Gospel Reflection - First Sunday of Advent

December 2^nd 2018.  First Sunday of Advent

GOSPEL Luke 21:25-28, 34-36

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

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GOSPEL Luke 21:25-28, 34-36

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars; on earth nations in agony, bewildered by the clamour of the ocean and its waves; men dying of fear as they await what menaces the world, for the powers of heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand erect, hold your heads high, because your liberation is near at hand.’

‘Watch yourselves, or your hearts will be coarsened with debauchery and drunkenness and the cares of life, and that day will be sprung on you suddenly, like a trap. For it will come down on every living man on the face of the earth. Stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen, and to stand with confidence before the Son of Man.’

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . In the first reading we hear wonderful prophecies promising good things for God’s people in the future. But in the gospel, Jesus speaks of a future day of anguish and despair. What is going on here? Does God intend to bless us in the future, or bring about doom? Do these readings contradict each other? No! The fact is that God has wonderful graces and blessings in store for each of us, but these blessings will seem like a curse if we are not prepared to receive them. In fact, Jesus tells us how to prepare ourselves for the dramatic events of the future. We must stand up and renounce debauchery, drunkenness and the cares of this world. Debauchery refers to the way that we squander the good things the Lord has given us. Drunkenness refers to the way each one of us is addicted to the gratification of our senses and our egos. The cares of this world refers to the way we are attached to money, possessions, social status, the admiration of others. If we are living our lives in this self-obsessed manner, then the future coming of Jesus into our lives will be a day of anguish and despair for us! But if we are prepared for the coming of Jesus (by living simple and upright lives of abandonment to Christ), then our future encounter with the Lord will be experienced as a wonderful blessing. Advent is about the future coming of Christ. We must live every day in preparation for his coming. This means “travelling light”, not being weighed down with the cares of this world and with habits of self-indulgence. We must be like athletes focussed on a big event, eliminating everything that distracts us from our goal.

God promises that good things are going to happen to us. But how can we ensure that we are ready to welcome those things?

The first reading is taken from Chapter 33 of the prophet Jeremiah, a chapter that has many consoling and uplifting passages. Jeremiah is talking to a people in exile, a people who has lost everything and seems to be heading nowhere. But God will do something new, the prophet tells them. “In those days and at that time, I will make a virtuous Branch grow for David,
who shall practice honesty and integrity in the land. In those days Judah shall be saved and Israel shall dwell in confidence. And this is the name the city will be called: the Lord-our-integrity”. How are these promises of good things to be realised? In this time of Advent, we too look forward to something good that is arriving. How can we prepare ourselves so that we will not miss the good that is on its way to us? God is always promising good things to us and it is essential that we know how to embrace them.

 The Gospel speaks of a terrible day when everything will be changed. This might seem like a day to be dreaded, but it is a day to be embraced, if we only have the right attitude in life

In the Gospel passage from Luke, we hear of people in great fear and anxiety before the terrible things that are about to happen. What attitude should a disciple of Jesus have in the face of promises such as these? There is an art in learning to be ready for a new beginning, instead of living in a state of fear that things are going to end. There is always goodness in that which comes. There is always grace on its way to us through the events that occur in our lives. How can we make sure that we do not lose this passing grace? Jesus gives us some direct advice. We must stand up straight and hold our heads high. These are symbolic gestures. The psychology of a person can be deduced in part from his posture. We can infer the interior state of a person from the position of his head. Jesus asks us to stand up and combat those negative sentiments that make our heads go down. The human being overcomes the forces of gravity with his upright posture and straight backbone, allowing him to proudly behold the horizon and gaze into the distance. Of course this is symbolic language that does not exclude in any way people who have difficulties standing upright, but the idea is that the grace that comes to us is destined for the most dignified part of us, and we must stand up and be ready to embrace it properly.

 To be ready for the day of the Lord, our hearts must not be weighed down by attachment to the things of this world and to our own titillation. The first thing Jesus warns against is the way we waste the good things we have been given, squandering them in evil or useless pleasures.

To embrace the coming grace, Jesus tells us that our hearts must not be weighed down. What are the things that weigh my heart down? What are the things that slow me down and make me sluggish in life? These weights prevent me from utilizing the good things that life puts in my way. My heart is leaden and slow to respond to the positive stimuli that I receive. Jesus tells us what it is that weighs down our hearts: coarseness, debauchery, drunkenness and the cares of life. Debauchery refers to the wasting of what is good and beautiful. It entails having possession of good things and allowing them to be wasted in evil ways, or exchanged for things that are much less worthy. Each of us should ask ourselves this question: What good things do I possess that deserve to be defended? We all have things in our life that are beautiful and important.

 The second thing that prevents our hearts being ready for the coming of the Lord is our addiction to gratification, the things that indulge our senses and our egos.

Jesus also speaks of drunkenness. This need not refer solely to excess alcohol but also to the way that each of us is addicted to things that titillate our senses and our egos. We waste our time on secondary things, frivolity, a myriad of useless pastimes. We are busy doing ten things at a time, text messages, phone calls, little treats that gratify our senses. When an athlete sets his mind on a great goal, he simplifies his life and cuts out the superfluous. There is an art in managing oneself and not falling in to the habit of trying to do too many things. There is an art in doing only the things that count and leaving everything else aside. But too often we are drunk with the things that titillate us.

The third thing that contaminates our hearts is our attachment to worldly goods. Is my goal in life some earthly good? Money, possessions, social position?

Jesus also speaks of being weighed down with the cares of the world. This can refer to the stress and care that comes with being weighed down by riches and possessions. In this situation of comfort and wellbeing, we are often filled with anxiety. There are three questions, then that we need to put before ourselves. What are the real goods in my life that I must be careful not to squander? What makes me “drunk” in the sense of being a focus of my drive towards gratification? And the third question is what ultimate goal do I strive to attain? Is this ultimate goal something transitory that will be taken from me? Jesus warns us to be careful that the things weighing down our hearts do not fall upon us suddenly. How can I ensure that, on the day of the Lord, I will not have these things fall upon me out of the blue? The answer is simple: just as an athlete trains himself so that he can endure the race, so we too must prepare ourselves so that we are not too attached to these worldly things when the day comes that they are taken from us. Those who are not ready are unable to free themselves from the worldly structure that is collapsing around them. However, those who are ready, those who have prepared themselves by not giving themselves over to debauchery, gluttony and the cares of the world, these people are agile and ready to give up everything. Jesus speaks of those who have made their domain on the face of the earth having difficulty in this day of great transformation. If we remain aware that the earth is a transitory home, then I am ready to go. I do not carry many things around with me, so to speak. Some people, when they go on a trip, take a huge amount of luggage, including things that they don’t need. Good travellers travel light, fully aware that we need little, and that in any case we can find what we need at our destination. We too must be good travellers in the sense of being prepared to live elsewhere, not attached to the life I have here and now. Often, an event happens and our life is turned upside down. We must be ready, we must keep watch and not be deceived by the apparent solidity of these empty things. We must be prepared to be with Jesus. Our entire life is a preparation to meet him. If all of our existence is directed towards being ready for Jesus, then when he arrives we will truly be prepared. If, however, we live for the things of this world, then when Jesus comes we won’t know how to react. Jesus will in that case be an annoyance and a trauma. For those who are ready to depart, life is beautiful and agile, light and enjoyable. When life is fundamentally directed towards the newness that is God, then when novelty comes we are able to embrace it freely.

November 25^th 2018. Feast of Christ the King

GOSPEL: JN 18,33B-37

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL: JN 18,33B-37

Pilate said to Jesus,
"Are you the King of the Jews?"
Jesus answered, "Do you say this on your own
or have others told you about me?"
Pilate answered, "I am not a Jew, am I?
Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me.
What have you done?"
Jesus answered, "My kingdom does not belong to this world.
If my kingdom did belong to this world,
my attendants would be fighting
to keep me from being handed over to the Jews.
But as it is, my kingdom is not here."
So Pilate said to him, "Then you are a king?"
Jesus answered, "You say I am a king.
For this I was born and for this I came into the world,
to testify to the truth.
Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice."

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The feast of Christ the King marks the end of the liturgical year. In the Gospel, we see him before Pilate. What kind of king can he be? He is a condemned prisoner, about to be humiliated and killed. What kind of kingship is that? As history unfolded, however, no man came to have the kind of impact that Jesus of Nazareth did. Even people who don’t believe in him must confess that he has exerted an influence on the world that can be matched by no other individual. But if we look closely at the scene with Pilate, we already begin to see that Jesus has a kingship that is utterly different to the powers of this world. The rulers of this world rule by force and coercion. They themselves are contaminated by the very power they exert. But Jesus shows before Pilate that he has a freedom that is unheard of. His nobility consists in his capacity to be unreachable by mundane powers of this sort. Who has freedom of this sort? Pilate certainly hadn’t. Does true freedom consist of wandering around the streets doing what you like? Or is freedom something that can be possessed wherever you are, even if you are in chains? Who bears true royalty, the one who is possessed by things, or the one who is able to detach himself from things? Who is more powerful, the one who can coerce people into doing what he wants, or the one who loves everyone he meets, even those who do him wrong? Royalty of that sort is not of this world! Jesus of Nazareth reveals to us the kind of people we, deep down, long to be. When we marry, we long to be able to love in the same radical way that he loves. When we begin a friendship, we long to be able to be true in the way that he is true. Jesus has the power of love, and he has the power to plant love in our hearts through the Holy Spirit. This is real power! This is the power of Christ our King!

The end of any process is important. The feast of Christ the King marks the end of the liturgical year. It is an opportunity to reflect on who Christ is for me as time comes to an end

With the solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, we conclude the liturgical year. The question we ask ourselves is: how do we understand the kingship of Christ? On this feast, which comes at the end of the year, the liturgy is inviting us to reflect on the entire year. The endpoint of any journey or process is always very significant. This feast is the celebration of the royal dominion of Jesus of Nazareth, true God and true man. The readings open with a passage from the prophet Daniel which reflects the great suffering endured by the people at the time this book was written. Israel was under the persecution of Antiochus Epiphanes. The prophet during the hours of the nights sees a figure like a “Son of Man” coming upon the clouds, a man who will be given all glory, power and dominion, and to which all peoples will render homage.

But what kind of king is Jesus? He is a condemned prisoner, about to be humiliated and killed. Yet Jesus is the person who has had the greatest influence on human history, even for those who do not believe in him

The dialogue between Pilate and Jesus evokes this kingdom referred to in the first reading. The scene from the Gospel of John is the dramatic and tragic encounter between the Lord and the Roman procurator. Pilate wishes to know in what sense Jesus can be considered a rival to the power and dominion of Rome. Jesus replies, “Yes, I am a king, but not of this world. I am a king of a different sort”. But in what sense can Jesus be described as a king? He has been accused and is about to be condemned. He has no apparent power, and will soon be humiliated and tortured in every manner imaginable. What kind of king is that! In human terms, he is the most miserable of all. What sort of kingdom does he rule over? What sort of kingship or dominion has a person who seems powerless before the status quo? Surely, he is the king of nothing, a king without any relevance? But, wait a minute. In all of history there is no man more famous than Jesus of Nazareth! Before him, all of the ages must bend. No-one has left a greater mark in human history, even if we do not believe in him or welcome him. There can be no shadow of a doubt about this. The obscure, thirty-something carpenter, who neither wrote nor built anything, and left no visible work behind him, is nevertheless the man with the greatest influence on the movement of human history. Many people who have no interest in him nevertheless have to reckon with him in order to understand where they stand in the progress of human affairs.

If we look closely, we see in Jesus a royalty and kingship that is utterly different to the mundane powers of this world. Jesus is completely free, totally capable of love, detached from the things of this world that cause enslavement

So there is something strange here in this prisoner who stands before Pilate. Perhaps he bears a royalty that goes beyond this world, has nothing to do with the vanities of this world? Yes, this is not only true but terribly important. What is human power after all if not a function of coercion and force that fails utterly to give true liberty? The powerful tend to exploit their power for their own ends. The power is not only used for the domination of others, but ultimately comes to dominate and contaminate even the ones who have the power. In reality, this dialogue between Pilate and Jesus is a conflict between a world system of enslavement and a man who is beyond worldly power of that sort, a man with an unheard-of freedom. If we look closely at this confrontation between the governor of the people of Judea and the man who had been rejected by those same people, we will see in fact that we have here a very normal man in the presence of the sort of nobility that had never been seen before. His nobility consists in his capacity to be unreachable by mundane powers of this sort. Who has freedom of this sort? Pilate certainly hadn’t. Does true freedom consist of wandering around the streets doing what you like? Or is freedom something that can be possessed wherever you are, even if you are in chains? Who bears true royalty, he who possesses everything, or he who is free from everything? The one who is possessed by things, or the one who is able to detach himself from things? Who is more powerful, the one who can coerce people into doing what he wants, or the one who loves everyone he meets, even those who do him wrong? Royalty of that sort is not of this world!

The kingship and power of Christ is in his utter freedom to love. He bestows on us the gift of the Holy Spirit so that we too can be transformed from being cold-hearted to being capable of authentic love. This is the power of Christ – a power not of this world!

All this liturgical year, we have journeyed in order to have his truth in our hearts. If a human heart opens itself to truth, then that truth will speak with the voice of Jesus of Nazareth. As he says, “Whoever is of the truth, listens to my voice”. How many people have stood before this man crucified and risen and found themselves probed to their depths by his love. What Jesus has manifested to us is what humanity seeks to encounter and desires to be. When a man marries, he wants to love in this radical way. When a woman marries, she wants to love in the same manner. When two people embark on a friendship, they wish to have an authentic relationship by behaving in the way that Christ behaves. We cannot do it without his help. It is great to see humans giving the best of themselves without ever arriving at the sublimity of this man. Not only is Jesus capable of loving, he is able to plant love in human hearts. He is able to transform cold hearts into places that are filled with love. This is where his power resides! This is the power that we celebrate on the feast of Christ the King! Let us not expect from him victory in this world. What we expect from him is the gift of his Holy Spirit which sets us free and makes us greater, completely independent of this world and free to love.

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November 18^th 2018. Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Mark 13,24-32

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL: Mark 13,24-32

Jesus said to his disciples: "In those days after that tribulation
the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light,
and the stars will be falling from the sky,
and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
"And then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in the clouds'
with great power and glory, and then he will send out the angels
and gather his elect from the four winds,
from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.
"Learn a lesson from the fig tree.
When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves,
you know that summer is near.
In the same way, when you see these things happening,
know that he is near, at the gates.
Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away
until all these things have taken place.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
"But of that day or hour, no one knows,
neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Gospel passage speaks of cataclysmic events. What are we to make of these dramatic prophecies? Are these referring to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD? Or are they referring to the end of time? Do they speak to us today as we read this Gospel? The events can be interpreted as referring to the natural cataclysms that occurred at the time of the passion of Jesus. And they can also be taken as referring to the tribulations that always precede genuine conversion to Christ in any age. On the fourth day of creation, the sun, moon and stars became the points of reference of the physical world. Jesus speaks about them coming to an end. If Christ is to come to us, then our own points of reference must come to an end. Our own intelligence, our own wisdom, the things that “illuminate” our way, must all collapse. The pantheon of our personal idolatries must be shattered. It is only then that Jesus will be able to come to us and find what is authentic in our hearts. Tribulation becomes a blessed thing if we allow ourselves to be found by the Lord. It becomes a moment of opportunity if it causes our spurious foundations to collapse, leading us to make the Father our principal point of reference.

Is this Gospel speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem? Or of the end of the world? What relevance can it have for us today?

On this thirty-third Sunday of ordinary time, the second last of the liturgical year, the Gospel prompts us to lift our gaze towards the final things, the end of time. The text, from the thirteenth chapter of St Mark’s Gospel has references that seem ambiguous in nature. Jesus’ discourse ranges from the destruction of Jerusalem (a historical event that would occur in the year 70 AD) to events that seem to be occurring at the end of time. Many scholars believe that the Gospel was written before the destruction of Jerusalem and contains a genuine prophecy of Christ regarding that event. Others believe that the prophecy is mostly directed to the end times. But the difficulty here is that the Lord says at the end of his discourse: “This generation shall not pass away until all these things have taken place”. So there are three possible references here: to the life experience of the listeners of Jesus’ discourse, to the destruction of Jerusalem a few decades later, and to the events at the end of the world. Does this mean that this Gospel has little relevance for us who listen to the passage today?

The events recounted by Jesus refer to the cataclysmic events that occurred at his passion and death

The passage begins: “In those days after that tribulation the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.” This is a reference to the Passion of Christ. At the time that Jesus dies there is a solar eclipse and an earthquake. Nature registers the cataclysmic nature of the events that are happening. "And then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in the clouds' with great power and glory, and then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds . .” This refers to events after the resurrection, when the Lord sends his angels to evangelise, to spread the good news about the resurrection of Jesus. So what we have here is a marvellous interpretation of the events of the Passion as recounted by Jesus.

The events can also be interpreted as referring to any time when the major points of reference collapse in our lives and we find ourselves turning to Christ, the ultimate point of reference

But this reading of events is also relevant to us who read the Gospel today. How so? What is the tribulation that causes the sun to be darkened, the moon to lose his light and the stars fall from the sky? This refers to the reversal of the fourth day of creation. On the fourth day, the Lord placed the celestial lights in the sky, the sun to rule the day, and the moon and stars to rule the night. These celestial objects are the reference points for the passing of time. When they are gone, we have no reference points and no light. At this moment, when there is neither sun nor moon, “they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds”. The destruction of Jerusalem represents the end of an epoch, a reference point in time, and from that moment Christianity expands over the earth. Jesus asks us to learn a lesson from the fig tree: “When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near.” In the same way, when the points of reference are falling, when the powers are collapsing, then the Son of Man is coming. Just as nature has its signs, so too does the existential life and the spiritual life.

If we are to turn to Christ, then the pantheon of our personal idolatries must collapse. At this moment, we are capable of recognising the fact that he is coming and searching for what is authentic in my heart.

In reality this was the story of every conversion in the early Church. In order to arrive at the faith, it is necessary that the “sun” be obscured. Our wisdom must be set in crisis, the things that once “lit” our way must be dimmed, our pantheon of gods must collapse. Such a crisis becomes the moment for radical change. When we no longer have the answers, when we don’t know how to go on, these are the moments that are ripe with possibilities. No one can arrive at faith in Christ unless his own wisdom, his own points of reference are destabilised. This holy “shaking” is something that we all need. Thus the Gospel refers to the Passion of Christ, to the end of times, and to the end of the Jewish principal points of reference. The Temple, in fact, continued to be a point of reference for the disciples after the resurrection. They continued to frequent the Temple for years afterwards. But the destruction of this edifice and the end of the liturgical life that it sustained became identified with something very significant. This tragedy, this disaster, this injustice, this oppression became the opportunity for a qualitative step forward. When the pantheon of our personal idolatries collapses, then we can be sure that the Son of Man is coming! He is searching for his elect. He is searching for what is authentic in our hearts.  These difficult times, these crises serve the purpose of leading us to personal growth. The Lord is searching for us through these traumatic moments in order to lead us away from our self-deceptions and give us his Holy Spirit. Tribulation becomes a blessed thing if we welcome it, if we allow ourselves to be found by the Lord. He sends his angels to gather his chosen ones, from the ends of the earth, wherever they may be! We can return to Christ once our own existence has been shaken or destabilised in this way. It is important to experience these moments of annihilation. It is important to recognize that our own lives cannot be sustained by points of reference that are meaningless. Our lives, rather, must be sustained by the Father, in the sure hope of his providence.

November 11^th 2018. Thirty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL: Mark 12,38-44

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL: Mark 12,38-44

In the course of his teaching Jesus said to the crowds,
"Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes
and accept greetings in the marketplaces, seats of honour in synagogues,
and places of honour at banquets.
They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext recite lengthy prayers.
They will receive a very severe condemnation."
He sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury.
Many rich people put in large sums.
A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents.
Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury.
For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood."

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . Sunday’s Gospel presents us with two contrasting figures, one who uses God to promote himself, the other who gives of herself in order to submit to God. The Scribe goes around in flowing robes, looking for attention. He uses religion to advance his own agenda, his own public image. The widow, by contrast, puts her last two coins into the Temple treasury. By so doing, she manifests her radical relationship with God. She could have held one coin back, but instead she gives both. There are no half measures here. She empties herself in order to live out her relationship with God, whilst the Scribe uses his relationship with God to try to fill himself. This brings us to the first reading, where a widow gives her last handful of flour to the prophet Elijah, and then discovers that she has enough to eat herself. It is only when we abandon ourselves to God in faith, trust and obedience, that we are filled by our relationship with him. If, instead, we try to enter the relationship with God (or with anyone else, for that matter) on our own terms, clinging on to what we are most attached to, then the relationship will be inauthentic to the same degree.

The Gospel presents us with two contrasting figures. The first is the Scribe who uses religion to promote his own public image

In this Sunday’s Gospel, two different characters face each other. One is the Scribe, who loves to walk around in long robes, take the first places in the synagogues, and pray at length so that he will be seen. This is the classic image of a person who uses religion for his own purposes. If there were other means of achieving those same purposes, then he could have taken one of those ways of life just as easily. The essential characteristic of this person is that he must receive, possess, be seen, devour. He is in a constant state of hunger, dissatisfied, and must constantly receive gratification. Existentially, he is in an infantile state and he exploits religion in order to satisfy his emptiness inside.

The second figure is the widow. Her relationship with God is not superficial, and she demonstrates this by giving everything she had to the Temple treasury. She is not using her relationship with God to promote herself, but giving herself to promote her relationship with God

In contrast to this figure who mixes religion and the mundane, appears a figure of a very different sort. We are prepared for this person by the first reading, which recounts the story of the widow who comes to the aid of the prophet Elijah by giving him her last handful of flour. This lady feeds the prophet, and in so doing finds that she has enough to eat as well. What a curious thing! The Scribe in the Gospel consumes, consumes, consumes, but remains hungry, whilst this lady gives her food to others and is filled herself! In the Gospel, another widow appears, and this account forms the end of the narrative part of Mark’s Gospel. Afterwards we have the discourse on the last things and the prophecy regarding the destruction of Jerusalem, before the account of the passion and death of Jesus. This widow throws her final two coins into the treasury. This is an interesting detail, because if she had two coins, then she could have kept one for herself. In life, the rest of us tend to do things in half measures. But this lady goes all the way. As such she represents humanity as it stands before God. She is a poor mendicant, but becomes rich by giving these two coins away. The treasure of the Temple represents the relationship of humanity with the things of God, with the cult, with the assistance given by that treasury to the poor and needy. This widow would have the right to receive from the treasury, but instead she gives. And this manifests the quality of her relationship with God. And it is a radical relationship. Despite being a poor widow, this lady gives everything, whilst others give only what is superfluous.

Relationships are only real when we invest ourselves in them, when we are willing to put our most precious possessions on the line for that relationship. If we enter a relationship whilst holding certain things back for ourselves, then the relationship is less authentic. God only becomes God when we abandon ourselves to him, giving him both coins of our existence.

By giving in this way, she touches on what is essential in her life, the issue of her very survival. Our relationship with God remains only a theory that does not touch us in a profound way for as long as we offer ourselves to him in what is superfluous to us. This is how it is with God, but also in human relationships. If the relationship does not affect what is essential in my life, then it remains on this superficial level. If a man and a woman do not love each other to the extent of sacrificing those things that they are most attached to, then they are merely subjecting their relationship to other priorities in their lives. Similarly, God only becomes really God for us on the day that we offer him everything, without holding other things in reserve purely for ourselves. It is at this point that a true relationship with God is possible. That is why true experiences of faith often begin when life takes a serious or grave turn. In that moment God becomes truly God. Otherwise we can treat him like another “app” in our operating system, something that we utilize for our own advantage. On the day that we give both of our last coins to God, in an act of abandonment, an act of faith, an act of obedience – in that moment he becomes truly our God. We need to live in this radical way! The alternative is to remain with an insatiable hunger like the grotesque Scribe, infantile and immature. Here we are talking about entering into a relationship that is grandiose, noble, beautiful, radical. All of us need this for our happiness, for our peace, for our completeness.

November 4^th 2018. Thirty-first Sunday of Ordinary Time

GOSPEL Mark 12:28-34

Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading . . .

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GOSPEL: Mark 12:28-34

One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him,
"Which is the first of all the commandments?"
Jesus replied, "The first is this:
Hear, O Israel!
The Lord our God is Lord alone!
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,
with all your soul, 
with all your mind,
and with all your strength.
The second is this:
You shall love your neighbour as yourself.
There is no other commandment greater than these."
The scribe said to him, "Well said, teacher.
You are right in saying,
'He is One and there is no other than he.'
And 'to love him with all your heart,
with all your understanding,
with all your strength,
and to love your neighbour as yourself'
is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
And when Jesus saw that he answered with understanding,
he said to him,
"You are not far from the kingdom of God."
And no one dared to ask him any more questions.

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . In Sunday’s Gospel, a scribe asks Jesus which is the first of all the commandments. Jesus gives the traditional reply, to love God with all of one’s being. This is a verse that would have been recited by the scribes a few times daily. They knew the theory perfectly. In fact, Jesus says, “You are not far from the Kingdom”. But for the scribes, this remained something abstract, something to be repeated and argued over. Jesus is the one who goes beyond the theory. The scribes knew it, and it was for this reason that “no one dared to ask him any more questions”.  Jesus is the one who lives the “all” that is repeated four times in the first commandment. It is this complete love, without reserve, that enables him to be crowned with thorns, to endure the evil which surrounds him, to be crucified. He loves without keeping anything for himself. Jesus tells us that this complete love is what we need to live an authentic life. What is the alternative to this love? If a man said to his wife, “I love you with part of my mind and part of my heart. I will do certain things for you but not everything”, no woman would be impressed! The alternative to the completeness of Christ’s love is the mediocrity with which we live our lives. He loves without conditions and without reserve. Jesus puts flesh on the first commandment. And when we allow ourselves to be loved by him, then his flesh begins to become ours. On this 31^st Sunday of Ordinary Time, we consume the Eucharist in order to have this “all” in our hearts, so that we too, through his grace, can become capable along with him of loving without mediocrity, without half measures, but right to the end.

The scribe is “near” the Kingdom in that he can state what is essential for life: the total love of God and neighbour. But for the scribes, this was just a formula, an abstraction.

In this Sunday’s Gospel, a scribe asks Jesus, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” In other words, what is important in life? What is essential? What is the first thing that we must concern ourselves with? In Hebrew, the word “first” really means the foundation, the basic thing in all of existence. Jesus gives the traditional response, the same response that would have been repeated by every pious Jew a number of times daily. But for the scribes this verse was just another piece of information, something learned off by heart, a point used by them for constructing arguments against others. But for Jesus, this is something absolutely essential, as he asserts at the end of the passage when he says, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God”. Jesus is really saying that the Kingdom is not just a theory. It is something close by. We can move from theory to reality and cease living in abstractions. It is interesting that no one questions Jesus further after he makes this assertion of the nearness of the Kingdom. They do not have the strength or courage to make this final leap in quality to the things of the Kingdom. This is the leap that the theorists of religion always have difficulty making.

Jesus is the one who really lives the “all” that is repeated four times in the first commandment. This is what permits him to subject himself to crucifixion and insults. He loves completely, without retaining anything for himself

It is one thing to meet a person who can tell us interesting things, but a different thing entirely to meet a person who is himself interesting. It is one thing to meet a person who can tell us that the love of God requires heart, soul and mind, but another thing to meet a person who actually reasons according to love in an interior way, who emanates love in his very actions, with an intelligence that has been informed by the faith, and whose sentiments are instructed by authentic love. Such a person is one who has really taken on board the “all” that is repeated four times in the first commandment: “all of his heart, all of his mind, all of his soul and all of his strength”. If such a person exists, then he is someone who loves, plain and simple. He has taken on a way of life that is characterised by fraternal love, who knows how to pardon, for love is not something that only goes so far and no further. Such a person looks on others as part of himself. How can I not forgive and welcome the other who is a part of me? Such a man, whose love is not partial but complete, will be capable of bearing a crown of thorns. He will love even when he does not understand. He knows that to love involves entrusting oneself to God, refusing to respond to evil with evil. He will allow himself to be crucified in order to refrain from responding to the evil of those who surround him. He will be a man whose heart is crushed because he is one who has loved without keeping anything for himself.

The alternative to the “all” of Jesus is the mediocrity with which we live our lives

This phrase, “all your heart, soul and mind” is either true or false. In Jesus the phrase is true! If such love is not possible, if it is an exaggeration, then what sort of life is possible for us? If my love is not with all of my heart, all of my actions, if I retain other things in my heart for myself, if my actions are only partially directed towards others, then the state I am in is called “mediocrity”. If a man said to a woman, “Dearest I love you with part of my mind and part of my heart. I wouldn’t do anything for you, just a limited number of things”. No woman would be impressed with such a declaration. Jesus makes a declaration of an entirely different sort. He loves with everything that he is. If we ask Jesus what is essential for him, to what extent he will love us, the single word that he will utter in reply is, “completely”. This is the word that is repeated in the first commandment. He loves without conditions and without reserve. Jesus puts flesh on this commandment. And when we allow ourselves to be loved in this way, then his flesh begins to become ours. On this 31^st Sunday of Ordinary Time, we will consume the Eucharist in order to have this “all” in our hearts, so that we too, through his grace, can become capable along with him of loving without mediocrity, without half measures, but right to the end.