources and what forces do we have at hand? The questions are complex and so the answer to them must be carefully thought through. Today we ask these questions as Christians, as followers of Christ, and with this awareness we read the page of Saint Paul’s Letter to Timothy. There the Apostle, listing some of the disciples, also mentions the name of Titus, recalling his mission in Dalmatia. Titus was thus one of the first evangelizers of these lands, singular evidence of the Apostle’s concern that the Gospel should be brought here.

In the words of the aged Paul, we hear an echo of the apostolic concern which marked his whole life. Now, at the moment when he must depart from this life (cf. 2 Tim 4:6), he writes to his disciple: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim 4:7). This is both a testimony and a testament. In this context, Paul’s final words take on greater significance: “The Lord stood by me and gave me strength to proclaim the message fully, that all the Gentiles might hear it” (2 Tim 4:17).

Those who today, at the end of the Second Millennium, must continue the work of evangelization can draw light and strength from these words. In this work, at once divine and human, we need to call upon the power of the Lord. On the threshold of the new Millennium, we rightly speak of the need for a new evangelization: new in method, but always the same with regard to the truths it proclaims. The new evangelization is an immense task: universal in its content and destination, it must take on new and diverse forms, adapting to the needs of different places. How can we not sense the need of God’s help to sustain our weakness and limitations?

Let us pray that the Church in your Catholic nation will be able to see clearly, with God’s help, the challenges and tasks associated with the new evangelization and rightly direct all her efforts, “tertio millennio adveniente”.

3. I thank the Metropolitan Archbishop, Ante Juric, for the words of welcome which he addressed to me at the start of this Eucharistic celebration, in your name and in the name of all the people of good will in this beloved land of Croatia.

I greet the Bishops of the ecclesiastical Province of Split-Makarska and all the other Bishops of Croatia, particularly Cardinal Franjo Kuharic. I also welcome with gratitude the Pastors of the Church in nearby Bosnia-Hercegovina: the Archbishop of Sarajevo, Cardinal Vinko Puljic, with his Auxiliary, Bishop Pero Sudar; the Bishop of Mostar-Duvno and Apostolic Administrator of Trebinje-Mrkan, Bishop Ratko Peric, and the Bishop of Banja Luka, Franjo Komarica. I likewise greet all the other Bishops present.

Finally, I greet the President of the Republic, the Head of Government and the civil and military authorities, who have wished to be present here with us.

4. Dear friends, Split and Solin make up the second and final stage of my Pastoral Visit to Croatia. These two places have a very special significance in the growth of Christianity in this region - from Roman times and, later, Croatian times - and they evoke a long and wonderful history of faith from the time of the Apostles until our own days.

“If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed...” (Lk 17:6), Jesus said just now in the Gospel reading. God’s grace has made that grain of faith sprout and grow to become a great tree, rich in fruits of holiness. Even at the harshest moments of your history, there have always been men and women who have kept repeating: “The Catholic faith is my vocation” (the Servant of God Ivan Merz, in Positio super vita, virtutibus et fama sanctitatis, Rome, 1998, p. 477); men and women who have made the faith their programme of life. So it was for the martyr Domnius in Roman times, so it was also for the many martyrs during the Turkish occupation, up to the Blessed martyr Alojzije Stepinac in our own time.

The decision of your forefathers to accept the Catholic faith, the faith proclaimed and professed by the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, has played a central role in the religious and civil history of your Nation. “This was an event of capital importance for the Croats, because from that moment on they accepted with alacrity the Gospel of Christ as it was disseminated and taught in Rome. The Catholic faith has permeated the national life of the Croats”: so wrote your Bishops (Pastoral Letter, 16 March 1939) in preparation for the Jubilee of the evangelization of the Croats, planned for 1941 and then postponed because of events which overwhelmed your country, Europe and the entire world.

5. This is a heritage which makes demands of you. In the Letter I wrote for the Year of Branimir, one of the stages of the celebration of the Jubilee of the Baptism of your People, I told you: “By your perseverance you have entered into a sort of pact with Christ and his Church: you must remain faithful to this pact, all the more so when the times are in contrast with it. Remain always as you were in that glorious year of 879” (15 May 1979). Today I repeat these words to you, in the new social and political climate which has emerged in your country.

The Lord has not failed to enlighten your days with hope (cf. Eph 1:17-18), and now, with the coming of freedom and democracy, it is legitimate to expect a new springtime of faith in this land of Croatia. The Church is now able to employ many means of evangelization and can approach all sectors of society. This is a promising moment which Providence is offering to this generation in order to proclaim the Gospel and bear witness to Christ Jesus, the one Saviour of the world, and thus to contribute to the building of a society worthy of man.

Concretely, the Christians of Croatia are today called to give a new face to their country, above all by committing themselves to the renewal in society of the ethical and moral values undermined by past totalitarianism and by the recent violence of war. This is a task which calls for the expenditure of much energy and a firm and persevering will. It is an urgent task, for without values there can be no true freedom or true democracy. Fundamental among these values is respect for human life, for the rights and dignity of the person, as well as for the rights and dignity of peoples.

The Christian knows that he has a very specific responsibility, together with his fellow-citizens, for the destiny of his own country and for the promotion of the common good. Faith is always a commitment to the service of others, of one’s fellow-citizens, considered as brothers and sisters. And there can be no effective witness without a deeply-lived faith, without a life anchored in the Gospel and imbued with love for God and for neighbour, following the example of Jesus Christ. For the Christian, to bear witness means to reveal to others the marvels of God’s love, working in union with one’s brothers and sisters to build that Kingdom of which the Church is “on earth, the seed and first growth” (Lumen Gentium, 5).

6. “If you had faith...”. “We are unworthy servants...”. Faith does not seek the extraordinary, but strives to be useful by serving our brothers and sisters in the light of the Kingdom. Its grandeur lies in humility: “We are unworthy servants...”. A humble faith is an authentic faith. And an authentic faith, even if it is as small “as a grain of mustard seed”, can make extraordinary things happen.

How many times has this happened in this land! May the future prove once more the truth of these words of the Lord, so that the Gospel may continue to bear abundant fruits of holiness among generations yet to come.

May the Lord of history accept the petitions which rise up today from this land of Croatia. May he hear the prayer of all those who profess the holy Name of God and ask to persevere in fidelity to the great baptismal Covenant of their forefathers.

Sustained by faith in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, may this people build its future on its ancient Christian roots, dating to the time of the Apostles!

Praised be Jesus and Mary!

[Pope John Paul II, homily Split 4 October 1998]

The word of God presents us today with two essential aspects of the Christian life: faith and service. With regard to faith, two specific requests are made to the Lord. 

The first is made by the Prophet Habakkuk, who implores God to intervene in order to re-establish the justice and peace which men have shattered by violence, quarrels and disputes: “O Lord, how long”, he says, “shall I cry for help, and you will not hear?” (Hab 1:2). God, in response, does not intervene directly, does not resolve the situation in an abrupt way, does not make himself present by a show of force. Rather, he invites patient waiting, without ever losing hope; above all, he emphasizes the importance of faith, since it is by faith that man will live (cf. Hab 2:4). God treats us in the same way: he does not indulge our desire to immediately and repeatedly change the world and other people. Instead, he intends primarily to heal the heart, my heart, your heart, and the heart of each person; God changes the world by transforming our hearts, and this he cannot do without us. The Lord wants us to open the door of our hearts, in order to enter into our lives. And this act of opening to him, this trust in him is precisely “the victory that overcomes the world, our faith” (1 Jn 5:4). For when God finds an open and trusting heart, then he can work wonders there. 

But to have faith, a lively faith, is not easy; and so we pass to the second request, which the Apostles bring to the Lord in the Gospel: “Increase our faith!” (Lk 17:6). It is a good question, a prayer which we too can direct to the Lord each day. But the divine response is surprising and here too turns the question around: “If you had faith…”. It is the Lord who asks us to have faith. Because faith, which is always God’s gift and always to be asked for, must be nurtured by us. It is no magic power which comes down from heaven, it is not a “talent” which is given once and for all, not a special force for solving life’s problems. A faith useful for satisfying our needs would be a selfish one, centred entirely on ourselves. Faith must not be confused with well-being or feeling well, with having consolation in our heart that gives us inner peace. Faith is the golden thread which binds us to the Lord, the pure joy of being with him, united to him; it is a gift that lasts our whole life, but bears fruit only if we play our part. 

And what is our part? Jesus helps us understand that it consists of service. In the Gospel, immediately following his words on the power of faith, Jesus speaks of service. Faith and service cannot be separated; on the contrary, they are intimately linked, interwoven with each other. In order to explain this, I would like to take an image very familiar to you, that of a beautiful carpet. Your carpets are true works of art and have an ancient heritage. The Christian life that each of you has, also comes from afar. It is a gift we received in the Church which comes from the heart of God our Father, who wishes to make each of us a masterpiece of creation and of history. Every carpet, and you know this well, must be made according to a weft and a warp; only with this form can the carpet be harmoniously woven. So too in the Christian life: every day it must be woven patiently, intertwining a precise weft and warp: the weft of faith and the warp of service. When faith is interwoven with service, the heart remains open and youthful, and it expands in the process of doing good. Thus faith, as Jesus tells us in the Gospel, becomes powerful and accomplishes marvellous deeds. If faith follows this path, it matures and grows in strength, but only when it is joined to service. 

But what is service? We might think that it consists only in being faithful to our duties or carrying out some good action. Yet for Jesus it is much more. In today’s Gospel, and in very firm and radical terms, he asks us for complete availability, a life offered in complete openness, free of calculation and gain. Why is Jesus so exacting? Because he loved us in this way, making himself our servant “to the end” (Jn 13:1), coming “to serve, and to give his life” (Mk10:45). And this takes place again every time we celebrate the Eucharist: the Lord comes among us, and as much as we intend to serve him and love him, it is always he who precedes us, serving us and loving us more than we can imagine or deserve. He gives us his very own life. He invites us to imitate him, saying: “If anyone serves me, he must follow me” (Jn 12:26).

And so, we are not called to serve merely in order to receive a reward, but rather to imitate God, who made himself a servant for our love. Nor are we called to serve only now and again, but to live in serving. Service is thus a way of life; indeed it recapitulates the entire Christian way of life: serving God in adoration and prayer; being open and available; loving our neighbour with practical deeds; passionately working for the common good. 

For Christians too, there are no shortage of temptations which lead us away from the path of service and end up by rendering life useless. Where there is no service, life is useless. Here too we can identify two forms. One is that of allowing our hearts to grow lukewarm. A lukewarm heart becomes self-absorbed in lazy living and it stifles the fire of love. The lukewarm person lives to satisfy his or her own convenience, which is never enough, and in that way is never satisfied; gradually such a Christian ends up being content with a mediocre life. The lukewarm person allocates to God and others a “percentage” of their time and their own heart, never spending too much, but rather always trying to economize. And so, he or she can lose the zest for life: rather like a cup of truly fine tea, which is unbearable to taste when it gets cold. I am sure, however, that when you look to the example of those who have gone before you in faith, you will not let your hearts become lukewarm. The whole Church, in showing you special affection, looks to you and offers you encouragement: you are a little flock that is so precious in God’s eyes. 

There is a second temptation, which we can fall into not so much because we are passive, but because we are “overactive”: the one of thinking like masters, of giving oneself only in order to gain something or become someone. In such cases service becomes a means and not an end, because the end has become prestige; and then comes power, the desire to be great. “It shall not be so among you”, Jesus reminds all of us, “but whoever would be great among you must be your servant” (Mt 20:26). This is the way the Church grows and is adorned. Returning to our image of the carpet, and applying it to your fine community: each of you is like a magnificent silk thread. Only if you are woven together, however, will the different threads form a beautiful composition; on their own, they are of no use. Stay united always, living humbly in charity and joy; the Lord, who creates harmony from differences, will protect you. 

May we be aided by the intercession of the Immaculate Virgin Mary and by the saints, especially Saint Teresa of Calcutta, the fruits of whose faith and service are in your midst. Let us recall some of her noble words to summarize today’s message: “The fruit of faith is love. The fruit of love is service. The fruit of service is peace” (A Simple Path, Introduction).

[Pope Francis, homily Baku 2 October 2016]

Free eccentric, forward: Sacrament of humanity as such

(Lk 17:1-6)

The knowledge of God is not an acquired science: it moves from one action and another, unceasingly; it’s realized in an ever-living Encounter, which neither blocks nor dissolves us.

Typical, the experience of the «little ones» [mikròi v.2]. Since the earliest communities of faith, they have been those who lacked security and energy; unstables and without support.

«Small» have always been the incipients; the new ones, who have heard of Christian fraternity, and are sometimes forced to stand in line, aside, or give up the way.

But the criterion of acceptance, tolerance, communion of material goods, was the first and main catalyst of the growth of assemblies.

Even the source and meaning of all the formulas and signs of the liturgy.

The existential and ideal center towards wich to converge. For a proactive and in itself transformative Faith.

In the Spirit of the Master, even for us the reconciliation of friction is not configured as a simple work of magnanimity.

It’s the beginning of the future world. Principle of an unpredictable and unspeakable adventure; of rebirth.

Novelty of God that creates an environment of Grace, propulsive, with enormous possibilities.

Force that breaks in and paradoxically lets the dark poles meet, instead of shaking them off. By genuinely eliminating comparisons, useless words and ballasts, which block the transparent Exodus.

Thus (without too much struggle) it renews us, and curbs the loss of veracity. It emphasizes capacities and horizons of Peace; it crumbles primates, the marshy balances.

The discovery of new sides of being that we are, conveys a sense of better completeness. So it spontaneously stems external influences, dissolves prejudices, doesn’t act on an emotional, impulsive basis.

Rather, it places us in the position that enables to reveal the hidden and stunning sense of being. Unfolding the crucial horizon.

Laying down our judgements, the art of tolerance broadens the gaze [even intimate]. It improves and enhances the dull sides; those that we ourselves detested.

In eccentric way it transforms the considered distant or mediocre [mikroi] in outriders, and ingenious inventors. Because what was unthinkable yesterday, tomorrow will be of clarification and towing.

Confusions will acquire a sense - precisely thanks to the thought of the despised, intruders, out of every consortium and predictability.

Life of pure Faith in the Spirit: the fantasy of the "weak"... in power.

Because it’s the paradoxical mechanism that makes us evaluate the crossroads of history, activates passions, creates sharing, solves the real problems.

It makes reality fly towards itself.

The "victory-or-defeat" alternative is false: it’s necessary to get out of it. It’s in such ‘emptiness’ and Silence that God makes his way.

Mystery of Presence, which overflows. New Alliance.

[Monday 32nd wk. in O.T.  November 11, 2024]

Gratis eccentric, forward: Sacrament of humanity as such

(Lk 17:1-6)

The knowledge of God is not a confiscated commodity or an acquired and already plundered science: it moves from one action and another, unceasingly; it is realised in an ever-living Encounter, which does not block or dissolve us.

Typical, the experience of the "little ones" [mikròi v.2]. From the earliest communities of faith, they have been those who lacked security and energy; unstable and without support.

From time immemorial, "Little Ones" have been the incipients; the new ones, who have heard of Christian brotherhood, but are sometimes forced to stand in line, aside, or give up the journey.

But the criterion of welcome, tolerance, communion even of material goods, has been the first and main catalyst for the growth of the assemblies.

Even the origin and meaning of all the formulas and signs of the liturgy.

The existential and ideal centre to which to converge. For a proactive and in itself transformative Faith.

In the Spirit of the Master, even for us the conciliation of friction is not simply a work of magnanimity.

It is the beginning of the future world. The beginning of an unpredictable and unspeakable adventure. And we with it suddenly reborn: coming into frank contact in Christ. He who does not extinguish us at all.

Hence the Christian forgiveness of children, which is not... 'looking positive', and 'turning a blind eye': rather, Newness of God that creates an environment of Grace, propulsive, with enormous possibilities.

Force that breaks through and paradoxically lets the dark poles meet, instead of shaking them off. Genuinely eliminating useless comparisons, words and ballasts, which block the transparent Exodus.

Dynamics that guide one to the indispensable and unavoidable: waves to shift one's gaze. Teaching one to notice one's own hysterics, to know oneself, to face anxiety, its reason; to manage situations and moments of crisis.

Mouldable virtue that places one in intimate listening to the personal essence.

Hence, solid, broad empathy, which introduces new energies; it brings one's own deep states, even standard life, together... arousing other knowledge, different perspectives, unexpected relationships.

Thus without too much struggle it renews us, and curbs the loss of veracity [typical, that in favour of circumstantial manners]. It accentuates capacities and horizons of Peace - crumbling primates, swampy balances.

The discovery of new sides of the being that we are, conveys a sense of better wholeness, then spontaneously curbs external influences, dissolves prejudices, does not make one act on an emotional, impulsive basis.

Rather, it puts us in a position to reveal the hidden and astounding meaning of being. It unfolds the crucial horizon.

Activating 'Forgiveness' is gratuitously a surrender of one's character range, of all lost dignity, and far beyond.

By laying down sentences, the art of tolerance expands the [also intimate] gaze. It enhances and strengthens the dull sides; those we ourselves had detested.

In this eccentric way it transforms those considered distant or mediocre [mikroi] into outriders and brilliant inventors. For what was unthought of yesterday will be clarifying and driving tomorrow.

Confusions will make sense - precisely because of the thinking of the minds in crisis, and because of the action of the despised, intruders, outside of all spin and predictability.

Life of pure Faith in the Spirit: i.e., the imagination of the 'weak'... in power.

Because it is the paradoxical mechanism that makes the crossroads of history assess, activates passions, creates sharing, solves real problems.

And so it supplants difficult moments forwards (bringing us back to the true path) by orienting reality to the concrete good.

By making it fly towards itself.

The 'win-or-lose' alternative is false: we must get out of it. It is in such 'emptiness' and Silence that God makes His way.

Mystery of Presence, overflowing. New Covenant.

Increasing faith: a dull, intimidated life, or the door of hope

Perhaps we, too, have been inculcated with the idea that faith must be asked for, so God will increase it for us. Instead, we have a say, but not in the sense of a plea to Heaven.

Faith is a gift, but in the sense of a relational, face-to-face proposal and initiative; that asks for welcoming perception. Therefore, it does not grow by falling from a packet - as if by precipice, or by infusion from above. Even forcing it, and convincing the Father.

Nor is it a simple assent linked to good-naturedness. It is not a baggage of notions that some have and prove right; others less so, or not at all.

In falling in love one can be more or less involved!

Faith is not believing that God exists, but adhering to a springing suggestion that (without imposition) guides us to disregard reputation.

The person of Faith cares not for expense or risk, even for the lives of others. He holds particular customs in abeyance; he does not put circle affections first. Forgives without limit.Often we agree only in part and accept a little bit - perhaps until love goes all the way, or calls us into question.

Thus the head, the quirks, the concatenation of values, and the small world to which we are attached.

Increasing Faith? The Gift is not a gift, but an Appeal.

Therefore, Jesus does not even respond to such a ridiculous request - nevertheless, it makes one think about the results of possible adherence.

All it would take is the slightest involvement and there would be extraordinary results in the world (v.6); in community, in families and in personal life.

We would achieve the impossible and important. Real problems would be solved. Even the simplest actions would be transformed.

Then there are great events planted in every man's heart, which we perhaps consider unrealisable: e.g. universal brotherhood, victory over hunger, a dignified and beautiful life for all, a world and a Church without volatile, corrupt and vain characters.

Because we consider them impossible situations, we don't even begin to build them - we immediately drop our arms.

But maturation is the result of secret sides, not of impermeable mental armour.

As a Nobel Prize winner said: 'The innocent did not know that their project was impossible, so they realised it'.

And it is not that after a life spent in service - at the orders of the Principal - in the afterlife we will finally command, on the basis of the rank we have earned [although this too may have been passed on to us].

One of the wonders that Faith in Christ accomplishes in us - here and now - is to make us aware of the beauty and joy of having the freedom to come down from the pedestals we have already identified, in order to favour the full life (of all).

And at the 'end of the month' - at the 'reckoning' or the 'pay' - we will not finally become bosses - at least in heaven!

Because God is Communion, conviviality of differences; and He does not accept the servant-master scheme, even as a reward.

If man is not reconciled with God, he is also in conflict with creation. He is not reconciled with himself, he would like to be something other than what he is and consequently he is not reconciled with his neighbour either. Part of reconciliation is also the ability to acknowledge guilt and to ask forgiveness from God and from others. Lastly, part of the process of reconciliation is also the readiness to do penance, the willingness to suffer deeply for one's sin and to allow oneself to be transformed. Part of this is the gratuitousness of which the Encyclical Caritas in Veritate speaks repeatedly: the readiness to do more than what is necessary, not to tally costs, but to go beyond merely legal requirements. Part of this is the generosity which God himself has shown us. We think of Jesus' words: "If you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift" (Mt 5: 23ff.). God, knowing that we were unreconciled and seeing that we have something against him, rose up and came to meet us, even though he alone was in the right. He came to meet us even to the Cross, in order to reconcile us. This is what it means to give freely: a willingness to take the first step; to be the first to reach out to the other, to offer reconciliation, to accept the suffering entailed in giving up being in the right. To persevere in the desire for reconciliation: God gave us an example, and this is the way for us to become like him; it is an attitude constantly needed in our world. Today we must learn once more how to acknowledge guilt, we must shake off the illusion of being innocent. We must learn how to do penance, to let ourselves be transformed; to reach out to the other and to let God give us the courage and strength for this renewal. Today, in this world of ours, we need to rediscover the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. The fact that it has largely disappeared from the daily life and habits of Christians is a symptom of a loss of truthfulness with regard both to ourselves and to God; a loss that endangers our humanity and diminishes our capacity for peace. Saint Bonaventure was of the opinion that the Sacrament of Penance was a sacrament of humanity as such, a sacrament that God had instituted in its essence immediately after original sin through the penance he imposed on Adam, even though it could only take on its full shape in Christ, who is the reconciling power of God in person and who took our penance upon himself. In fact, the unity of sin, repentance and forgiveness is one of the fundamental conditions for being truly human: these conditions find complete expression in the sacrament, yet in their deepest roots they are part of the experience of being human persons as such.

[Pope Benedict, to the Roman Curia 21 December 2009]

Dear brothers and sisters.

1. On this Sunday evening in Edmonton, the evening of the first day of the week when we Christians celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord, we come together in prayer in this beautiful Cathedral of Saint Joseph. We are gathered in the joy of our common Baptism, in the power of the word of God, and in the peace and love of Christ, whom we proclaim as the Light of the world and the supreme manifestation of God. I invite you all to reflect with me this evening on the mystery of the presence of God. 

As men and women of faith, we believe that God is present in his creation, that he is the Lord of history who directs the times and the seasons, that he is near to all who call upon him: the poor and the dejected, the sorrowing and the lonely, the weak and the oppressed. We believe that God breaks through the silence, and even the noise, of our daily lives, revealing to us his truth and his love. He wishes to dispel our fear and strengthen our hope in his saving mercy. 

God personally speaks to the heart of every individual, but he also acts through the community of people whom he predestines to be his own. We see this first in the history of the Jewish people. Through Abraham, our father in faith, through Isaac and Jacob, and in particular through Moses, God called a people to belong to him in a special way. He entered into a covenant with them, saying: "I will be their God and they shall be my people" (Ier. 31, 33). When his chosen ones sinned and went their own way, forgetting the God who saved them, God in his never-ending love intervened in their lives by means of the Prophets. He called the people to repentance and promised to establish with them a new and better covenant. This New Covenant he described in this way: "Deep within them I will plant my Law, writing it on their hearts... They will all know me, the least no less than the greatest, since I will forgive their iniquity and never call their sin to mind" (Ibid. 31, 33-34). 

And how did God establish this New Covenant? How did he write his law on the hearts of his chosen ones? With the Blood of Jesus, the Blood of the Lamb of God, the Blood of the New and Everlasting Covenant, our Saviour’s Blood, which is the price of our Redemption and the most eloquent expression possible of the love of God for the world. 

2. The presence of God is embodied in its fullness in Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God who became the Son of Mary and who shed his Blood for us on the Cross. Jesus is Emmanuel, God with us, the Word made flesh, the revelation of the eternal Father. Before this great mystery of the presence of God, we stand in awe and reverence, and our hearts and voices long to break forth in songs and hymns of praise. And indeed this is most appropriate, for the first duty of a creature is to glorify the Creator, the first duty of a redeemed people is to praise their Lord and Saviour. That is why I am so pleased to join you tonight in this Evening Service of Praise. How good it is, as brothers and sisters in Christ, to join our voices in "psalms and hymns and inspired songs"! (Col. 3, 16)

Psalm 103, which we are praying together this evening, shows us a person whose whole being is filled with the praise of God: 

"My soul, give thanks to the Lord, / all my being, bless his holy name. / My soul, give thanks to the Lord / and never forget all his blessings" (Ps. 103, 1-2). 

"Never forget all his blessings": a heart filled with praise never forgets the many blessings of God. For the prayer of praise involves an act of remembering with gratitude, remembering all the ways that God has shown his saving love. And so the Psalmist declares: 

"It is he who forgives all your guilt, / who heals every one of your ills, / who redeems your life from the grave, / who crowns you with love and compassion, / who fills your life with good things, / renewing your youth like an eagle’s" (Ibid. 3-5). 

The prayer of praise proceeds from a humble awareness of our unworthiness and our total dependence on God, combined with a childlike trust in God’s abundant mercy. And so the Psalmist continues: 

"As a father has compassion on his sons, / the Lord has pity on those who fear him. / For he knows of what we are made, / he remembers that we are dust" (Ibid. 13-14). 

To praise the Lord is also to acclaim the many attributes of God, to extol the qualities of this great and holy God who has established a covenant with his people. Thus the Psalmist says: 

"The Lord is compassion and love, / slow to anger and rich in mercy... / His justice reaches out to children’s children / when they keep his covenant in truth" (Ibid. 8. 17-18). 

3. Living in the presence of God, Christians break forth in acclamation and praise, expressing gratitude for the gift of faith and for all the saving deeds of the Lord. But we must also turn to God with prayers of petition, seeking from the Lord shelter and safety from the forces of evil, forgiveness of our sins and healing of our wounded lives, strength to bear life’s burdens and grace to fulfil God’s will. Often the prayer of petition must be made with a sense of urgency and pleading. And so, the man in Psalm 141 cries out: 

"I have called to you, Lord; hasten to help me! / Hear my voice when I cry to you... / To you, Lord God, my eyes are turned: / in you I take refuge, spare my soul!" (Ps. 141, 1.8). 

The prayer of petition springs from a humble awareness of one’s great need for God’s grace, and from a deep trust in the powerful mercy of God. Thus, it is accompanied by an attitude of adoration. We kneel, at least in spirit, in the awesome presence of Almighty God, and the words that we utter are like those of the Psalmist who pleads: 

"Let my prayer arise before you like incense / the raising of my hands like an evening oblation" (Ibid. 2) 

4. Our Saviour promised us: "Where two or three meet in my name, I shall be there with them" (Matth. 18, 20). We know that this is true this evening as we Christians join together in common prayer. The presence of Christ fills this cathedral as we praise his name, and as we pray for that perfect unity among Christians which he wills for his followers. 

La prière authentique se prolonge en service généreux, c’est pourquoi nous n’oublions pas ce soir les besoins immenses de nos frères et sœurs qui souffrent à travers le monde. Fidèles à répondre au Seigneur, dont l’Esprit Saint a inspiré le mouvement œcuménique, non seulement nous prions ensemble et nous ouvrons un dialogue théologique entre nous, mais nous collaborons par un effort mené en commun pour promouvoir un monde où règnent davantage la justice et la paix. En nous aidant les uns les autres, nous cherchons à devenir “le sel de la terre” et “la lumière du monde” (Matth. 5, 11-16). De cette manière, nous proclamons ensemble la Bonne Nouvelle de la présence de Dieu dans le monde en la personne de Jésus-Christ, qui est un avec son Eglise. 

5. L’admirable prière que nous appelons le “Magnificat” et que nous disons ensemble ce soir, oriente nos esprits vers Dieu et vers sa présence salvifique dans l’histoire humaine. Elle attire aussi notre attention sur Marie, Mère de notre Sauveur. Cette femme, avec sa foi, reste aujourd’hui pour nous un modèle de sainteté de vie. D’une manière particulière, elle a fait l’expérience de la présence de Dieu dans sa vie quand elle est devenue la Mère de notre Rédempteur. Femme au cœur rempli de la louange de Dieu, elle célébra la grandeur de Dieu, en exaltant sa bonté pour les pauvres et les humbles, en proclamant sa miséricorde envers toutes les générations. Avec Marie, nous unissons nos voix pour louer “la grandeur du Seigneur” (Luc. 1, 46).  

We do this above all in union with Jesus Christ, who remains for ever the Light of the world, and who offers us the light of life (Io. 8, 12). Dearly beloved friends: let us receive this light from him and walk in this light, for the glory of his Father, who lives and reigns with the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen.

[Pope John Paul II, Edmonton 16 September 1984]