Obsession and Compulsion

A gentleman confides in me that for some time now he has felt the need to check whether he has locked the front door of his house. A lady, on the other hand, needs to be sure that she has turned off the gas in the kitchen.

After checking, both the gas and the front door were fine and in order.

Another middle-aged man feels the need to see if his car is okay, then he has to go and check it, walk around it, touch it in different places, and only after completing these behavioural sequences can he return home peacefully. Sometimes he feels the need to do this several times a day.

In the Treccani dictionary, the term 'obsession' is defined as: 'a mental representation that the will cannot eliminate, accompanied by anxiety'. 

The term 'compulsion' is defined as: 'compulsion, being driven by necessity to do something'.

Many people have thoughts that they have no interest in; these are often ideas that make no sense, but which require considerable mental effort.

Without wanting to, these ideas invade our minds and make our brains 'rack' as if they were fundamental issues.

These may be thoughts or images that cause concern, and are usually followed by compulsions that the person must perform to calm their anxiety. 

Between the 'fixed' idea and the need to perform some act or gesture to ensure that nothing bad happens, doubt often arises, undermining our most certain convictions.

This leads to increasing indecision, which limits our freedom of action: even simple choices take a long time to make.  

Sometimes it leads us to be unable to make a decision. The doubt may concern a thought, a memory, an action, etc., and may spill over from one content to another.

A person with these problems, when leaving the house, sometimes feels compelled to return to  make sure they have not left the light on, and to be sure, they sometimes have to do this several times.

In literature, there are examples of people who, after sending a letter, felt the need to reopen it to check what they had written.

In psychological contexts such as this, we also talk about 'rumination', which is always associated with doubt.

In biology, it refers to the digestive process of certain animals, such as cattle. Food that has been swallowed is brought back into the mouth to be chewed again, more thoroughly, and then swallowed again to complete digestion.

In psychology, 'rumination' describes repetitive and persistent thinking focused on past events, as opposed to 'brooding', which is more concerned with future events.

Ceremonials are also described. In these, the individual must perform a sequence of acts such as washing their hands frequently or cleaning everyday objects many times.

This is where an aspect of the psychological picture described comes into play: 'rupophobia' and contamination. Rupophobia is a morbid fear of dirt and of being infected. It can affect any aspect of our lives: objects, people or public places. It is an aspect that can also harm intimacy.

The Covid period has increased the fear of contagion, but this was a real event. Many years ago, around 1986, there was the Chernobyl phenomenon, and there we really had to be careful about what we ate because food, especially vegetables, could have been contaminated.

Anyone who has these ideas may count the cars in the car park while walking, or touch lampposts, or try to avoid cracks in the pavement, etc.

In severe cases, these people may feel that they are harming someone, so these thoughts make them 'back away'. They need to give themselves a 'shake' to try to dispel these terrifying ideas.

People with these characteristics are generally strict, concerned with details, and meticulous about rules and formalities. 

However, by focusing on details, they often overlook the essentials.      

How many people in their work environment feel the need to line up their objects in excessive order?      

Order and control are closely interlinked, because external order can be a way of achieving internal order, which can reduce stress. 

However, we are talking about excessive order. A minimum of order is necessary to avoid confusion and to be able to find our things.

Stuttering is also a speech disorder linked to this psychological condition.

The person who stutters struggles at the beginning, with the first letter or syllable, and repeats it until the word is finished. 

As we know, their speech is fluent when they are alone or when they recite or sing.

Otherwise, mortified by their defect, they will tend to isolate themselves and speak as little as possible. Or they will stubbornly insist on speaking with intense physical effort.

Stuttering 'is a conflict between the erotic urethral tendency to expel and the erotic-anal tendency to retain, shifted to the mouth' (Manual of Psychiatry, Arieti, vol. I, p. 353).

Dr Francesco Giovannozzi, Psychologist-Psychotherapist.

First Sunday of Advent (year A)  [30 November 2025]

May God bless us and may the Virgin Mary protect us! Advent marks the beginning of a new liturgical year (Year A), accompanied by the evangelist Matthew, who invites us to become collaborators in the plan of salvation that God has ordained for the Church and the world. A small change: from now on, I will also offer a summary of the main elements of each text.

First Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah (2:1-5) 

 We know that biblical authors love images! Here are two beautiful ones in Isaiah's preaching: first, that of a huge crowd on the move, then that of all the armies of the world deciding to turn their weapons into agricultural tools. Let us look at these images one after the other. The crowd on the move climbs a mountain: at the end of the journey is Jerusalem and the Temple. Isaiah, on the other hand, is already in Jerusalem and sees this crowd arriving, a veritable human tide. It is, of course, an image, an anticipation, probably inspired by the great pilgrimages of the Israelites to Jerusalem during the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot). On this occasion, for eight days, people live in huts, even in the city, remembering their stay in the desert during the Exodus. All the Jewish communities flock there, and Deuteronomy invites them to participate with joy, even with their children, servants, foreigners, orphans, and widows (Dt 16:14-15). The prophet Isaiah, observing this extraordinary annual gathering, foresaw a future one and, inspired by the Holy Spirit, announced that one day not only Israel but all nations would participate in this pilgrimage and the Temple would become the gathering place for all peoples, because the whole of humanity would know the love of God. The text intertwines Israel and the nations: "The mountain of the Lord's temple will be raised above the hills... and all nations will flock to it." This influx symbolises the entry of other nations into the Covenant. The law will come forth from Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem: Israel is chosen by God, but it also has a responsibility to collaborate in the inclusion of the nations in the divine plan. Thus, the Covenant has a dual dimension: particular (Israel chosen) and universal (all nations). The entry of the nations into the Temple does not concern sacrifice, but listening to the Word of God and living according to His Law: "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord ... that He may teach us His ways and we may walk in His paths." The second image shows the fruit of this obedience: the nations will live in peace, God will be judge and arbiter, and weapons will be transformed into tools of labour: They will forge their swords into ploughshares and their spears into pruning hooks. They will no longer raise the sword against a people. Finally, Isaiah invites Israel to walk in the light of the Lord, to fulfil its vocation and to lead everyone towards the Light: going up to the Temple means celebrating the Covenant, walking in the light means living according to the Law.

In summary, here are all the main elements of the text: 

+Two symbolic images from Isaiah: the crowd on pilgrimage and the transformation of weapons into instruments of peace.

+Jerusalem and the Temple: destination of the pilgrimage, symbol of God's presence and centre of the Covenant.

+Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot): historical reference to the annual pilgrimage of the Israelites.

+Universality of salvation: Israel, the chosen people, guides all nations, which will be included in the Covenant.

+Dimension of the Covenant: particular (Israel) and universal (all nations).

+Listening to the Word and living according to the Law: participation is not only ritual, but a concrete commitment to life.

+Peace and transformation of weapons: symbol of the realisation of God's plan of justice and harmony.

+Final invitation: Israel must walk in the light of the Lord and lead humanity to God.

+Prophecy as promise, not prediction: prophets speak of God's will, not of the future in a divinatory sense.

Responsorial Psalm (121/122, 1-9)

Here we have the best possible translation of the Hebrew word "Shalom": "Peace to those who love you! May peace reign within your walls, happiness in your palaces...". When you greet someone with this term, you wish them all this. Here this wish is addressed to Jerusalem: 'Pray for the peace of Jerusalem... For my brothers and my friends, I will say: Peace be upon you! For the house of the Lord our God, I will pray for your good'. The very name Jerusalem contains the word shalom; it is, should be, and will be the city of peace. However, this wish for peace and happiness is still far from being realised. The history of Jerusalem is turbulent: around 1000 BC, it was a small village called Jebus, inhabited by the Jebusites. David chose this place as the capital of his kingdom: initially, the capital was Hebron, and David was king only of the tribe of Judah; then, with the accession of the other tribes, Jebus was chosen, which became Jerusalem, 'the city of David'. Here David transferred the Ark of the Covenant and purchased Araunah's field for the Temple, following God's will. The definition of Jerusalem as a 'holy city' means that it belongs to God: it is the place where one must live according to God. With David and Solomon, the city reached its cultural and spiritual splendour and became the centre of religious life with the Temple, a destination for pilgrimages three times a year, particularly for the Feast of Tabernacles. The prophet Nathan reminds David that God is more interested in the people than in the Temple: "You want to build a house for God, but it is God who will build a house for you (descendants)". Thus God promises to preserve David's descendants forever, from whom the Messiah will come. In the end, it was Solomon who built the Temple, making Jerusalem the centre of worship. The city then underwent destruction and reconstruction: the conquest by Nebuchadnezzar in 587 BC, the Exile to Babylon, the return authorised by Cyrus in 538 BC and the reconstruction of Solomon's Temple. Even after the persecutions of Antiochus Epiphanes and the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, Jerusalem remained the holy city, symbol of God's presence, and the hope of its full restoration remained alive. Believers, wherever they were, continued to turn to Jerusalem in their daily prayers, remembering God's faithfulness to the promises made to David. Psalm 121/122, a pilgrimage song, celebrated this centrality of Jerusalem, inviting the faithful to ascend to the house of the Lord and walk in God's light.

Summary of main points

+Shalom and Jerusalem: Shalom means peace and happiness; Jerusalem is the city of peace.

+History of the city: from Jebus to David's capital, transfer of the Ark, construction of the Temple.

+Holy city: belongs to God; living in Jerusalem means living according to God.

+Nathan and the descendants of David: God more interested in the people than in the Temple; promise of the Messiah.

+Pilgrimages and religious life: Jerusalem as a centre of worship with pilgrimages three times a year.

+Destruction and reconstruction: Nebuchadnezzar, Exile, Cyrus, persecutions by Antiochus, destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.

+Hope and faith: Jerusalem remains a symbol of God's faithfulness; the faithful pray facing towards it.

+Psalm 121/122: a song of pilgrimage, inviting us to ascend to the house of the Lord and walk in divine light.

Second Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Romans (13:11-14)

In this text, Saint Paul develops the classic contrast between 'light and darkness'.  'Our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed'. This sentence remains true! One of the articles of the Catholic faith is that history is not a continuous repetition, but on the contrary, God's plan advances inexorably. Every day we can say that God's providential plan is further ahead than yesterday: it is being fulfilled, it is progressing... slowly but surely. To forget to proclaim this is to forget an essential point of the Christian faith. Christians have no right to be sad, because every day 'salvation is nearer', as Paul says. This providential and merciful plan of God needs us: this is no time to sleep. Those who know God's plan cannot risk delaying it. As the Second Letter of Peter says: "The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise... but is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance" (2 Pet 3:9). Our inactivity, our "sleep" has consequences for the fulfilment of God's plan; leaving our abilities dormant means compromising it or at least delaying it. That is why sins of omission are serious. Paul says, 'The night is far gone, the day is at hand'; and elsewhere he speaks of a short time, using a nautical term: the ship has set sail and is approaching the port (1 Cor 7:26, 29). It may seem presumptuous to think that our conduct affects God's plan, but this is precisely the value and seriousness of our life. Paul reminds us: 'Let us behave honourably, as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in quarrelling and jealousy'. There are behaviours of light and darkness when the baptised person does not live according to the Gospel. Paul does not only tell us to choose the works of light, but to reject those of darkness, always fighting for the light. This means two things: every day we must choose the light, a real struggle, especially in the face of anthropological and social challenges, forgiveness, and the rejection of compromises and privileges (cf. Phil 2:12). Elsewhere, St Paul also speaks of the armour of righteousness, the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of the hope of salvation (cf. 2 Cor 6:7; 1 Thess 5:8). Here, the garment of light is Jesus Christ himself, whose light envelops us like a cloak. In baptism, immersion symbolises death to sin and being clothed in Christ (Gal 3:27). The Christian struggle is not ours alone, but it is Christ who fights in us and promises us that when we are persecuted, we must not prepare ourselves because it is he who speaks to us and gives us wisdom that no one can oppose.

Summary of the main points

+Salvation is ever closer: history is not a cycle, but a progression of God's plan.

+Believers cannot be passive: our inactivity delays the fulfilment of God's plan, and sins of omission are serious because we must carry out God's plan every day.

+There are activities of light and darkness: Christian and non-Christian behaviours that do not always coincide with faith or baptism.

+The Christian struggle is daily: choosing light, forgiveness, rejecting compromise and immorality.

+The image of the robe of light represents Jesus Christ who envelops us and guides our lives. Baptism symbolises being clothed in Christ and the beginning of the struggle of light.

+The Christian's strength is not only his own: Christ fights in us, guaranteeing wisdom and words against persecution.

From the Gospel according to Matthew (24:37-44)

One thing is certain: this text was not written to frighten us, but to enlighten us. Texts like this are called apocalyptic, which literally means 'lifting a corner of the veil': they reveal reality. And the reality, the only one that matters, is the coming of Christ. Notice the language: coming, advent, always referring to Jesus: Jesus spoke to his disciples about his coming, which will be like in the days of Noah. You also do not know the day when the Lord will come, because it will be at the hour when you do not expect it. The heart of the message is therefore the announcement that Jesus Christ will come. Curiously, Jesus speaks in the future tense: 'Your Lord will come'. It would be more logical to speak in the past tense because Jesus had already come... This shows us that the 'coming' is not the birth, but something that concerns the fulfilment of God's plan. Very often we are disturbed by images of judgement, such as the comparison with the flood: "Two men will be in the field, one will be taken away and the other left." This is not divine arbitrariness, but an invitation to trust: just as Noah was found righteous and saved, so everything that is righteous will be saved. Judgement distinguishes the good from the bad, the wheat from the chaff, and this takes place in the heart of each person. Jesus uses the title Son of Man to speak of himself, but not only of himself as an individual: he takes up the vision of the prophet Daniel, in which the 'Son of Man' also represents the people of the saints, a collective being. Thus, the coming of Christ concerns the whole of humanity. As St Paul says, Christ is the head and we are the members; St Augustine speaks of the total Christ: head in heaven, members on earth. When we say in prayer that we await the good that God promises us, that is, the coming of Jesus Christ, we are referring to the total Christ: the man Jesus has already come, but the total Christ is in continuous growth and fulfilment. St Paul and, more recently, Teilhard de Chardin emphasise that the whole of creation groans in expectation of the fulfilment of Christ, which is progressively completed in history and in each one of us. When Jesus invites us to watch, it is an invitation to safeguard God's great plan, dedicating our lives to advancing it. Finally, this discourse takes place shortly before the Passion: Jesus warns of the destruction of the Temple, the symbol of his presence and of the Covenant, but does not answer specific questions about the end of the world; instead, he invites vigilance, reassuring his disciples in the face of trials.

Summary of the main points

+Purpose of the text: not to frighten, but to enlighten; to reveal the reality of Christ's coming.

+Christ's coming: Jesus speaks in the future tense because the complete coming concerns Christ as a whole, not just the historical birth of Jesus.

+Judgement and justice: distinguishing good from evil takes place in the heart of each person; the righteous will be saved.

+Title Son of Man: refers not only to Jesus, but to the people of the saints, that is, saved humanity. Christ in his entirety: Christ as the head and believers as members; fulfilment is progressive throughout history.

+Watchfulness and vigilance: the disciples are called to guard God's plan and dedicate their lives to its fulfilment.

+Temple and passion: the discourse precedes the Passion, announces the destruction of the Temple and invites the disciples to trust despite the trials they will have to endure.

Mt 24:37-44 (24-51)

Key to the reading of the Gospel could be the famous expression of St. Augustine: «Timeo Dominum transeuntem».

Incarnation is a direct thread with reality and divine condition together.

Time of the person of faith is like a season of waiting, but not of provisionality: rather, of continuous capitalization and upheaval.

Nor does the moment of the Church take the form of an institutional season, a period of pause - on schedule, with an expiration date.

Certainly, it is not even an age of preparation starting from our ideas, but of acceptance of the Kingdom, which comes in its Appeal - today with very clear proposals (even in subtractions).

We are called to be ready at all times, and fast as a ‘thief at night’... 

Maybe “he” wants to take away something that we believe absolutely ours, to wich we are too attached.

From the earliest generations of believers there were groups of visionaries - unfortunately unwary - linked to an idea of imminent catastrophe.

The expectation of the sudden ‘return’ of a Messiah who was to put an end to injustice and to carry out the Final Judgment, was a common expectation of those who wished a new phase of history to be inaugurated.

However, nowhere in the Gospels is it written: Jesus "returns", as if he had strayed away.

He is arriving, of course: «He comes» - he does not "come back".

In the New Testament, the Risen is the One Coming [‘o Erchòmenos], that is, the One who breaks in, who ceaselessly makes himself Present.

The point of Life is to realize, to perceive the Presence of Someone inside something; in day-to-day things and in the events of liberation.

Even in the drama of rebirth from global crisis.

No form of alienation comes from the Gospels: Christ is «with us» at all times; in our commitment to nature, to cultures, to everyone’s existence.

The full, total experience of completeness is not given in particular time. 

But eg. the spirit of disinterest that spreads and already makes relationships and things new remains a guarantee of the Kingdom.

Seed and prelude to the alternative world that the Church is called to proclaim and build - including it with open arms.

With at the centre the «Son of Man» who «comes», step by step, we’ll not lose our understanding.

Every moment is good for sharpening perspicacity in the Spirit.

Flexibility of the heart will prevail over predictions, over the imperatives of the mind.

This is the realization and perception of opportunities; opening our eyes, deciphering events, shifting our gaze - in order to grasp the Coming of the Lord, smelling its Meaning, intuiting it as Source of Hope.

In the Eucharist we proclaim precisely the Coming of the Lord, because life in Christ is in every event anticipation and preparation for the spousal Encounter.

From the point of view of Faith, any critical moment cooperates in the good.

It is a Call and opportunity for response, not permanent fear.

[1st Advent Sunday (year A), November 30, 2025]

The reinterpretation of the liturgical colour purple

Mt 24:37-44 (24-51)

    "Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming" (v. 42).

The key to understanding this passage is St Augustine's famous expression: "Timeo Dominum transeuntem" (I fear the Lord passing by). Incarnation is a direct link between reality and the divine condition.

The time of the person of Faith is like a season of waiting, but not of impermanence: rather, it is one of continuous capitalisation and reversal.

Nor is the moment of the Church configured as an institutional period, a period of pause - with a schedule and an expiry date.

Of course, it is not even an age of preparation based on our ideas, but rather of welcoming the Kingdom, which comes in its Appeal - today with very clear proposals (even in its subtractions).

We are called to be ready at all times, like a thief in the night... who wants to take away something we believe is absolutely ours, but to which we have become too attached.

From the earliest generations of believers, groups of visionaries arose - unfortunately misguided - connected to an idea of imminent catastrophe.

But the expectation of the sudden return of a Messiah who was to put an end to injustice and bring about the Last Judgement was a common expectation of those who desired the inauguration of a new phase in history.

However, nowhere in the Gospels is it written that Jesus must 'return', as if he had gone away. He comes, he arrives; he does not 'return'.

In the New Testament, the Risen One is the Coming One [‘o Erchòmenos], that is, the One who bursts in, who incessantly makes himself Present.

The end of the world and the return of the Lord on a white cloud is a suggestion that is still used today to intimidate simple people and condition them to fanatical groups. Social networks are full of it.

The decisive point in life is to notice, to perceive the Presence of Someone within something: in the simple things of life, in events of liberation; even in the drama of rebirth from global crisis.

In this way, no form of alienation comes from the Gospels. Christ is 'with us' at all times, in our commitment to nature, to cultures, to the life of all.

The experience of completeness is not given in a particular time, but, for example, the spirit of selflessness that spreads and already renews relationships and things remains a guarantee of the Kingdom - that is, of the new world that the Church is called to proclaim and build - including it with open arms, step by step.

Every moment is a good moment to sharpen our vision: to notice and perceive opportunities; to open our eyes or shift our gaze in order to grasp the Coming of the Lord and intuit it as a source of Hope.

In the Eucharist, we proclaim the ever-new Presence of the Lord, because Life in Christ is anticipation and preparation for the Encounter [which already brings the bread that our soul and the world need].

Every moment, even the dark ones, is a penetrating Call and an opportunity for response, contact, and deep nourishment; not a source of permanent torment and terror.

Security is found in insecurity

What kind of Advent-Coming is this? Why is it associated with the idea of cataclysms? Talking about a 'flood' does not seem like good news.

In the observant tradition of all peoples, insecurity is perceived as a disadvantage, and teachers note the progress of spiritual life when a soul with a mixed and disordered existence overcomes its turmoil for an ideal of 'coherent calm', in favour of order and tranquillity.

Conditioned by pious indoctrination, homologated to knowing how to 'be in society' and to the idea of Victory preceding Peace, we wait to meet our Lord in dark moments, but so that he may restore our fortune.

We wait for him in times of economic hardship, so that he may give us an advantage with a win; in humiliating events, to help us get back on our feet.

In times of danger, we want Him at least to give us the strength to turn the situation around; in times of illness, we imagine He will restore our youthful vigour; in times of confusion, we want Him to communicate relaxation (or better still, triumph).

In the Gospels, Jesus tries to make his followers understand where and when to truly encounter God. But while waiting for his 'promises', we find it difficult to go beyond the superficial.

We project our ideas onto religion too - but Faith is detached from this. It evaluates with an opposite mentality.

Sometimes we fail to meet a friend because we get the time and place of the appointment wrong. The same thing happens with God.

The insecurity proclaimed by the Gospels is like a tsunami, but it is Good News!

Although we often tend to give a sense of permanence to everything we have experienced and believed ourselves to 'be', we repeatedly experience that our certainties change - just like the waves.

Jesus teaches that the doubt that truly destroys his Call arises from our identification [roles, characters, tasks] that attempts to balance the waves of life.

Instead, the essence of each of us springs from a lively Source, which does what it must every day.

Habits, external opinions, reassuring ways of being with people and dealing with situations cut off the richness of our precious nuances, a large part of our very faces.

And the births and rejuvenations that belong to us.

The inner impact of the many stimuli of the Source of being insinuates an inevitable and fruitful imbalance - which we risk interpreting negatively, precisely as a nuisance.

In the mind of the man who avoids oscillations, that kind of wave that comes to make us think about ancient things (taken for granted) is immediately identified as a danger to our identity.

Providence itself - the wave that sees ahead - is perhaps branded with unease, sometimes even by those who 'advise' us.

In the ideal man, as chiselled by the most normalising moralisms, the swampy water of impulses is what dirties and drags us down to earth; and Heaven would always be clear and pure above the earth.

Instead, it is often an upstream cultural identification that produces insecurity!

All this, much more than the objective reality that comes into play to refresh our soul and make it as light as sea foam (crudely embodied).

We must dive into the waves, we must know the waves of the tides, because our anchor is not in external things.

The shell of appearances condemns us to the worst fluctuation, to the least advantageous of insecurities: believing that by maintaining economic levels or prestige, by reaching that goal, by climbing the ladder of titles, we will avoid frustration, we will escape anxiety, we will finally be without conflict and even happy.

But in this way our soul loses its breath, it does not strengthen itself, nor does it fly towards unknown territories; it settles in the most conformist enclosure.

Instead, we are alive, and the youth that conquers the Kingdom comes from chaos.

Missionaries are animated by this certainty: the best stability is instability: that 'flood' where no two waves are alike.

In short, based on the Word of God, even the liturgical colour purple should perhaps be reinterpreted (in a lively and striking way) - much more deeply than is taken for granted.

To internalise and live the message:

Advent: why do you want the Lord to come and be present in your life?

Son of Man

'Son of Man' is therefore not a 'religious' or selective title, but an opportunity for all those who adhere to the Lord's proposal of life and reinterpret it creatively.

They overcome their fixed and natural boundaries, making room for the Gift; welcoming from God the fullness of being, in his new, unrepeatable paths.

Feeling totally and undeservedly loved, they discover other facets, change the way they are with themselves, and can grow: they fulfil themselves, blossom and radiate the completeness they have received.

By moving away from the poor or static idea we have of ourselves - a serious problem in many sensitive and devoted souls - even the relational personality can begin to imagine.

And dream, discovering that they can no longer give weight to those who want to influence their personal journey (in the fullness of being and vocation).

Those who activate the idea that they can do it then transmit the power of the Spirit they have received and welcomed, and the world flourishes.

Emanating a different atmosphere, the person integrated in their even opposing sides feels awareness arise, creates projects, emits and attracts other energies; activates them.

God wants to extend the sphere in which he 'reigns' - relating in an interpersonal way - to all humanity... A Church without visible boundaries, which will begin with the 'Son of Man' (a figure not exclusive to Jesus).

This universalistic perspective emerges, among other things, from Jesus' presentation of himself not only as the 'Son of David' but as the 'Son of Man' (Mark 10:33). The title 'Son of Man', in the language of Jewish apocalyptic literature inspired by the vision of history in the Book of the Prophet Daniel (cf. 7:13-14), refers to the figure who comes 'with the clouds of heaven' (v. 13) and is an image that heralds a completely new kingdom, a kingdom supported not by human powers, but by the true power that comes from God. Jesus uses this rich and complex expression and refers it to himself to manifest the true character of his messianism, as a mission destined for the whole of humanity and for every human being, overcoming all ethnic, national and religious particularism. And it is precisely in following Jesus, in allowing oneself to be drawn into his humanity and thus into communion with God, that one enters this new kingdom, which the Church proclaims and anticipates, and which overcomes fragmentation and dispersion.

[Pope Benedict, Consistory, 24 November 2012]

With the image of the Son of Man, the prophet Daniel already wanted to indicate a reversal of the criteria of authenticity (human and divine): a man or a people, a leader, finally with a heart of flesh instead of a beast.

In the icon of the 'Son of Man', the evangelists wish to reveal and trigger the triumph of the human over the inhuman, the gradual disappearance of everything that blocks the communication of full life.

The People who shine in a divine way are no longer entangled in fears or hysteria, but rather bring to the fore all their varied potential for love and the effusion of life.

The 'Son of Man' - a possible reality - is anyone who reaches fulfilment, the flowering of their capacity to be, in the extension of relationships... entering into harmony with the sphere of God the Creator, Lover of life.

They do so in their varied facets, and merge with Him - becoming One. Creating abundance.

The 'Son of Man' is the man who behaves on earth as God himself would, who makes the divine and its power present in history.

He can therefore afford to replace the sombre seriousness of being pious and submissive with the wise light-heartedness that makes everything light.

The 'Son of Man' represents the highest form of humanity, the Person par excellence - who becomes liberating rather than oppressive.

The consequences are unimaginable, because each of us in Christ (and for our brothers and sisters) no longer has dead ends to retrace.

'Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming' (Matthew 24:42). Jesus, who came among us at Christmas and will return in glory at the end of time, never tires of visiting us continually, in the events of every day. He asks us and warns us to wait for him by keeping watch, because his coming cannot be planned or predicted, but will be sudden and unpredictable. Only those who are awake will not be caught off guard. He warns us not to let what happened in Noah's time happen to us, when people were eating and drinking carefree and were caught unprepared by the flood (cf. Mt 24:37-38). What does the Lord want us to understand with this warning, if not that we must not allow ourselves to be absorbed by material realities and concerns to the point of becoming ensnared?

"Watch therefore..." Let us listen to Jesus' invitation in the Gospel and prepare ourselves to relive with faith the mystery of the birth of the Redeemer, who filled the universe with joy; let us prepare ourselves to welcome the Lord in his incessant coming to meet us in the events of life, in joy and in sorrow, in health and in sickness; let us prepare ourselves to meet him in his final and definitive coming. His passing is always a source of peace, and if suffering, the legacy of human nature, sometimes becomes almost unbearable, with the coming of the Saviour "suffering - without ceasing to be suffering - nevertheless becomes a song of praise" (Encyclical Spe salvi, 37).

[Pope Benedict, homily at the Roman hospital of St John the Baptist, 2 December 2007]

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Today, the first Sunday of Advent, the Church begins a new Liturgical Year, a new journey of faith that on the one hand commemorates the event of Jesus Christ and, on the other, opens to its ultimate fulfilment. It is precisely in this double perspective that she lives the Season of Advent, looking both to the first coming of the Son of God, when he was born of the Virgin Mary, and to his glorious return, when he will come “to judge the living and the dead”, as we say in the Creed. I would now like to focus briefly on this evocative theme of “waiting”, for it touches upon a profoundly human aspect in which the faith becomes, so to speak, completely one with our flesh and our heart.

Expectation or waiting is a dimension that flows through our whole personal, family and social existence. Expectation is present in thousands of situations, from the smallest and most banal to the most important that involve us completely and in our depths. Among these, let us think of waiting for a child, on the part of a husband and wife; of waiting for a relative or friend who is coming from far away to visit us; let us think, for a young person, of waiting to know his results in a crucially important examination or of the outcome of a job interview; in emotional relationships, of waiting to meet the beloved, of waiting for the answer to a letter, or for the acceptance of forgiveness.... One could say that man is alive as long as he waits, as long as hope is alive in his heart. And from his expectations man recognizes himself: our moral and spiritual “stature” can be measured by what we wait for, by what we hope for. 

Every one of us, therefore, especially in this Season which prepares us for Christmas, can ask himself: What am I waiting for? What, at this moment of my life, does my heart long for? And this same question can be posed at the level of the family, of the community, of the nation. What are we waiting for together? What unites our aspirations, what brings them together? In the time before Jesus’ birth the expectation of the Messiah was very strong in Israel – that is, the expectation of an Anointed one, a descendent of King David, who would at last set the people free from every form of moral and political slavery and find the Kingdom of God. But no one would ever have imagined that the Messiah could be born of a humble girl like Mary, the betrothed of a righteous man, Joseph. Nor would she have ever thought of it, and yet in her heart the expectation of the Savior was so great, her faith and hope were so ardent, that he was able to find in her a worthy mother. Moreover, God himself had prepared her before time. There is a mysterious correspondence between the waiting of God and that of Mary, the creature “full of grace”, totally transparent to the loving plan of the Most High. Let us learn from her, the Woman of Advent, how to live our daily actions with a new spirit, with the feeling of profound expectation that only the coming of God can fulfil.

[Pope Benedict, Angelus, 28 November 2010]

These are the words of the Responsorial Psalm for today’s liturgy of the First Sunday of Advent, a liturgical season which from year to year renews our expectation of Christ’s coming. Advent has taken on a new, unique aspect in these years as we look forward to the third millennium. Tertio millennio adveniente: 1998, which is coming to an end, and 1999, now close at hand, bring us to the threshold of a new century and a new millennium. 

Our celebration today also began “on the threshold”: on the threshold of the Vatican Basilica, in front of the Holy Door, with the presentation and reading of the Bull of Indiction of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. 

“Let us go joyfully to meet the Lord” is a refrain perfectly in tune with the Jubilee. It is, so to speak, a “jubilee refrain”,according to the etymology of the Latin word iubilare, which in itself contains a reference to joy. Let us go joyfully, then! Let us walk with joy and watchfulness, as we wait for the season that recalls God’s coming in human flesh, a time which reached its fullness when Christ was born in a stable in Bethlehem. It is then that the time of waiting was fulfilled. 

In Advent we await an event which occurs in history and at the same time transcends it. As it does every year, this event will take place on the night of the Lord’s Birth. The shepherds will hasten to the stable in Bethlehem; later the Magi will arrive from the East. Both the one and the other in a certain sense symbolize the entire human family. The exhortation that rings out in today’s liturgy: “Let us go joyfully to meet the Lord” spreads to all countries, to all continents, among every people and nation. The voice of the liturgy — that is, the voice of the Church — resounds everywhere and invites everyone to the Great Jubilee. 

2. The last three years preceding the Year 2000 form a very intense period of waiting, aimed at meditation on the meaning of the forthcoming spiritual event and on its necessary preparation. 

The content of this preparation is modeled on the Trinitarian formula which is repeated at the end of every liturgical prayer. Let us therefore go with joy to the Father, through the way which is our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with him in the unity of the Holy Spirit. 

That is why the first year was dedicated to the Son, the second to the Holy Spirit, and the one that begins today — the last year before the Great Jubilee — will be the year of the Father. Invited by the Father, we are going to him through the Son, in the Holy Spirit. This three-year period of immediate preparation for the new millennium, because of its Trinitarian character, speaks to us not only of God in himself, as an ineffable mystery of life and holiness, but also of God who comes to us. 

3. For this reason the refrain “Let us go joyfully to meet the Lord” sounds so appropriate. We can meet God, because he has reached out to us. He did so as the father in the parable of the prodigal son (cf. Lk 15:11-32), because he is rich in mercy, dives in misericordia, and wants to meet us from wherever we come and wherever our journey is taking us. God comes to us whether we have sought him, ignored him and or even avoided him. He reaches out to us first, his arms open wide like a loving and merciful father. 

If God is moved to reach out to us, can we turn our backs on him? But we cannot go alone to meet the Father. We must join the company of all who are members of “God’s family”. To prepare for the Jubilee properly, we must be ready to accept everyone. They are all our brothers and sisters because they are all children of the same heavenly Father. 

We can interpret the Church’s 2,000year history in this perspective. It is comforting to note how, in this passage from the second to the third millennium, the Church is experiencing a fresh missionary impulse. This is one of the results of the continental Synods held in recent years, including the current one for Australia and Oceania. It can also be seen in the information received by the Committee for the Great Jubilee about activities planned by the local Churches in preparation for this historic event.  

I would like to offer a special greeting to the Cardinal President of the Committee, the General Secretary and their staff. I also extend my greeting to the Cardinals, Bishops and priests present, as well as to all of you, dear brothers and sisters who are taking part in this solemn liturgy. And I offer a particular greeting to the clergy, religious and committed lay people of Rome, who together with the Cardinal Vicar and the Auxiliary Bishops are here this morning to open the final phase of the City Mission, directed to various social contexts. 

It is an important phase that will see the entire Diocese focused on a vast work of evangelization in every context of life and work. At the end of this Holy Mass, I will give the missionaries their Mission Cross. We must proclaim and bear witness to Christ in every place and in every situation. I invite everyone to support this great undertaking with prayer. I am counting in particular on the contribution of cloistered religious, of the sick and the elderly who, although unable to take part directly in this great apostolic initiative, can contribute so much by their prayer and the offering of their suffering to preparing hearts to receive the Gospel message. 

May Mary, whom the season of Advent urges us to contemplate in eager expectation of the Redeemer, help you all to be generous apostles of her Son, Jesus. 

4. In today’s Gospel we heard the Lord’s invitation to be watchful: “Watch, therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming”. And then immediately: “Therefore you also must be ready; for the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Mt 24:42, 44). The exhortation to be watchful resounds many times in the liturgy, especially in Advent, a season of preparation not only for Christmas, but also for Christ’s definitive and glorious coming at the end of time. It therefore has a distinctly eschatological meaning and invites the believer to spend every day and every moment in the presence of the One “who is and who was and who is come” (Rv 1:4), to whom the future of the world and of man belongs. This is Christian hope! Without this prospect, our existence would be reduced to living for death. 

Christ is our Redeemer: Redemptor mundi et Redemptor hominis, Redeemer of the world and of man. He came among us to help us cross the threshold that leads to the door of life, the “holy door” which is he himself. 

5. May this consoling truth always be clearly present before our eyes, as we advance on our pilgrimage towards the Great Jubilee. It is the ultimate reason for the joy which today’s liturgy urges us to have: “Let us go joyfully to meet the Lord”. By believing in the crucified and risen Christ, we also believe in the resurrection of the flesh and in eternal life. 

Tertio millennio adveniente. In this perspective the years, centuries and millenniums acquire that definitive meaning of life which the Jubilee of the Year 2000 is meant to reveal to us. 

Looking to Christ, we make our own the words of a popular old Polish hymn: 

“Salvation came through the Cross,
this is a great mystery.
All suffering has meaning: it leads
to fullness of life”. 

With this faith in our hearts, which is the Church’s faith, today, as Bishop of Rome, I open the third year of preparation for the Great Jubilee. I open it in the name of the heavenly Father, who “so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). Praised be Jesus Christ!

[Pope John Paul II, homily, 29 November 1998]

Today, the First Sunday of the Time of Advent, a new liturgical year begins. In these four weeks of Advent, the liturgy leads us to celebrate the Nativity of Jesus, while it reminds us that he comes into our lives every day, and will return gloriously at the end of time. This certainty enables us to look trustfully to the future, as we are invited to do by the prophet Isaiah, who with his inspired voice accompanies the entire Advent journey.

In today’s First Reading, Isaiah prophesies that “it shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be raised  above the hills; and all the nations shall flow to it” (Is 2:2). The temple of the Lord in Jerusalem is presented as the point of convergence and meeting of all peoples. After the Incarnation of the Son of God, Jesus revealed himself as the true temple. Therefore, the marvellous vision of Isaiah is a divine promise and impels us to assume an attitude of pilgrimage, of a journey towards Christ, the meaning and end of all history. Those who hunger and thirst for justice can only find it by following the ways of the Lord, while evil and sin come from the fact that individuals and social groups prefer to follow paths dictated by selfish interests, which cause conflict and war. Advent is the time to welcome the coming of Jesus, who comes as a messenger of peace to show us the ways of God.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus exhorts us to be ready for His coming: “Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Mt 24:42). Keeping watch  does not mean to have one’s eyes physically open, but to have one’s heart free and facing the right direction, ready to give and to serve. This is keeping watch! The slumber from which we must awaken is constituted of indifference, of vanity, of the inability to establish genuine human relationships, of the inability to take charge of our brother and sister who is alone, abandoned or ill. The expectation of Jesus who is coming must therefore translate into a commitment to vigilance. It is above all a question of wonder before God’s action, at his surprises, and of according him primacy. Vigilance also means, in a concrete sense, being attentive to our neighbour in difficulty, allowing oneself to be called upon by his needs, without waiting for him or her to ask us for help, but learning to foresee, to anticipate, as God always does with us.

May Mary, the vigilant Virgin and Mother of hope, guide us on this journey, helping us to turn our gaze towards the “mountain of the Lord”, the image of Jesus Christ, that attracts all men and all peoples.

[Pope Francis, Angelus, 1 December 2019]

Be careful not to burden, keep watch out «by praying at all times»

(Lk 21:34-36)

The new world comes upon us in an alternative way, and it imposes itself from moment to moment, without concatenated or too polite forewarning. 

Such a impetuous Wind seems to be crumbling everything, instead it acts to gather us.

Beyond discouragement, in the face of shocking flash-events there is the danger of loss of critical consciousness, and flight (even from ourselves).

Conversely, woman and man of Faith discover the Coming of Christ among the people and the many "joints" of the soul, all authentic companions ‘travelers’.

Believers exercise perception, they notice the first stirrings of new life; they are not discouraged.

They do not seek palliatives or brain ideas à la page, which disperse our energies and confuse us, or even more make us our guard down.

On the other hand, here is the danger of settling down in an institutional time - and the emergence of obscure compensations: bogus solutions that make us insensitive; good just to distract us.

And that produce breathlessness (vv.34-35). Escapes or loopholes that anesthetize the soul. Idols-trap [«snare» of v.35].

They are to be kept at a distance: they do not allow to grasp the Lord who’s Coming.

Prayer is done here therapy, Presence, Motive and Engine; source and culmination. Medicine and Bread for the journey of those who wish to stay awake, advance, activate future.

By assimilating the sacred point of view on the upheavals of the world, in prayer we will obtain good disposition, we will move the eye towards horizons in which not a single shape and one colour appears.

We will understand that Providence is right, that the Spirit works well: He’s bringing us closer to the full project of the Father.

Approaching us in this way also to the desire for life of the brothers, we will stand «upright on our feet» (v.36) that is, we’ll wait and welcome without fear the advent of the «Son of Man».

Authentic Presence of God - true and full development of the divine plan on humanity.

Such a deep side was expected to be absolute, performing, and selective. Featured.

The Incarnation surprises. It even revalues our skeletal and deficient being.

It turns uniqueness into a precious Pearl, «because our listening must take into account the sensus fidei, but it must not neglect all those ‘intuitions’ found where we would least expect them, ‘freewheeling’, but no less important» [Audience, Rome, 18.9.21].

Events - even those that are opposite (and inseparable) - speak within us; they develop through inner energy.

They are the treasure chests of engaging facts; they contain a secret amazement, a surprising destination.

Vigilance and Prayer prepare us for this unexpected Encounter, which is the growth and humanization of the people: the peaceful, true and full overflowing of the Eternal project, transferred to wide meshes.

This without resigning... even in the daily - as well as for the vision and action of prophets who do not blame their own finitude. In fact, they consider it a turning point.

So let us not divide the view hysterically, between good and bad emotions: for the 'new' of where we are and will be, even perils or bitterness, stops or detours, will have made sense.

[Saturday 34th wk. in O.T.  November 29, 2025]

Be careful not to weigh yourselves down, watch and pray at all times

(Lk 21:34-36)

The new world descends upon us in an unexpected way, imposing itself from one moment to the next, without warning or excessive politeness. 

But this is precisely the work of the Spirit, who spurs on unilateralism and overturns categorical connections (even in pious life).

This impetuous wind seems to be crumbling everything, but instead it acts to gather us together.

As the Pontiff says, changes in the Church are not made 'as if it were a company, by majority or minority'.

Beyond discouragement, in the face of shocking flash events, there is the danger of losing the pluralistic critical consciousness that would truly bring us home, and of fleeing (even from ourselves).

Conversely, women and men of faith discover the coming of Christ among the people and the many 'relatives' of the soul, all authentic companions on the 'journey'.

He always challenges our freedom with a broad and inclusive hope that brings together inner movements - even the most disparate ones; a sort of new 'synodality'.

True disciples sense the new Kingdom that bursts in suddenly - not according to a 'party' procedure [continuing to quote Pope Francis in his General Audience: see below].

Women and men of faith exercise their perception, they notice the stirrings of new life; they do not lose heart.

They do not seek palliatives or trendy ideas, which disperse our energies and confuse us, or even more so, cause us to let our guard down.

On the other hand, there is the danger of settling into an institutional time - and the emergence of obscure compensations: fake solutions that make us insensitive; good only for distracting us, and even breathless (vv. 34-35).

Escapism and half-measures anaesthetise the soul.

Ultimately, compromises remain an expression of the sense of powerlessness and failure that sometimes grips life - even spiritual life - partisan [today with its small disembodied orientations; or of recovering lost ground, or of excessive sophistication].

And tragic debauchery is nothing more than a sign of an attempt to escape, or to return to the past – to irresolvable attachments.

Idols-traps [‘snares’ in v. 35] to be kept at a distance: they prevent us from noticing the Lord who is coming.

They limit the wealth that wants to come. Wealth that we already possess in truth: in the sides to which we have not yet given space. In them dwells an eminent, authentic and hidden Self.

There - in the Mystery - new life teems. Unexplored veins that await. Sides of the unconscious that want to express themselves. In contact with our Call by Name and deep essence.

Intimate resources to be valued and triggered for wise expansion; even with bitter fruit - from events that appear threatening, yet activate an excavation, a discovery, an Exodus.

So let us not hysterically divide the landscape into good and bad emotions: for the 'new' of where we are and will be, even dangers or bitterness, stops or detours will have made sense.

In short, let us not allow ourselves to be reduced or gripped by the lacerating struggle between black and white... but let us not renounce the virtue of throwing off ballast, overcoming fears, in order to broaden our gaze.

Prayer becomes therapy, Presence, Motive and Motor; source and culmination. Medicine and Bread for the journey of those who do not want to be put to sleep, but wish to remain awake, indeed to move forward and activate the future.

By assimilating the sacred point of view on the upheavals of the world, in prayer we will obtain a good disposition, we will shift our gaze towards horizons where not a single shape or colour appears.

We will understand that Providence is right, that the Spirit works well: it is bringing us closer to the Father's full plan.

Approaching in this way also the desire for life of our brothers and sisters, we will stand 'upright' (v. 36), that is, we will wait and welcome without fear the coming of the 'Son of Man'.

The authentic Presence of God - the true and full development of the divine plan for humanity.

Perhaps even today we find it difficult to believe that the Messiah can be identified with the One who creates abundance where there is none and where it did not seem possible for it to expand.

The 'Son of Man', on the other hand, is the One who, having reached the height of human perfection, reflects the divine condition and radiates it in a widespread manner.

It was expected that this profound aspect would be absolute, effective, and selective. In the foreground.

The Incarnation surprises us. It even re-evaluates our skeletal and deficient being.

It transforms it into a precious pearl, a "sense without citizenship":

"In the synodal journey, listening must take into account the sensus fidei, but it must not neglect all those 'premonitions' incarnated where we would not expect them: there may be a 'sense without citizenship', but it is no less effective. The Holy Spirit in his freedom knows no boundaries, and does not even allow himself to be limited by affiliations. If the parish is the home of everyone in the neighbourhood, not an exclusive club, I urge you: leave your doors and windows open, do not limit yourselves to considering only those who attend or think like you – who will be 3, 4 or 5%, no more. Allow everyone to enter... Allow yourselves to go out and let yourselves be questioned, let their questions be your questions, allow yourselves to walk together: the Spirit will lead you, trust in the Spirit. Do not be afraid to enter into dialogue and let yourselves be shaken by dialogue: it is the dialogue of salvation.

Its depth is rooted not in the most icy 'perfection', but in everything that is not static - and it goes beyond the categories of ancient, unilateral, respectable religiosity' [Pope Francis, Address to the Diocese of Rome, 18 September 2021].

Events - even those that are opposite (and inseparable) - speak within us; they develop through inner energy.

They are treasure chests of engaging realities; they contain a secret of wonder, a surprising destination.

Vigilance and Prayer prepare us for this unexpected Encounter, which is the growth and humanisation of the people: the quiet, true and full overflowing of the Eternal plan, transferred to wide meshes.

This without resignation... even in the summary of daily life - as well as for the vision and action of prophets who do not blame their own finitude. On the contrary, they consider it a turning point.

This makes the incarnate Son present and coming, animating 'everything' even in an age of uncertainty - sustained by prayer, 'the living fire of the Spirit, which gives strength to witness and mission'.

All this opens up a healthy and undivided ecclesiality:

Coordinates of Ecclesiality

The first steps of the Church in the world were marked by prayer. The apostolic writings and the great narrative of the Acts of the Apostles give us the image of a Church on the move, a hard-working Church, which, however, finds in prayer meetings the basis and impetus for missionary action. The image of the early community in Jerusalem is a point of reference for every other Christian experience. Luke writes in the Book of Acts: 'They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers' (2:42). The community perseveres in prayer.

Here we find four essential characteristics of ecclesial life: first, listening to the teaching of the apostles; second, the preservation of mutual communion; third, the breaking of bread; and fourth, prayer. These remind us that the Church's existence has meaning if it remains firmly united to Christ, that is, in community, in his Word, in the Eucharist and in prayer. This is how we unite ourselves to Christ. Preaching and catechesis bear witness to the words and deeds of the Master; the constant search for fraternal communion preserves us from selfishness and particularism; the breaking of bread realises the sacrament of Jesus' presence among us: He will never be absent; in the Eucharist, it is He Himself. He lives and walks with us. And finally, prayer, which is the space for dialogue with the Father, through Christ in the Holy Spirit.

Everything in the Church that grows outside these "coordinates" is without foundation. To discern a situation, we must ask ourselves how these four coordinates are present in it: preaching, the constant search for fraternal communion – charity –, the breaking of bread – that is, Eucharistic life – and prayer. Any situation must be evaluated in the light of these four coordinates. Anything that does not fit into these coordinates lacks ecclesiality; it is not ecclesial. It is God who makes the Church, not the clamour of works. The Church is not a market; the Church is not a group of entrepreneurs going ahead with this new venture. The Church is the work of the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus sent us to gather us together. The Church is precisely the work of the Spirit in the Christian community, in community life, in the Eucharist, in prayer, always. And everything that grows outside these coordinates is without foundation, it is like a house built on sand (cf. Mt 7:24-27). It is God who makes the Church, not the clamour of works. It is the word of Jesus that fills our efforts with meaning. It is in humility that the future of the world is built.

Sometimes, I feel great sadness when I see some communities that, with good will, go astray because they think they are building the Church in gatherings, as if it were a political party: the majority, the minority, what this one thinks, that one, the other... "This is like a Synod, a synodal path that we must follow." I ask myself: where is the Holy Spirit there? Where is prayer? Where is community love? Where is the Eucharist? Without these four coordinates, the Church becomes a human society, a political party — majority, minority — changes are made as if it were a company, by majority or minority... But there is no Holy Spirit. And the presence of the Holy Spirit is precisely guaranteed by these four coordinates. To assess a situation, whether it is ecclesial or not, let us ask ourselves if these four coordinates are present: community life, prayer, the Eucharist... [preaching], how life develops in these four coordinates. If this is missing, the Spirit is missing, and if the Spirit is missing, we will be a nice humanitarian association, a charity, fine, fine, even a party, so to speak, ecclesial, but there is no Church. And that is why the Church cannot grow through these things: it does not grow through proselytism, like any company, it grows through attraction. And who moves the attraction? The Holy Spirit. Let us never forget these words of Benedict XVI: "The Church does not grow through proselytism, it grows through attraction." If the Holy Spirit, who is the one who attracts us to Jesus, is missing, then there is no Church. There is a nice club of friends, fine, with good intentions, but there is no Church, there is no synodality.

Reading the Acts of the Apostles, we discover that the powerful engine of evangelisation is prayer meetings, where those who participate experience the presence of Jesus live and are touched by the Spirit. The members of the first community – but this is always true, even for us today – perceive that the story of their encounter with Jesus did not end at the moment of the Ascension, but continues in their lives. By recounting what the Lord said and did – listening to the Word – and praying to enter into communion with Him, everything comes alive. Prayer infuses light and warmth: the gift of the Spirit gives rise to fervour in them.

In this regard, the Catechism has a very profound expression. It says: “The Holy Spirit […] reminds Christ’s praying Church of him, leads her to the whole Truth, and inspires new expressions that will express the unfathomable Mystery of Christ, who works in the life, sacraments and mission of his Church” (n. 2625). This is the work of the Spirit in the Church: to remember Jesus. Jesus himself said it: He will teach you and remind you. The mission is to remember Jesus, but not as a mnemonic exercise. Christians, walking on the paths of mission, remember Jesus as they make him present again; and from him, from his Spirit, they receive the "push" to go, to proclaim, to serve. In prayer, Christians immerse themselves in the mystery of God, who loves every person, the God who desires that the Gospel be preached to all. God is God for all, and in Jesus every wall of separation has been definitively broken down: as St Paul says, He is our peace, that is, 'the one who has made the two into one' (Eph 2:14). Jesus has brought about unity.

Thus, the life of the early Church is marked by a continuous succession of celebrations, gatherings, and times of both communal and personal prayer. And it is the Spirit who gives strength to the preachers who set out on their journey and who, for the love of Jesus, cross seas, face dangers, and submit to humiliation.

God gives love, God asks for love. This is the mystical root of all the life of faith. The early Christians in prayer, but also we who come several centuries later, all live the same experience. The Spirit animates everything. And every Christian who is not afraid to devote time to prayer can make the words of the Apostle Paul their own: "The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me" (Gal 2:20). Prayer makes you aware of this. Only in the silence of adoration can you experience the full truth of these words. We must rediscover the meaning of adoration. Adore, adore God, adore Jesus, adore the Spirit. The Father, the Son and the Spirit: worship. In silence. The prayer of adoration is the prayer that makes us recognise God as the beginning and end of all history. And this prayer is the living fire of the Spirit that gives strength to witness and mission.

[Pope Francis, General Audience, 25 November 2020]