GEBED IEDERE DAG

Memory of the apostles
Woord van god elke dag

Memory of the apostles

The prayer for peace is held in the basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere.
Feast of Saint Matthew, apostle and evangelist.
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Libretto DEL GIORNO
Memory of the apostles
Monday, September 21

The prayer for peace is held in the basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere.
Feast of Saint Matthew, apostle and evangelist.


Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

If we die with him, we shall live with him,
if with him we endure, with him we shall reign.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Matthew 9,9-13

As Jesus was walking on from there he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, 'Follow me.' And he got up and followed him. Now while he was at table in the house it happened that a number of tax collectors and sinners came to sit at the table with Jesus and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, 'Why does your master eat with tax collectors and sinners?' When he heard this he replied, 'It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. Go and learn the meaning of the words: Mercy is what pleases me, not sacrifice. And indeed I came to call not the upright, but sinners.'

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

If we die with him, we shall live with him,
if with him we endure, with him we shall reign.

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Today the Church celebrates Matthew, apostle and evangelist. In the Jewish language his name was Levi, and his profession, tax collector, was considered dishonourable by his countrymen because he collected taxes for the dominant foreign power. Jesus was walking by in Capernaum, and saw Matthew, and, instead of passing by spitefully like everyone else, he stopped and called him: "Follow me," One word is enough and Matthew "got up and followed him." For Jesus it is not the situation that counts, but whether one welcomes his call into one's heart. This is exactly what the tax collector Matthew did. And at that moment his life changed. Up until then he had thought about accumulating for himself, but once he began listening to that Teacher, all he did was follow him. It was not a sacrifice for him, but a celebration. Matthew understood that Jesus was not calling him to steal his life or to make it sad. On the contrary Jesus wanted to share with him his great dream on the world. Matthew was so happy at being welcomed to follow that teacher that he planned a dinner with Jesus and invited his friends, tax collectors and sinners. It was a strange banquet that nonetheless prefigured the alliance between Christians and the poor for whom Jesus lived and preached. From that moment on, Matthew did not sit collecting taxes anymore; he became a disciple and gathered sinners to celebrate around Jesus. The world does not understand what is happening, but this is the innovation of the Gospel that is disconcerting to the majority of people: everyone's heart, with no exceptions, can be touched and everyone can change his or her life, starting from sinners. Jesus clarifies this to those who did and do not want to understand: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick." In fact, it is written: "I desire mercy, not sacrifice." With the Gospel that bears his name, Matthew continues to remind us of the centrality of the Word of God. Let us listen to it, as Matthew did, and let us begin to follow Jesus too.

WOORD VAN GOD ELKE DAG: DE KALENDER

Het gebed is het hart van het leven van de Gemeenschap van Sant’Egidio. Het is haar eerste “werk”. Aan het einde van de dag komt elke Gemeenschap, of die nu klein of groot is, samen bij de Heer om het Woord te beluisteren en zich tot Hem te richten in het gebed. De leerlingen kunnen niet anders dan aan de voeten van Jezus zitten, zoals Maria van Bethanië, om het “betere deel” te kiezen (Lc 10, 42) en van Hem zijn gezindheid te leren (vgl. Fil 2, 5).

Elke keer dat de Gemeenschap zich tot de Heer richt, maakt ze zich die vraag eigen van de anonieme leerling: “Heer, leer ons bidden!” (Lc 11, 1). En Jezus, meester in het gebed, antwoordt: “Wanneer jullie bidden, zeg dan: Abba, Vader”.

Wanneer we bidden, ook in de geslotenheid van ons eigen hart, zijn we nooit alleen of verweesd. Integendeel, we zijn leden van de familie van de Heer. In het gemeenschappelijk gebed wordt naast het mysterie van het kindschap, ook dat van de broederschap en zusterschap duidelijk.

De Gemeenschappen van Sant’Egidio, verspreid over de wereld, verzamelen zich op de verschillende plaatsen die gekozen zijn voor het gebed en brengen de hoop en het verdriet van de “uitgeputte en hulpeloze mensenmenigte” waarover het Evangelie spreekt (Mt 9, 37) bij de Heer. Deze oude menigte omvat de inwoners van onze hedendaagse steden, de armen die zich bevinden in de marge van het leven, en iedereen die wacht om als dagloner te worden aangenomen (vgl. Mt 20).

Het gemeenschappelijk gebed verzamelt de schreeuw, de hoop, het verlangen naar vrede, genezing, zin en redding, die beleefd worden door de mannen en vrouwen van deze wereld. Het gebed is nooit leeg. Het stijgt onophoudelijk op naar de Heer opdat verdriet verandert in vreugde, wanhoop in blijheid, angst in hoop, eenzaamheid in gemeenschap. En het rijk Gods zal spoedig temidden van de mensen komen.

WOORD VAN GOD ELKE DAG: DE KALENDER