Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
1 Thessalonians 4,9-11
As for brotherly love, there is no need to write to you about that, since you have yourselves learnt from God to love one another, and in fact this is how you treat all the brothers throughout the whole of Macedonia. However, we do urge you, brothers, to go on making even greater progress and to make a point of living quietly, attending to your own business and earning your living, just as we told you to,
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If you believe, you will see the glory of God,
thus says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Paul begins this part of the letter by referring to the authority of Jesus. And in his name, he shows what "pleases God," what "his will" is. He offers this exhortation as a prayer, so decisive does he feel it is. The Thessalonians already know how to behave in order to please God: the Apostle himself had shown them this when he was with them, both by example and by teaching. They must persevere in this way, indeed, distinguish themselves even more in walking it, to holiness. God's will is our sanctification, that is, to belong in everything to God, and thus to be far from the world and free from its bonds. The apostle then warns against the thirst for gain and greed that lead to overpowering others and humiliating them. God, the apostle emphasises, "did not call us to impurity but in holiness," that is, to abandon self-centred and violent behaviour in order to turn towards him and make of his Word the light for our steps. Therefore, the one who despises these precepts despises God himself, while the one who abides in "holiness" abides in love. This is why the Apostle adds: "Now concerning love of the brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anyone write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another; and indeed, you do love all the brothers and sisters throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, beloved, to do so more and more." If love is the Spirit poured by God into the hearts of believers, the Spirit himself is the inner teacher who guides every disciple. Fraternal love, in fact, is not a precept of human beings, it is the new commandment that Jesus gave to the disciples of all times making it the hallmark of their bond with him. And it is a gift that must be lived in an ever-widening way. No one can rest on the love that is already there; it itself asks to grow and expand.
Prayer is the heart of the life of the Community of Sant'Egidio and is its absolute priority. At the end of the day, every the Community of Sant'Egidio, large or small, gathers around the Lord to listen to his Word. The Word of God and the prayer are, in fact, the very basis of the whole life of the Community. The disciples cannot do other than remain at the feet of Jesus, as did Mary of Bethany, to receive his love and learn his ways (Phil. 2:5).
So every evening, when the Community returns to the feet of the Lord, it repeats the words of the anonymous disciple: " Lord, teach us how to pray". Jesus, Master of prayer, continues to answer: "When you pray, say: Abba, Father". It is not a simple exhortation, it is much more. With these words Jesus lets the disciples participate in his own relationship with the Father. Therefore in prayer, the fact of being children of the Father who is in heaven, comes before the words we may say. So praying is above all a way of being! That is to say we are children who turn with faith to the Father, certain that they will be heard.
Jesus teaches us to call God "Our Father". And not simply "Father" or "My Father". Disciples, even when they pray on their own, are never isolated nor they are orphans; they are always members of the Lord's family.
In praying together, beside the mystery of being children of God, there is also the mystery of brotherhood, as the Father of the Church said: "You cannot have God as father without having the church as mother". When praying together, the Holy Spirit assembles the disciples in the upper room together with Mary, the Lord's mother, so that they may direct their gaze towards the Lord's face and learn from Him the secret of his Heart.
The Communities of Sant'Egidio all over the world gather in the various places of prayer and lay before the Lord the hopes and the sufferings of the tired, exhausted crowds of which the Gospel speaks ( Mat. 9: 3-7 ), In these ancient crowds we can see the huge masses of the modern cities, the millions of refugees who continue to flee their countries, the poor, relegated to the very fringe of life and all those who are waiting for someone to take care of them. Praying together includes the cry, the invocation, the aspiration, the desire for peace, the healing and salvation of the men and women of this world. Prayer is never in vain; it rises ceaselessly to the Lord so that anguish is turned into hope, tears into joy, despair into happiness, and solitude into communion. May the Kingdom of God come soon among people!
For the sick, in memory of the dead, for peace
