Turnover in the Church, antidote to unilaterality

(Mt 5:1-12)

 

We feel ephemeral and often disappointed, yet we want to be happy, not just here and there: we are uncertain, yet we seek full and lasting joy.

Of course we can only find it in a disconcerting proposal.

 

In the Gospel of Mt Jesus is the new Moses who rises on «the Mount». But the young Legislator does not proclaim norms on a stone code, but his own experience of the Father... «by seeing the crowds» (v.1).

At the crossroads between divine condition and fullness of humanization, the new Rabbi outlines a sort of his Self-Portrait: as a Son; in favor of his brothers. Gathered in Family spirit.

A sprout of hospitable world - which in its small churches Mt wants to encourage. Where there is no man above and little ones always below; or the character in front and the others behind.

Only humanizing upheavals [such as the reversal of roles and conditions] that strengthen the concordant tissue.

So in the House of All there will have to be a replacement and reversal of figures, of situations and criteria of eminence, therefore chains of command - signs of the Coming Kingdom. 

Overturning capable of sharpening the sensitivities to Communion [at that time there was lively friction between Judaizing experts, first in the class, and the last arrived at threshold of faith’s fraternities].

 

On «the Mount» is announced the discreet work of the Spirit, which designates the character of a modest holiness, animated by gift’s Love, in itself divinizing and humanizing [quality that is manifested in the so-called "poor in Spirit"].

In fact, the authentic disciple reaches tears: they express the dimension of intimate energy that purifies external ideas; it makes us true from within, and essential on the outside.

Affliction drives to return into ourselves; it re-proposes the contact with our land and the virtues that regenerate.

Sadness that in the condition of finitude and conscious limit, makes us empathetic, splendidly human.

Deeply dissatisfied: opponents of injustices. Because every person who is not placed in the position of being able to express his abilities is an insult to the Salvation Design.

In fact, in each excluded person hides an Artist who is not allowed to express himself, who is neither discovered nor valued in favor of himself and others; rather, considered extraneous or deviant.

 

The Spirit of Christ is spontaneously identified not with the usual aggressive energy of the feral animals, of those who prevail because more astute and strong.

We are women and men characterized by heart of flesh - not of beast (Dan 7).

The Beatitudes - the new Decalogue of «the Mount» - allude precisely to a sort of divine condition embodied and transmissible to anyone, pacified and creative like love, therefore all to be discovered.

This is not a proposal that pushes back eccentricities: on the contrary, very nice and lovable, inclusive.

That of the Blessed is therefore the condition that makes us Unique - not sanctity regulated by procedures, which is always there to abhor the danger of the unusual.

Nor does it exclude our right to do something great... but it does not identify it with having, power, appearing.

There is no "race" to be won. And the Lord makes us reflect on the authentic realization: it’s not an outward conquest.

 

Blessed is the trait and outcome of the true and full development of the divine project on humanity - paradoxical in character.

The Lord is pleased with those who undertake this orientation, where his feelings become deeply ours.

Blood relatives; already here and now able to experience the blissful life of Heaven: being with and for others, being ourselves.

 

 

[4th Sunday in O.T. (year A)  February 1st, 2026]

Turnover in the Church, an antidote to unilateralism

(Mt 5:1-12)

 

In Matthew's Gospel, Jesus is the new Moses who climbs "the Mountain." But the young Lawgiver does not proclaim rules on a stone code, but rather his own experience of the Father... "seeing the crowds" (v. 1).

At the crossroads between divine condition and fullness of humanisation, the new Rabbi outlines a sort of self-portrait: as Son; in favour of his brothers. Gathered together in a spirit of family.

A sprout of a hospitable world - which Matthew wants to encourage in his small churches. Where there is no one above and no one below; no one in front and no one behind.

Only humanising upheavals [such as the reversal of roles and conditions] that strengthen the fabric of harmony.

Therefore, in the House of all, there must be a change and reversal of figures, situations and criteria of eminence, and therefore chains of command - signs of the Kingdom to Come. 

A reversal capable of heightening sensitivity to Communion [at that time, there was lively friction between Jewish experts, top of the class, and newcomers to the fraternal community of faith].

 

At that time, the mentality of precedence and supremacy was so deeply rooted that all religions recognised hierarchies.

Those who considered themselves entitled to precedence [in the community!] always raised a question of apparent obviousness:

Is it not in the natural order of things that in human society there are first and last, learned and ignorant, sovereigns and subjects?

After all, the legal principle that once governed, for example, all private property rights in the Latin world is also the motto of a well-known official Catholic newspaper: Unicuique Suum.

Even Leo XIII, the pope of social encyclicals, recognised that 'in human society, it is according to the order established by God that there are princes and subjects, masters and proletarians, rich and poor, learned and ignorant, nobles and plebeians; the obligation of charity on the part of the rich and the wealthy is to provide for the poor and the needy'.

It was the mentality of a sin of simple omission: it is enough to do charity.

The Lord's position is very, very different: the powerful are not at all blessed by God - as the rich patriarchs of the First Testament were also supposed to be.

Their alien world, their palaces, and even their refined clothing, are a perfect metaphor for the inner emptiness and transience in which they revel.

Their gluttony is a sign of an inner abyss to be filled - a kind of nervous hunger that causes vertigo.

And so it goes, from alienation to alienation.

On 'the Mount', on the other hand, the discreet work of the Spirit is announced, which designates the character of a modest holiness, animated by the Love of gift, in itself deifying and humanising [a quality that manifests itself in the so-called 'poor in Spirit'].

Holiness that surpasses the ancient fiction of the rulers, who overlapped each other reciting the same script.

Until now, in fact, the masses remained empty-handed: whoever the ruler who seized power, the small flock remained submissive, sad and suffocated; unworthy even of presenting themselves before the Lord.

All condemned and inadequate.

Even the people of the disciples are heartbroken because they do not accept the inequalities of a pyramidal society, which tends to level and destroy the gifts of God spread throughout humanity - of any social class.

The authentic disciple is moved to tears: they express the dimension of intimate energy that purifies external ideas; making us true on the inside and essential on the outside.

Affliction guides us to return to ourselves; it re-establishes contact with our earth and the primordial virtues that regenerate us.

Sadness that, in the condition of finitude and conscious limitation, makes us empathetic, splendidly human.

Intimately dissatisfied: opponents of injustice. Because every person who is not placed in a position to express their abilities is an insult to the Plan of Salvation.

This is not about charity or philanthropy: it is a precise, social choice (v.5).

In fact, hidden within each outcast is an artist who is not allowed to express themselves, who is not discovered or valued for their own sake or that of others; rather, they are considered an outsider or a deviant.

Annalena Tonelli spoke of the least among us, whose pain she wished to alleviate, as 'murdered Mozarts': she wanted to recover them and involve them, to enrich each other. She had a mother's heart and compassion for the misery of her abandoned brothers and sisters.

 

The same severity prevailed in religions, whose leaders instilled in the people a strong and vulgar nationalist impulse and the consolation of the herd.

In the Kingdom of Jesus, however, there must be no ranks, which is why the plans of the ambitious and infallible do not coincide with his.

The Spirit of Christ spontaneously identifies not with the usual aggressive energy of wild beasts, of those who prevail because they are more cunning and stronger, but with the person who makes himself available.

We are women and men characterised by hearts of flesh, not of beasts (Dan 7).

 

The Beatitudes - the new Decalogue of 'the Mountain' - allude precisely to a sort of divine condition incarnate and transmissible to anyone, peaceful and creative like love, and therefore waiting to be discovered.

 

Blessed is the trait and outcome of the true and full development of the divine plan for humanity.

In the Gospels, this character is not hindered by those who frequent places of ill repute, but paradoxically by the regulars of sacred enclosures.

According to Jesus, purity of heart is not linked to external legal purity - as was believed in all devotions - but to a purified gaze and a lack of duplicity. 

The growth and humanisation of the people is therefore not opposed by sinners, but precisely by those who have the ministry of making the Face of God known to all!

In short, the burden of preconceptions with which they approach reality and relationships does not allow the established and fixed authorities to recognise the Lord's calls in the facts of life and Nature itself.

The same is true of peacemakers.

They work for the complete reconstruction of Life and Fraternity, of naturalness itself and of equitable coexistence.

All this is done in a spirit of selflessness that integrates selfishness by recognising the poor 'We' that expands throughout the world.

 

The self-portrait of Jesus as revealed in the Beatitudes of Matthew embraces the icon of a young boy - who at that time counted for nothing.

The Lord recognises himself in a household servant, a shop assistant, who nevertheless has a mysterious and pleasant divine spark within him.

It is the only identification that Jesus loves and desires to give us: that of one who cannot afford not to recognise the needs of others.

A dimension of sacredness without distinctive halos: not cynical, but shareable. Because it is linked to perception and instinctive reciprocity, to spontaneous friendship towards women and men - experienced in the likeness of the Father.

Obviously, this is not a proposal compromised by the usual inexorable routine [doctrine and discipline] that pushes eccentricities back: on the contrary, it is very sympathetic and lovable, inclusive.

 

The Blessed One's condition is therefore the one that makes us Unique - not the holiness regulated by procedures, which always abhors and exorcises the danger of the unusual.

Precisely for this reason, however, the fixation on antecedents has characterised the life of the Church for centuries, as has the feudal and monarchical idol of stability for life.

The Master does not exclude our right to do something great... but he does not identify it with having, power, or appearance.

For a path of Bliss and Divinisation, the Master does not excite the impulses of holding back, climbing, dominating: they do not give Happiness.

Rather, he counts on our spontaneous freedom to give, descend and serve - a franchise entrusted first and foremost to the top of the class. Those who throughout history have become accustomed to overwhelming others with moralism and cunning.

 

God does not deny the legitimate impulses of the ego to be recognised. We do not participate in life as if we were destined to fail, but as if we were promoted - those who do not suppress their own requirements.

But not in order to win 'the race'. In this way, the Lord makes us reflect on authentic fulfilment.

It is not an external conquest, but an intimate one that we make our own. It is thus able to sculpt our deepest inclinations, in its richness of faces and in the time of a Journey.

Aristotle stated that - beyond artificial begging the question or apparent proclamations - we truly love only ourselves. This is no small question mark.

Admittedly, the growth, promotion and flowering of our qualities lies within a wise Way.

A path that is even interrupted, but which knows how to allow itself the right pace - also to encounter new states of being.

Genuine and mature love expands the boundaries of the ego that loves primacy, visibility and gain. It integrates it with primordial, dormant energies that we have not given space to - understanding the You in the I.

A path and a vector that then expands our abilities and our lives. Otherwise, in every circumstance and, unfortunately, at any age, we will remain in the childish game of those who elbow their way up the steps to prevail.

As Pope Francis said about mafia phenomena: 'We need men and women of love, not honour!'.

The Tao Tê Ching (XL) writes: 'Weakness is what the Tao uses'. And Master Wang Pi comments: 'The high has the low as its foundation, the noble has the base as its foundation'.

 

We feel ephemeral and often disappointed, yet we want to be happy, not just here and there: we are uncertain, yet we seek full and lasting joy. Obviously, we can only find it in a disconcerting proposal.

In ancient times, it was thought that God could be encountered in the intoxicating emotions generated by successful experiences, typical of successful men. But the persecuted and crucified Son challenges this outward appearance.

Other decisive encounters were considered to be those on the peaks of evocative heights, or devout and paroxysmal self-sacrifice within the sacred enclosures that Jesus intended to dismantle, forcing the people to leave them [Jn 10:1-16 Greek text].

Luther interprets the Son of God on the Mount as 'Mosissimus Moses'. However, Matthew speaks of 'the Mount' - not a platform - as the figure and context of an eternal Appeal, not only intended for members of the most equipped institutes of perfection who are able to climb.

In concrete terms, these are the moments when we ourselves, incorporated into the human completeness of Christ, feel the fullness of being: like the passing of the soul bride in her sacred centre, and a special harmony of ideas, words and actions between our nature and the divine.

'The Mountain' is the (theological) place where we abandon the cunning, conformist thoughts, knowledge and calculations of the worldly plain. Where the assumptions of fleeting, joyful happiness [the kind that lasts a minute or an hour] are levelled out.

Therefore, blessed are the poor 'in spirit' - or 'by the Spirit' - says Jesus [v.3a Greek text].

In the Christian community, it is important (precisely) to enrich together.

The Lord is pleased with those who take this approach, where his feelings become deeply ours - and it is not the details that are important, but the direction of travel.

The particular details of the life of love are left to personal creativity and the variety of people, sensibilities, cultures and situations. 

What counts is the fundamental choice for goodness and communion, understood not as uniformity but as conviviality of differences.

This is not to hysterically despise wealth: it is a matter of exchanging it so that it multiplies, avoiding keeping it for oneself. Otherwise, everything becomes an insurmountable obstacle to life and the preserve of the quickest.

Those who have freely expropriated the superfluous in order to share it do so 'for the Spirit', that is, for Love: by free choice, with passion and without distinction between beneficiaries within and outside their circle.

Thus, the enriched become lords.

In turn, the miserable may not be poor 'in Spirit' if they are full of themselves, boastful, arrogant, uninterested in others; if they lack openness of heart, are strangers to dialogue, intent on improving their condition through compromise and deception - only desiring to replace the rich and then imitate their deceitful, subjugating and opportunistic ways.

 

The voluntary renunciation of the selfish and mediocre use of our material and intellectual resources distinguishes us as children of God.

We are blood relatives; already here and now able to experience the blessed life of Heaven: being with and for others, while being ourselves.

In fact, the promise that accompanies the first Beatitude (v.3a) does not guarantee access to Paradise in the afterlife, in some distant future.

The exchange of gifts guarantees the experience of divine life itself, right here on earth.

In pagan religions, the condition of Blessed Life was a jealous and exclusive characteristic of the gods, who reluctantly shared it; and reassuringly, only after death. However, only halfway.

In Christ and through the Way, despite partial failures, or our possible limited abilities and natural fragility - indeed, because of them - we discover a Father who is a friend of full, intense Joy: immediate, energetic, limitless Happiness. Which arises even from unstable states.

The Father is not the God of religions that cloud and trouble life: he does not bless the greed of the few, which makes the multitudes needy.

Did the last of the commandments require us to feel satisfied and not desire the possessions of others?

The first of the Beatitudes proposes that we desire that others also have the same things and opportunities in life as we do.

The dynamic of falling in love, in all its forms, presupposes a vibrant Fullness that flows everywhere - recognising the opposites in ourselves and the legitimate desire for expressive fulfilment in our brothers and sisters.

 

 

To internalise and live the message:

 

How do you overcome doubt, by retreating? What do you proclaim with your life? Does it go beyond direct experience? Do you know of realities that manifest the Risen One? How do you point to paths overflowing with hope? Or are you selective and silent?

 

 

 

They let the Light pass through

 

All the Saints, between religious sentiment and Faith

 

    Embodying the spirit of the Beatitudes, we ask ourselves what is the difference between common 'religious sentiment' and 'living by Faith'.

In ancient devotions, the Saint is the composed, perfect and detached [but predictable] man; and the opposite of Saint is 'sinner'.

In the proposal of a life full of the Lord, the 'saint' is a person of communicative understanding who lives for conviviality, creating it where it does not exist.

On the path of children, the saint is indeed the excellent man, but in his fullest sense - complete and dynamic, multifaceted; even eccentric. Not in a unilateral, moralistic or sentimental sense.

In Latin, perfìcere means to bring to completion, to go all the way.

In this complete and integral sense, 'perfect' becomes an authentic embodied value: a possible attribute of every person who is aware of their own vulnerability and does not despise it.

Women and men of faith value every opportunity or emotion that lays bare their nakedness [not guilt] in order to open new paths and renew themselves.

From the perspective of life in the Spirit, the saint [in Hebrew Qadosh, divine attribute] is indeed the 'detached' person, but not in a partial or physical sense, rather in an ideal sense.

It is not the person who at some point in life distances themselves from the human family to embark on a path of purification that would elevate them. Deluding themselves into thinking they are improving.

As the encyclical Fratelli Tutti emphasises: 'A human being [...] does not realise, develop, find fulfilment [... and] come to a full recognition of his or her own truth except in encounter with others' (n.87).

The authentic witness is not motivated by contempt for existential chaos - nor is he eager to outsource the difficulties of managing his own freedom by handing it over to an alienating agency with a detached mentality (which resolves the drama of personal choices).

In Christ, man is "disconnected" from the common mentality, in that he is faithful to himself, to his own Fire that never goes out - to his passions, to his own unrepeatable uniqueness and Vocation.

And at the same time, he is "separated" from external competitive criteria: of having, of power, of appearing. Self-destructive powers.

He concretely replaces these with the fraternity of giving, serving and diminishing oneself [from the 'character']. Fruitful energies.

Everything for global Communion, and in Truth even with one's own intimate character seed - avoiding proselytism and showing off on the catwalk.

The true believer knows his redeemed limit, sees the possibilities of imperfection... Thus, he replaces the assumptions of holding back for himself, of climbing over others and dominating them, with a fundamental humanising triptych: giving, freedom to 'come down', collaborating.

This is authentic Detachment, which does not flee from one's own and others' inclinations, nor despise the complex nature of the human condition.

In this way, the 'saint' experiences the essential Beatitude of the persecuted (Mt 5:11-12; Lk 6:22-23) because he has the freedom to 'lower himself' in order to be in tune with his own essence, coexisting in his originality.

In terms of Faith, the Saint is therefore no longer physically "separated", but "United" with Christ - and banished like Him, in the weak brothers and sisters.

In short, the divine plan is to compose a Family of the small and infirm, not to carve out a group of "strong" friends who are "better" than others.

Only this horizon of the Focolare moves us to set out.

Consequently, the opposite of a saint is not a 'sinner', but rather someone who is unrealised or unfinished.

 

Let us look again at the reason for this (vocational and personal paths).

Jesus was a friend of tax collectors and public sinners not because they were better than the good, but because in religion the 'righteous' are often not very spontaneous; making themselves impervious, closed, resistant to the action of the Spirit.

Surprisingly, the Lord himself repeatedly experienced that it was precisely those who were devoutly lacking who were inclined to question, notice, rework, deviate from habit - in order to build new paths, even if proceeding by trial and error.

Unable to enjoy the respectable cloak of social screens, after becoming aware of their situation (and over time) - compared to those who considered themselves 'successful' and friends of God - from being 'distant' they became people more 'impeccable' and willing to love.

 

Questioning oneself is fundamental from a biblical perspective.

At every turn, Scripture offers us a spirituality of Exodus, that is, a path of liberation from shackles, travelled on foot, step by step. Therefore, it values paths of research, exploration, discovery of oneself and of the Newness of a God who does not repeat, but creates.

The appeal that the Word makes is to embark on a journey; this is the point. And we have always been 'those of the Way' who do not pass by, who do not look the other way [cf. Lk 10:31-33; FT, 56ff].

 

According to the classical pagan mentality, women and men are essentially 'nature', so their being in the world is conditioned [I remember that my professor of theological anthropology, Ignazio Sanna, even said 'de-centred'], even determined by birth (fortunate or otherwise).

According to the Bible, women and men are creatures, splendid and adequate in themselves for their mission, but pilgrims and lacking.

God is the One who 'calls' them to complete themselves, recovering their dissimilar aspects.

 

In order to become the image and likeness of the Lord, we must develop the ability to respond to a Vocation that makes us neither phenomena nor 'perfect' exceptions, but rather special Witnesses.

Chosen by Name, just as we are; embracing our deepest being - even if unexpressed - to the point of recognising it in You, and unfolding it in Us.

A person's holiness is therefore combined with many of their states of dissatisfaction, of limitation, and even of partial failure - but always thinking and feeling reality.

For a New Covenant.

 

In the Old Testament, believers came into contact with divine purity by frequenting sacred places, fulfilling prescriptions, reciting prayers, respecting times and spaces, avoiding embarrassing situations, and so on.

Our experience and conscience attest infallibly that strict observance is too rare, or mannered: inside, it often does not correspond to us - nor does it humanise us.

Sooner or later, it becomes a house of cards, all the more unstable the higher it points. It is enough to arrange a single card clumsily, and the artificial construction collapses.

We realise our natural inability to satisfy sterilisation, maps (of others) and such high standards.

With Jesus, Perfection does not concern 'thought' or compliance with an abstract Code of Observance. Fulfilment refers to a quality of Exodus and Relationship.

In ancient contexts, the path of children was cloaked in a mystical or renouncing proposal made up of abstinence, fasting, retreats, secluded life, obsessive cultic fulfilments... which in many situations constituted the backbone of pre-Conciliar spirituality.

But in Scripture, the saints do not have halos or wings.

They are not saints because they performed incomparable and amazing miracles of healing: rather, they are women and men who were part of the ordinary world and its most common aspects. 

They know the problems, weaknesses, joys and sorrows of everyday life; the search for their own identity, character or deep inclination.

And the apostolate; family, the education of children, work. Even the seductive power of evil.

 

In the First Testament, 'Qadosh' referred exclusively to an attribute of the Eternal One [the only unchanging Person] - and his separateness from the often confused web of earthly ambitions.

Despite our flaws, however, in Christ we become capable of listening, of perception; thus enabled to seize every opportunity to bear witness to the innate, vital gratuitousness of the divine and real initiative.

Providential life incessantly proposes itself and comes to meet us to open up unthinkable passages that break through.

Its unprecedented paths of growth renew our entire chained and conformist existence.

This also amazes us with our inner resources, previously unknown or unacknowledged and unspoken, or unpredictably hidden behind dark sides.

 

What is Distinguished is no longer hidden behind clouds and placed in secure enclosures.

Therefore, God's adversary will not be transgression: on the contrary, it becomes the lack of a spirit of Communion in differences.

The enemy of the history of Salvation is not religious incompleteness, but the gap between the Beatitudes - and the spirit in fieri of the 'wayfarer' for whom 'pilgrimage' is also synonymous [not paradoxically] with 'wandering'.

The opposite of God is therefore not 'sins', but 'Sin' [in the singular, a theological term, not a moralistic one].

'Sin' is the inability to respond to an indicative Call, which acts as a springboard to complete us, to regenerate us in a non-partial way. This harmonises the opposite sides - in being ourselves and being-With.

Here it is Faith that 'saves' us, at the point where we find ourselves - because it destroys 'the sin of the world' (Jn 1:29), that is, self-contempt and guilt; the humiliation of unbridgeable distances.

In fact, Jesus does not recommend doctrines, nor does he recommend fragmenting one's life with occasional drunkenness. Nor does he propose any religious ascent [in terms of progressiveness] seasoned with effort.

Nowhere in the Gospels does Christ say to anyone, 'become holy', but rather with Him, like Him and in Him - united, to encounter one's own deepest states incessantly.

Recognising them better, thanks also to You and Us.

 

The saint is the little one, not the hero who is all of a piece, uniform, predictable, taken for granted.

A saint is someone who, walking his own path in the wake of the Risen One, has learned to 'identify with the other, without paying attention to where [or] where from [...] ultimately experiencing that others are his own flesh' (cf. FT 84).

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

On this Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time, the Gospel presents the first great discourse that the Lord addresses to the people on the gentle hills encircling the Sea of Galilee. “Seeing the crowds,” St Matthew writes, “he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them” (Mt 5:1-2). 

Jesus, the new Moses, “takes his seat on the cathedra of the mountain” (Jesus of Nazareth, Doubleday, New York 2007, p. 65) and proclaims “blessed” the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the merciful, those who hunger for righteousness, the pure in heart, the persecuted (cf. Mt 5:3-10). It is not a new ideology, but a teaching that comes from on high and touches the human condition, the condition that the Lord, in becoming flesh, wished to assume in order to save it. 

Therefore “the Sermon on the Mount is addressed to the entire world, the entire present and future, and yet it demands discipleship and can be understood and lived out only by following Jesus and accompanying him on his journey” (Jesus of Nazareth, p. 69). 

The Beatitudes are a new programme of life, to free oneself from the false values of the world and to open oneself to the true goods, present and future. Indeed, when God comforts, he satisfies the hunger for righteousness, he wipes away the tears of those who mourn, which means that, as well as compensating each one in a practical way, he opens the Kingdom of Heaven. “The Beatitudes are the transposition of the Cross and Resurrection into discipleship” (ibid., p. 74). They mirror the life of the Son of God who let himself even be persecuted and despised until he was condemned to death so that salvation might be given to men and women.

An ancient hermit says: “The Beatitudes are gifts of God and we must say a great ‘thank you’ to him for them and for the rewards that derive from them, namely the Kingdom of God in the century to come and consolation here; the fullness of every good and mercy on God’s part … once we have become images of Christ on earth” (Peter of Damascus, In Filocalia, Vol. 3, Turin 1985, p. 79). 

The Gospel of the Beatitudes is commented on with the actual history of the Church, the history of Christian holiness, because, as St Paul writes, “God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong, God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are” (1 Cor 1:27-28). 

For this reason the Church has no fear of poverty, contempt or persecution in a society which is often attracted by material well-being and worldly power. St Augustine reminds us that “it serves nothing to suffer these evils, but rather to bear them in the Name of Jesus, not only with a serene soul but also with joy” (cf. De sermone Domini in monte, i, 5,13: ccl 35, 13).

Dear brothers and sisters, let us invoke the Virgin Mary, the Blessed par excellence, asking her for the strength to seek the Lord (cf. Zeph 2:3) and to follow him always, with joy, on the path of the Beatitudes.

[Pope Benedict, Angelus, 30 January 2011]

3. “Blessed are you!”, he says, “all you who are poor in spirit, gentle and merciful, you who mourn, who care for what is right, who are pure in heart, who make peace, you who are persecuted! Blessed are you!” But the words of Jesus may seem strange. It is strange that Jesus exalts those whom the world generally regards as weak. He says to them, “Blessed are you who seem to be losers, because you are the true winners: the kingdom of heaven is yours!” Spoken by him who is “gentle and humble in heart” (Mt 11:29), these words present a challenge which demands a deep and abiding metanoia of the spirit, a great change of heart. 

You young people will understand why this change of heart is necessary! Because you are aware of another voice within you and all around you, a contradictory voice. It is a voice which says, “Blessed are the proud and violent, those who prosper at any cost, who are unscrupulous, pitiless, devious, who make war not peace, and persecute those who stand in their way”. And this voice seems to make sense in a world where the violent often triumph and the devious seem to succeed. “Yes”, says the voice of evil, “they are the ones who win. Happy are they!”

4. Jesus offers a very different message. Not far from this very place Jesus called his first disciples, as he calls you now. His call has always demanded a choice between the two voices competing for your hearts even now on this hill, the choice between good and evil, between life and death. Which voice will the young people of the twenty-first century choose to follow? To put your faith in Jesus means choosing to believe what he says, no matter how strange it may seem, and choosing to reject the claims of evil, no matter how sensible or attractive they may seem. 

In the end, Jesus does not merely speak the Beatitudes. He lives the Beatitudes. He is the Beatitudes. Looking at him you will see what it means to be poor in spirit, gentle and merciful, to mourn, to care for what is right, to be pure in heart, to make peace, to be persecuted. This is why he has the right to say, “Come, follow me!” He does not say simply, “Do what I say”. He says, “Come, follow me!” 

You hear his voice on this hill, and you believe what he says. But like the first disciples at the Sea of Galilee, you must leave your boats and nets behind, and that is never easy – especially when you face an uncertain future and are tempted to lose faith in your Christian heritage. To be good Christians may seem beyond your strength in today’s world. But Jesus does not stand by and leave you alone to face the challenge. He is always with you to transform your weakness into strength. Trust him when he says: “My grace is enough for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:9)! 

5. The disciples spent time with the Lord. They came to know and love him deeply. They discovered the meaning of what the Apostle Peter once said to Jesus: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (Jn 6:68). They discovered that the words of eternal life are the words of Sinai and the words of the Beatitudes. And this is the message which they spread everywhere.

At the moment of his Ascension Jesus gave his disciples a mission and this reassurance: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations . . . and behold I am with you always, until the end of the age” (Mt 28:18-20). For two thousand years Christ’s followers have carried out this mission. Now, at the dawn of the Third Millennium, it is your turn. It is your turn to go out into the world to preach the message of the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. When God speaks, he speaks of things which have the greatest importance for each person, for the people of the twenty-first century no less than those of the first century. The Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes speak of truth and goodness, of grace and freedom: of all that is necessary to enter into Christ’s Kingdom. Now it is your turn to be courageous apostles of that Kingdom!

Young people of the Holy Land, Young people of the world: answer the Lord with a heart that is willing and open! Willing and open, like the heart of the greatest daughter of Galilee, Mary, the Mother of Jesus. How did she respond? She said: “I am the servant of the Lord, let it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). 

O Lord Jesus Christ, in this place that you knew and loved so well, listen to these generous young hearts! Continue to teach these young people the truth of the Commandments and the Beatitudes! Make them joyful witnesses to your truth and convinced apostles of your Kingdom! Be with them always, especially when following you and the Gospel becomes difficult and demanding! You will be their strength; you will be their victory!

O Lord Jesus, you have made these young people your friends: keep them for ever close to you! Amen.

[Pope John Paul II, homily to young people, Mount of Beatitudes, 24 March 2000]

This Sunday’s liturgy leads us to meditate on the Beatitudes (cf. Mt 5:1-12) which open up the great so-called Sermon on the Mount, the “Magna Carta” of the New Testament. Jesus manifests God’s desire to lead men to happiness. This message was already present in the preaching of the prophets: God is close to the poor and the oppressed, and delivers them from those who mistreat them. But in this preaching of his, Jesus follows a particular path: he starts with the word “blessed”, that is, happy. He continues with the indication of the condition to be so; and he concludes by making a promise. The cause of blessedness, that is, of happiness, lies not in the requisite condition — for example, “poor in spirit”, “mourning”, “hungry for righteousness”, “persecuted” — but in the subsequent promise, to be welcomed with faith as a gift of God. One starts from a condition of hardship in order to open oneself to God’s gift and enter the new world, the “Kingdom” announced by Jesus. This is not an automatic mechanism, but a way of life in following the Lord, through which the reality of hardship and affliction is seen in a new perspective and experienced according to the conversion that comes about. One is not blessed if one is not converted, capable of appreciating and living God’s gifts.

I pause on the first Beatitude: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (v. 3). The poor in spirit is he who has assumed the feelings and attitudes of those poor people who, in their state, do not rebel, but who know how to be humble, meek, open to God’s grace. The happiness of the poor — of the poor in spirit — has a twofold dimension: with regard to riches and with regard to God. With regard to possessions, to material possessions, this poverty in spirit is sobriety: not necessarily sacrifice, but the ability to savour the essence, to share; the ability to renew every day the wonder at the goodness of things, without being weighed down in the obscurity of voracious consumption. The more I have, the more I want; the more I have, the more I want: this is voracious consumption. This kills the soul. Men or women who do this, who have this attitude, ‘the more I have, the more I want’, are not happy and will not attain happiness. With regard to God, it is praising and recognizing that the world is a blessing and that at its origin is the creative love of the Father. But it is also opening to Him, docility to his Lordship: it is He, the Lord, He is the Great One. I am not great because I have so many things! It is He: He who wanted the world for all mankind, and who wanted it so that men and women might be happy.

The poor in spirit is the Christian who does not rely on himself, on material wealth, is not obstinate in his own opinions, but who listens with respect and willingly defers to the decisions of others. If in our communities there were more of the poor in spirit, there would be fewer divisions, disagreements and controversies! Humility, like charity, is an essential virtue for living together in Christian communities. The poor, in this evangelical sense, appear to be those who keep alive the objective of the Kingdom of Heaven, offering a glimpse of it revealed as a seed in the fraternal community which favours sharing over ownership. I would like to emphasize this: to favour sharing over ownership. Always having the heart and hands open (he gestures), not closed (he gestures). When the heart is closed (he gestures), it is a shrunken heart. It doesn’t even know how to love. When the heart is open (he gestures), it is on the path of love.

May the Virgin Mary, model and first fruit of the poor in spirit because she is wholly docile to the Lord’s will, help us to surrender ourselves to God, rich in mercy, so that we may be filled with his gifts, especially the abundance of his forgiveness.

[Pope Francis, Angelus, 29 January 2017]

1. Spiritual life needs enlightenment and guidance. This is why Jesus, in founding the Church and sending the Apostles into the world, entrusted them with the task of teaching all the nations, as we read in the Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 28:19-20), but also to "preach the Gospel to the whole creation", as the canonical text of Mark's Gospel says (Mk 16:15). St Paul also speaks of the apostolate as "enlightening everyone" (Eph 3:9).

But this work of the evangelising and teaching Church belongs to the ministry of the Apostles and their successors and, in a different capacity, to all the members of the Church, to continue forever the work of Christ the "one Master" (Mt 23:8), who brought to humanity the fullness of God's revelation. There remains the need for an interior Master, who makes the teaching of Jesus penetrate the spirit and heart of mankind. It is the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus himself calls the "Spirit of truth", and whom he promises as the One who will guide into all truth (cf. Jn 14:17; 16:13). If Jesus said of Himself: "I am the truth" (Jn 14:6), it is this truth of Christ that the Holy Spirit makes known and spreads: "He will not speak of Himself, but will tell all that He has heard . . . he will take of mine and proclaim it to you" (Jn 16:13-14). The Spirit is Light of the soul: "Lumen cordium", as we invoke it in the Pentecost Sequence.

2. The Holy Spirit was Light and inner Master for the Apostles who had to know Christ in depth in order to fulfil their task as his evangelisers. He was and is so for the Church, and, in the Church, for believers of all generations, and especially for theologians and teachers of the Spirit, for catechists and leaders of Christian communities. It has been and is also for all those who, within and outside the visible confines of the Church, wish to follow God's ways with a sincere heart, and through no fault of their own find no one to help them decipher the riddles of the soul and discover the revealed truth. May the Lord grant all our brothers and sisters - millions and indeed billions of men - the grace of recollection and docility to the Holy Spirit in moments that can be decisive in their lives.

For us Christians, the intimate teaching of the Holy Spirit is a joyful certainty, based on Christ's word about the coming of the 'other Paraclete', whom - he said - 'the Father will send in my name. He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have spoken to you" (John 14:26). "He will guide you into all truth" (Jn 16:13).

3. As is clear from this text, Jesus does not entrust his word only to the memory of his hearers: this memory will be aided by the Holy Spirit, who will continually revive in the apostles the memory of events and the sense of the mysteries of the Gospel.

In fact, the Holy Spirit guided the Apostles in the transmission of the word and life of Jesus, inspiring both their oral preaching and writings, as well as the writing of the Gospels, as we have seen in the catechesis on the Holy Spirit and Revelation.

But it is still He who gives the readers of Scripture the help to understand the divine meaning included in the text of which He Himself is the inspirer and main author: He alone can make known "the depths of God" (1 Cor 2:10), as they are contained in the sacred text; He who was sent to instruct the disciples on the teachings of their Master (cf. Jn 16:13).

4. Of this intimate teaching of the Holy Spirit the Apostles themselves, the first transmitters of the word of Christ, speak to us. St. John writes: "Now you have the anointing received from the Holy One (Christ) and you are all taught. I have not written to you because you do not know the truth, but because you know it and because no lie comes from the truth" (1 John 2: 20-21). According to the Church Fathers and the majority of modern exegetes, this "anointing" (chrisma) designates the Holy Spirit. Indeed, St John states that those who live according to the Spirit have no need of other teachers: "As for you," he writes, "the anointing you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; but just as His anointing teaches you all things, and is true and does not lie, so stand firm in Him, as He teaches you" (1 John 2: 27).

The Apostle Paul also speaks of an understanding according to the Spirit, which is not the result of human wisdom, but of divine illumination: "The natural man (psychicòs) does not understand the things of the Spirit of God; they are foolishness to him, and he is not able to understand them, because he can judge of them only by the Spirit. The spiritual man (pneumaticòs), on the other hand, judges everything, without being able to be judged by anyone" (1 Cor 2:14-15). 

Therefore Christians, having received the Holy Spirit, Christ's anointing, possess within themselves a source of knowledge of the truth, and the Holy Spirit is the sovereign Master who enlightens and guides them.

5. If they are docile and faithful to his divine teaching, the Holy Spirit preserves them from error, making them victorious in the constant conflict between the "spirit of truth" and the "spirit of error" (cf. 1 Jn 4:6). The spirit of error, which does not recognise Christ (cf. 1 Jn 4:3), is spread by the "false prophets", ever present in the world, even in the midst of the Christian people, with an action that is now uncovered and even clamorous, now insidious and creeping. Like Satan, they too sometimes disguise themselves as "angels of light" (cf. 2 Cor 11:14) and present themselves with apparent charisms of prophetic and apocalyptic inspiration. This was already the case in apostolic times. That is why St John warns: "Do not put faith in every inspiration, but test the inspirations, to see if they really come from God, for many false prophets have appeared in the world" (1 John 4:1). The Holy Spirit, as the Second Vatican Council recalled (cf. Lumen gentium, 12), protects the Christian from error by making him discern what is genuine from what is spurious. On the part of the Christian, it will always take good criteria of discernment regarding the things he hears or reads in matters of religion, Holy Scripture, manifestations of the supernatural, etc. Such criteria are conformity to the Gospel, because the Holy Spirit cannot but "take from Christ"; harmony with the teaching of the Church, founded and sent by Christ to preach its truth; the uprightness of the life of the speaker or writer; the fruits of holiness resulting from what is presented or proposed.

6. The Holy Spirit teaches the Christian the truth as the principle of life. It shows the concrete application of Jesus' words in one's life. It makes one discover the relevance of the Gospel and its value for all human situations. It adapts the understanding of the truth to every circumstance, so that this truth does not remain merely abstract and speculative, and frees the Christian from the dangers of duplicity and hypocrisy.

This is why the Holy Spirit enlightens each one personally, to guide him in his behaviour, showing him the way to follow, opening up at least some glimmer of the Father's plan for his life. This is the great grace of light that St Paul asked for the Colossians: "spiritual intelligence", capable of making them understand the divine will. Indeed, he assured them: "We do not cease to pray for you and to ask that you have a full knowledge of his (God's) will with all wisdom and spiritual intelligence, that you may conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work . . ." (Col 1:9-10). This grace of light is necessary for all of us, to know God's will for us well and to be able to live our personal vocation fully.

There is never a shortage of problems, which sometimes seem insoluble. But the Holy Spirit comes to the aid of difficulties and enlightens. He can reveal the divine solution, as at the Annunciation for the problem of reconciling motherhood with the desire to preserve virginity. Even when it is not a unique mystery such as that of Mary's intervention in the Incarnation of the Word, it can be said that the Holy Spirit possesses an infinite inventiveness, proper to the divine mind, which knows how to unravel the knots of even the most complex and impenetrable human affairs.

7. All this is granted and worked in the soul by the Holy Spirit through his gifts, thanks to which it is possible to practise good discernment not according to the criteria of human wisdom, which is foolishness before God, but of divine wisdom, which may seem foolishness in the eyes of men (cf. 1 Cor 1:18, 25). In reality, only the Spirit "searches all things, even the depths of God" (1 Cor 2:10-11). And if there is opposition between the spirit of the world and the Spirit of God, Paul reminds Christians: "We have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God to know all things that God has given us" (1 Cor 2:12). Unlike the "natural man", the "spiritual man" (pneumaticòs) is sincerely open to the Holy Spirit, docile and faithful to his inspirations (cf. 1 Cor 2:14-16). Therefore he habitually has the capacity for right judgement under the guidance of divine wisdom.

8. A sign of real contact with the Holy Spirit in discernment is and always will be adherence to revealed truth as proposed by the Magisterium of the Church. The interior Master does not inspire dissension, disobedience, or even unjustified resistance to the pastors and teachers established by Him in the Church (cf. Acts 20:29). It is the authority of the Church, as the Council says in the constitution Lumen gentium, "not to quench the Spirit, but to examine everything and hold fast to what is good (cf. 1 Thess 5:12, 19-21)" (Lumen gentium, 12). This is the line of ecclesial and pastoral wisdom that also comes from the Holy Spirit.

[Pope John Paul II, General Audience 24 April 1991]

Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (year A)  [18 January 2026]

 

May God bless us and may the Virgin protect us. Today begins the week of prayer for Christian unity (18-25 January) and Ordinary Time resumes.

 

First Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah (49:3-6)

This passage belongs to a group of four texts from the prophet Isaiah, called the "Songs of the Servant". They date back to the dramatic period of the Babylonian Exile (6th century BC) and are addressed to a discouraged people who wonder if God has forgotten them. The prophet, however, announces a decisive word: Israel is still God's servant. The Covenant is not broken; God has not only not abandoned his people, but entrusts them with an even greater mission. In this song, the Servant is not a particular individual, but the people of Israel as a whole, as the text clearly states: 'You are my servant, Israel'. Its vocation is equally clear: to manifest the glory of God. This glory is not abstract, but concrete: it is God's work of salvation, identified here with the return from exile. The liberation of the people will be the visible proof that God is the saviour. Thus, those who have been saved become witnesses of salvation before the world. In the ancient mindset, the defeat and deportation of a people could seem like the failure of their God; liberation, on the other hand, will manifest to the pagan peoples the superiority of the God of Israel. Being a "servant" therefore means, on the one hand, the certainty of God's support and, on the other, a mission: to continue to believe in salvation and to bear witness to it, so that other peoples may also recognise God as saviour. This explains the final announcement: 'I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth'. God's plan concerns not only Israel but all humanity. Here, the messianic expectation evolves profoundly: the Messiah is no longer an individual king but a collective subject, the people of Israel, who do not exercise political power but carry out a mission of service. One difficulty remains: if the Servant is Israel, how can he "gather Israel"? Isaiah is actually addressing the "Remnant," the small group of faithful who did not lose their faith during the exile. This Remnant has the task of bringing the people back to God, that is, of converting them. But this is only the first stage: the rise of Israel becomes the initial sign of the plan of universal salvation. Finally, the prophet insists on the divine origin of this message: it is not the fruit of human invention, but the word of the Lord. In the midst of discouragement, a confession of humble and profound trust resounds: the Servant's strength is not in himself, but in God.

decisive role of the faithful Remnant. +The foundation of everything: strength comes from God alone, not from man.

 

*Responsorial Psalm (39/40) 

The statement in Psalm 39/40 – "sacrifice  and offering  you do not desire" is surprising, because the psalms were sung in the temple itself, while sacrifices were being offered. In reality, the meaning is clear: what matters to God is not the ritual itself, but the attitude of the heart that it expresses. This is why the psalmist can say: "You have opened my ears"... then I said: "Here I am, I am coming". The whole Bible recounts a long educational journey in understanding sacrifice, which goes hand in hand with the revelation of the true face of God. To sacrifice means "to make sacred", to enter into communion with God; but the way of doing so changes as we understand who God really is. Israel did not invent sacrifice: it was a common practice among the peoples of the Near East. However, from the beginning, biblical faith introduces a decisive difference: human sacrifices are absolutely forbidden. God is the God of life, and cannot ask for death in order to draw closer to Him. Even the story of Abraham and Isaac shows that 'sacrificing' does not mean killing, but offering. Over the centuries, a true conversion of sacrifice took place, concerning first and foremost its meaning. If God is thought of as a being to be appeased or bought, sacrifice becomes a magical gesture. If, on the other hand, God is recognised as the one who loves first and gives freely, then sacrifice becomes a response of love and gratitude, a sign of the Covenant and not a commodity to be exchanged. Biblical pedagogy thus leads from the logic of 'giving in order to receive' to the logic of grace: everything is a gift, and man is called to respond with the 'sacrifice of the lips', that is, with thanksgiving. The substance of sacrifice also changes: the prophets teach that the true sacrifice pleasing to God is to give life, not to give death. As Hosea says (6:6): 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice'. The ultimate ideal is the service of our brothers and sisters, expressed in the Songs of the Servant of Isaiah: a life given so that others may live. Psalm 39/40 summarises this journey: God opens man's ear to enter into a dialogue of love; in the New Covenant, sacrifice becomes totally spiritual: 'Behold, I come'.

 

*Second Reading from the First Letter of Saint Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians (1:1-3)

This text celebrates the dignity of those of us who are baptised. It is chosen for this Sunday, which marks the return to ordinary time in the liturgy: ordinary does not mean trivial, but simply in the order of the year. Every Sunday we celebrate extraordinary events: here St Paul reminds us of the greatness of our title as Christians. According to Paul, we are those who invoke the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, recognising him as God. To say 'Lord' means that Jesus is the centre of our life, of history and of the world. This is why Paul calls us 'holy people': being holy does not mean being perfect, but belonging to God. Baptism consecrates us to Him, and the community deserves to be honoured in the Eucharistic celebration. If Jesus is not truly our Lord, we must question our faith. Paul emphasises the name of Christ several times in his letter, showing that our relationship with Him is the foundation of Christian life. All Christians are 'called': Paul himself did not choose to be an apostle, but was called by God on the road to Damascus. The word Church (ecclesia) means 'called', and every local community is called to reflect God's universal love. The mission is universal, but accessible: God does not ask us for extraordinary gestures, only willingness to do His will, as today's Psalm reminds us: 'Behold, I am coming'. The Eucharistic liturgy echoes Paul's words: in the gesture of peace and in the greeting 'The Lord be with you', we are immersed in the grace and peace of Christ. This text is particularly suitable for the week of prayer for Christian unity: it reminds us of what unites Christians throughout the world, called to be seeds of a new humanity, which one day will be reunited in grace and peace around Jesus Christ. The historical context of this letter: Corinth was a city of great wealth and poverty, a crossroads between the Adriatic and the Aegean, with a mixed population and marked social contrasts. The Christian community founded by Paul reflected these differences. The letter to the Corinthians that we read today is probably the first to have come down to us, written around 55-56 AD, in response to specific questions from the community.

 

From the Gospel according to John (1:29-34)

John the Baptist solemnly proclaims: "I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God." At that time, the title "Son of God" was synonymous with Messiah: to recognise this in Jesus meant to announce the Messiah awaited by Israel. Every king of Jerusalem received the anointing and the title of Son of God as a sign that the Spirit was guiding him; but unlike previous kings, Jesus is the one on whom the Spirit 'sleeps' permanently, indicating that his entire mission will be led by the Holy Spirit. John the Baptist also describes Jesus as 'the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world'. The figure of the lamb evokes three images: the Paschal Lamb, a sign of liberation; Isaiah's Suffering Servant, innocent and bearing the sins of others; the lamb offered by God, as in Abraham's trial with Isaac. Jesus is therefore the Messiah, the liberator of humanity, but he does not immediately eliminate sin: he offers us the possibility of freeing ourselves from it by living guided by the Spirit, with love, generosity and forgiveness. Salvation is not for one man alone, but for all believers, the 'Body of Christ'. The new humanity begins in Jesus, through his obedience and his full communion with God, offering a model of new life.

*Origen, in his commentary on the Gospel of John, writes: 'Thus John calls Jesus the Lamb of God: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world." With these words, John declares that Christ, the one who was before him, is the one who takes away the sins of the world.

+Giovanni D'Ercole

Baptism of the Lord (year A) [11 January 2026]

May God bless us and may the Virgin protect us! Today marks the end of the Christmas season, as we give thanks to Providence for having been able to celebrate this Mystery of Light and Peace in an atmosphere of serenity.

 

*First Reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah (42:1-4, 6-7)

The Servant of the Lord and his universal mission. This text from Isaiah is rich and complex, but it can be divided into two main parts. In both parts, it is God who speaks, but in two different ways: in the first part, he speaks of his Servant, and in the second, he addresses him directly. First part: God describes the Servant as the bearer of justice and universal law: 'He will bring justice to the nations... he will not fail or be discouraged until he has established justice on earth; he will not falter until he has established it on earth'. 'I have called you for justice': here judgement does not mean condemnation, but salvation and liberation. The Servant will act with gentleness and respect for the fragile, he will not crush the weak or extinguish those at risk. His mission concerns all humanity, because God desires that even the distant islands aspire to his justice, to his salvation. In all this, the Servant is sustained by the Spirit of God: 'Behold my Servant, whom I uphold... I have placed my Spirit upon him'. Part Two: God clarifies the Servant's mission: "to open the eyes of the blind and bring prisoners out of the dungeon... those who dwell in darkness." Here, judgement becomes total liberation, a passage from darkness to light. The mission is universal: the Servant is the light of the nations, and God continues to sustain him: "I, the Lord, have called you... and taken you by the hand." Who is this Servant? Isaiah does not specify, because it was clear to his contemporaries: the Servant is the people of Israel, called to be the privileged instrument of salvation. Messianism in Isaiah is not individual but collective: the small faithful nucleus becomes light and guidance for the whole world. Jesus, at his baptism in the Jordan, takes the lead of this servant-people and fulfils the mission announced by the prophets. The key message is this: God's judgement is not condemnation but liberation and universal salvation. God supports the Servant and entrusts him with the task of bringing light and justice to all nations. God's faithfulness and creative power are the guarantee of our hope, even in the most difficult moments.

*Important elements: +Text divided into two parts: God speaks about the Servant and directly to the Servant. +Judgement of the Servant = salvation and liberation, not condemnation and universal mission: light for the nations, opening the eyes of the blind, liberation of prisoners. +Gentleness and care for the fragile: 'he will not extinguish a dimly burning wick'. +Support of the Spirit of God on the Servant understood as the people of Israel, collective messianism. +Jesus at his baptism takes on the leadership of the servant-people. +Hope based on God's faithfulness and creative power.

 

 *Responsorial Psalm (28/29)

 To understand this psalm, one must imagine the force of a violent storm, shaking the country from Lebanon and Hermon to the desert of Qadesh. The psalm describes the voice of the Lord as powerful, thunderous, lightning-like, capable of breaking cedars and frightening the desert. This voice recalls the revelation at Sinai, when God made his voice heard to Moses amid fire and lightning, and every word of the Law appeared as flashes of fire. The name of God (YHWH, the Lord) is repeated several times, emphasising God's living presence and his saving action. The repetition of 'voice of the Lord' recalls the creative Word, as in the first chapter of the book of Genesis: the Word of God is effective, while idols are powerless. The psalm insists on God's sovereignty: God is the only legitimate king, worthy of glory and worship, and soon everyone – people and false powers – will recognise his dominion. God's powerful voice also evokes victory over the waters and chaos, as in the time of the flood or the liberation from Egypt, demonstrating his saving and liberating power. The central theme is the glory of God, repeated several times, and the anticipation of a time when all humanity will recognise his kingship. The psalm is linked to the feast of the Baptism of Christ, when the Kingdom of Heaven draws near through Jesus: God is finally recognised as king and his salvation is announced to all.

*Important elements: +Powerful image of the storm: voice of the Lord, lightning, broken cedars and Reference to Sinai: Word of God as fire, Law and covenant. +Repetition of God's name: YHWH, sign of presence and power. +Creative Word: as in Genesis, the Word is effective, idols are powerless. +Universal sovereignty of God: the only legitimate king, worthy of glory. +Victory over the waters and chaos: flood, exodus from Egypt. +Glory of God: central theme, anticipation of his universal recognition. +Connection to the baptism of Christ: manifestation of the Kingdom of Heaven and universal salvation

 

*Second Reading from the Acts of the Apostles (10:34-38)

In this account from Acts 10, we witness a truly revolutionary moment: Peter, guided by the Holy Spirit, breaks all the social and religious rules of his time and crosses the threshold of the house of a pagan, the Roman centurion Cornelius. Cornelius is a pious man who fears God, esteemed by the Jews for his almsgiving and justice, but he is not circumcised. He receives a vision: an angel invites him to send for Peter in Joppa, where he is staying with Simon the tanner. At the same time, Peter receives a vision from heaven: a large sheet filled with animals orders him to eat, but he refuses because, according to the Law, they are unclean. A voice answers him: What God has declared clean, you must not declare unclean. This prepares him to understand that no man is unclean in God's eyes and that faith is no longer limited by nationality or ritual laws. When Cornelius's messengers arrive, the Holy Spirit confirms to Peter: Follow them without hesitation, for it is I who send them. Peter goes down, welcomes them, and sets out for Caesarea with some Christians, aware of the importance of the meeting. The arrival at Cornelius' house is significant: Peter explains to everyone that God is impartial and welcomes anyone who fears him and does good, regardless of nationality. The Holy Spirit falls on all those present, even on the pagans, showing that the gift of the Spirit is no longer reserved for Jews alone. Peter concludes that these pagans must also be baptised, because they have received the Holy Spirit just like the Jewish believers. This episode fulfils what Jesus had promised: the apostles would be witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8). The election of Israel is not denied, but salvation in Christ is now open to all nations.

*Important elements: +Missionary revolution: Peter crosses the threshold of a pagan's house by the will of the Holy Spirit. Cornelius, a devout pagan who fears God, is an example of spiritual openness. +Peter's vision: nothing is unclean to God, universal openness of faith, and the Holy Spirit guides Peter, confirming the call of the pagans. +Reception and baptism: even pagans receive the Spirit and the sacrament of water. +Universality of the Gospel: fulfilment of the mission to the ends of the earth. +Balance: election of Israel confirmed, but salvation accessible to all.

 

*From the Gospel according to Matthew (3:13-17)

The baptism of Jesus marks his first public appearance: until then, for many, he was just Jesus of Nazareth. Matthew presents him simply as Jesus, who comes from Galilee and goes to John to be baptised in the Jordan. This gesture becomes the first revelation of his true role as Messiah in the eyes of all. The main images in this text are: The march to the Jordan: Jesus travels through Galilee to the banks of the river, as do the other Jews who go to John for the baptism of conversion. The gesture of John the Baptist: initially surprised and hesitant, John recognises in Jesus the one who is greater than himself and who will baptise in the Holy Spirit and fire. The heavens opening and the dove: the open heavens symbolise the fulfilment of Israel's expectations; the dove represents the Holy Spirit descending on Jesus, recalling the divine presence over Creation and the promised Messiah. The main words are: John expresses his amazement: ' I need to be baptised by you!' recognising the greatness of Jesus. Jesus replies: Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfil all righteousness, that is, to conform fully to God's plan. This shows Jesus' humility and his complete solidarity with humanity. The voice of the Father from heaven: 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased' . With this phrase, Jesus is recognised as Messiah-King and Messiah-Servant, fulfilling the prophecies of Isaiah and the Davidic promise: God declares his love and his saving mission upon him. And these are the theological and spiritual meanings: Jesus fully enters into the human condition, even though he is without sin, taking the place of sinners. Baptism represents a new creation: the waters of the Jordan symbolise purification and the journey towards the spiritual Promised Land, guided by the Spirit. The scene reveals the Trinity: the Father speaks, the Son is baptised, the Spirit descends like a dove. Baptism is the beginning of the building of the Body of Christ: all those who participate in baptism are integrated into this saving mission.

 

St. Gregory of Nazianzus writes: "Christ is baptised not to be purified, but to purify the waters" (Oratio 39, In Sancta Lumina).

*Important elements: +First public manifestation of Jesus: revelation of the Messiah. +Solidarity with humanity: Jesus places himself among sinners to fulfil God's justice. +Role of John the Baptist: recognises the Messiah and his baptism in the Spirit and fire. +Presence of the Holy Spirit: symbol of the dove, confirms the mission and the new creation and Voice of the Father: confirms the divine sonship and love for Jesus. +Messiah-King and Messiah-Servant: fulfilment of Isaiah's prophecies and the Davidic promise. +New creation and journey towards the spiritual Promised Land: baptism as entry into the Body of Christ. +Revelation of the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit present in Baptism. +Universality of the message: Baptism opens the way to salvation for all humanity.

+ Giovanni D'Ercole