The prayer for the sick is held in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere Read more
The prayer for the sick is held in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
This is the Gospel of the poor,
liberation for the imprisoned,
sight for the blind,
freedom for the oppressed.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Hebrews 1,1-6
At many moments in the past and by many means, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets; but in our time, the final days, he has spoken to us in the person of his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things and through whom he made the ages. He is the reflection of God's glory and bears the impress of God's own being, sustaining all things by his powerful command; and now that he has purged sins away, he has taken his seat at the right hand of the divine Majesty on high. So he is now as far above the angels as the title which he has inherited is higher than their own name. To which of the angels, then, has God ever said: You are my Son, today I have fathered you, or: I shall be a father to him and he a son to me? Again, when he brings the First-born into the world, he says: Let all the angels of God pay him homage.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Son of Man came to serve,
whoever wants to be great
should become servant of all.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Letter to the Hebrews, a sermon addressed to the Christians of the first generation who were affected by very harsh opposition, opens with a general gaze on the history of salvation. It appears immediately that its protagonist is God himself. It is he who has chosen to enter into dialogue with human beings since ancient times and in various ways especially through the prophets. The God of the Bible does not remain in the heavens, but speaks to humankind. The Holy Scriptures are nothing but the narration of this dialogue, which continues with all those who open them. That is why the spirituality of the believer consists in listening to the Word that God addresses to us. The believer is first of all a person who listens. It is no coincidence that the author of the letter laments the laziness of Christians in listening to the Scriptures. And he warns that by dint of not listening one becomes "dull in understanding" (5:11). For Israel, listening to God was central. And if there were difficult and burdensome moments in the history of the chosen people, they arose when the people became deaf to God's words. This is the revealed mystery that we are invited to welcome: God in these last times has chosen to speak to us directly, without intermediaries, through his own Son. The Word that stood at the origin of creation has become flesh. And we, through it - it is Jesus himself - can enter into direct dialogue with the Father in heaven. This direct relationship with God saves us from loneliness and death. Listening to him, obeying him, speaking to him, acting according to his will is the mystery of our salvation and that of the world.
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
