29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (year A)  [18 October 2026]

First Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah 45:1–6

When Isaiah wrote this text, the Jews had been in exile in Babylon for almost fifty years. In 587 BC, Nebuchadnezzar’s armies had conquered Jerusalem, destroyed and plundered the Temple, and deported the survivors. Now, however, news is arriving of the conquests of Cyrus, King of Persia, the new ruler of the world. For the Jews, this news offers a glimmer of hope, for Cyrus is rapidly conquering the entire region. Cyrus stands out from other rulers because he adopts a more humanitarian policy: he does not kill the vanquished, nor does he destroy or plunder their cities, nor does he deport the populations. On the contrary, in the conquered territories he allows the exiles to return to their homeland, restores to them the property taken by previous conquerors, and even provides the means to rebuild the country. He probably realises that it is in an emperor’s interest to rule over happy peoples. In this context, Isaiah utters a prophecy that is above all a profession of faith and hope. He says: ‘Thus says the Lord to his anointed one, to Cyrus’. The message is probably not addressed directly to Cyrus—who would not have listened to a Jewish prophet—but to the exiled Jews, to restore their hope. This hope is based on two fundamental convictions. Firstly, God is faithful to his Covenant.

God has not abandoned his people: Israel remains his servant and his chosen people. Even though they have lost their freedom, their land, the Temple, their king and their political independence, God continues to be faithful to the Covenant with Jacob and Israel. This certainty is particularly important precisely at a time when the Jews might think that God has abandoned them. Secondly,

God is the Lord of history. God declares: ‘I am the Lord; there is no other.’ Even the mighty Cyrus is in his hands. The expressions relating to bestowing a title, taking by the hand and opening the gates recall the rites of the coronation of kings: the king received the title of Son of God, was anointed with oil and placed in God’s hands; the open gates also symbolised the conquest of enemy cities. Isaiah therefore applies to Cyrus imagery typical of the coronation of the kings of Israel, presenting him as a king chosen and consecrated by God, even though he is a pagan. This proves that it is always God who retains the initiative and control over events.

Responsorial Psalm (95/96) 

There is a thrill, indeed an exultation, running through these few verses. One senses the faith that stirs this people; indeed, even better, the hope that is the joy of faith. It is hope that enables us to affirm with certainty what we do not yet possess, as the Letter to the Hebrews states (1:1). If we pause to read the final verses, we realise that this psalm already transports us to the end of the world, to that blessed day when all peoples, without exception, will recognise God as the one and only God. Joy in heaven! Let the earth rejoice! Let the depths of the sea roar; let the whole countryside be in celebration. Let the trees of the forests dance for joy before the Lord, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with justice and the peoples according to his truth! Here, the blessed day we await is already being sung of. Let us imagine the scene: we are in Jerusalem; all peoples, nations and races are thronging around the Temple. The esplanade is teeming; the steps of the courtyard are black with people; crowds are pouring in from every corner of the world; the number of pilgrims stretches as far as the eye can see, and Jerusalem is not big enough to contain them all. Everyone is singing at the top of their voices, like a true symphony: ‘God reigns!’ It is an immense and colossal clamour, like the ovation given to every new king on the day of his coronation. This time, however, it is not the people of Israel acclaiming an earthly king; it is the whole of humanity acclaiming the King of the world: ‘Great is the Lord, highly praised, awesome’. And it is not just humanity; the earth itself trembles, and even the seas join in the symphony, whilst the countryside rejoices and the trees dance, for they recognise their Creator. Amidst so many idols and false gods, there is no room for error, and even the trees are not deceived. People, on the other hand, have long allowed themselves to be deceived, and it is incredible that it has taken them so long to recognise their Creator, their Father. This time, however, it has happened, and everyone is coming to Jerusalem to acclaim God because at last the good news resounds: ‘Day by day Israel has proclaimed its salvation… the ceaseless work of liberation… day by day Israel has borne witness that God first delivered it from Egypt, then from every kind of slavery; and the most terrible form of slavery is to place one’s trust in false values, false gods that can only disappoint.  Israel is immensely fortunate to know and to be charged with proclaiming that our God is the one and only God, as declared in the Shema Israel: ‘Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one’ (Deut 6:4). This is the mystery of Israel’s vocation, as we read in Deuteronomy: ‘You have been granted to see all this, so that you may know that the Lord is God; there is no other’ (Deut 4:32). But the chosen people have never forgotten that if they have been granted to see, it is so that they may make it known; and whilst awaiting the fulfilment of this dream, Israel sings this psalm to renew its faith and hope.

Second Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Thessalonians (1:1–5)

This is the earliest Christian writing, even though we are accustomed to seeing the Gospels at the beginning of the New Testament, thus running the risk of forgetting that they were written after Paul’s letters. The First Letter to the Thessalonians dates back to just twenty years or so after the Resurrection of Christ, and so here we have the earliest statements of Christian preaching. It is the first time that an attempt has been made to set down in writing the mystery of Jesus Christ. It is around the year 50, and the Gospel has already been proclaimed far from Jerusalem, for Thessalonica is in Europe, in northern Greece, in the region known as Macedonia. Before reaching that far, Paul had already had time to establish communities throughout the south, the centre and even the west coast of Turkey. It is from the Acts of the Apostles that we know how events unfolded: Paul was on a mission on the west coast of Turkey when, one night, he had a vision of a Macedonian man imploring him: ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us’. And Luke, who was part of the journey, recounts: “Following this vision of Paul’s, we immediately set out for Macedonia, for we realised that God was calling us to bring the Good News there” (Acts 16:9–10). Paul, Luke and Silas arrived on the Greek coast in the city of Philippi, where they were initially well received, but were soon accused of disturbing the peace; they were beaten and thrown into prison. Thanks to a providential earthquake, they were set free and, having left the city, went on to Thessalonica. According to the Acts of the Apostles, Paul’s preaching was always the same: “For three Sabbaths he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead, and he added: ‘This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ’”. The text adds: “Some of them (that is, the Jews he met in the synagogue) were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large crowd of Greeks who worshipped God and a good number of prominent women” (Acts 17:2–4). But, as usual, Paul did not arouse only enthusiasm because, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles: “The Jews, driven by jealousy, gathered some troublemakers in the public square; having stirred up crowds, they were causing unrest in the city” (Acts 17:5), so much so that it seemed very prudent for Paul and Silas to leave the area. Paul therefore left this new community too hastily and remained somewhat troubled about it for a while. When he wrote this letter, which we begin to read today, he had just been reassured by Silas and Timothy, who had remained in Macedonia and were bringing him excellent news. This explains the particularly joyful tone at the beginning of the letter: “Paul, Silvanus (another name for Silas) and Timothy to the Church of the Thessalonians, which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace and peace to you. At all times we give thanks to God for all of you.” Right from this first sentence, one is struck by the solemnity of the greeting: this community is very small, and he grandly calls it “the Church of Thessalonica which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ”. This immense respect that Paul has for Christian communities, even modest ones, is characteristic of all his letters. 

From the Gospel according to Saint Matthew (22:15–21)

‘Is it lawful to pay the tribute to the emperor?’ Jesus replies by calling the questioners ‘hypocrites’! Why ‘hypocrites’? Because this is not a genuine question, and they are hypocrites for two reasons: first of all, because they have long since resolved this issue. Paying the tax to the Emperor – ‘Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s’ – is something they do, and Jesus does not say they are wrong. Now they are setting a trap and trying to catch Jesus out… And the falsely respectful tone that precedes the question further emphasises this: ‘Teacher, we know that you are always truthful and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth’. All this politeness is nothing more than a preamble to a trick question designed to put Jesus in a difficult position. If Jesus urges his compatriots to refuse to pay the tax levied for the benefit of the Roman occupiers, it will be easy to denounce him to the authorities as a resistance fighter or even a revolutionary, and he will be condemned. If, on the other hand, he advises paying the tax, he could be discredited in the eyes of the people as a collaborator, losing any chance of being recognised as the Messiah; for the expected Messiah must be an independent and sovereign king on the throne of Jerusalem, which necessarily involves a revolt against the Roman occupiers. The trap is well laid, and in any case, whatever his answer, Jesus is doomed. In fact, they are seeking the first suitable opportunity to put him to death, for the Passion is already looming on the horizon, given that we are in the very final moments in Jerusalem. In his reply, Jesus clearly shows that he has understood: ‘Hypocrites! Why are you trying to test me?’ He is not naive in the face of the trap being set for him… Yet he does not seek to embarrass his interlocutors, for Jesus never did so and never sought to set a trap for anyone: this would be unworthy of the God whose light shines upon both the good and the wicked.

Jesus therefore does not respond to the trap with another trap, but takes the question seriously and answers it properly, setting out his argument in three points: ‘Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s… and give to God what is God’s. Firstly, ‘Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s’, including by paying tax. By this he invites us to recognise that Caesar is the holder of power, and this has nothing to do with servile collaboration; on the contrary, it is accepting a de facto situation and, furthermore, from the Old Testament perspective, it was considered that all power comes from God. Jesus himself, during his Passion, will say to Pilate: ‘You would have no power over me unless it had been given to you from above’ (Jn 19:11). Moreover, Isaiah also recalled this in the first reading when speaking of King Cyrus: God can turn every human kingship to the good of his people. The Pharisees know the passage from Isaiah about Cyrus better than we do; they therefore know that all power, even pagan power, is in God’s hands. Let us note, however, in passing that the Caesar of the time was actually called ‘Tiberius’ and that the name ‘Caesar’ had become a title of the Roman emperor. Secondly, ‘Render unto Caesar only what is Caesar’s’: when Caesar – that is, the Roman emperor – demands tax, he is within his rights, but when he demands to be called ‘Lord’ and to be worshipped, he exposes you to idolatry, and here there must be no compromise. At the time when Matthew was writing his Gospel, this scenario was a reality. Many martyrs paid with their lives for this refusal to worship the Roman emperor. The invitation is therefore important: ‘Render unto God what is God’s’. That is the real issue: are you sure you are rendering unto God what is God’s? Why do you not recognise in Jesus the one who ‘is of God’? Without wishing to derive a theory of political power from this text – which Jesus certainly did not intend to do here – we can nevertheless draw from this Gospel passage, once again, a surprising lesson in freedom. Caesar is but Caesar, and the kings of the earth are but petty kings whose kingship is fleeting, whilst the kingdom of God is of an entirely different order: it is within the very heart of the kingdoms of the earth that every act of love and brotherhood causes the one true kingdom—the Kingdom of God—to grow.

+Giovanni D’Ercole

«Blaspheming the Holy Spirit»

(Lk 12:8-12)

Holy Spirit is a term that translates the Hebrew Ruah haQodesh: impetuous wind, not a stagnant air.

«Spirit»: energy that blows up the personal, community and ecclesial story ... in order to mature and renew it.

Not to confirm the standard, but to dilate the boundaries.

He does this by introducing a sort of sublime quality into reality, (above all) breaking through with an Action that discerns evolution and overturns it, making it a whole other.

«Holy» because it distinguishes the sphere of Life - Holiness - from the swampy one of deadly germs, which turn us to withdrawal and self-destruction.

Today's Gospel was born as an appeal to churches and faithful exposed to hostilities, so that they do not allow themselves to be discouraged by real and genuine witness.

Believers must not give up feeling attracted to the Word’s critical power.

Over time it has the strength to strip the intriguing people of their manias of vain grandeur or perversion, and bring out the Light that unites us, attracts spontaneously, without artifice.

In short, church members who live on Faith-love cannot identify with advantageous lifestyles, typical, non-crucial interpretations of reality.

Other than small transgressions!  It is at the moment of the fundamental threats that we can read the significance of our choice for the Lord.

Lk especially alludes to circumstantial, particular excuses in the search for support: favors of "cultural" paradigms, or of guys who matter.  Eg.  facilitating their own affairs thanks to an ideological servility to the authorities, with adjoining guarantees of way out.

Here comes the danger of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit: moving away from the Gospel, believing that Jesus indicates paths of ruin and death, instead of authentic Life.

Today the impulses of the Spirit who renews the face of the earth upset the landscape, not to abandon humanity to pure limits and to an inexorable oblivion.

The path of the one who walks on the Way of Freedom must be fearless, because the Exodus makes us to ourselves; redeemed and sanctified.

Returned to our Core and by the power of the Faith that intertwines our story with the Christ, we will see the impossible Promise fulfilled; things that we not know, sovereignly effective.

We want to exist completely, because we are not gone bad people.

That is why there are crises, upheavals, and cuts: they lead back to our fragrance, which - this yes - we could lose.

Danger and agitated times come to remind us of our eternal side.  It can only be expressed when the matrix of our being in the field deflects, to prepare us to welcome the unexpected solution.

This is the case even when it seems to others that our life is lost.

In reality, we are gambling it without externality of content, in order to trigger the integral Beauty of the new Youth that we do not know, but which is advancing.

[Saturday 28th wk. in O.T.  October 17, 2026]

"Blaspheming against the Holy Spirit"

(Lk 12:8-12)

"And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him; but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Spirit shall not be forgiven" (Lk 12:10).

Holy Spirit is a term that translates the Hebrew Ruah haQodesh: an impetuous Wind, not a stagnant air.

The latter would be an atmosphere without a vital wave, lacking a forge of relationships; which does not grow: it makes things flat.

"Spirit": energy that throws personal, community and ecclesial affairs into the air... in order to make them mature and renew them.

Not to confirm the standard, but to expand the boundaries.

It is enough to glance at the points dealt with in the recent encyclical on social friendship to realise: borders, the shadows of the closed world, shattered dreams, the end of historical consciousness, without a project for all, world waste, even food waste... etc.

The Spirit introduces a kind of sublime quality into reality, (above all) bursting in with an Action that discerns evolution and turns it upside down, makes it something Other than the stagnant spirit - only willing to reaffirm, celebrate and spread itself.

"Holy" because it distinguishes the sphere of Life - Holiness - from the swampy sphere of deadly germs, which turn us towards retreat and self-destruction.

There was a time when even Catholic 'missionary activity' [even the precious activity of human promotion, imagined as extraneous to 'evangelisation' - an ideal with a 'Protestant' flavour] was conceived in terms of internal proselytism.

Fratelli Tutti, on the other hand, denounces the reality and reminder of the overall scourges: the shortcomings of a common project, the persistence of a 'world gap' and the universal inadequacy of human rights; situations of conflict and fear, progress 'without a common course'... and so on.

Today's Gospel itself was born as an appeal to the churches and the faithful exposed to hostilities, so that they would neither deflect nor allow themselves to be discouraged in their real and genuine witness to Christ in the world.

An appeal that must not be ignored, despite the deep misery and boundaries that continue to lurk in hearts.

Believers must not give up that they are drawn to the critical power of the Word.

In time, it has the power to strip the intriguers of their delusions of vain grandeur or perversion, and bring out the Light that unites us, attracts us spontaneously, without artifice.

Church members who live by Faith-love cannot identify with advantageous lifestyles, outdated and uncritical interpretations of reality, although they are typical of 'doctrine-discipline religions' - or of the various historical denominations.

As Brothers All sadly points out about the encounter between different Christian denominations:

"We cannot forget the desire expressed by Jesus: that all may be One (Jn 17:21). Listening to his invitation, we acknowledge with sorrow that the process of globalisation still lacks the prophetic and spiritual contribution of unity among all Christians" (n.280).

This is an 'unforgivable sin' - in every sense - not a laughable one.

As John Paul II stated: "The 'blasphemy' [in question] does not really consist in offending the Holy Spirit with words; it consists, instead, in refusing to accept the salvation that God offers man through the Holy Spirit, and which works by virtue of the sacrifice of the cross [It] does not allow man to come out of his self-prison and to open himself up to the divine sources of purification" (General Audience 25 July 1990).

Only the work filled with hope meets the teachings of Jesus.

It is the Crucified One who reveals the intimacy of God and man, as well as the distortions of that pious hypocrisy that privileges the spirit of interest and frontier, power, the accumulation of any resources, and disvalues.

In symbiosis with the passage from Luke and the new Magisterium, we can reiterate that it is precisely in the moment of the threats in the situation - today unfortunately also global - that we read the extent of our choice for the Lord.

There are those who rely on transparent fraternity, on the spirit of the sons, on the love that "integrates and gathers" (FT 190-192)... conversely, there are those who seek self-confidence or try to fall back on the usual worldly calculations (vv.11-12), looking for results rather than the fruitfulness of initiating processes (cf. FT 193-197).

So much for petty transgressions!

It is in the moment of fundamental threats that we read the extent of our choice for the Lord.

Lk alludes in particular to circumstantial, particular excuses in the search for support: favours from 'cultural' paradigms, or from people who matter. E.g. by facilitating one's own affairs through ideological and cowardly servility to the authorities, with guarantees of a way out.

All this without ever 'thinking and generating an open universe' (cf. FT 87-127) who knows how to go beyond the 'world of associates' and cordatas - even ecclesial ones, as the current pontiff has reiterated on several occasions [alluding precisely to the prelates themselves].

Here we face the danger of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit: distancing oneself from the Gospel by believing that today Jesus is for exclusivism, or a stranger who points out paths of ruin and death, instead of authentic Life.

Of course, there are not a few who may outwardly deny Christ, but they do not reject the meaning of Jesus: they live by his very Spirit [love of neighbour, victory over evil, hope in a more authentic kingdom: v.10; FT 271ff].

The Master and the new magisterial commitment - sounding in unison - intend to shake consciences and make us understand the seriousness of choices contrary to God's plan.

Today, the impulses of the Spirit renewing the face of the earth are upsetting the landscape, but not to abandon humanity to pure limits and inexorable oblivion.

The Tao Tê Ching (xxxiv) writes about our reliance on the Perfect One:

"How universal is the great Tao! He can be on the left as well as the right'. And Master Wang Pi comments: "There is nothing that the universality and superabundance of the Tao does not reach: left and right, high and low. If everywhere it confers and strives, there is nothing it does not reach". Master Ho-shang Kung reiterates: "There is no place it does not reach.

The path of he who walks the Path of Freedom must be fearless, because the Exodus makes us to ourselves; redeemed and sanctified.

With a "heart open to the whole world" (FT 128-153): established in the "local flavour" with a "universal horizon".

Restored to our Core and by the power of Faith that intertwines our story with the personal and cosmic Christ, we will see the impossible Promise realised; things we do not know, sovereignly effective.

Only the Spirit does not go against our eminent nature, therefore it is impermeable, definitive - though it is not. Because it calls us to trust, it does not leave us clinging to shadows, memories, old certainties and commemorations that do not guide our gaze elsewhere.

To foment the museum of vintage details [or to abandon oneself to the wave of fashions, even of thought] is to strand one's mind on the past, on experiences that perhaps were never even put into being.

Simple ideals of another's time, models; archaic theologisations, or conversely hedonistic ones.

We want to exist completely, because we are not gone bad people.

That is why there are crises, upheavals, cuts: they lead back to our fragrance, which - this one - we could lose.

If, on the other hand, we were to remain identified, we would run the risk of not putting ourselves in a snapping position; of not changing our relationships, and letting the energies now present in the round (also within) fade away.

Let us not let them slip away - detracting from the unseen emergencies that call to us.

We have sides to our souls that would otherwise not express themselves, except in the dangers that bewilder, in the difficult and all-encompassing relationships, or in the most painful and finally overwhelming rejections that force us to shift our gaze.

But we must put aside the hasty and opportunistic mind, which immediately seeks to remedy and repair according to stereotypes.

Danger and the busy times come to remind us of our eternal side. It can only express itself when the matrix of our being in the field deflects, to prepare us to welcome the unexpected solution.

Unexpected punishment or defeat will not make us 'like it by force' in society, even ecclesial society, but will allow us to be what we are. And to become ourselves, to discover other views - according to Signature.

This even when it seems to others that our life is lost.

In reality, we are gambling it without externality of content, in order to trigger the integral Beauty of the new Youth that we do not know, but which is advancing.

To internalise and live the message:

How do you live persecution? Curse or Opportunity?

Under threat, insult, slander, trial, mockery, violence, emergency, have you ever thought that Jesus led you down paths of death?

And making the new Magisterium your own, what cut with the indecencies of the past, what youthful horizon, what beauty and differing relationships have you tasted?

Evil is not an anonymous force.

Limit of human liberation

We must be well aware that evil is not an anonymous force acting in the world in an impersonal or deterministic way. Evil, the devil, passes through human freedom, through the use of our freedom. It seeks an ally, man. Evil needs him to spread. Thus, having offended the first commandment, love of God, he comes to pervert the second, love of neighbour. With him, love of neighbour disappears in favour of lies and envy, hatred and death. But it is possible not to be overcome by evil and to overcome evil with good (cf. Rom 12:21). It is to this conversion of the heart that we are called. Without it, the much-desired human 'liberations' disappoint, because they move in the reduced space granted by man's narrowness of spirit, his harshness, his intolerances, his favouritism, his desires for revenge and his death drives. A deep transformation of spirit and heart is necessary to regain a certain clairvoyance and impartiality, a deep sense of justice and the common good. A new and freer gaze will make one capable of analysing and questioning human systems that lead to dead ends, in order to move forward with the past in mind, never to repeat it again with its devastating effects. This required conversion is exhilarating because it opens up possibilities by appealing to the innumerable resources that dwell in the hearts of so many men and women eager to live in peace and ready to commit themselves to peace. Now it is particularly demanding: it is about saying no to revenge, acknowledging one's wrongs, accepting apologies without seeking them, and finally forgiving. For only forgiveness given and received lays the lasting foundation for reconciliation and peace for all (cf. Rom 12:16b.18).

[Pope Benedict, Address to the Meeting in Baabda Lebanon 15 September 2012].

The Spirit gives us a deep relationship with God, who is the source of all authentic human good. All of you desire to love and to be loved! It is to God that you must turn, if you want to learn how to love, and to find the strength to love. The Spirit, who is Love, can open your hearts to accept the gift of genuine love. All of you are seeking the truth; and all of you want to live in truth! This truth is Christ. He is the only Way, the one Truth and the true Life. To follow Christ means truly to “put out to sea”, as is said several times in the Psalms. The way of Truth is simultaneously one and manifold according to the variety of charisms, just as Truth is one while at the same time possessing an inexhaustible richness. Surrender yourselves to the Holy Spirit in order to find Christ. The Spirit is our indispensable guide in prayer, he animates our hope and he is the source of true joy.

[Pope Benedict, Youth Prayer Vigil Paris 12 September 2008]

And when he foretells to his disciples that persecution awaits them, with imprisonment and interrogation, he adds: "Do not worry about what you will have to say, but say what will be given you at that hour: for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit" (Mk 13:11). "The Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you have to say" (Lk 12, 12).

5. The synoptic Gospels record another statement by Jesus in his instructions to the disciples that cannot fail to impress. It concerns "blasphemy against the Holy Spirit". He says: "Whoever speaks against the Son of Man will be forgiven him, but whoever blasphemes the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven him" (Lk 12:10; cf. Mt 12:32; Mk 3:29). These words create a problem of greater theological and ethical magnitude than one might think, on the surface of the text. "Blasphemy" (of which we are speaking) does not really consist in offending the Holy Spirit with words; instead, it consists in refusing to accept the salvation that God offers to man through the Holy Spirit, and which works by virtue of the sacrifice of the cross. . If blasphemy against the Holy Spirit can be remitted neither in this life nor in the life to come, it is because this 'non-remission' is linked, as its cause, to 'non-penitence', that is, to the radical refusal to be converted . . . Now blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is the sin committed by man, who claims his supposed 'right' to persevere in evil - in any sin - and thus refuses redemption . . . (It) does not allow man to come out of his self-prison and open himself to the divine sources of purification of conscience and remission of sins' (Dominum et vivificantem, 46). This is the exact inversion of the condition of docility and communion with the Father, in which Jesus lives in prayer and action, and which he teaches and recommends to man as an inner attitude and as a principle of action.

6. In the whole of the preaching and action of Jesus Christ, which flows from his union with the Holy Spirit-Love, is contained an immense richness of heart: "Learn from me, who am meek and humble of heart," he exhorts, "and you will find rest for your souls" (Mt 11:29), but present at the same time is all the firmness of the truth about the kingdom of God, and therefore the insistent invitation to open one's heart, under the action of the Holy Spirit, to be admitted to it and not be excluded from it.

In all of this, the "power of the Holy Spirit" is revealed, and indeed the Holy Spirit Himself is manifested by His presence and action as the Paraclete, the comforter of man, the confirmer of divine truth, the eradicator of the "master of this world".

[Pope John Paul II, General Audience 25 July 1990]

Jesus reacted with firm and clear words; he did not tolerate this, because those scribes, perhaps without realizing it, were falling into the gravest sin: denying and blaspheming against God’s Love which is present and active in Jesus. And blasphemy, the sin against the Holy Spirit, is the one unforgivable sin — as Jesus said — because it comes from closing the heart to God’s mercy which acts in Jesus.

[Pope Francis, Angelus 10 June 2018]

The Afterlife is not inaccurate

(Lk 12:1-7)

Gospel according to Mk identifies the «leaven of the Pharisees» with the ideology of power.

Instead, Lk speaks of it to denounce the emphasis and inner duplicity of the authorities.

Jesus’ call against the hypocrisy or «theatricality» of the official religion that abandons people to themselves, is «first to his disciples» (v.1).

At all times Christ opposes those who play a role, lose their nature and become artificial, using God to be feared and respected.

Women and men of Faith are already enabled in Christ and at the center of their essence; they must not bend to chase artifacted voices of the world outside: they do not bring Eternity.

Rather, sons yearn to be transparent, clear, sincere.

Non-negotiable principle is not to hide the truth. This, starting from one’s own innate inclination-character that comes before the role.

And leaders must encourage everyone to find their way, each foretasting the value, the fate of the unrepeatability in person - not being great insiders, with a completely different purpose.

For this reason, in the risen churches in Christ all the masks that grips people that have little energy, out of the loop, those arrived last, marginalized, misunderstood, "inadequate", lonely, must fall.

No one has the right to destroy another person’s soul.

Nor can he subjugate its own heart - without losing the truly pure vocational seed, full of a priceless name; though in tiny appearance.

Also the scene of the spontaneous examples that Jesus draws from nature - an echo of the conciliatory life dreamed for us by the Father - introduces to Happiness that makes us aware of existing in all personal reality.

In fact, the Gospel passage shows the value of genuine, silent, inconspicuous things, which however live in us - they are not "shadows". And we perceive them without effort or brain commitment.

In the time of epochal choices, of emergencies that seem to put all in check but intend to make anyone less artificial - such awareness can overturn the judgment on the ‘small’ and the ‘great’.

In fact, for the love adventure there is neither accounting nor clamor.

It is in God and in the reality the ‘place’ for each of us without lacerations.

The afterlife is not inaccurate.

We must not distort ourselves, in order to have consent... let alone for the ‘Heaven’ that overcomes death.

The destiny of uniqueness does not fall into ruin: it is precious and dear, as it is in nature.

It is necessary to see its Beauty, future and already current.

With immediate gain marginalised [any social guarantee not pertaining to the value of smallness], there will be no more need to identify with the skeletons of established or fashionable thinking and manners.

Nor will it count to be (each!) placed above and in front: rather in the background, already rich and perfect, in the intimate sense of the fullness of being.

That way, we won’t have to trample over one another (v.1)... not even to meet Jesus.

[Friday 28th wk. in O.T.  October 16, 2026]

Snubbing for consent? No, there is a great destiny of Oneness

(Lk 12:1-7))

"Meanwhile, as the crowd had gathered in myriads, to trample on one another"... the Lord's criticism of the religious authorities who were putting on unbearable external theatrics appears profound, ruthless.

But Jesus' call against the hypocrisy or "theatricality" of official religion is "first to his disciples" (v.1).

Paraphrasing the encyclical Brothers All, the Master's call aims at immediately dropping "the trick of those stereotypes" with which we disguise our "ego, always concerned with image [so that there may emerge] that blessed common belonging from which we cannot shirk: belonging as brothers" [no.3].

In every age, Christ is opposed to those who play a role, lose their nature, and become artificial, using God to be feared and respected - imagining that he is grabbing the masses, the irresistible approval he craves.

Instead, the heart of the Most High is "boundless, capable of going beyond distances" [3] and any manipulation.

All humanity is devoted to the freedom of being; it proceeds with passion towards what it desires - spontaneously and simply. It does not move to chronicle external 'cultural' situations that do not make us find the Way.

Even in one's relationship with God, it is important not to stifle one's own inclinations: there is no dialogue of friendship or love, nor wonder and joy, without respect for one's own natural, multifaceted exceptionality.

Thus He does not like anyone copying (even today, e.g. the great saints or certain models of the ecclesial paradigm), losing his own essence and personality - and in them the call to his global, unrepeatable mission.

Conformism to the socially narcissistic, or devout and circumstantial paradigm, does not allow the soul and the world to be given the turning points that unlock and activate.

This is far beyond the options of conformist nomenclature - and would make us fly, even for rebirth from crisis.

In the gospel passage, people seem abandoned to themselves (v.1). The very attempt [out of fear] to queue up and imitate, attenuates and distorts us.

After all, the official leaders showed no interest in the realisation, the full joy of the little people: for them only a necessity of the audience, and everything else a nuisance.

Thus, in order to keep the masses on a leash, they gladly inoculated them with unnecessary turmoil of conscience.

Sometimes, in order to strike one and educate a hundred... here were violent restrictions and personal or social blackmail (v.4).

The Gospel of Mk identifies the "leaven of the Pharisees" with the ideology of power.

Lk, on the other hand, speaks of it to denounce the emphasis and inner duplicity of the captains of religious, community office; a combination that overturns both principles and appearances.

The evangelist fears the insidious attitude of incoherence, hidden by catwalks [albeit of a pious character] that enchant the simple. By trickery, they can in fact take root in the life and style of the leaders of the first communities of believers.

Women and men of Faith are in Christ already empowered and at the centre of their own essence; they must not bend to chase after artificial voices from the world outside: they do not bring Eternity.

Rather, they yearn to be transparent, clear, sincere.

A non-negotiable principle is not to hide the truth. This from one's own innate inclination - a character that comes before the secondary task assigned by others.

And the 'leaders' must encourage so that each one can find his or her way, giving a foretaste of the value, the destiny of the unrepeatable as a person - not being a great insider, with an entirely different purpose.

That is why, in churches resurrected in Christ, all the masks that cling to people with little energy, out of the loop, last in line, marginalised, misunderstood, 'inadequate', lonely, must fall.

No one has the power to kill another's soul.

Nor can one subjugate one's own - without losing the truly pure vocational seed, imbued with a priceless name; albeit in a pitiful, tiny guise.

The recovery of dignity, and the concern for the spiritual human advancement of the least, of everyone, flows into the ideal of the Kingdom with its doors wide open: the 'open fraternity' and frankness of which the aforementioned social encyclical speaks at length.

Conversely, "the 'every man for himself' will quickly turn into 'all against all', and this will be worse than a pandemic" (n.36).

In short, it is necessary to remember that 'we are all in the same boat' [as Francis prayed in the deserted St. Peter's Square] including the distant, the weak and those considered inconvenient.

Even the scene of the spontaneous examples that Jesus draws from nature - an echo of the conciliatory life dreamt for us by the Father - introduces us to the Happiness that makes us aware of existing in all personal reality.Indeed, the Gospel passage shows the value of genuine, silent, unremarkable things, which nevertheless inhabit us - they are not 'shadows'. And we perceive them without effort or cerebral commitment.

In the time of epochal choices, of emergencies that seem to checkmate us but intend to make us less artificial - such awareness can overturn our judgement of substance, of the 'small' and the 'great'.

Indeed, for the adventure of love there is no accounting or clamour.

It is in God and in reality the 'place' for each of us without lacerations.

The hereafter is not imprecise.

One does not have to distort oneself for consent... least of all for the 'Heaven' that conquers death.

The destiny of oneness does not go to ruin: it is precious and dear, as it is in nature.

One must glimpse its Beauty, future and already present.

Once immediate gain [any social guarantee not pertaining to the value of littleness] is marginalised, there will no longer be any need to identify with the skeletons of established or fashionable thinking and manners.

Nor will it matter to place oneself above and in front: rather in the background, already rich and perfect, in the intimate sense of the fullness of being.

So we will not have to trample on each other (v.1)... even to meet Jesus.

All of us today are well aware that by the term "Heaven" we are not referring to somewhere in the universe, to a star or such like; no. We mean something far greater and far more difficult to define with our limited human conceptions. With this term "Heaven" we wish to say that God, the God who made himself close to us, does not abandon us in or after death but keeps a place for us and gives us eternity. We mean that in God there is room for us. To understand this reality a little better let us look at our own lives. We all experience that when people die they continue to exist, in a certain way, in the memory and heart of those who knew and loved them. We might say that a part of the person lives on in them but it resembles a "shadow" because this survival in the heart of their loved ones is destined to end. God, on the contrary, never passes away and we all exist by virtue of his love. We exist because he loves us, because he conceived of us and called us to life. We exist in God's thoughts and in God's love. We exist in the whole of our reality, not only in our "shadow". Our serenity, our hope and our peace are based precisely on this: in God, in his thoughts and in his love, it is not merely a "shadow" of ourselves that survives but rather we are preserved and ushered into eternity with the whole of our being in him, in his creator love. It is his Love that triumphs over death and gives us eternity and it is this love that we call "Heaven": God is so great that he also makes room for us. And Jesus the man, who at the same time is God, is the guarantee for us that the being-man and the being-God can exist and live, the one within the other, for eternity. 

This means that not only a part of each one of us will continue to exist, as it were pulled to safety, while other parts fall into ruin; on the contrary it means that God knows and loves the whole of the human being, what we are. And God welcomes into his eternity what is developing and becoming now, in our life made up of suffering and love, of hope, joy and sorrow. The whole of man, the whole of his life, is taken by God and, purified in him, receives eternity. Dear Friends! I think this is a truth that should fill us with deep joy. Christianity does not proclaim merely some salvation of the soul in a vague afterlife in which all that is precious and dear to us in this world would be eliminated, but promises eternal life, "the life of the world to come". Nothing that is precious and dear to us will fall into ruin; rather, it will find fullness in God. Every hair of our head is counted, Jesus said one day (cf. Mt 10: 30). The definitive world will also be the fulfilment of this earth, as St Paul says: "Creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God" (Rom 8: 21). Then we understand that Christianity imparts a strong hope in a bright future and paves the way to the realization of this future. We are called, precisely as Christians, to build this new world, to work so that, one day, it may become the "world of God", a world that will surpass all that we ourselves have been able to build.

[Pope Benedict, homily, 15 August 2010]