Saint Simon and Saint Jude 28th October
“Jesus summoned his disciples and picked out twelve of them ; he called them ’apostles’ : Simon whom he called Peter, and hid brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Batholomew, Matthew,Thomas, James,son of Alphaeus, Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor.”
In the choice of the Twelve Apostles, Luke underlines the nightly preparation of the prepartory prayer of Jesus : ’In those days, Jesus went off into the mountains to pray and spent the whole night praying God.’ Examining how Jesus prays brings to birth a question within us : and how do I pray? how much time do I consacrate to my relationship with God? The fathers of the Church have always talked about the importance of reading and praying the Word of God. It is an art to listen, to meditate and to observe silence before the Lord who speaks to us. This can be learned when we practice it constantly. On this Feast day of Saint Simona nd St Jude, we celebrate our belonging to the Church, to God’s Family. Now the Church forms a body in the continuation of this Mystery. In her yes it gives us a light to welcome Jesus. God’s Infinite Love is made incarnate in the Church and we are immersed in the the Passion and Resurrction of Christ. This is how from now on he will manifest the Infinite Love of God his Father. Our birth to divine life, through baptism, roots us in the Blessed Trinity. The priest said over us : ’I baptise you in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.“It is in the blessed Trinity that we are immersed, out of the Blessed Trinity Jesus’ Incarnation burst forth, it is the coming in the flesh of the Son of God.”Jesus then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples, with a great part of people from all parts of Judaea and Jerusalem and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon."
Jesus’ experience of prayer is examplary.It was animated by God’s paternity and by the communion in the Holy Spirit. His prayer deepened thanks to a
prolonged and faithful exercise, and went even as far as the Garden of Getsemanie and the Cross. Chrisetians of today are called to be witnesses of prayer, precisely because of the fact that our world is often closed up to the divine horizon and to the hope that leads to our, encountering God. In the deep friendship with Jesus, and in living in Him and with Him the filial relationship with the Father, plus through our own faithful and constant prayer, we can open the windows to God’s Heaven. It is even by going through the way of prayer without any human consideration that we can help others to go through it : for Christian prayer, too, it is true that in travelling that these paths open up. It is the beginning of the Church of Jesus, ’The one sent from the Father’ gives to each of us the name of ’the one who is sent.’ The Church wil form a body out of these first Apostles. Jesus said ’Whoever sees me sees the Father.’ From now on, whoever sees me sees ’Jesus’ the beloved Son of the Father. In order that the the work of God’s love in humanity is pursued, the same response of Love in the Holy Spirit is always asked for. Whoever sees us should see the shining forth of God’s Love in all those who have recieved his Love.
“They had come to hear him and be cured of their diseases. People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured, and evryone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all.”
Jude said to Jesus: How is it, Lord, that you must manifest yourself to us and not to the world?’ Jesus replied ’If anyone loves me, he will keep my Word and my Father will love Him, and we will come to Him and make our dwelling place within him.’
We allow ourselves to be educated in an intense relationship with God in a prayer-life that isn’t just occasional, but one which is constant and filled with confidence, capable of enlightening our life as Jesus teaches us. We ask Him to be able to comunicate it to the people who are close to us, to those whom we meet on our way, this joy of the encounter with the Lord Jesus, a Light for our existence. Prayer is for sure a gift, one which nevertheless requires to be welcomed ; it is the work of God, but it requires commitment and continuity from us ; it is especially the continuity and constance that are important. In his prayer, Jesus recieves from the Father those whom he draws to Himself. The Mystery of the Holy Spirit acts in humanity. It is the Mystery of God dwelling within each one of us and within the community that we form. The Apostles are bearers of the great Mystery of the Eucharist, thus the Gift of
God is offered to humanity. This is how the Paschal mystery of the Lord is celebrated in the silence of Love, until his Return.