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WORD FOR MISSION Every week CIAM offers
to lay, religious people and priests an itinerary of reflections on the
Sunday Liturgy in a missionary prespective. These are elements for a
missionary meditation, individual or in community, on the Word of God ,
which constantly and surprisingly continues to enlighten, strengthen
and sustain the missionary journey of the Church, for the life of the
World
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EASTER - with a heart that embraces the whole world
VI Sunday of Lent: Palm Sunday Year C – 01.04.2007 Luke 19:28-40 Isaiah 50:4-7 Psalm 21 Philippians 2:6-11 Luke 22:14 – 23,56
Reflections Some words of witness from the missionary world can certainly guide us in the understanding of the Paschal Mystery on which the Holy Week is centred. These words are born from the personal experience of identification with Christ who died and rose again. So their witness has a universal echo: they help us to live Easter in the width and the depth that originate in the Heart of Christ.
“With eyes fixed on Jesus Christ”. St. Daniel Comboni, in the Rules for his Institute, urged the future missionaries to develop a necessary “Spirit of Sacrifice”, through contemplation of Christ crucified: «The constant thought of the great purpose of their apostolic vocation must engender in the students of the Institute the spirit of sacrifice. They will develop in themselves this most essential disposition by keeping their eyes fixed on Jesus Christ, loving him tenderly and seeking always to understand more fully the meaning of a God who died on the Cross for the salvation of souls. If they contemplate and appreciate a mystery of such great love with living faith, they will consider themselves blessed to be able to offer themselves to lose everything and to die for him and with him.» (From the Writings of Daniel Comboni, n. 2720-2722).
“I am thirsty!” The total dedication of Blessed Mother Theresa of Calcutta to the missionary cause originated from contemplation of the words of Jesus on the Cross: 'I am thirsty!'. Her attention to those who were lowest on the social scale was born in her through the desire to slake the thirst of Jesus. «‘I am thirsty!’ said Jesus when, on the cross, he was deprived of all consolation. Renew your zeal to slake his thirst in the pitiful features of the poorest of the poor: 'You did it to Me'. Never separate these words of Jesus: 'I am thirsty' and 'You did it to me'». (Mother Teresa of Calcutta: free translation from Italian).
Celebrate Easter with a heart as big as the world This is the teaching of Archbishop Oscar A. Romero, of San Salvador, killed while celebrating Mass in the evening of 24th March 1980. «Only the person who knows how to love, how to pardon, can celebrate Easter with Christ, and can bring to bear the greatest power that God has placed in the human heart: Love. The Church feels that its heart is like that of Mary, as big as the world, with no enemies and no resentments.» (From the catecheses of Archbishop Oscar A. Romero, Holy Week 1978).
The Pope's words: the power to transform the world (*) «The Resurrection is not a thing of the past, the Resurrection has reached us and seized us. We grasp hold of it, we grasp hold of the risen Lord, and we know that he holds us firmly even when our hands grow weak. We grasp hold of his hand, and thus we also hold on to one another’s hands, and we become one single subject, not just one thing. I, but no longer I (cf. Gal 2:20): this is the formula of Christian life rooted in Baptism, the formula of the Resurrection within time. I, but no longer I: if we live in this way, we transform the world. It is a formula contrary to all ideologies of violence, it is a programme opposed to corruption and to the desire for power and possession». Benedict XVI Homily during the Paschal Vigil, 15.04.2006
In the footsteps of Missionaries - 1/4: (Palm Sunday) Bl. Lodovico Pavoni (1784-1848), a priest from Brescia: a pioneer in the social field, founder, dedicated to to the human, Christian and professional education of young people. - 2/4: St. Francis of Paola (1416-1507), a hermit who lived an austere life and founded the Order of the Friars Minims. - 2/4: Bl. Diego Luis de San Vitores (1627-1672), a Spanish Jesuit priest, and Peter Calungsod (1654-1672), a lay catechist born in the Philippines. They were both killed out of hatred of the Catholic faith and thrown into the sea (Guam, Mariannes, Oceania). - 2/4: Bl. Maria Laura Alvarado (1875-1967), lived he whole life in Venezuela. She was a foundress, dedicated to the care of orphans, old people and the poor. - 4/4: St. Isidore (circa. 570-636), Bishop of Seville and Doctor of the Church, a keen seeker of knowledge and a good organiser. He is recognised as the last of the Fathers of the Latin Church. - 4/4: St. Benedict Massarari, called "The Black", descendant of African slaves. He spent his life (1536-1589) in Sicily. He was a Franciscan, and was the first black African to be canonised. He is one of the Patrons of Palermo. - 4/4: We remember Martin Luther King (b. Atlanta, USA, 1929): Leader of the Civil Rights movement, seeking racial integration through active non-violence. He received the Nobel Peace Prize (1964) and was assassinated in Memphis on 4th April 1968. - 5/4: St. Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419), a Spanish Dominican priest, one of the great preachers and itinerant missionaries of western Europe. - 7/4: St John Baptist de la Salle (1651-1719), educator and Founder of the Brothers of Christian Schools. In 1950 Pope Pius XII proclaimed him special Patron of all teachers. - 7/4: World Health Day, organised by UNO-WHO. - 8/4: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of all nations.
In the joy of the Risen Christ: Happy Easter to everybody!
There will be a short 'Easter Break'. Back on Sunday 22nd. April.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Compiled by Fr. Romeo Ballan, mcci - former Director of CIAM, Rome Translated by Fr. J.M. Troy, mccj Website: www.ciam.org “The Word for Mission” ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ |
