#ACTS 187 GOSPEL

[dukejeyaraj]

Christmas Goodnews Starting With The Magic Moments and Heart Breaks of the 2023 ODI World Cup

Rev. Dr. Duke Jeyaraj In this Christmas Season we can copy Jesus and Paul who wrapped key Gospel elements around contemporary events and quotes from non-Biblical authors (see Luke 13:1-5; Acts 17:28). I want to show how this can be done with some magic moments/heart-breaking moments still in our memories from the 2023 ODI World Cup which India lost in the Final. THAT PLANNING MEETING There was…

[dailyanarchistposts]

Footnotes, 151-200

[151] Jean Hardisty, Mobilizing Resentment (Boston: Beacon Press, 1999), 107–108; Rob Boston, “If Best-Selling End-Times Author Tim LaHaye Has His Way, Church-State Separation Will Be…Left Behind,” Church & State Magazine, February 2002.

[152] Mariah Blake, “Stations Of The Cross: How evangelical Christians are creating an alternative universe of faith-based news,” Columbia Journalism Review, May/June 2005.

[153] Elias Canetti, Crowds and Power (New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1973), 22.

[154] Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents, edited and translated by James Strachey (New York: W. W. Norton, 1961), 67.

[155] Ibid., 66.

[156] Steve Blow, “Turning Textbooks into the Good Book,” Dallas Morning News, March 5, 2006.

[157] Mary Ann Zehr, “School of Faith,” Education Week, December 7, 2005.

[158] See www.ed.nces.gov.

[159] Laurel Elizabeth Hicks, Old World History and Geography (Pensacola, FL: A Beka, 1991), 247, as cited in Frances Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance,” Rethinking Schools Online, www.rethinkingschools.org.

[160] Hicks, Old World History and Geography, 210, as cited in Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance.”

[161] Hicks, Old World History and Geography, 213 and 214, as cited in Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance.”

[162] Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance,” 2.

[163] Jerry Combee, History of the World in Christian Perspective (Pensacola, FL: A Beka, 1997), 86.

[164] Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance,” 2.

[165] Hicks, Old World History and Geography, 47, as cited in Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance.”

[166] Combee, History of the World, 279.

[167] Hicks, Old World History and Geography, 212, as cited in Patterson, “Teaching Religious Intolerance.”

[168] Heritage Studies for Christian Schools 6 (Greenville, SC: Bob Jones University Press, 1998), 41.

[169] Kurt S. Grussendorf, Michael R. Lowman, and Brian S. Asbaugh, America, Land I Love—Teacher Edition (Pensacola, FL: A Beka, 1994), 636.

[170] Ibid., 631.

[171] Ibid., 630.

[172] Ibid., 593. Italics added.

[173] Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, Glorious Appearing: The End of Days (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House, 2004), 10.

[174] Ibid., 12.

[175] “UnCommonSense,” J. Kenneth Blackwell, Ohio Secretary of State, www_sos.state_oh.us.

[176] Ibid.

[177] Ibid.

[178] Ibid.

[179] Andrew Welsh-Huggins, “Ohio Televangelist Takes to Politics,” FortWayne.com, December 3, 2005, www.fortwayne.com.

[180] Sarah Posner, “With God on His Side,” American Prospect, November 2005.

[181] Jim Bebbington, “An Empire of Souls,” Columbus Monthly, May 1993, 35, quoted in G. Richard Fisher, “Rod Parsley: The Raging Prophet,” Personal Freedom Outreach, 1999.

[182] Posner, “With God on His Side.”

[183] Walter Lippmann, Liberty and the News (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Howe, 1920), 64.

[184] William Lobdell, “The Prosperity Gospel; Pastor’s Empire Built on Acts of Faith and Cash,” Los Angeles Times, September 19, 2004, B1.

[185] Ibid.

[186] Andre Gumbel, “Scandal, Sex and Sanctimony,” New Zealand Herald, September 18, 2004, B16.

[187] Paul Crouch Sr., Praise the Lord, November 7, 1997, quoted in “Paul Crouch and TBN,” On Doctrine, www.ondoctrine.com.

[188] Lobdell, “Prosperity Gospel.”

[189] Gumbel, “Scandal, Sex and Sanctimony.”

[190] Benny Hinn, Praise the Lord, October 19, 1999, quoted in “Paul Crouch and TBN.”

[191] Benny Hinn, Larry King Live, quoted in “Benny Hinn—Truth or Consequences, Part 3,” Let Us Reason Ministries Apologetics Index, www.apologeticsindex.org.

[192] Gumbel, “Scandal, Sex and Sanctimony.”

[193] Paul Crouch Sr., Praise-a-Thon, April 2, 1991, quoted in “Paul Crouch and TBN.”

[194] Gumbel, “Scandal, Sex and Sanctimony.”

[195] William Lobdell, “Ex-Worker Accusing TBN Pastor Says He Had Sex to Keep His Job,” Los Angeles Times, September 22, 2004, B1.

[196] Lobdell, “Prosperity Gospel.”

[197] Ibid.

[198] Mark A. Beliles and Stephen K. McDowell, America’s Providential History, 19

[199] Ibid., 3.

[200] Ibid., 214.

[asfaltics]

A brown moth fluttered.

  The curtain was down, and the carpenters were rearranging the “No, no, no! I can’t breathe       1       volatile I can’t breathe.” And such a fit of suffocating       2   “I can’t breathe,” she would sometimes say       3 and the minisnever! I can’t breathe it in fast enough, nor hard enough, nor long enough.”       4   and started up up. to return to the tent, only to check him No, I can’t breathe the same air self in the act as often as he started, with ye to-night, but ye’ll go into the he lost consciousness in uneasy dreams       5 meet me at the station. I can’t breathe in this wretched       6   “sickening down there — I can’t breathe!  I can’t stand it, Drewe! It’s killing me!” — Tears       7 struggling to altitudes that I can’t breathe in.  I could help him when he was in despair, but he is the sort who       8   sometimes I find I can’t breathe in it.  Perhaps some folks will say “so much the worse for you”       9 it seems if I can’t breathe in the house. not dared hope       10   “Well, I won’t wear ’em. I can’t breathe” “Sure! Blame ’em!” “I can’t breathe a square breath.” Oh       11 things I regret I can’t breathe.       12   bramble bush. I can’t breathe. I can’t eat. I can’t do anything much. It’s clear to my knees.       13 I can't breathe, I can't talk,       14   lying on its “I can’t stay here I can’t breathe” side, the cork half-loosened. A brown moth fluttered.       15 “I can’t breathe beside you.”       16   the needs of any reasonable young lady. “I can't breathe there,       17 I can’t breathe — I really need the rush of this wintry air to restore me!”       18   I can’t breathe no more in that coop upstairs . tablet ; two he said is what you need.” of flame shoots through a stream of oil       19 no friction. It’s friction—rub- / asthmatically.] “I can’t breathe deep — I can light and of reason. But I’ve a notion       20   out of it. I can’t breathe in the dark. I can’t. I / She withdrew       21 “I can’t breathe or feel in”       22   Up a flight of stairs, and there was the girl, sitting on the edge of an untidy bed. The yellow sweater was on the floor. She had on an underskirt and a pink satin camisole. “I can't breathe !” she gasped.       23 I can’t breathe in the dark! I can’t! I can’t! I can’t live in the dark with my eyes open!       24   One never gets it back! How could one! And I can’t breathe just now, on account of       25 that old stuff, I could shriek. I can’t breathe in the same room with you. The very sound of       26   don’t! I can’t — breathe.... I’m all — and bitter howling.       27  

sources (pre-1923; approximately 90 in all, from which these 27 passages, all by women)

1 ex “Her Last Appearance,” in Peters’ Musical Monthly, And United States Musical Review 3:2 (New-York, February 1869), “from Belgravia” : 49-52 (51) “Her Last Appearance” appeared later, “by the author of Lady Audley’s Secret” (M.E. Braddon, 1835-1915 *), in Belgravia Annual (vol. 31; Christmas 1876) : 61-73 2 snippet view ex The Lady’s Friend (1873) : 15 evidently Frances Hodgson Burnett (1849-1924 *) her Vagabondia : A Love Story (New York, 1891) : 286 (Boston, 1884) : 286 (hathitrust) 3 ex “The Story of Valentine; and his Brother.” Part VI. Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine vol. 115 (June 1874) : 713-735 (715) authored by Mrs. [Margaret] Oliphant (1828-97 *), see her The Story of Valentine (1875; Stereotype edition, Edinburgh and London, 1876) : 144 4 OCR confusions at Olive A. Wadsworth, “Little Pilkins,” in Sunday Afternoon : A Monthly Magazine for the Household vol. 2 (July-December 1878) : 73-81 (74) OAW “Only A Woman” was a pseudonym of Katharine Floyd Dana (1835-1886), see spoonercentral. Katharine Floyd Dana also authored Our Phil and Other Stories (Boston and New York, 1889) : here, about which, a passage from a bookseller's description — Posthumously published fictional sketches of “negro character,” first published in the Atlantic Monthly under the pseudonym Olive A. Wadsworth. The title story paints a picture of plantation life Dana experienced growing up on her family’s estate in Mastic, Long Island. Although a work of fiction set in Maryland, the character of Phil may of been named for a slave once jointly owned by the Floyds and a neighboring family. source see also the William Buck and Katherine Floyd Dana collection, 1666-1912, 1843-1910, New York State Historical Documents (researchworks). 5 OCR cross-column misread, at M(ary). H(artwell). Catherwood (1847-1902 *), “The Primitive Couple,” in Lippincott’s Magazine of Popular Literature and Science 36 (August 1885) : 138-146 (145) author of historical romances, short stories and poetry, and dubbed the “Parkman of the West,” her papers are at the Newberry Library (Chicago) 6 ex Marie Corelli (Mary Mackay; 1855-1924 *), Thelma, A Norwegian Princess: A Novel, Book II. The Land of Mockery. Chapter 12 (New Edition, London, 1888) : 432 7 preview snippet (only), at Ada Cambridge (1844-1926 *), Fidelis, a Novel ( “Cheap Edition for the Colonies and India,” 1895) : 289 full scan, (New York, 1895) : 261 born and raised in England, spent much of her life in Australia (died in Melbourne); see biography (and 119 of her poems) at the Australia Poetry Library in particular, the striking poems from Unspoken Thoughts (1887) here (Thomas Hardy comes to mind) 8 snippet view (only) at F(rances). F(rederica), Montrésor (1862-1934), At the Cross-Roads (London, 1897) : 297 but same page (and scan of entirety) at hathitrust see her entry At the Circulating Library (Database of Victorian Fiction 1837-1901) an interesting family. Montrésor’s The Alien: A Story of Middle Age (1901) is dedicated to her sister, C(harlotte). A(nnetta). Phelips (1858-1925), who was devoted to work for the blind. See entry in The Beacon, A Monthly magazine devoted to the interests of the blind (May 1925) a great-granddaughter of John Montresor (1737-99), a British military engineer and cartographer, whose colorful (and unconventional) life is sketched at wikipedia. 9 Alice H. Putnam, “An Open Letter,” in Kindergarten Review 9:5 (Springfield, Massachusetts; January 1899) : 325-326 Alice Putnam (1841-1919) opened the first private kindergarten in Chicago; Froebel principles... (wikipedia); see also “In Memory of Alice H. Putnam” in The Kindergarten-primary Magazine 31:7 (March 1919) : 187 (hathitrust) 10 OCR cross-column misread, at Mabel Nelson Thurston (1869?-1965?), “The Palmer Name,” in The Congregationalist and Christian World 86:30 (27 July 1901) : 134-135 author of religiously inflected books (seven titles at LC); first female admitted for entry at George Washington University (in 1888). GWU archives 11 OCR cross-column misread, at Margaret Grant, “The Romance of Kit Dunlop,” Beauty and Health : Woman’s Physical Development 7:6 (March 1904): 494-501 (499 and 500) the episodic story starts at 6:8 (November 1903) : 342 12 ex Marie van Vorst (1867-1936), “Amanda of the Mill,” The Bookman : An illustrated magazine of literature and life 21 (April 1905) : 190-209 (191) “writer, researcher, painter, and volunteer nurse during World War I.” wikipedia 13 ex Maude Morrison Huey, “A Change of Heart,” in The Interior (The sword of the spirit which is the Word of God) 36 (Chicago, April 20, 1905) : 482-484 (483) little information on Huey, who is however mentioned in Paula Bernat Bennett, her Poets in the Public Sphere : The Emancipatory Project of American Women's Poetry, 1800-1900 (2003) : 190 14 ex Leila Burton Wells, “The Lesser Stain,” The Smart Set, A Magazine of Cleverness 19:3 (July 1906) : 145-154 (150) aside — set in the Philippines, where “The natives were silent, stolid, and uncompromising.” little information on Wells, some of whose stories found their way to the movie screen (see IMDB) The Smart Set ran from March 1900-June 1930; interesting story (and decline): wikipedia 15 OCR cross-column misread, at Josephine Daskam Bacon (1876-1961 *), “The Hut in the Wood: A Tale of the Bee Woman and the Artist,” in Collier’s, The National Weekly 41:12 (Saturday, June 13, 1908) : 12-14 16 ex E. H. Young, A Corn of Wheat (1910) : 90 Emily Hilda Daniell (1880-1949), novelist, children’s writer, mountaineer, suffragist... wrote under the pseudonym E. H. Young. (wikipedia) 17 ex Mary Heaton Vorse (1874-1966), “The Engagements of Jane,” in Woman’s Home Companion (May 1912) : 17-18, 92-93 Illustrated by Florence Scovel Shinn (1871-1940, artist and book illustrator who became a New Thought spiritual teacher and metaphysical writer in her middle years. (wikipedia)) Mary Heaton Vorse — journalist, labor activist, social critic, and novelist. “She was outspoken and active in peace and social justice causes, such as women's suffrage, civil rights, pacifism (such as opposition to World War I), socialism, child labor, infant mortality, labor disputes, and affordable housing.” (wikipedia). 18 ex snippet view, at “Voices,” by Runa, translated for the Companion by W. W. K., in Lutheran Companion 20:3 (Rock Island, Illinois; Saturday, January 20, 1912) : 8 full view at hathitrust same passage in separate publication as Voices, By Runa (pseud. of E. M. Beskow), from the Swedish by A. W. Kjellstrand (Rock Island, Illinois, 1912) : 292 E(lsa). M(aartman). Beskow (1874-1953), Swedish author and illustrator of children’s books (Voices seems rather for older children); see wikipedia 19 ex Fannie Hurst (1885-1968 *), “The Good Provider,” in The Saturday Evening Post 187:1 (August 15, 1914) : 12-16, 34-35 20 OCR cross-column misread, at Anne O’Hagan, “Gospels of Hope for Women: A few new creeds, all of them modish—but expensive” in Vanity Fair (February 1915) : 32 Anne O’Hagan Shinn (1869-1933) — feminist, suffragist, journalist, and writer of short stories... “known for her writings detailing the exploitation of young women working as shop clerks in early 20th Century America... O’Hagan participated in several collaborative fiction projects...” (wikipedia) a mention of St. Anselm, whose “sittings” are free, vis-à-vis “Swami Bunkohkahnanda”... “Universal Harmonic Vibrations”... 21 OCR cross-column misread (three columns), at Fannie Hurst (1885-1968 *), “White Goods” (Illustrations by May Wilson Preston) in Metropolitan Magazine 42:3 (July 1915) : 19-22, 53 repeated, different source and without OCR misread, at 24 below 22 ex Mary Patricia Willcocks, The Sleeping Partner (London, 1919) : 47 (snippet only) full at hathitrust see onlinebooks for this and other of her titles. something on Mary Patricia Willcocks (1869-1952) at ivybridge-heritage. in its tone and syntax, her prose brings Iris Murdoch to mind. 23 Katharine Wendell Pedersen, “Clingstones, A week in a California cannery.” in New Outlook vol. 124 (February 4, 1920) : 193-194 no information about the author. the journal began life as The Christian Union (1870-1893) and continued under the new title into 1928; it ceased publication in 1935; it was devoted to social and political issues, and was against Bolshevism (wikipedia) 24 ex Fannie Hurst (1885-1968 *), “White Goods,” in her Humoresque : A Laugh on Life with a Tear Behind it (1919, 1920) : 126-169 (155) 25 ex snippet view, at Letters and poems of Queen Elisabeth (Carmen Sylva), with an introduction and notes by Henry Howard Harper. Volume 2 (of 2; Boston, Printed for members only, The Bibliophile society, 1920) : 51 (hathitrust) Carmen Sylva was “the pen name of Elisabeth, queen consort of Charles I, king of Rumania” (1843-1916 *) 26 OCR cross-column misread, at Ruth Comfort Mitchell, “Corduroy” (Part Three; Illustrated by Frederick Anderson), in Woman’s Home Companion 49:8 (August 1922) : 21-23, 96-97 (hathitrust) Ruth Comfort Mitchell Young (1882-1954), poet, dramatist, etc., and owner of a remarkable house (in a “Chinese” style) in Los Gatos, California (wikipedia) 27 Helen Otis, “The Christmas Waits,” in Woman’s Home Companion 49:12 (Christmas 1922) : 36 probably Helen Otis Lamont (1897-1993), about whom little is found, save this “Alumna Interview: Helen Otis Lamont, Class of 1916” (Packer Collegiate Institute, Brooklyn, 1988) at archive.org (Brooklyn Historical Society)

—

prompted by : recent thoughts about respiration (marshes, etc.); Pfizer round-one recovery focus on the shape of one breath, then another; inhalation, exhalation and the pleasure of breathing; and for whom last breaths are no pleasure (far from it); last breaths (Robert Seelthaler The Field (2021) in the background).

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all tagged breath all tagged cento  

[shannonsfilmblogs]

Horror: Pastiche and commentary on the slasher subgenre of horror in The Cabin in the Woods

The Cabin in the Woods (2012, Drew Goddard) is a horror/comedy that follows five American college students as they retreat to a remote cabin which becomes the setting for their demise. Their getaway is covertly controlled by a secret organization, aptly called The Organisation, whose aim is to manufacture the perfect horror film scenario to please ‘The Ancient Ones’ – Gods that demand the sacrifice of five archetypal characters. Each of the students represents a classic slasher character archetype: The athlete, The Whore, The Scholar, The Fool, and The Virgin. The individuals chosen for these roles does not have to be a perfect fit, as they are chemically altered to conform. Once the students have been molded, they are subjected to a classic horror monster which hunts and kills them in ritualistic sacrifice. The film places emphasis on the importance of The Virgin, who in this case is called Kristen (Dana Polk), and her role in the manufactured narrative.

Kristen is overtly referred to as ‘the virgin’ multiple times throughout the film and, unlike her unfortunate friends, is given the option to survive her ordeal provided that she suffers greatly first. She is quite literally given the option to become the ‘final girl’ – a well-recognised characteristic of the slasher genre. Clover (1992) states that “The moment the final girl becomes her own saviour, she becomes a hero”, which is exceptionally true in the film’s finale. Kristen mutters “They made us choose how we die” as she stares a monster in the eyes through the glass of its containment cube. She and the only other survivor, Marty / The Fool archetype (Fran Kranz), pass by multiple creatures that could have been chosen to hunt them. The realisation of their manufactured suffering leads her to make the choice to destroy The Organisation’s headquarters by releasing the monsters via a literal ‘purge’ button, which results in a bloody montage/homage to horror monsters past and present. The pair run though endless corridors as the likes of the tree from The Evil Dead (1981), a clown similar to that from IT (1990), and Fornicus: Lord of Pain and Bondage – a nod to Pinhead from Hellraiser (1987) – massacre the staff. They pass one of the leaders of The Organisation who lays dying on the floor as he whispers “kill him” to Kristen. The two finally reach the temple of The Ancient ones. This is where Kristen gains her agency and makes the choice to defy her masters, be it man or god. The temple shakes as the gods below stir from their sleep, angry at the incomplete sacrifice. Kristen and Marty are then given an ultimatum by a classic ‘final girl’, Sigourney Weaver, who famously played Ripley in Alien (1979). Weaver, who plays the director of the organisation, informs them that Marty must die or else the narrative of the ‘final girl’ will not be realised. Kristen aims a gun at him, almost fulfilling her destiny. She decides that humanity is ultimately not worth saving and the two sit down and share a joint as the temple collapses around them. This act of defiance enrages the gods, who then                                       burst through the earth and destroy the cabin, and the world.

In this way, the gods of this world are a strong metaphor for the film-viewing audience. They become enraged when the narrative deviates from what is expected of the genre. And the very fact that they demand the students are forced to undergo a formulaic series of slasher narrative tropes before their sacrifice furthers this point. As an example, The Whore archetype, Jules (Anna Hutchinson), and The Athlete, Curt (Chris Hemsworth), are sprayed with mind-altering pheromones under the guise of eerie fog that makes them want to have sex in the woods at night. One of the organisations leaders, Hadley (Bradley Whitford), comments “We’re not the only ones watching, kid. Gotta keep the customer satisfied” when an intern asks if it’s necessary for Jules to be getting naked as part of the ritual, once again alluding to the presence of the viewer. By focusing once again on audience expectations in slasher horror, it is evident that those who engage in sex are destined to die. “The cause-and-effect relationship between sex and death could hardly be more clearly drawn [in slashers]” (Clover, 1987) becomes gospel in The Cabin in the Woods. Jules, as the antithesis of Kristen’s virginal nature, is blatantly expected to die a horrific death for the simple act of engaging in sex because it’s what the audience has come to expect from the genre.

Despite all the gore, thrills, and commentary, The Cabin in the Woods remains a parody at is core. Heavy reliance on intertextuality and the audience’s prior knowledge of horror provides viewers with gratification as they spot homages and ‘easter eggs’ of well-known horrors films. Small things like the zombie father tilting his head slowly, like Michael Myers in Halloween (1978), to more universal references like the character archetypes all accumulate in the audience being excited by ‘being in on the joke’. However, the very nature of the viewer gaining gratification from experiencing these clichés is pastiche in of itself. We, the audience, enjoy seeing these same tropes over and over, repeated time and time again in the horror genre. If we find amusement in how overdone horror tropes are then we become part of the issue the film presents. As Kristen decided to end the world, and thus destroying all these horror icons, she essentially destroys the genre too. The Ancient Ones (the audience), become enraged and awake from their sleep to lay waste to the world, reflecting how audiences have changed the horror genre by standing against overdone clichés. This allows new material to be created as opposed to more sequels of seemingly never-ending franchises like Saw (8 films) or Friday the 13th(12 films). However, I am not saying that repetition is necessarily a bad thing. The reason these tropes are so widely used is because we do enjoy them, as evident in The Cabin in the Woods.

References:

Clover, C. (1987). Her Body, Himself: Gender in the Slasher Film. Representations, (20), 187-228. doi:10.2307/2928507

Clover, C. (1992). Men, women, and chainsaws: Gender in the modern horror film. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press

[pope-francis-quotes]

18th November >> Let us ask for the grace to open our eyes and hearts to the poor in order to hear their cry and recognize their needs. #WorldDayofthePoor @Pontifex 

Pope Francis

Messages

World Day of the Poor

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS

SECOND WORLD DAY OF THE POOR

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 18 November 2018

This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him

1. “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him” (Ps 34:6). The words of the Psalmist become our own whenever we are called to encounter the different conditions of suffering and marginalization experienced by so many of our brothers and sisters whom we are accustomed to label generically as “the poor”. The Psalmist is not alien to suffering; quite the contrary. He has a direct experience of poverty and yet transforms it into a song of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. Psalm 34 allows us today, surrounded as we are by many different forms of poverty, to know those who are truly poor. It enables us to open our eyes to them, to hear their cry and to recognize their needs.

We are told, in the first place, that the Lord listens to the poor who cry out to him; he is good to those who seek refuge in him, whose hearts are broken by sadness, loneliness and exclusion. The Lord listens to those who, trampled in their dignity, still find the strength to look up to him for light and comfort. He listens to those persecuted in the name of a false justice, oppressed by policies unworthy of the name, and terrified by violence, yet know that God is their Saviour. What emerges from this prayer is above all the sense of abandonment and trust in a Father who can hear and understand. Along these same lines, we can better appreciate the meaning of Jesus’ words, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:3).

This experience, unique and in many ways undeserved and inexpressible, makes us want to share it with others, especially those who, like the Psalmist, are poor, rejected and marginalized. No one should feel excluded from the Father’s love, especially in a world that often presents wealth as the highest goal and encourages self-centredness.

2. Psalm 34 uses three verbs to describe the poor man in his relationship with God. First of all, “to cry”. Poverty cannot be summed up in a word; it becomes a cry that rises to heaven and reaches God. What does the cry of the poor express, if not their suffering and their solitude, their disappointment and their hope? We can ask ourselves how their plea, which rises to the presence of God, can fail to reach our own ears, or leave us cold and indifferent. On this World Day of the Poor, we are called to make a serious examination of conscience, to see if we are truly capable of hearing the cry of the poor.

To hear their voice, what we need is the silence of people who are prepared to listen. If we speak too much ourselves, we will be unable to hear them. At times I fear that many initiatives, meritorious and necessary in themselves, are meant more to satisfy those who undertake them than to respond to the real cry of the poor. When this is the case, the cry of the poor resounds, but our reaction is inconsistent and we become unable to empathize with their condition. We are so trapped in a culture that induces us to look in the mirror and pamper ourselves, that we think that an altruistic gesture is enough, without the need to get directly involved.

3. The second verb is “to answer”. The Psalmist tells us that the Lord does not only listen to the cry of the poor, but responds. His answer, as seen in the entire history of salvation, is to share lovingly in the lot of the poor. So it was when Abram spoke to God of his desire for offspring, despite the fact that he and his wife Sarah were old in years and had no children (cf. Gen 15:1-6). So too when Moses, in front of a bush that burned without being consumed, received the revelation of God’s name and the mission to free his people from Egypt (Ex 3:1-15). This was also the case during Israel’s wandering in the desert, in the grip of hunger and thirst (cf. Ex 16:1-6; 17:1-7), and its falling into the worst kind of poverty, namely, infidelity to the covenant and idolatry (cf. Ex 32:1-14).

God’s answer to the poor is always a saving act that heals wounds of body and soul, restores justice and helps to live life anew in dignity. God’s answer is also a summons to those who believe in him to do likewise, within the limits of what is humanly possible. The World Day of the Poor wishes to be a small answer that the Church throughout the world gives to the poor of every kind and in every land, lest they think that their cry has gone unheard. It may well be like a drop of water in the desert of poverty, yet it can serve as a sign of sharing with those in need, and enable them to sense the active presence of a brother or a sister. The poor do not need intermediaries, but the personal involvement of all those who hear their cry. The concern of believers in their regard cannot be limited to a kind of assistance – as useful and as providential as this may be in the beginning – but requires a “loving attentiveness” (Evangelii Gaudium, 199) that honours the person as such and seeks out his or her best interests.

4. The third verb is “to free”. In the Bible, the poor live in the certainty that God intervenes on their behalf to restore their dignity. Poverty is not something that anyone desires, but is caused by selfishness, pride, greed and injustice. These are evils as old as the human race itself, but also sins in which the innocent are caught up, with tragic effects at the level of social life. God’s act of liberation is a saving act for those who lift up to him their sorrow and distress. The bondage of poverty is shattered by the power of God’s intervention. Many of the Psalms recount and celebrate this history of salvation mirrored in the personal life of the poor: “For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; and he has not hid his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him” (Ps 22:24). The ability to see God’s face is a sign of his friendship, his closeness and his salvation. “You have seen my affliction, you have taken heed of my adversities… you have set my feet in a broad place” (Ps 31:7-8). To offer the poor a “broad space” is to set them free from the “snare of the fowler” (Ps 91:3); it is to free them from the trap hidden on their path, so that they can move forward with serenity on the path of life. God’s salvation is a hand held out to the poor, a hand that welcomes, protects and enables them to experience the friendship they need. From this concrete and tangible proximity, a genuine path of liberation emerges. “Each individual Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the liberation and promotion of the poor, and for enabling them to be fully a part of society. This demands that we be docile and attentive to the cry of the poor and to come to their aid” (Evangelii gaudium, 187).

5. I find it moving to know that many poor people identify with the blind beggar Bartimaeus mentioned by the evangelist Mark (cf. 10:46-52). Bartimaeus “was sitting by the roadside to beg” (v. 46); having heard that Jesus was passing by, “he began to cry out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me’” (v. 47). “Many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more” (v. 48). The Son of God heard his plea and said: “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “Master,let me receive my sight” (v. 51). This Gospel story makes visible what the Psalm proclaims as a promise. Bartimaeus is a poor person who finds himself lacking things as essential as sight and the ability to work for a living. How many people today feel in the same situation! Lack of basic means of subsistence, marginalization due to a reduced capacity for work, various forms of social enslavement, despite all our human progress… How many poor people today are like Bartimaeus, sitting on the roadside and looking for meaning in their lives! How many of them wonder why they have fallen so far and how they can escape! They are waiting for someone to come up to them and say: “Take heart; rise, he is calling you” (v. 49).

Sadly, the exact opposite often happens, and the poor hear voices scolding them, telling them to be quiet and to put up with their lot. These voices are harsh, often due to fear of the poor, who are considered not only destitute but also a source of insecurity and unrest, an unwelcome distraction from life as usual and needing to be rejected and kept afar. We tend to create a distance between them and us, without realizing that in this way we are distancing ourselves from the Lord Jesus, who does not reject the poor, but calls them to himself and comforts them. The words of the Prophet Isaiah telling believers how to conduct themselves are most apt in this case. They are “to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke… to share bread with the hungry and bring the homeless and poor into the house… to cover the naked” (58:6-7). Such deeds allow sin to be forgiven (cf. 1 Pet 4:8) and justice to take its course. They ensure that when we cry to the Lord, he will answer and say: “Here I am!” (cf. Is 58:9).

6. The poor are the first to recognize God’s presence and to testify to his closeness in their lives. God remains faithful to his promise; and even in the darkness of the night, he does not withhold the warmth of his love and consolation. However, for the poor to overcome their oppressive situation, they need to sense the presence of brothers and sisters who are concerned for them and, by opening the doors of their hearts and lives, make them feel like friends and family. Only in this way can the poor discover “the saving power at work in their lives” and “put them at the centre of the Church’s pilgrim way” (Evangelii Gaudium, 198).

On this World Day, we are asked to fulfil the words of the Psalm: “The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied” (Ps 22:26). We know that in the Temple of Jerusalem, after the rites of sacrifice, a banquet was held. It was this experience that, in many dioceses last year, enriched the celebration of the first World Day of the Poor. Many people encountered the warmth of a home, the joy of a festive meal and the solidarity of those who wished to sit together at table in simplicity and fraternity. I would like this year’s, and all future World Days, to be celebrated in a spirit of joy at the rediscovery of our capacity for togetherness. Praying together as a community and sharing a meal on Sunday is an experience that brings us back to the earliest Christian community, described by the evangelist Luke in all its primitive simplicity: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers… And all who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need” (Acts 2:42.44-45).

7. Countless initiatives are undertaken every day by the Christian community in order to offer closeness and a helping hand in the face of the many forms of poverty all around us. Often too, our cooperation with other initiatives inspired not by faith but by human solidarity, make it possible for us to provide help that otherwise we would have been unable to offer. The realization that in the face of so much poverty our capacity for action is limited, weak and insufficient, leads us to reach out to others so that, through mutual cooperation, we can attain our goals all the more effectively. We Christians are inspired by faith and by the imperative of charity, but we can also acknowledge other forms of assistance and solidarity that aim in part for the same goals, provided that we do not downplay our specific role, which is to lead everyone to God and to holiness. Dialogue between different experiences, and humility in offering our cooperation without seeking the limelight, is a fitting and completely evangelical response that we can give.

In the service of the poor, there is no room for competition. Rather, we should humbly recognize that the Spirit is the source of our actions that reveal God’s closeness and his answer to our prayers. When we find ways of drawing near to the poor, we know that the primacy belongs to God, who opens our eyes and hearts to conversion. The poor do not need self-promoters, but a love that knows how to remain hidden and not think about all the good it has been able to do. At the centre must always be the Lord and the poor. Anyone desirous of serving is an instrument in God’s hands, a means of manifesting his saving presence. Saint Paul recalled this when he wrote to the Christians in Corinth who competed for the more prestigious charisms: “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you,’ nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you’” (1 Cor 12:21). Paul makes an important point when he notes that the apparently weaker parts of the body are in fact the most necessary (cf. v. 22), and that those “we think less honourable we invest with the greater honour, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require” (vv. 23-24). Paul offers the community a basic teaching about charisms, but also about the attitude it should have, in the light of the Gospel, towards its weaker and needier members. Far be it from Christ’s disciples to nurture feelings of disdain or pity towards the poor. Instead, we are called to honour the poor and to give them precedence, out of the conviction that they are a true presence of Jesus in our midst. “As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Mt 25:40).

8. Here we can see how far our way of life must be from that of the world, which praises, pursues and imitates the rich and powerful, while neglecting the poor and deeming them useless and shameful. The words of the Apostle Paul invite us to a fully evangelical solidarity with the weaker and less gifted members of the body of Christ: “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together” (1 Cor 12:26). In his Letter to the Romans, Paul also tells us: “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly” (12:15-16). This is the vocation of each of Christ’s followers; the ideal for which we must constantly strive is ever greater conformity to the “mind of Jesus Christ” (Phil 2:5).

9. Faith naturally inspires a message of hope. Often it is precisely the poor who can break through our indifference, born of a worldly and narrow view of life. The cry of the poor is also a cry of hope that reveals the certainty of future liberation. This hope is grounded in the love of God, who does not abandon those who put their trust in him (cf. Rom 8:31-39). As Saint Teresa of Avila writes in The Way of Perfection: “Poverty comprises many virtues. It is a vast domain. I tell you, whoever despises all earthly goods is master of them all” (2:5). It is in the measure in which we are able to discern authentic good that we become rich before God and wise in our own eyes and in those of others. It is truly so. To the extent that we come to understand the true meaning of riches, we grow in humanity and become capable of sharing.

10. I invite my brother bishops, priests, and especially deacons, who have received the laying on of hands for the service of the poor (cf. Acts 6:1-7), as well as religious and all those lay faithful – men and women – who in parishes, associations and ecclesial movements make tangible the Church’s response to the cry of the poor, to experience this World Day as a privileged moment of new evangelization. The poor evangelize us and help us each day to discover the beauty of the Gospel. Let us not squander this grace-filled opportunity. On this day, may all of us feel that we are in debt to the poor, because, in hands outstretched to one another, a salvific encounter can take place to strengthen our faith, inspire our charity and enable our hope to advance securely on our path towards the Lord who is to come.

From the Vatican, 13 June 2018

Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua

Francis

[dathwan]

St. Dorotheos, Pg. 187-188

So it is with the soul; first it must cut off all its old tendencies and bad habits.  As St. Basil says, ‘It is no mean contest to overcome one’s bad habits, for custom, strengthened by enduring a long time, takes on the force of [second] nature.  Therefore, a man must combat, as I was saying, not only the bad habits, but the unruly passions which cause them and are their roots.  And if the roots are not plucked out, the thorns inevitably spring up again.  There are certain passions which do not grow strong if one cuts out their causes; and example of these is jealousy, which in itself is nothing, but one of its causes is vainglory.  Someone who is eager for praise is jealous of someone who is being praised or given a special honor.  Similarly anger has diverse causes but the principal one is love of pleasure.  Evagrius reminds us of this when he tells us that one of the holy fathers used to say, ‘The reason why I turn away from pleasures is to cut off occasions for getting angry.’  And all the fathers used to say that every one of the vices comes from one of three things - love of glory, love of money, and love of pleasure.  As I have told you on different occasions, a man must cut off not only his vices but their very causes, and so really put his life in good order through repentance and sorrow for sin, and then begin to sow good seed, i.e. good works.  We said about and find good soft cultivated land and put down more roots into it.  So it is with man: if, after putting his soul in good order and doing penance for his former conduct, he is negligent and doing good works and cultivating virtue, what happened in the Gospel happens to him.  When the unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes about through parched places seeking rest, and not finding any, and he says, ‘ I will return to the house from which I came out’, and coming, he finds it empty - ‘clearly empty of all virtues’ - and swept and garnished.  Then he goes and takes seven other devils, worse than himself, and goes in and lives there, and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.  It is impossible for the soul to remain in the same state but it must move along to what is better or to what is worse.  Therefore everyone who wants to be saved must not only stop doing evil, but also work at what is good, as it says in the psalm, ‘Turn away from evil and do good.’  Mark what is says.  Not only ‘turn from evil’, but also ‘do good’!  For example: If a man was used to being unjust, he wants to not only to stop being unjust but to act with justice continually.  If a man used always to be angry, he wants not only stop being angry but to cultivate mildness.  If he was bold and insolent, he must not only give it up, but he must act with humility.  This is to turn away from evil and to do good.  Each of the vices has its contrary virtue.  Pride has humility, avarice has almsgiving; licentiousness, self-discipline; neglect, perseverance; anger has meekness; hatred, love.  In short, I repeat, every vice has its contrary virtue.

[philipchircop]

PRACTICING RESURRECTION

Here’s something for you to chew on, on Easter Sunday:

At the end of John’s gospel, there is a small resurrection appearance, hardly worth a mention against the others, no locked doors, no vanishing acts. Peter and his crew are out fishing —it’s after Jesus has died and one imagines them sorrowful, empty. They’ve caught nothing. And then a man from shore yells out to them to cast their nets on the other side of the boat. Dubious--they’ve tried this— they try it again and catch so many fish their nets begin to break. Peter recognizes his lord, jumps into the water and swims to him. And when he gets there, Jesus is cooking fish on the beach. I thought of Jesus the Sunday I served the bread. I thought of him as the man who calls out to us from the shore, the man who cooks breakfast after a long night of work. After his death he is a more humble man; he doesn’t heal, he has no dark fantasies of the end of the world, he does not proclaim himself either the son of man or as much of anything else. The gist of what he says is mild and low: love one another, forgive each other, feed each other.

Nora Gallagher, Practicing Resurrection: A Memoir of Work, Doubt, Discernment, and Moments of Grace (Vintage, 2004) page 187

RECAP: 

The gist of what he says is mild and low: love one another, forgive each other, feed each other.

[fevie168]

Wednesday (February 27): "Any one who does a mighty work in my name"

Scripture: Mark 9:38-40   38 John said to him, "Teacher, we saw a man casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him, because he was not following us." 39 But Jesus said, "Do not forbid him; for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon after to speak evil of me. 40 For he that is not against us is for us.

Meditation: Do you rejoice in the good that others do? Jesus reprimands his disciples for their jealousy and suspicion. They were upset that someone who was not of their company was performing a good work in the name of Jesus. They even "forbade" the man "because he was not following us". Jesus' reply is filled with wisdom: "No one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon after to speak evil of me." Are we not like the disciples when we get upset at the good deeds of others who seem to shine more than us? Paul says that "love is not jealous... but rejoices in the right" (1 Corinthians 13:4,6).

Love does not envy others Envy and jealousy, its counterpart, are sinful because they lead us to sorrow over what should make us rejoice - namely, our neighbor's good. The reason we may grieve over our another's good is that somehow we see that good as lessening our own value or excellence. Envy forms when we believe that the other person's advantage or possession diminishes or brings disgrace on us. Envy is contrary to love. Both the object of love and the object of envy is our neighbor's good, but by contrary movements, since love rejoices in our neighbor's good, while envy grieves over it.

The love of God frees us from envy and jealousy How can we overcome envy? With the love that God has put into our hearts through the gift of the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). The Holy Spirit purifies our heart and frees us from our disordered passions, such as envy, jealously, greed, and bitterness. God's love is a generous and selfless love which is wholly oriented towards our good. The love that God places in our hearts seeks the highest good of our neighbor. God's love purifies and frees us from all envy and jealousy - and it compels us to give generously, especially to those who lack what they need.

Love gives freely and generously in kind deeds Every one in need has a claim on us because they are dear to God who created them in his own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26-27). God created us in love for love. We are most free and happy when we love as he loves. The love and charitable help we show to our neighbor also expresses the gratitude we have for the abundant mercy and kindness of God towards us. Jesus declared that any kindness shown and any help given to those in need would not lose its reward. Jesus never refused to give to anyone in need who asked for his help. As his disciples we are called to be kind and generous as he is. Are you grateful for God's mercy and kindness towards you and are you ready to show that same kindness and generosity towards your neighbor?

Gregory of Nyssa, an early church father (330-395 AD), comments on this passage: "God never asks his servants to do what is impossible. The love and goodness of his Godhead is revealed as richly available. It is poured out like water upon all. God furnished to each person according to his will the ability to do something good. None of those seeking to be saved will be lacking in this ability, given by the one who said: 'whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ, will by no means lose his reward'" (Mark 9:41). Ask the Lord Jesus to increase your generosity in doing good for others.

"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit that I may radiate the joy of the Gospel to others. May your light and truth shine through me that others may find new life and joy in you, and freedom from sin and oppression."

Psalm 49:1-10

1  Hear this, all peoples! Give ear, all inhabitants of the world, 2 both low and high, rich and poor together! 3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding. 4 I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre. 5 Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me, 6 men who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches? 7 Truly no man can ransom himself, or give to God the price of his life, 8 for the ransom of his life is costly, and can never suffice, 9 that he should continue to live on for ever, and never see the Pit. 10 Yes, he shall see that even the wise die, the fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others.

A Daily Quote for the early church fathers

:

Encouraging good works done in Christ

, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

"We ought not be disturbed because some who do not belong or do not yet belong to this temple, that is, among whom God does not or does not yet dwell, perform some works of power, as happened to the one who cast out devils in the name of Christ (Mark 9:38, Luke 9:49). Although he was not a follower of Christ, Christ ordered that he be allowed to continue because it gave a valuable testimony of his name to many... The centurion Cornelius also saw the angel that was sent to him to say that his prayers had been heard and his alms accepted (Acts 10:3-4), even before he was incorporated into this temple by regeneration." (excerpt from  LETTER 187, TO DARDANUS 36)

[araitsume]

The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 177-187: Chapter (18) Preaching Among the Heathen

This chapter is based on Acts 14:1-26.

From Antioch in Pisidia, Paul and Barnabas went to Iconium. In this place, as at Antioch, they began their labors in the synagogue of their own people. They met with marked success; “a great multitude both of the Jews and also of the Greeks believed.” But in Iconium, as in other places where the apostles labored, “the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles, and made their minds evil affected against the brethren.”

The apostles, however, were not turned aside from their mission, for many were accepting the gospel of Christ. In the face of opposition, envy, and prejudice they went on with their work, “speaking boldly in the Lord,” and God “gave testimony unto the word of His grace, and granted signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” These evidences of divine approval had a powerful influence on those whose minds were open to conviction, and converts to the gospel multiplied.

The increasing popularity of the message borne by the apostles, filled the unbelieving Jews with envy and hatred, and they determined to stop the labors of Paul and Barnabas at once. By means of false and exaggerated reports they led the authorities to fear that the entire city was in danger of being incited to insurrection. They declared that large numbers were attaching themselves to the apostles and suggested that it was for secret and dangerous designs.

In consequence of these charges the disciples were repeatedly brought before the authorities; but their defense was so clear and sensible, and their statement of what they were teaching so calm and comprehensive, that a strong influence was exerted in their favor. Although the magistrates were prejudiced against them by the false statements they had heard, they dared not condemn them. They could but acknowledge that the teachings of Paul and Barnabas tended to make men virtuous, law-abiding citizens, and that the morals and order of the city would improve if the truths taught by the apostles were accepted.

Through the opposition that the disciples met, the message of truth gained great publicity; the Jews saw that their efforts to thwart the work of the new teachers resulted only in adding greater numbers to the new faith. “The multitude of the city was divided: and part held with the Jews, and part with the apostles.”

So enraged were the leaders among the Jews by the turn that matters were taking, that they determined to gain their ends by violence. Arousing the worst passions of the ignorant, noisy mob, they succeeded in creating a tumult, which they attributed to the teaching of the disciples. By this false charge they hoped to gain the help of the magistrates in carrying out their purpose. They determined that the apostles should have no opportunity to vindicate themselves and that the mob should interfere by stoning Paul and Barnabas, thus putting an end to their labors.

Friends of the apostles, though unbelievers, warned them of the malicious designs of the Jews and urged them not to expose themselves needlessly to the fury of the mob, but to escape for their lives. Paul and Barnabas accordingly departed in secret from Iconium, leaving the believers to carry on the work alone for a time. But they by no means took final leave; they purposed to return after the excitement had abated, and complete the work begun.

In every age and in every land, God's messengers have been called upon to meet bitter opposition from those who deliberately chose to reject the light of heaven. Often, by misrepresentation and falsehood, the enemies of the gospel have seemingly triumphed, closing the doors by which God's messengers might gain access to the people. But these doors cannot remain forever closed, and often, as God's servants have returned after a time to resume their labors, the Lord has wrought mightily in their behalf, enabling them to establish memorials to the glory of His name.

Driven by persecution from Iconium, the apostles went to Lystra and Derbe, in Lycaonia. These towns were inhabited largely by a heathen, superstitious people, but among them were some who were willing to hear and accept the gospel message. In these places and in the surrounding country the apostles decided to labor, hoping to avoid Jewish prejudice and persecution.

In Lystra there was no Jewish synagogue, though a few Jews were living in the town. Many of the inhabitants of Lystra worshiped at a temple dedicated to Jupiter. When Paul and Barnabas appeared in the town and, gathering the Lystrians about them, explained the simple truths of the gospel, many sought to connect these doctrines with their own superstitious belief in the worship of Jupiter.

The apostles endeavored to impart to these idolaters a knowledge of God the Creator and of His Son, the Saviour of the human race. They first directed attention to the wonderful works of God—the sun, the moon, and the stars, the beautiful order of the recurring seasons, the mighty snow-capped mountains, the lofty trees, and other varied wonders of nature, which showed a skill beyond human comprehension. Through these works of the Almighty, the apostles led the minds of the heathen to a contemplation of the great Ruler of the universe.

Having made plain these fundamental truths concerning the Creator, the apostles told the Lystrians of the Son of God, who came from heaven to our world because He loved the children of men. They spoke of His life and ministry, His rejection by those He came to save, His trial and crucifixion, His resurrection, and His ascension to heaven, there to act as man's advocate. Thus, in the Spirit and power of God, Paul and Barnabas preached the gospel in Lystra.

At one time, while Paul was telling the people of Christ's work as a healer of the sick and afflicted, he saw among his hearers a cripple whose eyes were fastened on him and who received and believed his words. Paul's heart went out in sympathy toward the afflicted man, in whom he discerned one who “had faith to be healed.” In the presence of the idolatrous assembly Paul commanded the cripple to stand upright on his feet. Heretofore the sufferer had been able to take a sitting posture only, but now he instantly obeyed Paul's command and for the first time in his life stood on his feet. Strength came with this effort of faith, and he who had been a cripple “leaped and walked.”

“When the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.” This statement was in harmony with a tradition of theirs that the gods occasionally visited the earth. Barnabas they called Jupiter, the father of gods, because of his venerable appearance, his dignified bearing, and the mildness and benevolence expressed in his countenance. Paul they believe to be Mercury, “because he was the chief speaker,” earnest and active, and eloquent with words of warning and exhortation.

The Lystrians, eager to show their gratitude, prevailed upon the priest of Jupiter to do the apostles honor, and he “brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the people.” Paul and Barnabas, who had sought retirement and rest, were not aware of these preparations. Soon, however, their attention was attracted by the sound of music and the enthusiastic shouting of a large crowd who had come to the house where they were staying.

When the apostles ascertained the cause of this visit and its attendant excitement, “they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people” in the hope of preventing further proceedings. In a loud, ringing voice, which rose above the shouting of the people, Paul demanded their attention; and as the tumult suddenly ceased, he said: “Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein: who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways. Nevertheless He left not Himself without witness, in that He did good, and gave us rain from heaven, and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness.”

Notwithstanding the positive denial of the apostles that they were divine, and notwithstanding Paul's endeavors to direct the minds of the people to the true God as the only object worthy of adoration, it was almost impossible to turn the heathen from their intention to offer sacrifice. So firm had been their belief that these men were indeed gods, and so great their enthusiasm, that they were loath to acknowledge their error. The record says that they were “scarce restrained.”

The Lystrians reasoned that they had beheld with their own eyes the miraculous power exercised by the apostles. They had seen a cripple who had never before been able to walk, made to rejoice in perfect health and strength. It was only after much persuasion on the part of Paul, and careful explanation regarding the mission of himself and Barnabas as representatives of the God of heaven and of His Son, the great Healer, that the people were persuaded to give up their purpose.

The labors of Paul and Barnabas at Lystra were suddenly checked by the malice of “certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium,” who, upon learning of the success of the apostles’ work among the Lycaonians, had determined to follow them and persecute them. On arriving at Lystra, these Jews soon succeeded in inspiring the people with the same bitterness of spirit that actuated their own minds. By words of misrepresentation and calumny those who had recently regarded Paul and Barnabas as divine beings were persuaded that in reality the apostles were worse than murderers and were deserving of death.

The disappointment that the Lystrians had suffered in being refused the privilege of offering sacrifice to the apostles, prepared them to turn against Paul and Barnabas with an enthusiasm approaching that with which they had hailed them as gods. Incited by the Jews, they planned to attack the apostles by force. The Jews charged them not to allow Paul an opportunity to speak, alleging that if they were to grant him this privilege, he would bewitch the people.

Soon the murderous designs of the enemies of the gospel were carried out. Yielding to the influence of evil, the Lystrians became possessed with a satanic fury and, seizing Paul, mercilessly stoned him. The apostle thought that his end had come. The martyrdom of Stephen, and the cruel part that he himself had acted upon that occasion, came vividly to his mind. Covered with bruises and faint with pain, he fell to the ground, and the infuriated mob “drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead.”

In this dark and trying hour the company of Lystrian believers, who through the ministry of Paul and Barnabas had been converted to the faith of Jesus, remained loyal and true. The unreasoning opposition and cruel persecution by their enemies served only to confirm the faith of these devoted brethren; and now, in the face of danger and scorn, they showed their loyalty by gathering sorrowfully about the form of him whom they believed to be dead.

What was their surprise when in the midst of their lamentations the apostle suddenly lifted up his head and rose to his feet with the praise of God upon his lips. To the believers this unexpected restoration of God's servant was regarded as a miracle of divine power and seemed to set the signet of Heaven upon their change of belief. They rejoiced with inexpressible gladness and praised God with renewed faith.

Among those who had been converted at Lystra, and who were eyewitnesses of the sufferings of Paul, was one who was afterward to become a prominent worker for Christ and who was to share with the apostle the trials and the joys of pioneer service in difficult fields. This was a young man named Timothy. When Paul was dragged out of the city, this youthful disciple was among the number who took their stand beside his apparently lifeless body and who saw him arise, bruised and covered with blood, but with praises upon his lips because he had been permitted to suffer for the sake of Christ.

The day following the stoning of Paul, the apostles departed for Derbe, where their labors were blessed, and many souls were led to receive Christ as the Saviour. But “when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many,” neither Paul nor Barnabas was content to take up work elsewhere without confirming the faith of the converts whom they had been compelled to leave alone for a time in the places where they had recently labored. And so, undaunted by danger, “they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch, confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith.” Many had accepted the glad tidings of the gospel and had thus exposed themselves to reproach and opposition. These the apostles sought to establish in the faith in order that the work done might abide.

As an important factor in the spiritual growth of the new converts the apostles were careful to surround them with the safeguards of gospel order. Churches were duly organized in all places in Lycaonia and Pisidia where there were believers. Officers were appointed in each church, and proper order and system were established for the conduct of all the affairs pertaining to the spiritual welfare of the believers.

This was in harmony with the gospel plan of uniting in one body all believers in Christ, and this plan Paul was careful to follow throughout his ministry. Those who in any place were by his labor led to accept Christ as the Saviour were at the proper time organized into a church. Even when the believers were but few in number, this was done. The Christians were thus taught to help one another, remembering the promise, “Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.” Matthew 18:20.

And Paul did not forget the churches thus established. The care of these churches rested on his mind as an ever-increasing burden. However small a company might be, it was nevertheless the object of his constant solicitude. He watched over the smaller churches tenderly, realizing that they were in need of special care in order that the members might be thoroughly established in the truth and taught to put forth earnest, unselfish efforts for those around them.

In all their missionary endeavors Paul and Barnabas sought to follow Christ's example of willing sacrifice and faithful, earnest labor for souls. Wide-awake, zealous, untiring, they did not consult inclination or personal ease, but with prayerful anxiety and unceasing activity they sowed the seed of truth. And with the sowing of the seed, the apostles were careful to give to all who took their stand for the gospel, practical instruction that was of untold value. This spirit of earnestness and godly fear made upon the minds of the new disciples a lasting impression regarding the importance of the gospel message.

When men of promise and ability were converted, as in the case of Timothy, Paul and Barnabas sought earnestly to show them the necessity of laboring in the vineyard. And when the apostles left for another place, the faith of these men did not fail, but rather increased. They had been faithfully instructed in the way of the Lord, and had been taught how to labor unselfishly, earnestly, perseveringly, for the salvation of their fellow men. This careful training of new converts was an important factor in the remarkable success that attended Paul and Barnabas as they preached the gospel in heathen lands.

The first missionary journey was fast drawing to a close. Commending the newly organized churches to the Lord, the apostles went to Pamphylia, “and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down into Attalia, and thence sailed to Antioch.”

[trinitiesblog]

podcast 270 - Origen's "one God"

I might have called this episode “Origen’s two gods and his ‘one God.'” Or even: “Origen’s two deities, his one god, and his ‘one God.'” In it I present the first portion of Origen’s interesting Dialogue with Heraclides, from about the year 254 A.D.

The backstory, in a nutshell: somehow concerns were raised about the bishop Heraclides’s doctrine; apparently he was suspected of being some sort of “monarchian” (rejector of Logos theories). A meeting was called at his church and the famous scholar Origen was brought in to publicly examine him. Someone was there taking it all down, mostly likely one of Origen’s scribes. And this transcript was fairly recently discovered!

Do you think that it has always been agreed mainstream Christian doctrine that the Father and the Son are the same God? If so, this little dialogue is going to surprise you! Also, the nature of Origen’s monotheism may surprise you.

Thanks to Leslie, Joshua, and Sean for their voice acting here.

Here is my modified Chadwick translation presented at the end of this episode:

Narrator: Dialogue of Origen with Heraclides and the Bishops with him concerning the Father and the Son and the Soul. After the bishops Present had raised questions concerning the faith of the bishop Heraclides, that he might confess before all the faith which he held, and after each one had said what he thought and asked questions, Heraclides said:

Heraclides: I also believe what the sacred Scriptures say: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him, and without him nothing was made.”

Accordingly, we hold the same faith that is taught in these words, and we believe that Christ took flesh, that he was born, that he went up to heaven in the flesh in which he rose again, that he is sitting at the right hand of the Father, and that from there he shall come and judge the living and the dead, being a god and a man. 

Narrator: Origen said:

Origen: Since once an inquiry has begun it is proper to say something upon the subject of the inquiry, I will speak. The whole church is present and listening. It is not right that there should be any difference in knowledge between one church and another, for you are not the false church. I charge you, father Heraclides: God is the almighty, the uncreated, the supreme God who made all things. Do you hold this doctrine?

H: I do. That is what I also believe.

O: Christ Jesus who was in the form of God, being other than the God in whose form he existed, was he a god before he came into the body or not?

H: He was a god before.

O: Was he a god before he came into the body or not?

H: Yes, he was.

O: Was he a god distinct from this god in whose form he existed?

H: Obviously he was distinct from another being and, since he was in the form of him who created all things, he was distinct from him.

O: Is it true, then, that there was a god, the Son of God, the only begotten of God, the firstborn of all creation, and that we need have no fear of saying that in one sense there are two gods, while in another sense there is one god?

H: What you say is evident. But we affirm that God is the almighty, God without beginning, without end, containing all things and not contained by anything; and that his Word is the Son of the living God, a god and a man, through whom all things were made, a god according to the spirit, and a man inasmuch as he was born of Mary.

O: It seems you’ve not answered my question. Explain what you mean. For perhaps I failed to follow you. Is the Father a god?

H: Assuredly.

O: Is the Son distinct from the Father?

H: Of course. How can he be Son if he is also Father?

O: While being distinct from the Father, is the Son himself also a god?

H: He himself is also a god.

O: And do two Gods become a unity?

H: Yes.

O: Do we confess two gods?

H: Yes… But the power is one.

O: Since our brethren take offence at the statement that “there are two gods,” we must formulate the doctrine carefully, and show in what sense they are “two” and in what sense the two are “one god.” Also the holy Scriptures have taught that several things which are two are “one.” And not only things which are two, for they have also taught that in some instances more than two, or even a very much larger number of things, are “one.”

Our present task is not to bring up a difficult subject only to pass it by and deal too quickly with the matter, but for the sake of the simple folk we will chew up, so to speak, the meat, and little by little to instill the doctrine in the ears of our hearers….

Accordingly, there are many things which are two that are said in the Scriptures to be one. What passages of Scripture?

Adam is one person, his wife another. Adam is distinct from his wife, and his wife is distinct from her husband. Yet it is said in the story of the creation of the world that they two are one: “For the two shall be one flesh.” Therefore, sometimes two beings can become one flesh. Notice, however, that in the case of Adam and Eve it is not said that the two shall become one spirit, nor that the two shall become one soul, but that they shall become one flesh.

Again, the righteous man is distinct from Christ; but he is said by the apostle to be one with Christ: “For he that is joined to the Lord is one spirit.” Is it not true that the one is of a subordinate nature or of a low and inferior nature, while Christ’s nature is divine and glorious and blessed? Are they therefore no longer two? Yes, for the man and the woman are “no longer two but one flesh,” and the righteous man and Christ are “one spirit.”

So in relation to the Father and God of the universe, our Savior and Lord is not “one flesh,” nor “one spirit,” but rather something higher than “flesh” and “spirit,” namely, “one god.” The appropriate word when human beings are joined to one another is “flesh.” The appropriate word when a righteous man is joined to Christ is “spirit.” But the word when Christ is united to the Father is not flesh, nor spirit, but more honorable than these —it’s the word “god.” That is why we understand in this sense “I and the Father are one.”

When we pray, because of the one party let us preserve the duality, because of the other party let us hold to the unity. In this way we avoid falling into the opinion of those who have been separated from the Church and turned to the illusory notion of monarchy, who abolish the Son as distinct from the Father and virtually abolish the Father also. Nor do we fall into the other blasphemous doctrine which denies the deity of Christ.

What then do the divine Scriptures mean when they say: “Beside me there is no other God, and there shall be none after me,” and “I am and there is no God but me”? In these utterances we are not to think that the unity applies to the God of the universe … in separation from Christ, and certainly not to Christ in separation from God. Let us rather say that the sense is the same as that of Jesus’ saying, “I and my Father are one.”

Links for this episode:

Debate – Dr. Dale Tuggy vs. Chris Date “Is Jesus Human and not Divine?”

trinities podcast Facebook group

podcast 243 – Response to Branson Part 1 – The Orthodox Doctrine of the Trinity

“Origen” in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

The Greek text of Dialogue with Heraclides

Chadwick, Alexandrian Christianity

Daly, Origen: Treatise on the Passover and Dialogue with Heraclides and his Fellow Bishops on the Father, the Son, and the Soul

McGuckin, The SCM Press A-Z of Origen

Heine, Origen: Commentary on the Gospel According to John, Books 1-10, Books 13-32.

Chadwick, Origen: Contra Celsum

Butterworth, Origen: On First Principles

podcast 70 – The one God and his Son according to John

podcast 187 – Dr. Paul W. Newman’s Spirit Christology – Part 1

podcast 188 – Dr. Paul W. Newman’s Spirit Christology – Part 2

podcast 59 – Dr. Carl Mosser on salvation as deification

podcast 60 – Dr. Carl Mosser on deification in the Bible

posts on Origen

John 1:1-14, Philippians 2:6, John 10:30, John 10:38, John 12:45, John 14:9, Colossians 1:15, Psalm 49:1, Isaiah 43:10, Deuteronomy 32:39

This week’s thinking music is “Triptych of Snippets” by septahelix.

https://trinities.org/blog/podcast-270-origens-one-god/

[zambiaz1ne]

This edition of the Stanbic Musical Festival 2018 has been dubbed the “Anakazi” edition.

  Earlier on this year at a press briefing on June 18 2018, Chanda Chime-Katongo (Head of Public Relations, Communication & Women’s Banking, Stanbic Bank Zambia) explained that the female line up of supporting acts is all part of honouring the late Victoria Kalima (Hon. Minister of Gender, MP).

The Late Hon. Victoria Kalima

  Social media from Twitter to Instagram to Facebook was buzzing with the news that both headline acts had touched down on Zambian soil met by his worship himself the Lord Mayor of Lusaka,

and with a day and a few hours to go, it’s the big 5, 2 international acts for the price of one, the Golden Circle sold out, Zambia and the SADAC region are you ready to #MoveWithTheRhythm with the bank that makes you dance as #StanbicDoesMusic?

Curated by the Zambian event management titans R&G, this staple event on the local and regional musical event calendar couldn’t be more eclectic with some new acts and some veterans on the line up. Zambian Afro-pop sensation Salma Sky and contemporary Gospel songbird Esther Chungu make their maiden appearances on the Stanbic Music stage and promise their fans and festival goers a show!

Soul sensation Kiki popularly known as Kiki Sings Zed makes her return to the line-up and as per her social media has been keeping the vocal chords in tune in the studio and is ready to belt those ballads and serenade the masses. Wezi the Afro neo Pop Soul dynamite needs no introduction with 2 back to back festivals under her belt and fresh off the London edition of Lake of Starts , this 3rd performance promises to be an experience.

Last but not the least before the main event comes on is the Kopala born veteran MC and the peoples champ 187 the Chef himself,

back and single for the night again after he put on a virtuoso performance of rap wizardry last year on the same stage.

On the ones and twos to ease you into the mood will be King Nano on Friday night and V Jeezy on Saturday. And now for the main event!

Although his career dates back to his first album Everything in 1993 and with 13 albums under his belt, it was in 1997 when I and fellow hip hop and R&B heads and the mainstream really took note of Joe with his sophomore album All That I Am. Anyone remember the Big Pun hit Don’t Wanna Be A Player? That cut is originally off All That I Am, the Pun version however which features Joe on the hook as well as in the video was that cross over no.1 hit that cemented the R&B staple. Now then if you are Zambian and do not know any songs off My Name Is Joe, which played in every take away and boutique via the blue tapes, you clearly are not of that era, I’ll get to you in a minute millennial’s. With production credits including veterans such as Mr. New Jack Swing Teddy Riley, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, matched with Joe’s prolific song writing, My Name is Joe was a hit already! From Stutter to I Wanna Know (the original Mr. steal your girl anthem) to I Believe In You which played and still plays at weddings today and the Thank God I Found You remix ft. Mariah and Nas (that’s how big Joe was), that third album was really the charm! The 2001 album Better Days with the single Ghetto Child ft. Shaggy and The Boys Choir of Harlem really bridged the gap between the old school and new school Joe and bonafide Joe as an R&B superstar. In my humble opinion, Joe was an unofficial member of G-Unit, case in point: Ride Wit U ft. G-Unit of the fourth studio album and then… The magic and chemistry of this colabo off this club and radio banger would later be replicated on I Wanna Get to Know You off the G-Unit debut album Beg For Mercy that same year. I’ll end my ode to Joe at Ain’t Nothing Like me which had a contemporary feel yet beautifully captures and era with productions from heavy weights such as Stargate, Bryan Michael Cox and Cool and Dre. Remember If I Was Your Man? Yeah that was off Ain’t Nothing Like Me. Joe… Zambia is ready.

I really only know one cut by Brian McKnight, you guessed it, Back at One. So much so such I even remember him singing it on an episode of My Wife and Kids where he gets a pair of signed boxing gloves for his services from Michael (Damon Wayne). However, such is the beauty and essence of such platforms such as the Stanbic Music Festival, it creates new experiences and provides a platform for musical awareness and depth. I look forward to enhancing my knowledge and singing along to familiar favorites by Mr. McKnight.

Your hosts on the night are veteran MC’s and fixtures on the Stanbic stage, Ba Gesh real name Chishala Chitoshi Jr. and voice over maestro Kamiza Chikula. And now a word from our sponsors. Powered by Stanbic Bank,

Alliance Motors will be driving our international guests during their stay, DSTV, Hai, Liberty Insurance, Southern Sun, Taj Pamozdi, MTN and LaFarge are adding the quality of their various brands to make this event one of international standard.

Look out for that gourmet provided by local food vendors with a diverse array of food to choose from.

FEIRA communications have social media on lock! Ladies and gentlemen, if you have not secured your ticket as you read this, the time is now to avoid FOMO and disappointment. It’s official, the 5th Edition of the Stanbic Music Festival in honour of the late Victoria Kalima is upon us with an all-star cast to entertain us, Zambia is ready for Joe and Brian McKnight. #StanbicDoesMusic #StanbicMusicFestival

Follow the latest festival developments by clicking the links below

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Ladies and gentlemen, if you have not secured your ticket as you read this, the time is now to avoid FOMO and disappointment. It’s official, the 5th Edition of the Stanbic Music Festival in honour of the late Victoria Kalima is upon us with an all-star cast to entertain us, Zambia is ready for Joe and Brian McKnight. #StanbicDoesMusic #StanbicMusicFestival This edition of the Stanbic Musical Festival 2018 has been dubbed the “Anakazi” edition.

[apostleshop]

Daily Reading and Meditation

Great News has been shared on https://apostleshop.com/daily-reading-and-meditation-93/

Daily Reading and Meditation

Daily Reading and Meditation Wednesday (May 23): “Any one who does a mighty work in my name”

Scripture: Mark 9:38-40 

38 John said to him, “Teacher, we saw a man casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him, because he was not following us.” 39 But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him; for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon after to speak evil of me. 40 For he that is not against us is for us.

Meditation: Do you rejoice in the good that others do? Jesus reprimands his disciples for their jealousy and suspicion. They were upset that someone who was not of their company was performing a good work in the name of Jesus. They even “forbade” the man “because he was not following us”. Jesus’ reply is filled with wisdom: “No one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon after to speak evil of me.” Are we not like the disciples when we get upset at the good deeds of others who seem to shine more than us? Paul says that “love is not jealous… but rejoices in the right” (1 Corinthians 13:4,6).

Love does not envy others Envy and jealousy, its counterpart, are sinful because they lead us to sorrow over what should make us rejoice – namely, our neighbor’s good. The reason we may grieve over our another’s good is that somehow we see that good as lessening our own value or excellence. Envy forms when we believe that the other person’s advantage or possession diminishes or brings disgrace on us. Envy is contrary to love. Both the object of love and the object of envy is our neighbor’s good, but by contrary movements, since love rejoices in our neighbor’s good, while envy grieves over it.

The love of God frees us from envy and jealousy How can we overcome envy? With the love that God has put into our hearts through the gift of the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). The Holy Spirit purifies our heart and frees us from our disordered passions, such as envy, jealously, greed, and bitterness. God’s love is a generous and selfless love which is wholly oriented towards our good. The love that God places in our hearts seeks the highest good of our neighbor. God’s love purifies and frees us from all envy and jealousy – and it compels us to give generously, especially to those who lack what they need.

Love gives freely and generously in kind deeds Every one in need has a claim on us because they are dear to God who created them in his own image and likeness (Genesis 1:26-27). God created us in love for love. We are most free and happy when we love as he loves. The love and charitable help we show to our neighbor also expresses the gratitude we have for the abundant mercy and kindness of God towards us. Jesus declared that any kindness shown and any help given to those in need would not lose its reward. Jesus never refused to give to anyone in need who asked for his help. As his disciples we are called to be kind and generous as he is. Are you grateful for God’s mercy and kindness towards you and are you ready to show that same kindness and generosity towards your neighbor?

Gregory of Nyssa, an early church father (330-395 AD), comments on this passage:

“God never asks his servants to do what is impossible. The love and goodness of his Godhead is revealed as richly available. It is poured out like water upon all. God furnished to each person according to his will the ability to do something good. None of those seeking to be saved will be lacking in this ability, given by the one who said: ‘whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ, will by no means lose his reward'” (Mark 9:41).

Ask the Lord Jesus to increase your generosity in doing good for others.

“Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit that I may radiate the joy of the Gospel to others. May your light and truth shine through me that others may find new life and joy in you, and freedom from sin and oppression.”

Psalm 49:1-10

1  Hear this, all peoples! Give ear, all inhabitants of the world, 2 both low and high, rich and poor together! 3 My mouth shall speak wisdom; the meditation of my heart shall be understanding. 4 I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will solve my riddle to the music of the lyre. 5 Why should I fear in times of trouble, when the iniquity of my persecutors surrounds me, 6 men who trust in their wealth and boast of the abundance of their riches? 7 Truly no man can ransom himself, or give to God the price of his life, 8 for the ransom of his life is costly, and can never suffice, 9 that he should continue to live on for ever, and never see the Pit. 10 Yes, he shall see that even the wise die, the fool and the stupid alike must perish and leave their wealth to others.

A Daily Quote for the early church fathers: Encouraging good works done in Christ, by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.

“We ought not be disturbed because some who do not belong or do not yet belong to this temple, that is, among whom God does not or does not yet dwell, perform some works of power, as happened to the one who cast out devils in the name of Christ (Mark 9:38, Luke 9:49). Although he was not a follower of Christ, Christ ordered that he be allowed to continue because it gave a valuable testimony of his name to many… The centurion Cornelius also saw the angel that was sent to him to say that his prayers had been heard and his alms accepted (Acts 10:3-4), even before he was incorporated into this temple by regeneration.” (excerpt from 

LETTER 187, TO DARDANUS 36)

Scripture quotations from Common Bible: Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1973, and Ignatius Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 2006, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.  Citation references for quotes from the writings of the early church fathers can be found here.

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[christianpublishinghouse-blog]

Within the nation of Israel, everyone was strongly encouraged to be literate. The texts of Deuteronomy 6:8-9 and 11:20 were figurative, not to be taken literally. However, figurative language is to be taken literally. We are to ascertain what was meant by the figurative language, and that meaning is what we take literally.

Deuteronomy 6:8-9 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

8 You shall bind them [God’s Word] as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontlets bands between your eyes.[1] 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Deuteronomy 11:20 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

20 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates,

The command to bind God’s Word “as a sign on your hand,” denoted constant remembrance and attention. The command that the Word of God was “to be as frontlet bands between your eyes,” denoted that the Law should be kept before their eyes constantly, so that wherever they looked, whatever was before them, they would see the law before them. Therefore, while figurative, these texts implied that Jewish children grew up, being taught how to read and to write. The Gezer Calendar (ancient Hebrew writing), dates to the 10th-century B.C.E., is believed to be a schoolboy’s memory exercise by some scholars.

Philo of Alexandria (20 B.C.E.–50 C. E.) was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher, whose first language was Greek, had this to say about Jewish parents, and how they taught their Children the Law, as well as how to read it. Philo stated, “All men guard their own customs, but this is especially true of the Jewish nation. Holding that the laws are oracles vouchsafed by God and having been trained [paideuthentes] in this doctrine from their earliest years, they carry the likenesses of the commandments enshrined in their souls.” (Borgen 1997, 187) This certainly involved the ability to read and write to a competent level. Josephus (37-100 C.E.), the first-century Jewish historian, writes,  “Our principal care of all is this, to educate our children [paidotrophian] well; and we think it to be the most necessary business of our whole life to observe the laws that have been given us, and to keep those rules of piety that have been delivered down to us.” (Whiston 1987, Against Apion 1.60) Even allowing for an overemphasis for apologetic purposes. Clearly, Jesus was carefully grounded in the Word of God (Hebrew Old Testament), as was true of other Jews of the time. Josephus also says,

“but for our people, if anybody do but ask any one of them about our laws, he will more readily tell them all than he will tell his own name, and this in consequence of our having learned them immediately as soon as ever we became sensible of anything, and of our having them, as it were engraved on our souls. Our transgressors of them are but few; and it is impossible when any do offend, to escape punishment.” (Whiston 1987, Against Apion 2.178) He also says: “[the Law] also commands us to bring those children up in learning [grammata paideuein] and to exercise them in the laws, and make them acquainted with the acts of their predecessors, in order to their imitation of them, and that they may be nourished up in the laws from their infancy, and might neither transgress them, nor yet have any pretense for their ignorance of them.” (Whiston 1987, Against Apion 2.204) Again, this is apparently involving at minimum the ability to read and write to a competent level.

From the above, we find that the Jewish family education revolved around the study of the Mosaic Law. If their children were going to live by the Law, they must know what it says, as well as understand it. If they were going to know and understand the Law, this would require the ability to read it, and hopefully apply it. Emil Schurer writes: “All zeal for education in the family, the school and the synagogue aimed at making the whole people a people of the law. The common man too was to know what the law commanded, and not only to know but to do it. His whole life was to be ruled according to the norm of the law; obedience thereto was to become a fixed custom, and departure there from an inward impossibility. On the whole, this object was to a great degree attained.” (Schurer 1890, Vol. 4, p. 89) Scott writes that “from at least the time of Ezra’s reading of the law (Neh. 8), education was a public process; study of the law was the focus of Jewish society as a whole. It was a lifelong commitment for all men. It began with the very young. The Mishnah[2] requires that children be taught ‘therein one year or two years before [they are of age], that they may become versed in the commandments.’ Other sources set different ages for beginning formal studies, some as early as five years.”[3] (Scott 1995, 257)

It may be that both Philo and Josephus are presenting their readers with an idyllic picture, and what they have to say could possibly refer primarily to well-off Jewish families, who could afford formal education. However, this would be a bit shortsighted for the Israelites had long been a people that valued the ability to read and write competently. In the apocryphal account of 4 Maccabees 18:10-19, a mother addresses her seven sons, who would be martyred, reminding them of their father’s teaching. There is nothing in the account to suggest that they were from a well off family. Herein the mother referred to numerous historical characters throughout the Old Testament and quoted from numerous books. – Isaiah 43.2; Psalm 34:19; Proverbs 3:18; Ezekiel 37:3; Deuteronomy 32:39.

Jesus would have received his education from three sources. As was made clear from the above, Joseph, Jesus’ stepfather would have played a major role in his education. Paul said that young Timothy was trained in “the sacred writings” by his mother, Eunice, and his grandmother Lois. (2 Tim. 1:5; 3:15) Certainly, if Timothy received education in the law from his mother because his Father was a Greek (Acts 16:1), no doubt Jesus did as well after Joseph fell asleep in death.

Jesus would have also received education in the Scriptures from the attendant at the Synagogue. In the first-century C.E., the synagogue was a place of instruction, not a place of sacrifices. The people carried out their sacrifices to God at the temple. The exercises within the synagogue covered such areas as praise, prayer, recitation and reading of the Scriptures, in addition to expository preaching. – Mark 12:40; Luke 20:47

Before any instruction in the holy laws and unwritten customs are taught… from their swaddling clothes by parents and teachers and educators to believe in God, the one Father, and Creator of the world. (Philo Legatio ad Gaium 115.)

The Mishnah tells us the age that this formal instruction would have begun, “At five years old one is fit for the scripture… at thirteen for the commandments.” (Mishnah Abot 5.21.) Luke 4:20 tells of the time Jesus stood to read from the scroll of Isaiah in the synagogue in Nazareth, once finished, “he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant.” An attendant such as this one would have educated Jesus, starting at the age of five. As Jesus grew up in Nazareth, he “increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” (Lu 2:52) Jesus and his half-brothers and sisters would have been known to the people of the city of Nazareth, which was nothing more than a village in Jesus’ day. “As was his custom, [Jesus] went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day,” each week. (Matt. 13:55, 56; Lu. 4:16) While Jesus would have been an exceptional student, unlike anything that the Nazareth synagogue would have ever seen, we must keep in mind that the disciples would have been going through similar experiences as they grew up in Galilee. A strong emphasis was laid on the need for every Jew to have an accurate knowledge of the Law. Josephus wrote,

for he [God] did not suffer the guilt of ignorance to go on without punishment, but demonstrated the law to be the best and the most necessary instruction of all others, permitting the people to leave off their other employments, and to assemble together for the hearing of the law, and learning it exactly, and this not once or twice, or oftener, but every week; which thing all the other legislators seem to have neglected. (Whiston 1987, Against Apion 2.175)

The high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I have always taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. I have said nothing in secret.” (John 18:19-20) We know that another source of knowledge and wisdom of Jesus came from the Father. Jesus said, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me,” i.e., the Father. – John 7:16.

Mark 1:22 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

22 And they were astounded[1] at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes.

[1] Astounded: (Gr. ekplēssō) This is one who is extremely astounded or amazed, so much so that they lose their mental self-control, as they are overwhelmed emotionally.–Matt. 7:28; Mark 1:22; 7:37; Lu 2:48; 4:32; 9:43; Ac 13:12.

Mark 1:27 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

27 And they were all astonished,[1] so that they questioned among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”

[1] Astonished: (Gr. thambeō; derivative of thambos) This is one who is experiencing astonishment, to be astounded, or amazed as a result of some sudden and unusual event, which can be in a positive or negative sense.–Mark 1:27; 10:32; Lu 4:36; 5:9; Acts 3:10.

At first, in the days of Ezra and Nehemiah, the priests served as scribes. (Ezra 7:1-6) The scribes referred to here in the Gospel of Mark are more than a copyist of Scripture. These ones were professionally trained scholars, who were experts in the Mosaic Law. As was said above, a great emphasis was laid on the need for every Jew to have an accurate knowledge of the Law. Therefore, those who gave a great deal of their life and time to acquiring an immense amount of knowledge were looked up to, becoming scholars, forming a group separate from the priests, creating a systematic study of the law, as well as its exposition, which became a professional occupation. By the time of Jesus, these ones were experts in more than the Mosaic Law (entire Old Testament actually) as they became experts on the previous experts from centuries past, quoting them as opposing to quoting Scripture. In other words, if there was any Scriptural decision to be made, these scribes quoted previous experts in the law, i.e., their comments on the law, as opposed to quoting applicable Scripture itself. These scribes were among the “teachers of the law,” also referred to as “lawyers.” (Lu 5:17; 11:45) The people were astonished and amazed at Jesus’ teaching and authority because he did not quote previous teachers of the law but rather referred to Scripture alone as his authority, along with his exposition.

Jesus’ Childhood Visits to Jerusalem

Only one event from Jesus’ childhood is given to us, and it is found in the Gospel of Luke. We have addressed it earlier, so what lies below can serve as a refresher. It certainly adds heavy circumstantial evidence to the fact that Jesus could read and was literate.

Luke 2:41-47 Updated American standard Version (UASV)

41 Now His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. 42 And when he [Jesus] was twelve years old, they went up according to the custom of the feast. 43 And after the days were completed, while they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. And his parents did not know it, 44 but supposing him to be in the company, they went a day’s journey; and they began looking for him among their relatives and acquaintances. 45 and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, looking for him. 46 Then, it occurred, after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the teachers and listening to them and questioning them. 47 And all those listening to him were amazed at his understanding and his answers.

This was no 12-year-old boy’s questions of curiosity. The Greek word erotao is the Greek word for “ask,” “question,” and is a synonym of eperotao. The latter of the two was used by Luke and is much more demanding, as it means, “to ask a question, to question, interrogate someone, to questioning as used in judicial examination” and therefore could include counter questioning. Therefore, Jesus, at the age of twelve did not ask childlike questions, looking for answers, but was likely challenging the thinking of these Jewish religious leaders.

This incident is far more magnificent than one might first realize. Kittel’s Theological Dictionary of the New Testament helps the reader to appreciate that the Greek word eperotao (to ask, to question, to demand of), for “questioning” was far more than the Greek word erotao (to ask, to request, to entreat), for a boy’s inquisitiveness. Eperotao can refer to questioning, which one might hear in a judicial hearing, such as a scrutiny, inquiry, counter questioning, even the “probing and cunning questions of the Pharisees and Sadducees,” for instance those we find at Mark 10:2 and 12:18-23.

The same dictionary continues: “In [the] face of this usage it may be asked whether . . . [Luke] 2:46 denotes, not so much the questioning curiosity of the boy, but rather His successful disputing. [Verse] 47 would fit in well with the latter view.” Rotherham’s translation of verse 47 presents it as a dramatic confrontation: “Now all who heard him were beside themselves, because of his understanding and his answers.” Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament says that their constant amazement means, “they stood out of themselves as if their eyes were bulging out.”

After returning to Jerusalem, and three days of searching, Joseph and Mary found young Jesus in the temple, questioning the Jewish religious leaders, to which “they were astounded.” (Luke 2:48) Robertson said of this, “second aorist passive indicative of an old Greek word [ekplesso]), to strike out, drive out by a blow. Joseph and Mary ‘were struck out’ by what they saw and heard. Even they had not fully realized the power in this wonderful boy.”[4] Thus, at twelve years old, Jesus, but a boy, is already evidencing that he is a great teacher and defender of truth. BDAG says, “to cause to be filled with amazement to the point of being overwhelmed, amaze, astound, overwhelm (literally, Strike out of one’s senses).[5]

The Jewish culture, and especially Jesus’ Jewish family, displayed an effective ability to listen. The Jewish religious leaders, on the other hand, seemed eager to speak, not listen. Jesus was not in the temple to win conversations with the greatest teachers of Jewish Law, but rather to listen. It says in verse 46 that the twelve-year-old Jesus was “listening to them.” Once he listened to them, he then knew what they meant, their motives for what they said, and it was at that time, he proceeded in “questioning them.” Good listening leads to good questions.

Verse 47 says, “All who heard him were amazed at his insight and his answers,” which means that Jesus’ questions were intensely insightful, and even penetrating. If one finds himself in a conversation with a Bible critic in a public setting, where others are listening, we must listen. If one discerns that the Bible critic does not have a receptive heart, and nothing we say will open his eyes to the truth of God’s Word, we must consider others who may be listening. Because of that larger audience, one will then do as Jesus did, use effective questions to put the Bible critic on defense, so that those around know we do have answers for the criticisms, giving them faith in the message they heard.

Some 18 years later, Jesus again, hit the Jewish Pharisees with these types of interrogative questions, so much so that not “anyone [of them] dare from that day on to ask him any more questions.” (Matthew 22:41-46) The Sadducees fared no better when Jesus quieted them when the resurrection was brought up, “And no one dared to ask him any more questions.” (Luke 20:27-40) The Scribes were silenced just the same after they got into an exchange with Jesus, “And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.” (Mark 12:28-34) Clearly, this insight into Jesus’ life and ministry provide us with evidence that he had the ability to read very well and likely write. There is the fact that Jesus was also divine. However, he was also fully human, and he grew, progressing in wisdom, because of his studies in the Scriptures.

Luke 2:40, 51-52 Updated American Standard Version (UASV)

40 And the child continued growing and became strong, being filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him.

51 And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and He continued in subjection to them; and His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

Jesus was often called ‘Rabbi,’ which was used in a real or genuine sense as “teacher.” (Mark 9:5; 11:21; 14:45; John 1:38, 49 etc.), ‘Rabbo(u)ni’ (Mark 10:51; John 20:16) as well as its Greek equivalents, ‘schoolmaster’ or ‘instructor’ (epistata; Luke 5:5; 8:24, 45; 9:33, 49; 17:13) or ‘teacher’ (didaskalos; Matt. 8:19; 9:11; 12:38; Mark 4:38; 5:35; 9:17; 10:17, 20; 12:14, 19, 32; Luke 19:39; John 1:38; 3:2). Jesus uses these same terms for himself, as well as his disciples, even his adversaries, and those with no affiliation.

Another inference that Jesus was literate comes from his constant reference to reading Scripture, when confronted by the Jewish religious leaders: law student, Pharisees, Scribes and the Sadducees. Jesus said, “said to them [Pharisees],“Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, and those who were with him … Or have you not read in the Law how on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are guiltless? (Matt. 12:3, 5; Reference to 1 Sam 21:6 and Num 28:9) Again, Jesus answered,“Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female.” (Matt. 19:3; paraphrase of Gen 1:27) Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies     you have prepared praise’?” (Matt. 21:16; Quoting Psa. 8:2) Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? (Matt. 21:42; Reference to Isaiah 28:16) Jesus said to him,“What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” (Lu. 10:26) Many of these references or Scripture quotations are asked in such a way to his opponents; there is little doubt Jesus himself has read them. When Jesus asks in an interrogative way, “have you not read,” it was taken for granted that he had read them. Jesus referred to or quoted over 120 Scriptures in the dialogue that we have in the Gospels.

The data that have been surveyed are more easily explained in reference to a literate Jesus, a Jesus who could read the Hebrew Scriptures, could paraphrase and interpret them in Aramaic and could do so in a manner that indicated his familiarity with current interpretive tendencies in both popular circles (as in the synagogues) and in professional, even elite circles (as seen in debates with scribes, ruling priests and elders). Of course, to conclude that Jesus was literate is not necessarily to conclude that Jesus had received formal scribal training. The data do not suggest this. Jesus’ innovative, experiential approach to Scripture and to Jewish faith seems to suggest the contrary.[6]

How did Jesus gain such wisdom? Jesus, although divine was not born with this exceptional wisdom that he demonstrated at the age of twelve and kept increasing. It was acquired. (Deut. 17:18-19) This extraordinary wisdom was no exception to the norm, not even for the Son of God himself. (Luke 2:52) Jesus’ knowledge was acquired by his studying the Hebrew Old Testament, enabling him to challenge the thinking of the Jewish religious leaders with his questions at the age of twelve. Therefore, Jesus had to be very familiar with the Hebrew Old Testament, as well the skill of reasoning from the Scriptures.

  [1] I.e. on your forehead

[2] The Mishnah was the primary body of Jewish civil and religious law, forming the first part of the Talmud.

[3] Mishnah Yoma 8:4

[4] A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1933), Lk 2:48.

[5] William Arndt, Frederick W. Danker and Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 308.

[6] (Evans, Jesus and His World: The Archaeological Evidence 2012)

Jesus in the Temple at Twelve Years Old Within the nation of Israel, everyone was strongly encouraged to be literate. The texts of Deuteronomy 6:8-9 and 11:20 were figurative, not to be taken literally.

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5th November >> (@zenitenglish) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis Will Celebrate Mass for World Day of the Poor, Sunday, 18th November, Feast of the Dedication of the Papal Basilica to Saint Peter.

Pope Will Celebrate Mass for World Day of the Poor, Sunday, 18th November

Feast of the Dedication of the Papal Basilica to Saint Peter

On Sunday, November 18, 2018, Feast of the Dedication of the Papal Basilica to Saint Peter, in the same basilica the Holy Father Francis will celebrate Holy Mass on the occasion of the World Day of the Poor.

Below is the Vatican-provided text of Pope Francis’ Message for this second World Day of the Poor, which was released in June, on the theme: ‘This poor man cried and the Lord heard him’.

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS

SECOND WORLD DAY OF THE POOR

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 18 November 2018

This poor man cried and the Lord heard him

1. «This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him» (Ps 34:7). The words of the Psalmist become our own when we are called to meet the different conditions of suffering and marginalization lived out by very many of our brothers and sisters whom we are accustomed to label generically as “the poor”. The Psalmist is not extraneous to suffering; quite the contrary. He has direct experience of poverty and yet transforms it into a song of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. This Psalm is an opportunity for us today, immersed as we are in the many different forms of poverty, to understand who are the true poor on whom we are called to look upon in order to hear their cry and recognise their needs.

We are told, first of all, that the Lord listens to the poor who cry to Him and is good to those who seek refuge in him, their hearts broken by sadness, loneliness and exclusion. The Lord listens to those who are downtrodden in their dignity and yet have the strength to look up in order to receive light and comfort. He listens to those who are persecuted in the name of a false justice, oppressed by policies unworthy of the name and intimidated by violence. And yet they know that they have their Saviour in God. What emerges from this prayer is above all the sense of abandonment to, and trust in, a Father who listens and is welcoming. It is on the same wavelength as these words that we can better understand what Jesus proclaimed with the beatitude «Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).

Such is this unique experience, in many ways undeserved and impossible to express in full, that we nevertheless feel the desire to communicate it others, first of all to those who, like the Psalmist, are poor, rejected and marginalized. In fact, no-one can feel excluded from the Father’s love, especially in a world which often elevates riches as the primary objective and leads us to isolation.

2. Psalm 34 uses three verbs to characterize the attitude of the poor man and his relationship with God. First of all, “to cry”. The condition of poverty cannot be expressed in a word, but becomes a cry which crosses the heavens and reaches God. What does the cry of the poor express if not their suffering and solitude, their delusion and hope? We can ask ourselves how it is that this cry, which rises to the presence of God, is unable to penetrate our ears and leaves us indifferent and impassive? On a day like the World Day of the Poor we are called to make a serious examination of conscience in order to understand if we are really capable of hearing them.

What we need in order to recognise their voice is silence in which to listen. If we speak too much ourselves, we will be unable to hear them. Often I am afraid that many initiatives, by themselves meritorious and necessary, are intended more to please those who undertake them than to really acknowledge the cry of the poor. If this is the case, when the cry of the poor rings out our reaction is incoherent and we are unable to empathize with their condition. We are so entrapped in a culture which obliges us to look in the mirror and to pamper ourselves that we believe that a gesture of altruism is sufficient without compromising ourselves directly.

3. The second verb is “to answer”. The Lord, the Psalmist tells us, not only listens to the cry of the poor, but He answers it. His answer, as attested by the whole history of salvation, is an all-loving sharing in the condition of the poor. It was so when Abram expressed to God his desire for an offspring, notwithstanding that he and his wife Sarah were old in years and had no children (cfr. Genesis 15:1-6). It happened when Moses, through a bush which burned without being consumed, received the revelation of the divine name and the mission to free his people from Egypt (Exodus 3:1-15). And this answer is confirmed throughout the wandering of Israel in the desert, when it was bitten by hunger and thirst (cfr. Exodus 16:1-6; 17:1-7) and when it fell into wretchedness of the worst kind, that is, unfaithfulness to the covenant and idolatry (cfr. Exodus 32:1-14).

God’s answer to the poor is always an intervention of salvation in order to heal the wounds of body and soul, restore justice and assist in beginning anew to live life with dignity. God’s answer is also an appeal in order that those who believe in Him can do the same within the limitations of their human nature. The World Day of the Poor wishes to be a small answer which the whole Church, spread throughout the world, gives to the poor of every type and in every land lest they think that their cry has gone unheard. Probably, it is like a drop of water in the desert of poverty; and yet it can be a sign of sharing for those who are in need, that they might experience the active presence of a brother or a sister. It is not delegated power of which the poor have need, but the personal involvement of as many hear their cry. The concern of believers in their regards cannot be limited to a kind of assistance – as useful and as providential as this may be in the beginning – but requires a «loving attentiveness» (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, 199) which honours the person as such and seeks out his best interests.

4. The third verb is “to free”. The poor of the Bible live with the certainty that God intervenes in their favour to restore their dignity. Poverty is not brought on by itself, but is caused by selfishness, pride, greed and injustice. These are evils as old as man himself, but also sins in which the innocents are caught up, leading to consequences on the social level which are dramatic. God’s liberating action is an act of salvation towards those who manifest their sadness and distress to Him. The prison of poverty is broken open by the power of God’s intervention. Many of the Psalms narrate and celebrate this history of salvation which is mirrored in the personal life of the poor: «For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him» ( Psalm 22:25). To be able to contemplate God’s countenance is a sign of His friendship, His proximity, and His salvation. «Thou hast seen my affliction, thou hast taken heed of my adversities … thou hast set my feet in a broad place» ( Psalm 31:8-9). To offer the poor a “broad space” is to liberate them from the “snare of the fowler” ( Psalm 91:3) and subtract them from the trap hidden on their path, in order that they might proceed expeditiously and look serenely upon life. God’s salvation takes the form of hand held out to the poor which is welcoming, offers protection and allows them to experience the friendship which they need. It is beginning with this concrete and tangible proximity that a genuine path of liberation emerges. «Each individual Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the liberation and promotion of the poor, and for enabling them to be fully a part of society. This demands that we be docile and attentive to the cry of the poor and to come to their aid» ( Evangelii gaudium, 187).5. I find it moving to know that many of the poor have identified themselves with Bartimaeus from St. Mark’s Gospel. Bartimaeus, a blind man, «was sitting by the roadside to beg» (verse 46) and, having heard that Jesus was passing by, «began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me”» (verse 47). «Many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more» (verse 48). The Son of God heard his cry: «“What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Master, let me receive my sight”» (verse 51). This Gospel narrative makes visible what in the Psalm is announced as a promise. Bartimaeus is a poor man who finds himself deprived of fundamental capacities like his sight and being able to work for his living. How many paths today also lead to forms of precariousness! The lack of basic means of subsistence, marginalization stemming from a reduced capacity to work owing to ill-heath, the various forms of social slavery, notwithstanding the progress made by humankind … How many poor people today are like Bartimaeus, sitting by the roadside and searching for the meaning of their existence! How many of them ask themselves why they have fallen so far and how they can escape! They are waiting from someone to come up and say: «Take heart; rise, he is calling you» (verse 49).

Unfortunately, often the opposite happens and the poor are reached by voices rebuking them and telling them to shut up and to put up. These voices are out of tune, often determined by a phobia of the poor, considered not only as destitute, but also as bearers of insecurity and instability, detached from the habits of daily life and, consequently, to be rejected and kept afar. The tendency is to create a distance between them and us, without realizing that by so doing we distance ourselves from the Lord Jesus who does not reject the poor, but calls them to Him and consoles them. The words of the Prophet concerning the style of life proper to believers is most apt in this case: «to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke … to share bread with the hungry and bring the homeless and poor into the house … to cover the naked» (Isaiah 58:6-7). Deeds such as these allow sin to be forgiven (cfr. 1 Peter 4:8), justice to pursue its path and, when it is us to cry to the Lord, ensure that he will answer and say: here I am! (Isaiah 58:9).

6. The poor are the first to whom it is given to recognise the presence of God and to testify to His proximity in their lives. God remains faithful to his promise, and even in the darkness of the night does not withhold the warmth of his love and consolation. However, in order to overcome the overwhelming condition of poverty, it is necessary that the poor perceive the presence of brothers and sisters who show concern for them and who, by opening the door of their hearts and lives, make them feel like friends and family. Only in this way can we discover «the saving power at work in their lives» and «put them at the centre of the Church’s pilgrim way» (Evangelii gaudium, 198).

On this World Day we are invited to give concreteness to the words of the Psalm: «The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied» (Psalm22:27). We know that in the Temple of Jerusalem, after the sacrificial rite, a banquet took place. It was this experience which enriched the first World Day of the Poor in many Dioceses last year. Many people found the warmth of a home, the joy of a celebration meal and the solidarity of those who wished to share the table in a simple and brotherly way. I would like that this year and in the future this World Day be celebrated in the spirit of joy for the rediscovery of our capacity for getting together. Praying together as a community and sharing a Sunday meal is an experience which takes us back to the earliest Christian community, described by St. Luke the Evangelist with all his originality and simplicity: «And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. […] And all who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need» (Acts 2:42.44-45).

7. Numerous initiatives are undertaken every day by the Christian community in order to give a sign of neighbourliness and relief in the face of the many forms of poverty which are before our eyes. Often it is the case that cooperation with other enterprises, moved not not by faith but by human solidarity, enable us to give assistance which by ourselves would have been impossible. Recognising that the in the immense world of poverty our capacity for action is limited, weak and insufficient leads us to reach out to others so that reciprocal cooperation can reach its objective in a more effective way. We are inspired by faith and by the imperative of charity, but we also know how to recognise other forms of assistance and solidarity which are characterized, in part, by our same objectives, albeit that we do not neglect our proper role which is to lead everyone to God and to holiness. Dialogue among the different forms of experience and humility in giving freely of our collaboration, without seeking the limelight, is an adequate and fully evangelical response which we can all give.

In the service of the poor, the last thing we need is a battle for first place. Instead we should recognise with humility that it is the Spirit which solicits from us actions which are a sign of God’s answer and proximity. When we find a way to draw near to the poor, we know that the first place belongs to Him who has opened our eyes and our heart to conversion. The poor have no need of protagonists, but of a love which knows how to hide and forget the good which it has done. The true protagonists are the Lord and the poor. He who desires to serve is an instrument in God’s hands in order to make manifest His presence and salvation. St. Paul recalls this when writing to the Christians of Corinth, who used to compete amongst themselves for charisms by seeking the most prestigious: «The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you”» (1 Corinthians 12;21). The Apostle makes an important point when he observes that it is the parts of the body which appear to be weaker which are more necessary (cfr. verse 22); and those which «we think less honourable we invest with the greater honour, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require» (verses 23-24). Thus, while Paul imparts to the community a fundamental teaching on charisms, he also educates it concerning its attitude towards its weaker and more needy members in the light of the Gospel. Far from the disciples of Christ nourishing sentiments of contempt or pietism towards the poor, they are called to honour them, giving them precedence, out of the conviction that they are a real presence of Jesus in our midst. «As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me» (Matthew 25:40).

8. Here we can see how distant our way of living is from that of the world which praises, follows and imitates those who have power and riches, while at the same time marginalizing the poor and considering them a waste and an object of shame. The words of the Apostle Paul are an invitation to give evangelical fullness to solidarity with the weaker and less gifted members of the body of Christ: «If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together» (1 Corinthians 12:26). Similarly, in the Letter to the Romans, he exhorts us: «Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly» (12:15-16). This is the vocation of the disciple of Christ; the ideal for which we must constantly strive is the increasing assimilation in us of the «mind of Jesus Christ» (Philippians 2:5).

9. A word of hope is the natural epilogue to which faith gives rise. Often it is the poor who undermine our indifference which is the daughter of a vision of life which is too imminent and bound up with the present. The cry of the poor is also a cry of hope which manifests the certainty of being liberated. This hope is founded upon the love of God who does not abandon those who trust in Him (cfr. Romans 8:31-39). As St. Teresa of Ávila writes in The Way of Perfection: «Poverty comprises many virtues. It is a vast domain. I affirm that whoever despises all earthly goods holds dominion over them» (2:5). It is in the measure in which we are able to discern authentic good that we become rich before God and wise in the face of ourselves and others. It is really so: in the measure in which we succeed in giving riches their right and true sense that we grow in humanity and become capable of sharing.

10. I invite my brother bishops, priests and, in particular, deacons, on whom hands have been laid for the service of the poor (Acts 6:1-7), as well as religious and the lay faithful – men and women – who in parishes, associations and ecclesial movements make tangible the Church’s response to the cry of the poor, to live this World Day as a special moment of new evangelization. The poor evangelize us, helping us to discover every day the beauty of the Gospel. Let us not waste this opportunity for grace. Let all of us feel on this day that we are debtors towards the poor because, stretching out our hands reciprocally one to another, a salvific encounter be created which strengthens our faith, renders our charity active and enables our hope to continue secure on the journey towards the Lord who is returning.

From the Vatican, 13 June 2018

Liturgical Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua

Francis

[Original text: Italian] [Vatican-provided text]

©  Libreria Editrice Vaticana

NOVEMBER 05, 2018 16:32

WORLD DAYS

[pope-francis-quotes]

14th June >> (@zenitenglish) Pope Francis’ Message for 2nd World Day of the Poor ‘This poor man cried and the Lord heard him’ Below is the Vatican-provided text of Pope Francis’ Message for the second World Day of the Poor, which is to be celebrated on Nov. 18, 2018, on the theme: ‘This poor man cried and the Lord heard him’ *** MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS SECOND WORLD DAY OF THE POOR 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 18 November 2018 This poor man cried and the Lord heard him 1. «This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him» (Ps 34:7). The words of the Psalmist become our own when we are called to meet the different conditions of suffering and marginalization lived out by very many of our brothers and sisters whom we are accustomed to label generically as “the poor”. The Psalmist is not extraneous to suffering; quite the contrary. He has direct experience of poverty and yet transforms it into a song of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. This Psalm is an opportunity for us today, immersed as we are in the many different forms of poverty, to understand who are the true poor on whom we are called to look upon in order to hear their cry and recognise their needs. We are told, first of all, that the Lord listens to the poor who cry to Him and is good to those who seek refuge in him, their hearts broken by sadness, loneliness and exclusion. The Lord listens to those who are downtrodden in their dignity and yet have the strength to look up in order to receive light and comfort. He listens to those who are persecuted in the name of a false justice, oppressed by policies unworthy of the name and intimidated by violence. And yet they know that they have their Saviour in God. What emerges from this prayer is above all the sense of abandonment to, and trust in, a Father who listens and is welcoming. It is on the same wavelength as these words that we can better understand what Jesus proclaimed with the beatitude «Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). Such is this unique experience, in many ways undeserved and impossible to express in full, that we nevertheless feel the desire to communicate it others, first of all to those who, like the Psalmist, are poor, rejected and marginalized. In fact, no-one can feel excluded from the Father’s love, especially in a world which often elevates riches as the primary objective and leads us to isolation. 2. Psalm 34 uses three verbs to characterize the attitude of the poor man and his relationship with God. First of all, “to cry”. The condition of poverty cannot be expressed in a word, but becomes a cry which crosses the heavens and reaches God. What does the cry of the poor express if not their suffering and solitude, their delusion and hope? We can ask ourselves how it is that this cry, which rises to the presence of God, is unable to penetrate our ears and leaves us indifferent and impassive? On a day like the World Day of the Poor we are called to make a serious examination of conscience in order to understand if we are really capable of hearing them. What we need in order to recognise their voice is silence in which to listen. If we speak too much ourselves, we will be unable to hear them. Often I am afraid that many initiatives, by themselves meritorious and necessary, are intended more to please those who undertake them than to really acknowledge the cry of the poor. If this is the case, when the cry of the poor rings out our reaction is incoherent and we are unable to empathize with their condition. We are so entrapped in a culture which obliges us to look in the mirror and to pamper ourselves that we believe that a gesture of altruism is sufficient without compromising ourselves directly. 3. The second verb is “to answer”. The Lord, the Psalmist tells us, not only listens to the cry of the poor, but He answers it. His answer, as attested by the whole history of salvation, is an all-loving sharing in the condition of the poor. It was so when Abram expressed to God his desire for an offspring, notwithstanding that he and his wife Sarah were old in years and had no children (cfr. Genesis 15:1-6). It happened when Moses, through a bush which burned without being consumed, received the revelation of the divine name and the mission to free his people from Egypt (Exodus 3:1-15). And this answer is confirmed throughout the wandering of Israel in the desert, when it was bitten by hunger and thirst (cfr. Exodus 16:1-6; 17:1-7) and when it fell into wretchedness of the worst kind, that is, unfaithfulness to the covenant and idolatry (cfr. Exodus 32:1-14). God’s answer to the poor is always an intervention of salvation in order to heal the wounds of body and soul, restore justice and assist in beginning anew to live life with dignity. God’s answer is also an appeal in order that those who believe in Him can do the same within the limitations of their human nature. The World Day of the Poor wishes to be a small answer which the whole Church, spread throughout the world, gives to the poor of every type and in every land lest they think that their cry has gone unheard. Probably, it is like a drop of water in the desert of poverty; and yet it can be a sign of sharing for those who are in need, that they might experience the active presence of a brother or a sister. It is not delegated power of which the poor have need, but the personal involvement of as many hear their cry. The concern of believers in their regards cannot be limited to a kind of assistance – as useful and as providential as this may be in the beginning – but requires a «loving attentiveness» (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, 199) which honours the person as such and seeks out his best interests. 4. The third verb is “to free”. The poor of the Bible live with the certainty that God intervenes in their favour to restore their dignity. Poverty is not brought on by itself, but is caused by selfishness, pride, greed and injustice. These are evils as old as man himself, but also sins in which the innocents are caught up, leading to consequences on the social level which are dramatic. God’s liberating action is an act of salvation towards those who manifest their sadness and distress to Him. The prison of poverty is broken open by the power of God’s intervention. Many of the Psalms narrate and celebrate this history of salvation which is mirrored in the personal life of the poor: «For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him» ( Psalm 22:25). To be able to contemplate God’s countenance is a sign of His friendship, His proximity, and His salvation. «Thou hast seen my affliction, thou hast taken heed of my adversities … thou hast set my feet in a broad place» ( Psalm 31:8-9). To offer the poor a “broad space” is to liberate them from the “snare of the fowler” ( Psalm 91:3) and subtract them from the trap hidden on their path, in order that they might proceed expeditiously and look serenely upon life. God’s salvation takes the form of hand held out to the poor which is welcoming, offers protection and allows them to experience the friendship which they need. It is beginning with this concrete and tangible proximity that a genuine path of liberation emerges. «Each individual Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the liberation and promotion of the poor, and for enabling them to be fully a part of society. This demands that we be docile and attentive to the cry of the poor and to come to their aid» ( Evangelii gaudium, 187).5. I find it moving to know that many of the poor have identified themselves with Bartimaeus from St. Mark’s Gospel. Bartimaeus, a blind man, «was sitting by the roadside to beg» (verse 46) and, having heard that Jesus was passing by, «began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me”» (verse 47). «Many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more» (verse 48). The Son of God heard his cry: «“What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Master, let me receive my sight”» (verse 51). This Gospel narrative makes visible what in the Psalm is announced as a promise. Bartimaeus is a poor man who finds himself deprived of fundamental capacities like his sight and being able to work for his living. How many paths today also lead to forms of precariousness! The lack of basic means of subsistence, marginalization stemming from a reduced capacity to work owing to ill-heath, the various forms of social slavery, notwithstanding the progress made by humankind … How many poor people today are like Bartimaeus, sitting by the roadside and searching for the meaning of their existence! How many of them ask themselves why they have fallen so far and how they can escape! They are waiting from someone to come up and say: «Take heart; rise, he is calling you» (verse 49). Unfortunately, often the opposite happens and the poor are reached by voices rebuking them and telling them to shut up and to put up. These voices are out of tune, often determined by a phobia of the poor, considered not only as destitute, but also as bearers of insecurity and instability, detached from the habits of daily life and, consequently, to be rejected and kept afar. The tendency is to create a distance between them and us, without realizing that by so doing we distance ourselves from the Lord Jesus who does not reject the poor, but calls them to Him and consoles them. The words of the Prophet concerning the style of life proper to believers is most apt in this case: «to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke … to share bread with the hungry and bring the homeless and poor into the house … to cover the naked» (Isaiah 58:6-7). Deeds such as these allow sin to be forgiven (cfr. 1 Peter 4:8), justice to pursue its path and, when it is us to cry to the Lord, ensure that he will answer and say: here I am! (Isaiah 58:9). 6. The poor are the first to whom it is given to recognise the presence of God and to testify to His proximity in their lives. God remains faithful to his promise, and even in the darkness of the night does not withhold the warmth of his love and consolation. However, in order to overcome the overwhelming condition of poverty, it is necessary that the poor perceive the presence of brothers and sisters who show concern for them and who, by opening the door of their hearts and lives, make them feel like friends and family. Only in this way can we discover «the saving power at work in their lives» and «put them at the centre of the Church’s pilgrim way» (Evangelii gaudium, 198). On this World Day we are invited to give concreteness to the words of the Psalm: «The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied» (Psalm22:27). We know that in the Temple of Jerusalem, after the sacrificial rite, a banquet took place. It was this experience which enriched the first World Day of the Poor in many Dioceses last year. Many people found the warmth of a home, the joy of a celebration meal and the solidarity of those who wished to share the table in a simple and brotherly way. I would like that this year and in the future this World Day be celebrated in the spirit of joy for the rediscovery of our capacity for getting together. Praying together as a community and sharing a Sunday meal is an experience which takes us back to the earliest Christian community, described by St. Luke the Evangelist with all his originality and simplicity: «And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. […] And all who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need» (Acts 2:42.44-45). 7. Numerous initiatives are undertaken every day by the Christian community in order to give a sign of neighbourliness and relief in the face of the many forms of poverty which are before our eyes. Often it is the case that cooperation with other enterprises, moved not not by faith but by human solidarity, enable us to give assistance which by ourselves would have been impossible. Recognising that the in the immense world of poverty our capacity for action is limited, weak and insufficient leads us to reach out to others so that reciprocal cooperation can reach its objective in a more effective way. We are inspired by faith and by the imperative of charity, but we also know how to recognise other forms of assistance and solidarity which are characterized, in part, by our same objectives, albeit that we do not neglect our proper role which is to lead everyone to God and to holiness. Dialogue among the different forms of experience and humility in giving freely of our collaboration, without seeking the limelight, is an adequate and fully evangelical response which we can all give. In the service of the poor, the last thing we need is a battle for first place. Instead we should recognise with humility that it is the Spirit which solicits from us actions which are a sign of God’s answer and proximity. When we find a way to draw near to the poor, we know that the first place belongs to Him who has opened our eyes and our heart to conversion. The poor have no need of protagonists, but of a love which knows how to hide and forget the good which it has done. The true protagonists are the Lord and the poor. He who desires to serve is an instrument in God’s hands in order to make manifest His presence and salvation. St. Paul recalls this when writing to the Christians of Corinth, who used to compete amongst themselves for charisms by seeking the most prestigious: «The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you”» (1 Corinthians 12;21). The Apostle makes an important point when he observes that it is the parts of the body which appear to be weaker which are more necessary (cfr. verse 22); and those which «we think less honourable we invest with the greater honour, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require» (verses 23-24). Thus, while Paul imparts to the community a fundamental teaching on charisms, he also educates it concerning its attitude towards its weaker and more needy members in the light of the Gospel. Far from the disciples of Christ nourishing sentiments of contempt or pietism towards the poor, they are called to honour them, giving them precedence, out of the conviction that they are a real presence of Jesus in our midst. «As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me» (Matthew 25:40). 8. Here we can see how distant our way of living is from that of the world which praises, follows and imitates those who have power and riches, while at the same time marginalizing the poor and considering them a waste and an object of shame. The words of the Apostle Paul are an invitation to give evangelical fullness to solidarity with the weaker and less gifted members of the body of Christ: «If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together» (1 Corinthians 12:26). Similarly, in the Letter to the Romans, he exhorts us: «Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly» (12:15-16). This is the vocation of the disciple of Christ; the ideal for which we must constantly strive is the increasing assimilation in us of the «mind of Jesus Christ» (Philippians 2:5). 9. A word of hope is the natural epilogue to which faith gives rise. Often it is the poor who undermine our indifference which is the daughter of a vision of life which is too imminent and bound up with the present. The cry of the poor is also a cry of hope which manifests the certainty of being liberated. This hope is founded upon the love of God who does not abandon those who trust in Him (cfr. Romans 8:31-39). As St. Teresa of Ávila writes in The Way of Perfection: «Poverty comprises many virtues. It is a vast domain. I affirm that whoever despises all earthly goods holds dominion over them» (2:5). It is in the measure in which we are able to discern authentic good that we become rich before God and wise in the face of ourselves and others. It is really so: in the measure in which we succeed in giving riches their right and true sense that we grow in humanity and become capable of sharing. 10. I invite my brother bishops, priests and, in particular, deacons, on whom hands have been laid for the service of the poor (Acts 6:1-7), as well as religious and the lay faithful – men and women – who in parishes, associations and ecclesial movements make tangible the Church’s response to the cry of the poor, to live this World Day as a special moment of new evangelization. The poor evangelize us, helping us to discover every day the beauty of the Gospel. Let us not waste this opportunity for grace. Let all of us feel on this day that we are debtors towards the poor because, stretching out our hands reciprocally one to another, a salvific encounter be created which strengthens our faith, renders our charity active and enables our hope to continue secure on the journey towards the Lord who is returning. From the Vatican, 13 June 2018 Liturgical Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua Francis [Original text: Italian] [Vatican-provided text] © Libreria Editrice Vaticana 14th JUNE 2018 13:08 POPE AND HOLY SEE

[pope-francis-quotes]

11th November >> (@zenitenglish) #PopeFrancis #Pope Francis Previews Second World Day of the Poor.

Will be Observed November 18, 2018

ANGELUS/REGINA CAELI

“Next Sunday the Second World Day of the Poor will be celebrated with many initiatives of evangelization, of prayer and of sharing,” Pope Francis said November 11, 2018, after praying the noonday Angelus with a crowd of 20,000 in St. Peter’s Square. “Also here, in St. Peter’s Square, a health post has been set up, which will offer care for a week to all those who are in difficulty. I hope that this Day will foster increasing attention to the needs of the least, the marginalized and the hungry.”

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS

SECOND WORLD DAY OF THE POOR

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 18 November 2018

This poor man cried and the Lord heard him

1. «This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him» (Ps 34:7). The words of the Psalmist become our own when we are called to meet the different conditions of suffering and marginalization lived out by very many of our brothers and sisters whom we are accustomed to label generically as “the poor”. The Psalmist is not extraneous to suffering; quite the contrary. He has direct experience of poverty and yet transforms it into a song of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. This Psalm is an opportunity for us today, immersed as we are in the many different forms of poverty, to understand who are the true poor on whom we are called to look upon in order to hear their cry and recognise their needs.

We are told, first of all, that the Lord listens to the poor who cry to Him and is good to those who seek refuge in him, their hearts broken by sadness, loneliness and exclusion. The Lord listens to those who are downtrodden in their dignity and yet have the strength to look up in order to receive light and comfort. He listens to those who are persecuted in the name of a false justice, oppressed by policies unworthy of the name and intimidated by violence. And yet they know that they have their Saviour in God. What emerges from this prayer is above all the sense of abandonment to, and trust in, a Father who listens and is welcoming. It is on the same wavelength as these words that we can better understand what Jesus proclaimed with the beatitude «Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).

Such is this unique experience, in many ways undeserved and impossible to express in full, that we nevertheless feel the desire to communicate it others, first of all to those who, like the Psalmist, are poor, rejected and marginalized. In fact, no-one can feel excluded from the Father’s love, especially in a world which often elevates riches as the primary objective and leads us to isolation.

2. Psalm 34 uses three verbs to characterize the attitude of the poor man and his relationship with God. First of all, “to cry”. The condition of poverty cannot be expressed in a word, but becomes a cry which crosses the heavens and reaches God. What does the cry of the poor express if not their suffering and solitude, their delusion and hope? We can ask ourselves how it is that this cry, which rises to the presence of God, is unable to penetrate our ears and leaves us indifferent and impassive? On a day like the World Day of the Poor we are called to make a serious examination of conscience in order to understand if we are really capable of hearing them.

What we need in order to recognise their voice is silence in which to listen. If we speak too much ourselves, we will be unable to hear them. Often I am afraid that many initiatives, by themselves meritorious and necessary, are intended more to please those who undertake them than to really acknowledge the cry of the poor. If this is the case, when the cry of the poor rings out our reaction is incoherent and we are unable to empathize with their condition. We are so entrapped in a culture which obliges us to look in the mirror and to pamper ourselves that we believe that a gesture of altruism is sufficient without compromising ourselves directly.

3. The second verb is “to answer”. The Lord, the Psalmist tells us, not only listens to the cry of the poor, but He answers it. His answer, as attested by the whole history of salvation, is an all-loving sharing in the condition of the poor. It was so when Abram expressed to God his desire for an offspring, notwithstanding that he and his wife Sarah were old in years and had no children (cfr. Genesis 15:1-6). It happened when Moses, through a bush which burned without being consumed, received the revelation of the divine name and the mission to free his people from Egypt (Exodus 3:1-15). And this answer is confirmed throughout the wandering of Israel in the desert, when it was bitten by hunger and thirst (cfr. Exodus 16:1-6; 17:1-7) and when it fell into wretchedness of the worst kind, that is, unfaithfulness to the covenant and idolatry (cfr. Exodus 32:1-14).

God’s answer to the poor is always an intervention of salvation in order to heal the wounds of body and soul, restore justice and assist in beginning anew to live life with dignity. God’s answer is also an appeal in order that those who believe in Him can do the same within the limitations of their human nature. The World Day of the Poor wishes to be a small answer which the whole Church, spread throughout the world, gives to the poor of every type and in every land lest they think that their cry has gone unheard. Probably, it is like a drop of water in the desert of poverty; and yet it can be a sign of sharing for those who are in need, that they might experience the active presence of a brother or a sister. It is not delegated power of which the poor have need, but the personal involvement of as many hear their cry. The concern of believers in their regards cannot be limited to a kind of assistance – as useful and as providential as this may be in the beginning – but requires a «loving attentiveness» (Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii gaudium, 199) which honours the person as such and seeks out his best interests.

4. The third verb is “to free”. The poor of the Bible live with the certainty that God intervenes in their favour to restore their dignity. Poverty is not brought on by itself, but is caused by selfishness, pride, greed and injustice. These are evils as old as man himself, but also sins in which the innocents are caught up, leading to consequences on the social level which are dramatic. God’s liberating action is an act of salvation towards those who manifest their sadness and distress to Him. The prison of poverty is broken open by the power of God’s intervention. Many of the Psalms narrate and celebrate this history of salvation which is mirrored in the personal life of the poor: «For he has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; and he has not hidden his face from him, but has heard, when he cried to him» ( Psalm 22:25). To be able to contemplate God’s countenance is a sign of His friendship, His proximity, and His salvation. «Thou hast seen my affliction, thou hast taken heed of my adversities … thou hast set my feet in a broad place» ( Psalm 31:8-9). To offer the poor a “broad space” is to liberate them from the “snare of the fowler” ( Psalm 91:3) and subtract them from the trap hidden on their path, in order that they might proceed expeditiously and look serenely upon life. God’s salvation takes the form of hand held out to the poor which is welcoming, offers protection and allows them to experience the friendship which they need. It is beginning with this concrete and tangible proximity that a genuine path of liberation emerges. «Each individual Christian and every community is called to be an instrument of God for the liberation and promotion of the poor, and for enabling them to be fully a part of society. This demands that we be docile and attentive to the cry of the poor and to come to their aid» ( Evangelii gaudium, 187).5. I find it moving to know that many of the poor have identified themselves with Bartimaeus from St. Mark’s Gospel. Bartimaeus, a blind man, «was sitting by the roadside to beg» (verse 46) and, having heard that Jesus was passing by, «began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me”» (verse 47). «Many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more» (verse 48). The Son of God heard his cry: «“What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Master, let me receive my sight”» (verse 51). This Gospel narrative makes visible what in the Psalm is announced as a promise. Bartimaeus is a poor man who finds himself deprived of fundamental capacities like his sight and being able to work for his living. How many paths today also lead to forms of precariousness! The lack of basic means of subsistence, marginalization stemming from a reduced capacity to work owing to ill-heath, the various forms of social slavery, notwithstanding the progress made by humankind … How many poor people today are like Bartimaeus, sitting by the roadside and searching for the meaning of their existence! How many of them ask themselves why they have fallen so far and how they can escape! They are waiting from someone to come up and say: «Take heart; rise, he is calling you» (verse 49).

Unfortunately, often the opposite happens and the poor are reached by voices rebuking them and telling them to shut up and to put up. These voices are out of tune, often determined by a phobia of the poor, considered not only as destitute, but also as bearers of insecurity and instability, detached from the habits of daily life and, consequently, to be rejected and kept afar. The tendency is to create a distance between them and us, without realizing that by so doing we distance ourselves from the Lord Jesus who does not reject the poor, but calls them to Him and consoles them. The words of the Prophet concerning the style of life proper to believers is most apt in this case: «to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free and to break every yoke … to share bread with the hungry and bring the homeless and poor into the house … to cover the naked» (Isaiah 58:6-7). Deeds such as these allow sin to be forgiven (cfr. 1 Peter 4:8), justice to pursue its path and, when it is us to cry to the Lord, ensure that he will answer and say: here I am! (Isaiah 58:9).

6. The poor are the first to whom it is given to recognise the presence of God and to testify to His proximity in their lives. God remains faithful to his promise, and even in the darkness of the night does not withhold the warmth of his love and consolation. However, in order to overcome the overwhelming condition of poverty, it is necessary that the poor perceive the presence of brothers and sisters who show concern for them and who, by opening the door of their hearts and lives, make them feel like friends and family. Only in this way can we discover «the saving power at work in their lives» and «put them at the centre of the Church’s pilgrim way» (Evangelii gaudium, 198).

On this World Day we are invited to give concreteness to the words of the Psalm: «The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied» (Psalm22:27). We know that in the Temple of Jerusalem, after the sacrificial rite, a banquet took place. It was this experience which enriched the first World Day of the Poor in many Dioceses last year. Many people found the warmth of a home, the joy of a celebration meal and the solidarity of those who wished to share the table in a simple and brotherly way. I would like that this year and in the future this World Day be celebrated in the spirit of joy for the rediscovery of our capacity for getting together. Praying together as a community and sharing a Sunday meal is an experience which takes us back to the earliest Christian community, described by St. Luke the Evangelist with all his originality and simplicity: «And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. […] And all who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need» (Acts 2:42.44-45).

7. Numerous initiatives are undertaken every day by the Christian community in order to give a sign of neighbourliness and relief in the face of the many forms of poverty which are before our eyes. Often it is the case that cooperation with other enterprises, moved not not by faith but by human solidarity, enable us to give assistance which by ourselves would have been impossible. Recognising that the in the immense world of poverty our capacity for action is limited, weak and insufficient leads us to reach out to others so that reciprocal cooperation can reach its objective in a more effective way. We are inspired by faith and by the imperative of charity, but we also know how to recognise other forms of assistance and solidarity which are characterized, in part, by our same objectives, albeit that we do not neglect our proper role which is to lead everyone to God and to holiness. Dialogue among the different forms of experience and humility in giving freely of our collaboration, without seeking the limelight, is an adequate and fully evangelical response which we can all give.

In the service of the poor, the last thing we need is a battle for first place. Instead we should recognise with humility that it is the Spirit which solicits from us actions which are a sign of God’s answer and proximity. When we find a way to draw near to the poor, we know that the first place belongs to Him who has opened our eyes and our heart to conversion. The poor have no need of protagonists, but of a love which knows how to hide and forget the good which it has done. The true protagonists are the Lord and the poor. He who desires to serve is an instrument in God’s hands in order to make manifest His presence and salvation. St. Paul recalls this when writing to the Christians of Corinth, who used to compete amongst themselves for charisms by seeking the most prestigious: «The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you”» (1 Corinthians 12;21). The Apostle makes an important point when he observes that it is the parts of the body which appear to be weaker which are more necessary (cfr. verse 22); and those which «we think less honourable we invest with the greater honour, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require» (verses 23-24). Thus, while Paul imparts to the community a fundamental teaching on charisms, he also educates it concerning its attitude towards its weaker and more needy members in the light of the Gospel. Far from the disciples of Christ nourishing sentiments of contempt or pietism towards the poor, they are called to honour them, giving them precedence, out of the conviction that they are a real presence of Jesus in our midst. «As you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me» (Matthew 25:40).

8. Here we can see how distant our way of living is from that of the world which praises, follows and imitates those who have power and riches, while at the same time marginalizing the poor and considering them a waste and an object of shame. The words of the Apostle Paul are an invitation to give evangelical fullness to solidarity with the weaker and less gifted members of the body of Christ: «If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together» (1 Corinthians 12:26). Similarly, in the Letter to the Romans, he exhorts us: «Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly» (12:15-16). This is the vocation of the disciple of Christ; the ideal for which we must constantly strive is the increasing assimilation in us of the «mind of Jesus Christ» (Philippians 2:5).

9. A word of hope is the natural epilogue to which faith gives rise. Often it is the poor who undermine our indifference which is the daughter of a vision of life which is too imminent and bound up with the present. The cry of the poor is also a cry of hope which manifests the certainty of being liberated. This hope is founded upon the love of God who does not abandon those who trust in Him (cfr. Romans 8:31-39). As St. Teresa of Ávila writes in The Way of Perfection: «Poverty comprises many virtues. It is a vast domain. I affirm that whoever despises all earthly goods holds dominion over them» (2:5). It is in the measure in which we are able to discern authentic good that we become rich before God and wise in the face of ourselves and others. It is really so: in the measure in which we succeed in giving riches their right and true sense that we grow in humanity and become capable of sharing.

10. I invite my brother bishops, priests and, in particular, deacons, on whom hands have been laid for the service of the poor (Acts 6:1-7), as well as religious and the lay faithful – men and women – who in parishes, associations and ecclesial movements make tangible the Church’s response to the cry of the poor, to live this World Day as a special moment of new evangelization. The poor evangelize us, helping us to discover every day the beauty of the Gospel. Let us not waste this opportunity for grace. Let all of us feel on this day that we are debtors towards the poor because, stretching out our hands reciprocally one to another, a salvific encounter be created which strengthens our faith, renders our charity active and enables our hope to continue secure on the journey towards the Lord who is returning.

From the Vatican, 13 June 2018

Liturgical Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua

Francis

[Original text: Italian] [Vatican-provided text]

©  Libreria Editrice Vaticana

NOVEMBER 11, 2018 19:08

ANGELUS/REGINA CAELI