“I, I am he that comforts you” (Isaiah 51:12a)
How deeply our Father longs for us to understand this. Who else could give us comfort that reaches into that depth which neither we nor any other human being can fathom?
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God’s plan stands firm for ever
NOTE: Due to current circumstances, I will be drawing on speeches I have given over the past few years in the coming days. However, as we will see, this topic fits seamlessly into our reflections on the Church’s mission, as Saint Paul repeatedly proclaims the Gospel message first to the Jews in the synagogues and then to the Gentiles.
Acts 13:26-33
In those days, when Paul came to Pisidian Antioch, he said in the synagogue: ‘My brothers, sons of Abraham’s race, and all you godfearers, this message of salvation is meant for you. What the people of Jerusalem and their rulers did, though they did not realise it, was in fact to fulfil the prophecies read on every Sabbath. Though they found nothing to justify his execution, they condemned him and asked Pilate to have him put to death. When they had carried out everything that scripture foretells about him they took him down from the tree and buried him in a tomb.
The worth of the Holy Tradition
Today we want to look at how the Apostle Paul—even before those who had come to believe in the Messiah were excluded—presented God’s work to the Jews in the synagogue at Antioch in order to lead them to Jesus.
Acts 13:13-25
Paul and his companions went by sea from Paphos to Perga in Pamphylia where John left them to go back to Jerusalem. The others carried on from Perga till they reached Antioch in Pisidia. Here they went to synagogue on the Sabbath and took their seats. After the passages from the Law and the Prophets had been read, the presidents of the synagogue sent them a message, ‘Brothers, if you would like to address some words of encouragement to the congregation, please do so.’ Paul stood up, raised his hand for silence and began to speak: ‘Men of Israel, and fearers of God, listen! The God of our nation Israel chose our ancestors and made our people great when they were living in Egypt, a land not their own; then by divine power he led them out and for about forty years took care of them in the desert. When he had destroyed seven nations in Canaan, he put them in possession of their land for about four hundred and fifty years. After this he gave them judges, down to the prophet Samuel. Then they demanded a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin. After forty years, he deposed him and raised up David to be king, whom he attested in these words, “I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will perform my entire will.” To keep his promise, God has raised up for Israel one of David’s descendants, Jesus, as Saviour, whose coming was heralded by John when he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the whole people of Israel. Before John ended his course he said, “I am not the one you imagine me to be; there is someone coming after me whose sandal I am not fit to undo.”
“BEARING ABUNDANT FRUIT”
“The more you live in My heart and I in yours, the greater the fruit will be.” (Inner Word)
Do we desire to live our earthly lives in such a way that they bear abundant fruit—fruit that will follow us into eternity? Here we are shown a path, for the Heavenly Father offers us His heart for this very purpose. It is not a difficult path that demands endless effort from us. No, it is a simple path of love, an intimate communion with our Father and He with us. The fruit of this will grow and ripen almost of itself, for God Himself will bring it forth.
The Light of the Son of God
Having shared in St. Paul’s sorrow that so many Jews did not recognize Jesus—neither in His own time nor through the preaching of the apostles—and still do not recognize Him to this day, I would like to let the Lord speak for Himself.
In Rabbi Eugenio Zolli, we came to know a Jew who found his way to Jesus. In Augustine, we encountered a seeker who allowed himself to be touched by the Word of God and subsequently oriented his entire life toward God. May many more people experience this: that they encounter the “Light of the World” (John 9:5) and the Word of God, who is the Lord Himself!
Jn 12:44-50
Jesus declared publicly: Whoever believes in me believes not in me but in the one who sent me, and whoever sees me, sees the one who sent me. I have come into the world as light, to prevent anyone who believes in me from staying in the dark any more. If anyone hears my words and does not keep them faithfully, it is not I who shall judge such a person, since I have come not to judge the world, but to save the world: anyone who rejects me and refuses my words has his judge already: the word itself that I have spoken will be his judge on the last day. For I have not spoken of my own accord; but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and what to speak, and I know that his commands mean eternal life. And therefore what the Father has told me is what I speak.
“DEATH, RESURRECTION AND LIFE”
“To depart from You is to die. To return to You is to rise again. To dwell with You is to live.” (St. Augustine)
With these few words, dear Father, St. Augustine expresses it perfectly. For if we were to go away from You—which may You always prevent—we would no longer be able to receive the grace, Your living love for us. Everything within us would begin to wither, everything that truly reveals to us the real value of existence.
“RESISTING HOSTILITY”
“All who wish to follow Me will experience the hostility of hell and also of those who listen to the demons.” (Inner Word)
This is inevitable once we begin to follow Christ. The expression of this hostility may take different forms, but it will certainly appear. The Father has made this clear to us through His Son and through the testimony of those who followed Him.
Our heart is restless until it reposes in Thee
Before we continue speaking about the Church during this Easter season—so that we may better grasp its beauty and the mission entrusted to it by the Lord—allow me to take a brief look at our community, Agnus Dei, which was founded on April 24, 1980. Certainly, every date—since every day is a gift from God—has its own precious history. Therefore, it is worthwhile to discover what else happened on those days that stand out in a special way in our lives. Since the Agnus Dei community is a spiritual community of Catholics, let us first look at which feast the Church celebrates on this day.
Saint Augustine certainly played a role in the emergence of the community on various levels, which is why we honor him in a special way today. The Augustinian Order, in fact, celebrates the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Augustine on April 24. We know what came forth from his conversion, which he also owed to the intercession of his mother, Saint Monica. His influence on the Church, as well as on people seeking the truth, is immeasurable. This remains true to this day.
For this reason, on this day we have often read with great gratitude excerpts from the story of his conversion, for some among us have also experienced a turning away from a “lost life” toward following Christ. Others, who grew up more firmly rooted in the faith, experienced a deepening of their faith that first enabled them to walk the path of discipleship as it is lived in our Agnus Dei community by the grace of God.
“HOLY KINSHIP”
“Everyone can become brothers and sisters if they believe in Me.” (Inner Word)
This refers to the kinship our Lord speaks of in the Gospel:
“Some one told him, ‘Your mother and your brethren are standing outside, asking to speak to you’. But he replied to the man who told him, ‘Who is my mother, and who are my brethren?’ And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brethren! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother, and sister, and mother.’” (Mt 12:47–50)
A fresh look at the Jewish people
In the last two reflections, we have once again seen with sorrow that the Jews did not find a natural path to recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. That the transition—or rather, the fulfillment—of the path taken thus far in following the Son of God was not only possible but actually occurred was evident in the Lord’s apostles and in those who had come to faith. This was particularly clear in the case of Saint Paul, who came from the learned circles of Judaism and experienced his conversion and enlightenment as a great grace. God was at work with authority and confirmed His Son through signs and wonders as well. But since this was not recognized and the estrangement grew ever greater, there was no longer a common path. The consequence was the exclusion of those who confessed the Messiah following the destruction of the Temple in A.D. 70 and the reorganization of Judaism.
As sad as this may be, this separation was likely inevitable, for the recognition of the Son of God as the Messiah was the decisive moment—and will remain so—that opens the door of grace for humanity. The response to follow Him is the decisive moment through which the grace the Son of God brought to earth may reach people.