Trumpets, bass drums and reciters, or perfect instruments

(Mt 6:1-6.16-18)

External wiles have no wisdom: they become a boomerang.

Whoever tries to shine obscures his own light. Anyone who cares about the opinion of the crowds will be a prisoner of it.

Life in the Spirit detaches itself from the practice of (accidental) things to show in order to beg for recognition.

Artificial alms:

Even show men who are starting to lack inspiration like to be considered benefactors of humanity, but their real goal is to go on stage - not the spread of a spirit of disinterest.

They intend to be recognized and acclaimed again - for this they use an absolutely flashy, exhibitionist and tacky way.

Reached the individualistic goal, despite the superficial altruism they would leave everything as it was.

It would be quite different if the left didn’t know what the right does, that is, if every gesture flourished spontaneously and in hiding rather than in overload - but let alone what a pleasure, not to let it be known.

The same orientation is valid for Prayer, much better if inapparent. The inner life is not unnatural acting.

In the Temple the sacrifices were accompanied by public formulas. To this effect, the synagogues were also considered an extension of the Temple. And at the appointed hours, prayer was also on the street.

Those who were able to recite long litanies by heart could thus flaunt their virtue and be admired.

But Dialogue with God is not performance, but essential Listening: root of renewal; principle of criteria and action.

Prayer is intimate perception and profound reading of things. Understanding and empathy that restore us to the meaning of personal life - critical moment of our growth and love for brothers.

The soul dominated by noise doesn’t grasp the guidance of the innate Friend, nor its own primary quality.

Open prayer establishes people in this intimate, secret, hidden atmosphere, which in the Spirit is intertwined with the deepest and most ancestral fibers.

Again, personal prayer is creative. It not only cancels the idea that we have made of life, pains, goals, relationships, defeats, judgments...

[The bitterness doesn’t seem to make life fly - but they invite to move our eyes].

And attentive Listening transmits a new Reading to us; pushes out of boundaries. Puts in contact with other energies and virtues.

A higher level of humanity ‘comes’ to us only in the amazement of this different advice, of an unexpected intuition, of a reality that displaces.

Principle of Liberation that lets our own deep sides meet, and reminds them, making us travel through the akin territory - which we do not yet know.

The woman and the man who gather in prayer are torn from the homologation of interpretative codes, and from the disease of the society of appearances - seated in the opinions and in the time of the minimal.

Finally the (forcibly) thoughtful and undone aspect:

Perhaps even today some use to pose in an extravagant way, showing themselves off as "alternative". Here and there, it seems to be some regurgitation of artificial asceticism.

But in this way believers only walk the way of renunciations in a manner [those that God doesn’t ask for]. And to the exact opposite, making the vital wave hysterical.

Instead, we are called to be in company: with ourselves and brothers. Even renunciation is for harmonious coexistence, without forcing that dissociate the main lines of the personality.

Here too the discernment of spirits becomes a propitious opportunity to create space for the humanizing vocation, and set the time of ambiguous noise in background.

[Ash Wednesday, March 5, 2025]

The faithless lower self, the thespian

Mt 6:1-6.16-18 (.19-23)

"Beware of practising your righteousness before men in order to be admired by them" (Mt 6:1). Jesus, in today's Gospel, reinterprets the three fundamental works of piety in the Mosaic Law. Almsgiving, prayer and fasting characterise the law-abiding Jew. In the course of time, these prescriptions had been marred by the rust of outward formalism, or had even mutated into a sign of superiority. Jesus highlights a common temptation in these three works of piety. When one does something good, almost instinctively the desire arises to be esteemed and admired for the good deed, that is, to have satisfaction. And this, on the one hand, encloses one in oneself, on the other hand, takes one out of oneself, because one lives projected towards what others think of us and admire in us. In re-proposing these prescriptions, the Lord Jesus does not ask for a formal respect to a law that is foreign to man, imposed by a strict legislator as a heavy burden, but invites us to rediscover these three works of piety by living them in a deeper way, not out of self-love, but out of love for God, as means on the path of conversion to Him. Almsgiving, prayer and fasting: this is the path of the divine pedagogy that accompanies us, not only in Lent, towards the encounter with the Risen Lord; a path to be travelled without ostentation, in the certainty that the heavenly Father knows how to read and see even in the secret of our hearts".

[Pope Benedict, homily 9 March 2011].

"But when you pray, enter into your room and shut your door [Is 26:20; 2 Kings 4:33] pray to your Father who is in secret" (Mt 6:6).

The Tao says: "He who attempts to shine, obscures his own Light" and "If you concern yourself with people's opinions, you will be their prisoner".

The disciples are called to a higher righteousness of intention (perfection) than the scribes and Pharisees - who performed according to appearance, public opinion, and retribution.

Jesus does not question religious practices per se, but their purpose and manner.

Aim: [among the still Judaizing veterans, from his communities in Galilee and Syria] to expose the insistents of outward fulfilment.

For shrewdness and the recitation of holiness succeed in fooling the imaginations of many... at least for a time.

But the wiles we are adept at concocting to beg for recognition do not possess the pace of Wisdom.

Fasting, penance and prayer are fundamental works, yet utterly worthless and meaningless if they are not made alive by charity and accompanied by justice.

Life in the Spirit is detached from the practice of 'spiritual' things - to show off... to deceive even oneself.

Finally, the (all incidental) artifice of holy duplicity becomes vague; sooner or later a boomerang.

At that time, the commitment to the Alms was held in high regard, but it had become general practice to announce the most important initiatives - in the synagogue and even in the streets.

For Jesus, publicity affects what belongs to us deeply [let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing] and is honourable.

Even 'devoutly' tightrope walkers, or career politicians who begin to lack the cue, like to make themselves out to be benefactors of humanity. But their real goal is to go on stage - not the spreading of a spirit of selflessness.

They intend to be recognised and acclaimed again - for this they use an absolutely showy, exhibitionist and gaudy manner.

Having reached their true goal of opportunism and individualism, despite their altruistic façade they would drop everything there.

Any convinced fulfilment would have to flourish spontaneously and hidden, instead of in overload - but just imagine what fun it would be, not to let it be known [...].

In reality, renouncing façade propaganda to promote contrary dimensions would extinguish intimate lacerations and conflicts; hidden energies would be released. A more fruitful awareness would be broadened.

The same orientation applies to Prayer, much better if inapparent. The inner life is not unnatural recitation.

Children's prayer is not reduced to a repetition of dirges, nor is it a request for favours; neither is it an exhibitionist and affected catwalk, to be considered pious, 'proper' and 'proper' people.

In the Temple, sacrifices were accompanied by public formulas. To this effect, even the synagogues were considered an extension of the Temple. And at the appointed times, prayers were also said in the streets.

Those who were able to recite long litanies from memory could thus flaunt their virtue and be admired.

But Dialogue with God is not performance, it is essential Listening: the root of renewal; distinguishing criteria and action. 

Understanding and empathy, intimate perception and profound intelligence of things restore us to the meaning of personal life - the discriminator of our growth and love for our brothers and sisters.

Why do we thirst for this knowledge, which is only grasped in its exclusive purity in a space of solitude?

Because the soul - overwhelmed with fracas - would not otherwise grasp the guidance of the innate Friend, nor its own essential quality.

There are inescapable questions, beyond the reach of our lower self, i.e. our cerebral or practical activities.

What is our Way? How do we accommodate that which has specific weight and character?

It is not worth solving problems hastily, at all costs, in a conformist or exaggerated manner.

Of course, we do not always get along with God who also wants us to flourish. What is the antidote?

Open prayer establishes people in this intimate, secret, hidden atmosphere that radically belongs to us,

In the Spirit it intertwines with the deepest, ancestral fibres - and gradually brings out the hidden path and destiny.

Personal prayer is creative.

It not only erases our idea of life, of sorrows, of goals, of relationships, of defeats, of judgements...

(Bitterness does not seem to make life fly by - but it does invite the eye to shift).

And Attention Listening gives us a new Reading; it brings us out of the confines. It puts us in touch with other energies and virtues.

A higher level of humanity comes to us only in the amazement of such different advice, of unexpected intuition; of a reality that disorients.

Principle of Liberation that allows us to encounter our own deepest sides, and reminds us of them, leading us into the kindred territory - that we do not yet know.

We must understand deeper than the action-reaction mechanisms allow, filled with distracted tension - absent from our own Calling by Name, which would give us enthusiasm.

Not infrequently, the soul itself - which detests certain outcomes that the society [also ecclesiastical] outside would like to let us live with - revolts, attacks and leads to the failure of all too normal goals.

Even the discomforts come from the simple fact that we are not on the Path of deep attunements: 'point' that bends its contractions towards us, for having chosen the broad but artificial path of compromises.

There are fundamental inclinations for everyone: it would be constructive to yield to them - and to allow ourselves to be guided.

Our complete existence is not a path mapped out by 'where we should go'.

It is appropriate not to be stubborn, and to learn to accommodate the activity of metamorphosis that wants to live; to express itself in us - to guide us and sometimes deviate from 'how we should be'.

The woman and man who gather in prayer are torn from the homologation of interpretative codes, and from the disease of the society of appearance - all sitting in the opinions and time of the minimal.

The same viewpoint for the theme of Fasting: a practice considered a manifestation of conversion to God.

But with surprise we note that Jesus' call applies especially to the religious with a forced pensive and undone air.

Not a few devotees of all creeds use to posture extravagantly - a tawdry expression of their emotional problems.

Indeed, here and there, even in youthful circles, there seems to be some regurgitation of contrived asceticism.

But in this way, believers only tread the path of mannered renunciations [those that God does not ask for], artificial ones. And for the exact opposite, making the life-wave hysterical.

Instead, we are called to be in company: with ourselves and with our brothers. Even renunciation is for the sake of harmonious coexistence, without forcing one's personality lines apart.

Here too, the discernment of spirits becomes a propitious occasion to create space for the humanising vocation.

Already the prophet Isaiah had distinguished between authentic and false fasting [Is 58], that is, not aimed at a life of justice and communion, hence at feasting and joy.

It is useless to undergo practices that do not change the heart.

Along the unspontaneous or trick-or-treat road (of plagiarism suffered or imposed of one's own mind on the soul) the lamb's bleating will sooner or later become a roaring or braying. A matter of time.

In the discernment of the spirits, it is the attitude that reveals the fiction of those who really only think only of power (in greed) and great things, precisely those of megalomaniac superiors, or the elect.

All this using poor Jesus and the little ones, or any creed whatsoever, as screens - just the opposite.

Almsgiving, fasting and prayer are attitudes, not knowable practices outside the unrepeatable language of God himself and his exceptional way of communicating with each person. 

Dialogue of an eccentric, precious, ineffable, fantastic, unsurpassed uniqueness, which does not allow itself to be attracted by window-dressing externality, nor by herd-like levelling, or crassness.

Putting the time of ambiguous hubbub in the background.

"Precisely because it is great, my Way seems to be like nothing [...] I do not dare to be first in the world, so I can be chief of the perfect instruments" [Tao Tê Ching, Lxvii].

To internalise and live the message:

Is your spiritual life a time of hubbub ... or a time and fertile ground, a propitious occasion to internalise, to encounter oneself, one's essence, and God in one's brothers and sisters?

Conclusion:

Where is the ecclesial heart?

(Mt 6:19-23)

"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be" (v.21). It is not an abused personal or institutional issue, insipid; from easy ironies.

To ignore it is to give it further breathing space, making it grow out of all proportion; making it even more out of time and difficult to read (and identify its treatment).

All this, however, must be done by putting precipitation in brackets... in the spirit of broader understanding. It is understood that in order to understand each other and activate different resources, each community must go through moments of the most severe verification.

Even for denominational churches with a wide and prestigious tradition, the awareness of being losers in this respect today is indispensable for finding oneself. Overcoming the stumbling block... forwards, 'outwards'.

We read in the Encyclical "Spe Salvi" No. 2 ("Faith is Hope"):

"Hope is a central word in biblical faith - to the point that in several passages the words 'faith' and 'hope' seem interchangeable [...].

How decisive it was for the awareness of the early Christians that they had received a reliable hope as a gift, is also shown where Christian existence is compared with life before faith or with the situation of the followers of other religions [...].

Their gods had proved questionable and no hope emanated from their contradictory myths. Despite the gods, they were 'godless' and consequently found themselves in a dark world, facing a dark future. 'In nihil ab nihilo quam cito recidimus' (In nothing from nothing how soon we fall back) says an epitaph from that era [...].

It appears as a distinctive element of Christians that they have a future: it is not that they know in detail what awaits them, but they know on the whole that their life does not end in a vacuum.

Only when the future is certain as a positive reality does the present also become liveable. So we can now say: Christianity was not just 'good news' - a communication of hitherto unknown content.

In our language we would say: the Christian message was not just 'informative', but 'performative'. This means: the gospel is not just a communication of things that can be known, but a communication that produces facts and changes lives.

The dark door of time, of the future, has been thrown wide open. He who has hope lives differently; he has been given a new life'.

In the form of the Relationship, everything opens up intense life - which integrates and overcomes self-love, the thirst for domination.

This liberates from the 'old', that is, it closes a cycle of paths already set - to make us return as newborns.

The Hope that has weight dismantles the inessential; it expels the noise of thoughts that are no longer in tune with our growth, and introduces dreamy energies, a wealth of possibilities.

There will be initial resistance, but development sets in.

Hope sacrifices ballasts and activates us according to the 'divine within'. It opens the door to a new, brighter and corresponding phase.

The treasures of the earth quickly blind; likewise they pass away: suddenly. The age of global crisis throws it in our faces.

Yet, it is a necessary pain.

We understand: the new paths are not traced by goods, nor by devout memories, but by the Void, which acts as a gap to common, taken for granted, reassuring easiness.

Religiosity good for all seasons gives way to the unprecedented life of Faith.

This is where the Art of discernment and pastoral work comes in: it should know how to introduce new competitive, dissimilar energies - cosmic and personal - that prepare unprecedented, open, gratuitous syntheses.

We know this, and yet in some circles (prestigious and already wealthy) the greed to possess under the guise of necessity does not allow them to see clearly.

It happens even to long-standing consecrated persons - it is not clear why such greedy, perfunctory duplicity.

Do we still want to emerge, raising more confusions? After all, we are dissatisfied with our mediocre choices.

At the beginning of the Vocation, we felt the need for a Relationship that would bring Meaning and a Centre to our feriality...

Then we deviated, perhaps out of dissatisfaction or for reasons of calculation and convenience - and the dullness of our robbing eyes prevailed. First here and there, gradually occupying the soul. 

Even in some leaders and prominent church circles, the basis of existence has become the many-zero bank account.

So... the vanity scene, the bag of commerce, the thrill of getting on the board, in various realities have supplanted real hearts - and eyes themselves.

As if to say: there is another experience of the 'divine', which is a doomsday: between one Psalm and another, better than Love becomes feeling powerful, secure and respected around.

(Do God and accumulation give different orders? No problem: let it be understood that one does it for 'his' Glory).

So much for the common good.

Not a few people are realising that counting is the most popular sport in various multi-pious companies, fantastically embellished with events and initiatives (to cover what it's worth).

And litmus test is precisely that mean-spirited scrutiny (vv.22-23) that behind dense scenes, holds back, even judges, and keeps a distance from others. With the gaze that closes the horizon of existence: the immediately at hand, and of circumstance, counts.

A seemingly superabundant belief - coincidentally without the prominence of Hope - is condemning us to the world's worst denatality rate.

The panorama of our devoutly empty villages and towns is discouraging. But one revels in one's own niche, and in the petty situation.

The important thing is that everything is epidermically adorned.

Under the peculiar bell tower that sets the pace for the usual things, many people keep 'their' (too much) to themselves, content to sacralise selfishness with the display of beautiful statues, customs, banners, colourful costumes and mannerisms.

Instead, according to the Gospels, in the attempts and paths of Faith that are not satisfied with an empty spirituality, life becomes bright with creative Love that flourishes, and puts everyone at ease.

Even the old can re-emerge in this new spirit. For there are other Heights. For what makes one intimate with God is nothing external.

The authentic Church aroused by clear 'visions' - without papier-mâché and duplicity - always reveals something portentous: fruitfulness from nullity, life from the outpouring of it, birth from apparent sterility.

A river of unimagined attunements will reconnect the reading of events and the action of believers to the work of the Spirit, without barriers.

For when normalised thinking gives way and settles down, the new advances.

The choice is now inexorable: between death and life; between longing and "darkness" (v.23), or Happiness.

The first step is to admit that one has to make a path.

To internalise and live the message:

Where is your Treasure? Is your heart and eye simple?

Have you ever experienced sides that others judge to be inconclusive (from a material point of view) and instead have prepared your new paths?

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

On this day, marked by the austere symbol of ashes, we enter the Season of Lent, beginning a spiritual journey that prepares us for celebrating worthily the Easter Mysteries. The blessed ashes imposed upon our forehead are a sign that reminds us of our condition as creatures, that invites us to repent, and to intensify our commitment to convert, to follow the Lord ever more closely.

Lent is a journey, it means accompanying Jesus who goes up to Jerusalem, the place of the fulfilment of his mystery of Passion, death and Resurrection; it reminds us that Christian life is a “way” to take, not so much consistent with a law to observe as with the very Person of Christ, to encounter, to welcome, to follow.

Indeed, Jesus says to us: “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Lk 9:23). In other words he tells us that in order to attain, with him, the light and joy of the Resurrection, the victory of life, of love and of goodness, we too must take up our daily cross, as a beautiful passage from the Imitation of Christ urges us: “Take up your cross, therefore, and follow Jesus, and you shall enter eternal life. He himself opened the way before you in carrying his Cross (Jn 19:17), and upon it he died for you, that you too, might take up your cross and long to die upon it. If you die with him, you shall also live with him, and if you share his suffering, you shall also share his glory” (Book 2, chapter 12, n. 2).

In Holy Mass of the First Sunday of Lent we shall pray: “Father, through our observance of Lent, sign of the sacrament of our conversion, help us to understand the meaning of your Son’s death and Resurrection, and teach us to reflect it in our lives” (Opening Prayer).

This is an invocation that we address to God because we know that he alone can convert our hearts. And it is above all in the Liturgy, by participating in the holy mysteries, that we are led to make this journey with the Lord; it means learning at the school of Jesus, reviewing the events that brought salvation to us but not as a mere commemoration, a remembrance of past events. In the liturgical actions Christ makes himself present through the power of the Holy Spirit and these saving events become real.

There is a keyword that recurs frequently in the Liturgy to indicate this: the word “today”; and it should be understood in its original and practical, rather than metaphorical, sense. Today God reveals his law and we are granted to choose today between good and evil, between life and death (cf. Dt 30:19). Today “the Kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the Gospel” (Mk 1:15). Today Christ died on Calvary and rose from the dead; he ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father; today the Holy Spirit is given to us; today is a favourable time.

Taking part in the Liturgy thus means immersing our life in the mystery of Christ, in his enduring presence so as to follow a path on which we enter his death and Resurrection in order to have life. The Sundays of Lent, in this liturgical year of Cycle A in a quite particular way, introduce us to the experience of a baptismal journey, almost as if we were retracing the path of the catechumens, of those who are preparing to receive Baptism, in order to rekindle this gift within us and to ensure that our life may recover a sense of the demands and commitments of this sacrament which is at the root of our Christian life.

In the Message for this Lent I wished to recall the particular connection that binds Baptism to the Season of Lent. The Church has always associated the Easter Vigil with the celebration of Baptism, step by step. In it is brought about that great mystery through which man, dead to sin, is enabled to share in new life in the Risen Christ and receives the Spirit of God who raised Jesus from the dead (cf. Rom 8:11).

The Readings we shall listen to on the coming Sundays and to which I ask you to pay special attention are taken up precisely by the ancient tradition which accompanied catechumens in the discovery of Baptism. These Readings are the great proclamation of what God brings about in this sacrament, a wonderful baptismal catechesis addressed to each one of us.

The First Sunday of Lent, known as the “Sunday of the Temptation” because it presents Jesus’ temptations in the wilderness, invites us to renew our definitive adherence to God and, in order to remain faithful to him, to face courageously the struggle that awaits us.

Over and over again we need determination, resistance to evil, we need to follow Jesus. On this Sunday, after hearing the testimony of the godparents and catechists, the Church celebrates the election of those who are admitted to the Easter sacraments.

The Second Sunday is called “of Abraham and of the Transfiguration”. Baptism is the sacrament of faith and of divine sonship; like Abraham, Father of believers, we too are asked to set out, to depart from our land, to give up the security we have created for ourselves in order to place our trust in God; the destination is glimpsed in the Transfiguration of Christ, the beloved Son, in whom we too become “sons of God”.

On the following Sundays, Baptism is presented in images of water, light and life. The Third Sunday makes us meet the Samaritan woman (cf. Jn 4:5-42). Like Israel in the Exodus, in Baptism we too have received the water that saves; Jesus, as the Samaritan woman says, has living water that quenches all thirst; and this water is the Spirit himself. On this Sunday the Church celebrates the First Scrutiny of the catechumens and during the week presents to them the Creed: the profession of faith.

The Fourth Sunday makes us reflect on the experience of the “man blind from birth” (cf. Jn 9:1-41). In Baptism, we are set free from the shadow of evil and receive Christ’s light in order to live as children of light. We too must learn to see in Christ’s Face God’s presence, hence light. The Second Scrutiny on the catechumen’s journey is celebrated.

Lastly, the Fifth Sunday presents to us the raising of Lazarus (cf. Jn 11:1-45). In Baptism we passed from death to life and were enabled to please God, to make the former person die so as to live by the Spirit of the Risen One. The Third Scrutiny for the catechumens is celebrated and during the week the Lord’s Prayer is presented to them.

In the Church’s tradition, this journey we are asked to take in Lent is marked by certain practices: fasting, almsgiving and prayer. Fasting means abstinence from food but includes other forms of privation for a more modest life. However, all this is not yet the full reality of fasting: it is an outer sign of an inner reality, of our commitment, with God’s help, to abstain from evil and to live by the Gospel. Those who are unable to nourish themselves with the word of God do not fast properly.

In the Christian tradition fasting is closely linked to almsgiving. St Leo the Great taught in one of his Discourses on Lent: “All that each Christian is bound to do in every season he must now do with greater solicitude and devotion in order to fulfil the apostolic prescription of Lenten fasting consistently, not only in abstinence from food but also and above all from sin. Furthermore, with this holy fasting which is only right, no work may be more fruitfully associated than almsgiving which, under the one name of ‘mercy’, embraces many good works. The field of works of mercy is immense. It is not only the rich and the well-off who can benefit others with almsgiving, but also those of modest means and even the poor. Thus, although their futures differ, all may be the same in the soul’s sentiments of piety” (Sermon VI on Lent, 2: PL 54, 286).

St Gregory the Great recalled in his Pastoral Rule that fasting is sanctified by the virtues that go with it, especially by charity, by every act of generosity, giving to the poor and needy the equivalent of something we ourselves have given up (cf. 19, 10-11). Lent, moreover, is a privileged period for prayer. St Augustine said that fasting and almsgiving are “the two wings of prayer” which enable it to gain momentum and more easily reach even to God.

He said: “In this way our prayers, made in humility and charity, in fasting and almsgiving, in temperance and in the forgiveness of offences, giving good things and not returning those that are bad, keeping away from evil and doing good, seek peace and achieve it. On the wings of these virtues our prayers fly safely and are more easily carried to Heaven, where Christ our Peace has preceded us” (Sermon 206, 3 on Lent: PL 38, 1042).

The Church knows that because of our weakness it is difficult to create silence in order to come before God and to acquire an awareness of our condition as creatures who depend on him, as sinners in need of his love. It is for this reason that in Lent she asks us to pray more faithfully, more intensely, and to prolong our meditation on the word of God.

St John Chrysostom urged: “Embellish your house with modesty and humility with the practice of prayer. Make your dwelling place shine with the light of justice; adorn its walls with good works, like a lustre of pure gold, and replace walls and precious stones with faith and supernatural magnanimity, putting prayer above all other things, high up in the gables, to give the whole complex decorum.

“You will thus prepare a worthy dwelling place for the Lord, you will welcome him in a splendid palace. He will grant you to transform your soul into a temple of his presence” (Homily 6 on Prayer: PG 64, 466).

Dear friends, on this Lenten journey let us be careful to accept Christ’s invitation to follow him more decisively and consistently, renewing the grace and commitments of our Baptism, to cast off the former person within us and put on Christ, in order to arrive at Easter renewed and able to say, with St Paul: “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20). I wish you all a good Lenten journey! Thank you!

[Pope Benedict, General Audience 9 March 2011]

"Sound the horn, proclaim a solemn fast" (Gl 2:15), says the prophet in the First Reading. Lent opens with a shrill sound, that of a horn that does not caress the ears, but proclaims a fast. It is a loud sound, meant to slow down our lives that are always running, but often do not know where. It is a call to stop - a "stop!" -, to go to the essentials, to fast from the superfluous that distracts. It is an alarm clock for the soul.

The sound of this wake-up call is accompanied by the message that the Lord delivers through the mouth of the prophet, a short and heartfelt message: 'Return to me' (v. 12). Return. If we must return, it means we have gone elsewhere. Lent is the time to retrace the course of life. Because in the journey of life, as in any journey, what really counts is not to lose sight of the destination. When on the journey what matters is looking at the landscape or stopping to eat, we do not go far. Each of us can ask ourselves: on life's journey, do I seek the course? Or am I content to live by the day, thinking only of getting well, solving a few problems and having a little fun? What is the course? Perhaps the pursuit of health, which so many today say comes first but which will pass sooner or later? Perhaps possessions and wealth? But we are not in the world for that. Return to me, says the Lord. To me. The Lord is the destination of our journey in the world. The course must be set on Him.

To find our course, today we are offered a sign: ashes on our heads. It is a sign that makes us think about what is in our heads. Our thoughts often chase after passing things, which come and go. The light layer of ash that we receive is to tell us, gently and truthfully: of the many things that you have on your mind, behind which you run and toil every day, nothing will remain. However much you toil, from life you will take no wealth with you. Earthly realities vanish, like dust in the wind. Goods are temporary, power passes, success fades. The culture of appearance, dominant today, which induces one to live for the things that pass, is a great deception. For it is like a blaze: once it is over, only ashes remain. Lent is the time to free ourselves from the illusion of living chasing the dust. Lent is to rediscover that we are made for the fire that always burns, not for the ashes that immediately go out; for God, not for the world; for the eternity of Heaven, not for the deception of the earth; for the freedom of children, not for the slavery of things. We can ask ourselves today: which side am I on? Do I live by fire or by ashes?

In this journey back to the essentials that is Lent, the Gospel proposes three stages, which the Lord asks us to go through without hypocrisy, without pretence: almsgiving, prayer, fasting. What are they for? Almsgiving, prayer and fasting bring us back to the only three realities that do not vanish. Prayer takes us back to God; charity to our neighbour; fasting to ourselves. God, brothers, my life: these are the realities that do not end in nothingness, in which we must invest. This is where Lent invites us to look: upwards, with prayer, which frees one from a horizontal, flat life, where one finds time for the self but forgets God. And then towards the Other, with charity, which frees from the vanity of having, from thinking that things are good if they are good for me. Finally, he invites us to look inside ourselves, with fasting, which frees us from attachments to things, from worldliness that anaesthetises the heart. Prayer, charity, fasting: three investments for a treasure that lasts.

Jesus said: "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Mt 6:21). Our heart always points in some direction: it is like a compass in search of orientation. We can also compare it to a magnet: it needs to attach itself to something. But if it only attaches itself to earthly things, sooner or later it becomes a slave to them: things to be served become things to be served. Outward appearance, money, career, pastimes: if we live for them, they will become idols that use us, sirens that enchant us and then cast us adrift. Instead, if the heart attaches itself to what does not pass, we find ourselves and become free. Lent is a time of grace to free the heart from vanities. It is a time of healing from the addictions that seduce us. It is a time to fix our gaze on what remains.

Where then to fix our gaze along the path of Lent? It is simple: on the Crucified One. Jesus on the cross is the compass of life, directing us to Heaven. The poverty of the wood, the silence of the Lord, his stripping away out of love show us the need for a simpler life, free from too much preoccupation with things. Jesus from the cross teaches us the strong courage of renunciation. Because laden with cumbersome burdens, we will never move forward. We need to free ourselves from the tentacles of consumerism and the snares of selfishness, from always wanting more, from never being content, from a heart closed to the needs of the poor. Jesus, who on the wood of the cross burns with love, calls us to a life on fire with Him, one that is not lost in the ashes of the world; a life that burns with charity and is not extinguished in mediocrity. Is it difficult to live as He asks? Yes, it is difficult, but it leads to the goal. Lent shows us this. It begins with ashes, but in the end it leads us to the fire of Easter night; to discover that, in the tomb, the flesh of Jesus does not become ashes, but rises again in glory. It also applies to us, who are dust: if with our frailties we return to the Lord, if we take the way of love, we will embrace the life that does not fade. And we shall certainly be in joy.

[Pope John Paul II, St Sabina Lenten “station” 8 March 2000]

“Blow the trumpet […] sanctify a fast” (Joel 2:15), says the prophet in the first reading. Lent opens with a piercing sound, that of a trumpet that does not please the ears, but instead proclaims a fast. It is a loud sound that seeks to slow down our life, which is so fast-paced, yet often directionless. It is a summons to stop – a “halt!” –, to focus on what is essential, to fast from the unnecessary things that distract us. It is a wake-up call for the soul.

This wake-up call is accompanied by the message that the Lord proclaims through the lips of the prophet, a short and heartfelt message: “Return to me” (v 12). To return. If we have to return, it means that we have wandered off. Lent is the time to rediscover the direction of life. Because in life’s journey, as in every journey, what really matters is not to lose sight of the goal. If what interests us as we travel, however, is looking at the scenery or stopping to eat, we will not get far. We should ask ourselves: On the journey of life, do I seek the way forward? Or am I satisfied with living in the moment and thinking only of feeling good, solving some problems and having fun? What is the path? Is it the search for health, which many today say comes first but which eventually passes? Could it be possessions and wellbeing? But we are not in the world for this. Return to me, says the Lord. To me. The Lord is the goal of our journey in this world. The direction must lead to him.

Today we have been offered a sign that will help us find our direction: the head marked by ash. It is a sign that causes us to consider what occupies our mind. Our thoughts often focus on transient things, which come and go. The small mark of ash, which we will receive, is a subtle yet real reminder that of the many things occupying our thoughts, that we chase after and worry about every day, nothing will remain. No matter how hard we work, we will take no wealth with us from this life. Earthly realities fade away like dust in the wind. Possessions are temporary, power passes, success wanes. The culture of appearance prevalent today, which persuades us to live for passing things, is a great deception. It is like a blaze: once ended, only ash remains. Lent is the time to free ourselves from the illusion of chasing after dust. Lent is for rediscovering that we are created for the inextinguishable flame, not for ashes that immediately disappear; for God, not for the world; for the eternity of heaven, not for earthly deceit; for the freedom of the children of God, not for slavery to things. We should ask ourselves today: Where do I stand? Do I live for fire or for ash?

On this Lenten journey, back to what is essential, the Gospel proposes three steps which the Lord invites us to undertake without hypocrisy and pretence: almsgiving, prayer, fasting. What are they for? Almsgiving, prayer and fasting bring us back to the three realities that do not fade away. Prayer reunites us to God; charity, to our neighbour; fasting, to ourselves. God, my neighbour, my life: these are the realities that do not fade away and in which we must invest. Lent, therefore, invites us to focus, first of all on the Almighty, in prayer, which frees us from that horizontal and mundane life where we find time for self but forget God. It then invites us to focus on others, with the charity that frees us from the vanity of acquiring and of thinking that things are only good if they are good for me. Finally, Lent invites us to look inside our heart, with fasting, which frees us from attachment to things and from the worldliness that numbs the heart. Prayer, charity, fasting: three investments for a treasure that endures.

Jesus said: “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Mt 6:21). Our heart always points in some direction: it is like a compass seeking its bearings. We can also compare it to a magnet: it needs to attach itself to something. But if it only attaches itself to earthly things, sooner or later it becomes a slave to them: things to be used become things we serve. Outward appearance, money, a career or hobby: if we live for them, they will become idols that enslave us, sirens that charm us and then cast us adrift. Whereas if our heart is attached to what does not pass away, we rediscover ourselves and are set free. Lent is the time of grace that liberates the heart from vanity. It is a time of healing from addictions that seduce us. It is a time to fix our gaze on what abides.

Where can we fix our gaze, then, throughout this Lenten journey? It is simple: upon the Crucified one. Jesus on the cross is life’s compass, which directs us to heaven. The poverty of the wood, the silence of the Lord, his loving self-emptying show us the necessity of a simpler life, free from anxiety about things. From the cross, Jesus teaches us the great courage involved in renunciation. We will never move forward if we are heavily weighed down. We need to free ourselves from the clutches of consumerism and the snares of selfishness, from always wanting more, from never being satisfied, and from a heart closed to the needs of the poor. Jesus on the wood of the cross burns with love, and calls us to a life that is passionate for him, which is not lost amid the ashes of the world; to a life that burns with charity and is not extinguished in mediocrity. Is it difficult to live as he asks? Yes, it is difficult, but it leads us to our goal. Lent shows us this. It begins with the ashes, but eventually leads us to the fire of Easter night; to the discovery that, in the tomb, the body of Jesus does not turn to ashes, but rises gloriously. This is true also for us, who are dust. If we, with our weaknesses, return to the Lord, if we take the path of love, then we will embrace the life that never ends. And surely we will be full of joy.

[Pope Francis, homily 6 March 2019]

(Mk 10:28-31)

According to the correct mentality - typical of Judaism - to receive the divine inheritance it was enough to keep the commandments (vv.17-20).

But it is not with security upstream that one can make an exodus to meet the One (v.21) in the heart; nor can the Church stay safe with the material contribution of the rich (v.26).

The path of love and educational risk assume the journey of adventurous sobriety, without which it is not possible to affect the watertight compartments of thought and society.

In contrast to devotions, the life of Faith does not require the offering to God of a modest or resigned sacrifice, but abandonment to future that is to Come.

In this way - by making the disciples abide in the energy of undertaking - the believing experience will no longer leave anyone with their heads bowed. For here the cards are exchanged (v.31).

The Presence of the fraternal and concrete Kingdom - «in the midst» - overturns roles and perspectives, such as habitual positions between women and men, young and old, or new and veterans (v.31).

Inserted in the Church that hears the call to "go out", we stir our Core from the tortuousness of self-folding.

And here is the Father's Hundredfold in all (vv.28-30). Except for one thing: because we are called to be on the same level.

There will be no “hundred for one” of «fathers» [in the ancient sense] that is, of conditioning controllers (vv.29-30) who dictate their track and pace, as if to subordinates.

A life of obligations or attachments blocks creativity. To cling to an idol, to allow oneself to be plagued or intimidated, to anchor oneself in fear of problems or worries, is to create a dark chamber.

To feel programmable, already designed without an extra... to be subjected to ordinary or conformist opinions... excludes the vector of the unknown and all-personal Novelty.

He who allows himself to be inhibited by exclusive ethics, by having to be with himself and others according to clichés of established prestige and so on, builds an artificial dwelling, which is neither his ‘home’ nor the ‘tent of the world’.

And although in the step of the mission, even speculating that we can foresee fruitful eccentricities or global adventures, we shrivel our souls, we are frightened of possible conflicts.

But in fear we do not grasp what is truly ‘ours and others': what is only revealed during a process, which becomes holy in the exodus from self and in the quality of creative relationships.

After all, behind the reluctance ‘to be’ in Christ and in relationships that go beyond what is due and already thought, lies nothing more than the fear of losing the attention of others or one's reputation.

But along the Way, one has an intimate experience of a different Switch within, which helps us express ourselves and deal with events where not everything is already 'in place'.

Thus, by laying aside step by step the fears of being shouted at, and that life might collapse [precisely because of our ideal choices].

Away with the behind-the-scenes.

It is the new Genesis under a new and unknown stimulus that allows attention to be shifted from calculation to the brightness of the heart, from the brain to the eye, from reasoning to perception.

Once the artificial ties of wanting to come to head of situations [prematurely and necessarily] are removed, we will learn to embrace all sides, and life will go its own way, expanding from wave to wave.

We are no longer minors: we have full Hope - not moderate.

[Tuesday 8th wk. in O.T.  March 4, 2025]

(Mk 10:28-31)

According to correct mentality - typical in Judaism - to receive the divine inheritance it was enough to keep the commandments (vv.17-20).

Jesus' proposal does not focus on the exchange of "favours" (Pharisaic automatism): it has breath, and rests on gratuitousness; it helps freedom - it is broader, without ballast.

Therefore, lean towards ecclesial poverty. Both the affluent and the apostles' conviction must be freed from the idol of opulence - an even more swampy force than guilt.

The Gospel passage itself is a sign that the "internal" mentality of the communities had to be straightened out, even back then.

It is not with security upstream that one can exodus - to meet the One (v.21) in the heart. Nor can the Church stay safe with the material contribution of the rich (v.26).

The path of love and the educational risk presuppose the path of adventurous sobriety, without which it is not possible to impact the watertight compartments of thought and society.

In contrast to devotions, the life of Faith does not require the offering of a modest or resigned sacrifice to God, but abandonment to the coming future.

Even as a matter of crude substance, it will force us to shift our gaze - and reactivate it incessantly.

Thus making the disciples abide in the energy of undertaking will finally leave no one with bowed heads. For here the cards are exchanged (v.31).

He does not want to rob us of anything: his friendly Presence is a consistent ferment, which wants to realise the absolute in each of us.

Detachment from things to expand and rejoice in the quality of the journey is the seed of a new sacredness, of another face of humanity and the world.

The concrete existence that flows from the proposal of Faith surpasses every religious model. He even extends the community, creating Family without boundaries - all brothers and sisters, no leaders for life.

We are no longer minors: we have full Hope - not moderate.

Only the sharing of goods will stand: fruit of providence and systematic gift - and there will be no needy, rather it will advance for others (an ideal already of Deut 15 - with no more cultural fences).

And no calculations of reciprocation: because there is no starting point for selfishness or for the profit of clubs with nice manners (and greedy possession).

Of course, Christ will be the choice of the poor, who have always dreamed of a reversal of the pyramid (v.31).

At the time of Jesus, people's lives were in fact marked - trait by trait - by dual subjugation: Herod's politics and religious slavery.

The system of exploitation and repression was widespread and well organised.

Even the religious authorities had cunningly found a remunerative modus vivendi well established in the ganglia of the empire.

All this at the cost of the disintegration of community and family life (facets of the ancient clan communion, now harassed by problems of material survival and increased individualism).

In a context of social collapse, many were forced to get by in a discarded and excluded condition.

But in the assemblies of Jesus, the attitude of inclusion towards the marginalised, weak and shaky characterised them and made them stand out (gradually preferred) against all other groups.

At that time, there was no lack of various sects - even well-motivated ones - that wished to show an alternative model of life to the ruthlessness of the current reality.

However, e.g. the Essenes were legalists and purists, and lived apart; so did the Pharisees - observant people bound even to oral tradition - who abhorred 'defiled' people.

The Zealots also resented the weak and indecisive, voiceless crowd.

Those considered ignorant and cursed (for not being able to fulfil the prescriptions of the law) and valued in sin, were conversely welcome in Christian communities.

Precisely the weightless - endowed with little energy and relationships - forcibly excluded from the clan because of economic necessity, found there at last refuge, warmth, listening, understanding, help.

The Master himself had explicitly ordered anti-ambition and personal dispossession in favour of the sick and weak; of all those who were left behind.

Simplicity in life went hand in hand with sobriety in mission.

In fact, the Lord advised the envoys to witness radical confidence in hospitality (offered by so many new 'family members').

Sense of adaptation and measure, ability to live in the essentials and be content, were the indispensable character of evangelisation.

True witnesses of Christ, even today and as time passes, feel content in the temporary - typical of pilgrims. They did not covet better future accommodations, passing from house to house (Mk 6:10).

In all this, and in being able to adapt to the situations and normal rewards of local work, believers demonstrate the Presence of the fraternal Kingdom.It is a concrete reality and "in between": in fact, it makes itself equidistant; it overturns roles - and optics, such as habitual positions between women and men, young and old, or new and old (v.31).

Of course, change can be frightening, but inserted in the fraternity that hears the call to "go out", we take the leash off situations and stir souls from the tortuousness of retreats.

And here is the Father's hundredfold in everything (vv.28-30). Except for one thing: because we are called to be on an equal footing.

There will be no hundred to one of "fathers" (in the ancient sense), i.e., of conditioning controllers (vv.29-30) who dictate their track and pace, as to subordinates.

Then we sit in our Centre, not because we are identified in the standard habitual role, but chiselled in an amazing way by the facets of the Mystery it touches, starting from within.

And turn everything upside down.

A life of attachments blocks creativity. To cling to an idol, to allow oneself to be plagued or intimidated, to anchor oneself in fear of problems or worries is like creating a dark room.

Feeling programmable, already designed without a more... subjugating ordinary or conformist views... excludes the vector of the unknown and all-personal Novelty.

Those who allow themselves to be inhibited by exclusive ethics, by having to be with themselves and others according to clichés of established prestige and so on, build an artificial dwelling, which is neither their home nor the tent of the world.

And while in the pass of the mission, even conjuring up fruitful eccentricities or global adventures, we shrink back, afraid of possible conflicts.

But in fear we do not grasp what is truly ours and others': what is only revealed during a process, which becomes holy in the exodus from self and in the quality of creative relationships.

As Pope Francis said in Dublin: "Docile to the Spirit and not based on tactical plans" that block life.

After all, behind the reluctance to be in Christ and in relationships that go beyond what is due and already thought, lies nothing more than the fear of losing the attention of others or reputation.

But for Via, it is an intimate experience of a different 'switch' inside, which helps us express ourselves and face events where not everything is already in place. 

We lay step by step the fears of being scolded, and that life (precisely because of our ideal choices) might collapse.

Away with the behind-the-scenes.

It is the new genesis under a new and unknown stimulus that allows us to shift attention from calculation to the brightness of the soul, from the brain to the eye, from reasoning to perception.

Once we have removed the artificial ties of wanting to come to the head of situations prematurely and by force, we learn to welcome all sides, and life will go its own way, expanding from wave to wave.

At this point, my mind goes back to 22 October 1978, when Pope John Paul II began his ministry here in Saint Peter’s Square. His words on that occasion constantly echo in my ears: “Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ!” The Pope was addressing the mighty, the powerful of this world, who feared that Christ might take away something of their power if they were to let him in, if they were to allow the faith to be free. Yes, he would certainly have taken something away from them: the dominion of corruption, the manipulation of law and the freedom to do as they pleased. But he would not have taken away anything that pertains to human freedom or dignity, or to the building of a just society. The Pope was also speaking to everyone, especially the young. Are we not perhaps all afraid in some way? If we let Christ enter fully into our lives, if we open ourselves totally to him, are we not afraid that He might take something away from us? Are we not perhaps afraid to give up something significant, something unique, something that makes life so beautiful? Do we not then risk ending up diminished and deprived of our freedom? And once again the Pope said: No! If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful and great. No! Only in this friendship are the doors of life opened wide. Only in this friendship is the great potential of human existence truly revealed. Only in this friendship do we experience beauty and liberation. And so, today, with great strength and great conviction, on the basis of long personal experience of life, I say to you, dear young people: Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away, and he gives you everything. When we give ourselves to him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life. Amen.

[Pope Benedict, homily for the beginning of the ministry, 24 April 2005]

1. In the Gospels, when Jesus called his first Apostles to make them "fishers of men" (Mt 4:19; Mk 1:17; cf. Lk 5:10), they "left everything and followed him" (Lk 5:11; cf. Mt 4:20, 22; Mk 1:18, 20). One day it was Peter himself who reminded us of this aspect of the apostolic vocation, saying to Jesus: "Behold, we have left everything and followed you" (Mt 19, 27; Mk 10, 28; cf. Lk 18, 28).Jesus then listed all the necessary detachments "for my sake," he said, "and for the sake of the gospel" (Mk 10, 29). It was not only a matter of giving up material goods, such as the "house" or the "fields", but also of parting with the dearest people: "brothers or sisters or father or mother or children", - so says Matthew and Mark - "wife or brothers or parents or children", - so says Luke (18, 29).

Let us observe here the diversity of vocations. Not from all his disciples did Jesus demand radical renunciation of family life, although from all of them he demanded the first place in his heart when he said: "Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me" (Mt 10:37). The need for effective renunciation is proper to the apostolic life or the life of special consecration. Called by Jesus, "James of Zebedee and John his brother" did not only leave the boat in which they were "rearranging the nets", but also their father, with whom they were (Mt 4:22; cf. Mk 1:20).

These findings help us to understand the reason for the Church's legislation on priestly celibacy. In fact, the Church has considered and continues to consider it as part of the logic of priestly consecration and the consequent total belonging to Christ in view of the conscious implementation of His mandate of spiritual life and evangelisation.

2. In fact, in the Gospel according to Matthew, a little before the passage on separation from loved ones, which we have just quoted, Jesus expresses in strong Semitic language another renunciation required "for the sake of the kingdom of heaven", the renunciation, that is, of marriage. "There are," he says, "eunuchs who have made themselves such because of the kingdom of heaven" (Mt 19:12). That is, they are committed to celibacy in order to put themselves entirely at the service of the "Gospel of the Kingdom" (cf. Mt 4:23; 9:35; 24:34).

In his First Letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul affirms that he has resolutely taken this path and demonstrates the consistency of his decision by declaring: 'He who is unmarried worries about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord. He who is married, on the other hand, worries about the things of the world, how he may please his wife, and is divided!" (1 Cor 7:32-34). Certainly, it is not fitting that one who has been called to occupy himself, as a Priest, with the things of the Lord should "be divided". As the Council says, the commitment to celibacy, stemming from a tradition that is linked to Christ, is "particularly suited to the priestly life. For it is both a sign and a stimulus of pastoral charity, and a source of spiritual fruitfulness in the world' (Presbyterorum Ordinis, 16).

It is very true that in the Eastern Churches, many presbyters are legitimately married according to canon law concerning them. Even in those Churches, however, Bishops live in celibacy, and so do a certain number of Priests. The difference in discipline, linked to conditions of time and place assessed by the Church, is explained by the fact that perfect continence, as the Council says, "is not required by the very nature of the priesthood" (Ibid). It does not belong to the essence of the priesthood as an Order, and therefore is not imposed absolutely in all Churches. There are, however, no doubts about its appropriateness and indeed congruence with the requirements of Holy Orders. It is, as we have said, part of the logic of consecration.

3. The concrete ideal of this condition of consecrated life is Jesus, model for all, but especially for priests. He lived as a celibate, and was therefore able to devote all his strength to preaching the Kingdom of God and serving mankind, with a heart open to the whole of humanity, as the progenitor of a new spiritual generation. His choice was truly "for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven" (cf. Mt 19:12).

By his example, Jesus indicated a direction, which was followed. According to the Gospels, it seems that the Twelve, destined to be the first sharers in his priesthood, renounced family life in order to follow him. The Gospels never speak of wives or children with regard to the Twelve, although they do let us know that Peter, before being called by Jesus was a married man (cf. Mt 8:14; Mk 1:30; Lk 4:38).

4. Jesus did not promulgate a law, but proposed an ideal of celibacy, for the new priesthood he instituted. This ideal became more and more established in the Church. One can understand that in the first phase of the propagation and development of Christianity a large number of priests were married men, chosen and ordained along the lines of the Jewish tradition. We know that in the Epistles to Timothy (1 Tim 3:2-33) and Titus (Titus 1:6) it is required that, among the qualities of the men chosen as presbyters, there be that of being good fathers of families, married to one woman (i.e. faithful to their wives). It is a phase of the Church in the process of organising and, one might say, experimenting with what, as a discipline of states of life, best corresponds to the ideal and the 'counsels' proposed by the Lord. On the basis of experience and reflection, the discipline of celibacy gradually established itself until it became generalised in the Western Church by virtue of canonical legislation. It was not only the consequence of a juridical and disciplinary fact: it was the maturation of an ecclesial conscience on the appropriateness of priestly celibacy for reasons that were not only historical and practical, but also derived from the ever better discovered congruence between celibacy and the demands of the priesthood.

5. The Second Vatican Council sets out the reasons for such 'intimate suitability' of celibacy with the priesthood: "By virginity or celibacy observed for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven, presbyters consecrate themselves to Christ with a new and lofty title, adhere more readily to Him with an undivided love, devote themselves more freely in Him and for Him to the service of God and men, serve His Kingdom and His work of divine regeneration more effectively, and in this way are better disposed to receive a wider paternity in Christ." They 'thus evoke that mysterious marriage instituted by God, and which will be fully manifested in the future, for which the Church has Christ as her only Bridegroom ... they become a living sign of that future world, already present through faith and charity, in which the children of the resurrection are not united in marriage' (PO 16; cf. Pastores dabo vobis, 29; 50; CCC 1579).

These are reasons of noble spiritual elevation, which we can summarise in the following essentials: fuller adherence to Christ, loved and served with an undivided heart (cf. 1 Cor 7:32-33); broader availability to the service of the Kingdom of Christ and the fulfilment of one's duties in the Church; the more exclusive choice of a spiritual fruitfulness (cf. 1 Cor 4:15); the practice of a life similar to the definitive life in the beyond, and therefore more exemplary for the life hereafter. This is valid for all times, including our own, as the supreme reason and criterion for every judgement and choice in harmony with the invitation to 'leave everything', addressed by Jesus to the disciples and especially to the Apostles. This is why the 1971 Synod of Bishops confirmed: 'The law of priestly celibacy, in force in the Latin Church, must be fully preserved' (Ench. Vat., IV, 1219).

6. It is true that today the practice of celibacy finds obstacles, sometimes even serious ones, in the subjective and objective conditions in which priests find themselves. The Synod of Bishops considered them, but considered that even today's difficulties are surmountable, if "the appropriate conditions are promoted, namely: the increase of the interior life with the help of prayer, self-denial, ardent charity towards God and neighbour, and with the other aids of the spiritual life; human equilibrium through an orderly insertion into the structure of social relations; fraternal relations and contacts with other priests and with the bishop. by better implementing pastoral structures to this end, and also with the help of the community of the faithful" (Ibid., IV, 1216).

It is a sort of challenge that the Church launches against the mentality, tendencies, and maladies of the century, with an ever new will for consistency and fidelity to the evangelical ideal. For this reason, while admitting that the Supreme Pontiff can evaluate and decide what to do in certain cases, the Synod reaffirmed that in the Latin Church "the priestly ordination of married men is not permitted even in particular cases" (Ibid., IV, 1220). The Church believes that the consciousness of total consecration, which has matured over the centuries, still has reason to subsist and to be increasingly perfected.

The Church is also aware, and reminds presbyters and all the faithful with the Council, that 'the gift of celibacy, so befitting the priesthood of the New Law, is granted in great measure by the Father, on condition that all those who share in the Priesthood of Christ by the sacrament of Orders, indeed the whole Church, ask for it humbly and insistently' (PO 16).But perhaps, even before that, it is necessary to ask for the grace to understand priestly celibacy, which undoubtedly includes a certain mystery: that of the demand for boldness and trust in absolute attachment to the person and redemptive work of Christ, with a radicalism of renunciation that to human eyes can appear shocking. Jesus himself, in suggesting this, warns that not everyone can understand it (cf. Mt 19:10-12). Blessed are those who receive the grace to understand this, and remain faithful on this path!

[Pope John Paul II, General Audience 17 July 1993]