With “The heart elsewhere” towards a path of obedience to the Father, to be truly disciples of Christ
Homiletics of the Fathers of The Island of Patmos
CON THE HEART ELSEWHERE TOWARDS A PATH OF OBEDIENCE TO THE FATHER, TO TRULY BE DISCIPLES OF CHRIST
The new law of love is not the kind of emotional and sentimental love that today seems to be a bit’ what is sought by the current culture and by slogan of television and TV series on platforms online.
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Author:
Gabriele Giordano M. Scardocci, o.p.
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Easter time it is time for personal rediscovery and rebirth in faith. A faith that requires love and obedient listening. A bit like in an old film from 2003, The heart elsewhere, in which the young Nello, professor of classical literature, falls in love with Angela, blind from birth. Angela trusts Nello, he knows how to listen to him and if necessary he knows how to obey him. And she does it not because she is blind, but because she loves him. There are so many difficulties that arise in the course of such a difficult and contrasted story, but what maybe, for this, leads to a surprise ending in this film in which love and listening are the heart of the whole story.
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The Gospel of Blessed John the Evangelist today offers a section of Jesus' long farewell discourse, in which the Lord speaks of these themes. In the first part of this section we read that the center of all the Lord's action is love:
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«I give you a new commandment: that you love one another. As I loved you, you also must love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples: if you have love for each other "
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The love of charity that's what Jesus asks: to love God and neighbor above all else. This concretely implies seeking with all one's strength the good of God and neighbor. Therefore, seeking the construction of the civilization of love, first of all, build a personal and community common good. Trying to avoid and avert the injustices that happen in our life, at work, with friends and even with family.
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From love for God the observance of the ten commandments comes to life, the exercise of the virtues and all the moral teachings of Jesus. Because here the Lord teaches us that Love is listening to a profound word, that of God himself who speaks to our lives to the point of filling them with hope, joy and serenity. So, the new law of love is not the kind of emotional and sentimental love that today seems to be a bit’ what is sought by the current culture and by slogan of television and TV series on platforms online. Jesus asks of us a love that is radically founded in the Trinity, nella nostra fede e nella nostra esistenza. Because salvation sprang from the Trinity, especially in the glorification of Jesus on the cross. The Lord speaks of this glorification at the beginning of the passage:
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"Now the Son of man has been glorified, and God was glorified in him. If God was glorified in him, God too will glorify him for his part and glorify him immediately ".
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This glory it begins to materialize in the moment of Judas' betrayal, running away from the last supper, shortly after having received the Eucharist and the Sacred Priestly Order from Christ the Lord. Even in the moment of the greatest betrayal, like that of Judas Iscariot, the Lord teaches us that there is a moment of maximum self-giving to the other. It seems paradoxical, but it is the moment when the extremes meet, all not by chance. Because Jesus decided to love to the end, to the extreme. Therefore also to love Judas who betrays him to the end, without ever repenting. Judas is the one who disobeys the golden rule of love. He doesn't know how to welcome such a strong and totally innovative message and decides to love in his own way. He decides to love the idol, the idea of God he has in mind: the idea of a triumphant God over the Empire.
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The glory of the Lord it will also be transmitted to us. We will rise again post mortem if we act diametrically opposite to Judas. Learning to obey the Lord.
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The invitation of the Risen One it still gets so strong today in 2022. The whole community of believers in Christ, all of us, torniamo ad ascoltare in obbedienza filiale le parole che Dio ci ispira e che dice attraverso la Chiesa e i suoi pastori. A questo modo potremo costruire già adesso il regno di Cristo, un regno non costituito da cariche politiche o ruoli di potere, ma fondato esclusivamente sulla cura e sull’attenzione verso il nostro prossimo, in cui vedremo il volto di Gesù che implora il nostro amore.
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Signore oggi ti chiediamo il dono del tuo Spirito Vivificante, perché siamo testimoni e dei credenti credibili del tuo amore, so that we arouse the yearning to pray to universal love throughout the world.
Amen.
Rome, 15 May 2022
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Father Gabriele
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