Jesus enters Jerusalem (Russian iconography) Matthew 21.1-9: [1] As they approached Jerusalem and came at Bethpage, to the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples [ 2] saying: "Go into the village opposite you: soon you will find an ass tied and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. [3] If anyone tells you something, answer: The Lord needs it, but postpone them now. " [4] Now this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: [5] Say to the Daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, with a colt the foal of a beast of burden. [6] The disciples went and did as Jesus had commanded them: [7] brought the donkey and the colt, they put on them their cloaks, and he sat down.
[8] The very numerous crowd spread their cloaks on the road while others cut branches from trees and spread them on the street. [9] The crowds that went before and what was behind it, shouting: Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest! [10] He entered into Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up and people asked: "Who is this?". [11] And the crowd responded: "This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth di Galilea».
Cari amici e care amiche,
con domenca prossima (II domenica dell’Avvento ambrosiano, 25 novembre 2007) siamo invitati a mantenere lo sguardo fisso su Colui che viene (adventus, avvento), ascoltando con intelligenza vivace l’episodio narrato dal brano evangelico di Matteo 21,1-9.
Una cultura come la nostra, che non sa aspettare e non sostiene facilmente i tempi di una maturazione lenta e graduale dei valori e delle esperienze, riconduce con immediatezza il tema dell’attesa, propria dell’Avvento liturgico, al Natale di Gesù Bambino. Disattendendo in questo modo ad una corretta educazione a saper attendere, alla capacità di aspettare. Maturando Gradule the acquisition of a value or a vocational choice or professinal.
If the logic of the acceleration of trade (and artificial) of a product can easily lose the authenticity, represented by a quality craftsmanship, including the speeding up of approaches to learning and communication may not meet a more mature and conscious acquisition of certain values, human and spiritual, more and more necessary and urgent for our civilization. While remaining on hold for hours in traffic jams in our cities, the profound logic of waiting to educate us really hard. Always and constantly strive to "something", frequently and at the 'late', according increasingly inadequate for our times, is nothing compared to what it takes to transmit the liturgy of Advent, asking a qualitative leap forward in how we manage time. With the liturgical season of Advent is not in fact wait for something, but actually "Someone".
We are asked, however, an extra attention. If the expectation of something is always a bit 'calculated, certainly can not calculate and functionalize anyone. We can simplify and reduce the wait for Christmas, of the Child Jesus. So often sold and translated into an old, bearded Santa Claus. But it can not be trivialized the expectation of the One who comes to visit, just like first of all like him. On him, in fact, it focused attention.
This is crucial to realize that God is above all that is. Even before we go to Him volontaristicamnte If we decide to positively welcome this perspective, then He who is our God, is not accepted as it decides to grant, but just as he himself has decided to meet us and decide yet.
So, this might be the question, the more simple and correct, that comes from experience liturgic Advent comes to us as God, according to the Gospel to be proclaimed Paorla this Sunday?
Meanwhile, according to Sunday's Gospel Next, Jesus comes to us with an image that more Easter Christmas. A Gospel of this kind we would see better placed to Easter than Christmas. But it is clear that the liturgy already wants to tell you that the Lord who comes, who comes to visit, is not simply a man, but it is already the one who gives His life for us, going through tough and painful experience of your death on the cross. Entering
then in the Gospel, we realize that Jesus comes to us by sending, as were his outposts, the messengers, "Jesus sent two disciples, saying: 'Go into the village opposite you'." This is the
typical mode of transmission of the apostolic mandate, as stated elsewhere: "Then he called his twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over unclean spirits" (Mark 6:7). But who is sent in this case as if it were definitely involved in his own mission: "'Go into the village opposite you: soon you will find an ass tied and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone tells you something, answer: The Lord needs it, but postpone them now '. Now this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: 'Say to the Daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh to you, humble, sitting on a donkey, a colt the foal of a beast of burden '. " While there is above all "an ass tied and a colt with her," but there is also a specific question: "Untie it and bring to me."
The condition in which humanity is enslaved to sin is first and foremost, but in fact he is about to melt from evil, and so include them all in His Kingdom. The image of Jesus who came to break up the power of sin and death might well be interpreted by referring to the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, when Jesus says, "Loose him and let him go" (Jn 11,44). In fact: "I tell you the truth that all things you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and all the things you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Mt18: 18). On behalf of His disciples is still quite a commitment to continue to attribute to him the whole of humanity, as they were asked: "bring them to me."
Continaundo, therefore, to dig into this image of royalty and its liberation of our God who comes to us, there would be room for other explanations. For example, the opportunity to object to his work of salvation: "If anyone tells you something, answer: The Lord needs it." If one hand the work of salvation is subjected to a 'need' from the heart of God, for another it also recorded an exquisite stretch of respect and attention from you, "but they send back immediately." Because "the Son of Man came to seek and save what was lost" (Luke 19:10).
Thus is fulfilled the prophecy of Zechariah: "Now this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: Say to the Daughter of Zion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, with a colt the foal of a beast of burden. " But it is crucial to realize that Jesus is to do His work in world does not come with the features of a powerful king and violent, but gentle and docile, just like the donkey and the colt who is already riding.
The experience of the cross where Jesus is now venturing may not even be understood by those whom he intends to save. But at least Jesus to His calls for the full expectations of love, inviting them to do, repeating, as he himself has done. It is not denied the value of an intelligent understanding, but for His disciples to acquire a meaning pass through the obedience of one who, by loving, understands.
The picture is clear: "What brought the donkey and the colt, they put on them their cloaks and he sat down. " In fact, just "this is Jesus, King of the Jews" (Mt 27.37). On the one hand, the cross on which Jesus goes is that the donkey with his colt, which is that very humanity that his disciples brought him, for another, adding their clothing is all that one can possess in their poverty. Why a coat is still a long dress, bed, blanket and even a house.
And so, between Kings Cross and this crowd and creates a unique relationship, one might say, wrapping, "the crowd that went before and what was behind," that even grida a piena voce e con forza la sua intuizione più profonda: “Osanna al figlio di Davide! Benedetto colui che viene nel nome del Signore!”. Un canto che tanto assomiglia all’invocazione gridata dei due ciechi di Gerico: “Signore, abbi pietà di noi, Figlio di Davide” (Mt 20,30).
L’eucaristia domenicale è lo spazio reale nel quale ci è dato di continuare ad accogliere Colui che continuamente ci viene a visitare. Con la Sua parola, che diventa per noi pane spezzato e sangue versato per amore.
Proprio così Gesù contina a venire, continua a visitarci, ripetendoci che questo è il Suo e-vangelo.
Dunque: il Signore viene! Maràn athà: vieni Signore Jesus!
Come, come always, is still among us. Good Sunday to all.
0 comments:
Post a Comment