Monday 32nd week even numbered year
"Jesus said to his disciples’ Causes of scandal are sure to come, but alas for the one through whom they occur! It would be better for such a person to be thrown into the sea with a millstone around his neck than to be the downfall of single one of these little ones.’
We can all hurt little ones, and Jesus shows us how our attitude can do so. To scandalise means an object on which one slides or against which one stumbles, it can be a stone on the path that makes us fall over.
We need to have a lot of respect for children and people who are unhappy. There are many , many ways of hurting them : lies, ambitions, unfair ’triumphs’.
The Holy Spirit is given to us in order to acquire a greater discernment, a possibility to take some distance from life’s events.
The Gospel always calls us to be prudent, to leave our imagination behind us so as to say yes to our life as it is.
We grow in our spiritual life by taking Jesus’ path, it is one made up of gentleness and humility, an din this way we can listen to God’s will in other people.
If we ’settle down’ in love we can look at each other and believe that we are infinitely loved by God. We can accept to lose what we have in order to be renewed and to become poorer so we can get closer to Jesus.
Suffering can have an impact on our capacity to believe, to hope and to open up to life. We can feel ourselves going down if ever we are betrayed or slapped. So we enter into humility by asking for a greater intimacy in Jesus.
“Keep a watch on yourselves! If your brother does something wrong, rebuke him and, if he is sorry, forgive him And if he wrongs you seven times a day and seven times comes back to you and says ’I am sorry’, you must forgive him.”
We need to live from forgiveness and welcome one another as brothers by coming back to the source of Love and to look at ourselves with God’s very own tenderness.
Jesus asks us to forgive as often as it is necessary, even several times a day, f the other has repented.
Jesus calls us to be attentive towards our own heart, so as to contribute to making the reconstruction of unity possible amongst us. Attentiveness is at the origins of human life which takes care of another person, having us go into a vision, which calls us to be situated in reality in a different way. It invites u to take God our Father’s point of view. Whoever takes care of another person is taking care of himself and makes it possible to build unity between us.
In order to remain in a state of truth, we ask god to become more aware of us. It is a matter of welcoming reality that comes about so as to move forward on the road which once again opens up : ’Remain careful.’ Jesus invites us to take God’s point of view which Jesus reveals in his Passion.
The Apostles dais to the Lord’ Increase our faith.’ The Lord replied ’If you had faith like a mustard seed you could say tot his mulberry tree ’Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.’
Faith is the fruit of the experience one has with God. It enables us to act with trust.in hearing Jesus’ words, the apostles are asked to increase their faith. In order to go beyond difficulties in or daily life, e really do need to believe in the other person.
Jesus projects us into the heart of his response, He is the one who plants the tree of the Cross in the sea of sinfulness, renunciation, betrayal, so that life is seen to flourish splendidly, having everyone recognise it and to live from he gift that has been received.
All ordeals are a call to tap into our depths, where our genuine person lies. So our heart moves away from its own centre. If obstacles are taken away by forgiveness then this gives the possibility to move forward. This is how we become for one another homes of light, shining in the midst of darkness. May everything be Eucharist, may all our actions be nothing more than thanksgiving, so that god may be everything in all.