When Peter went up to Jerusalem, the faithful reproached him (cf. Acts 11: 1-18). They reproached him for entering the house of uncircumcised men and of having eaten with them, with the pagans: they couldn't do that, it was a sin. The purity of the law did not allow this. But Peter had done it because it was the Spirit that brought him there. There is always in the Church – especially in the early Church, because it was not clear – this spirit of "we are the righteous, the others the sinners". This "us and them", "us and them", divisions: "We have the right position before God". Instead there are "the others", sometimes we say: "They are already the condemned" . And this is a disease of the Church, a disease that arises from ideologies or religious parties.

At the time of Jesus, there were at least four religious parties: the Pharisees party, the party of the Sadducees, the party of Zealots and the party of the Essenes, and each interpreted the law according to the "idea" that it had. And this idea is a school that is outside of the law when it's a way of thinking, of feeling worldly you make yourself an interpreter of the law. They also reproached Jesus for entering the house of the tax collectors – who were sinners, according to them – and for eating with them, with sinners, because the purity of the law did not allow it; and he didn't wash his hands before lunch. There is always this reproach that makes division: this is important, and I would like to emphasize it.

There are ideas, positions that divide, to the point that division is more important than unity. My idea is more important than the Holy Spirit who guides us. There is an "emeritus" cardinal who lives here in the Vatican, a good pastor, and he said to his faithful: "But the Church is like a river, you know? Some are more on this side, some on the other side, but the important thing is that everyone is inside the river." This is the unity of the Church. No one outside, everyone inside. Then, with the peculiarities: this does not divide, it is not ideology, it is lawful. But why does the Church have this breadth of river? It's because the Lord wants it that way.

The Lord, in the Gospel, tells us: "I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also must I lead, and they will hear my voice and there will be one flock, one shepherd" (John 10:16). The Lord says, "I have sheep everywhere, and I am everyone's shepherd." This "everyone" in Jesus is very important. Let us think of the parable of the wedding feast (cf. Mt 22: 1-10), when the guests did not want to go there: one because he had bought a field, one had married; everyone gave their reason not to go. And the master became angry and said, "Go to the crossroads and bring everyone to the feast" (v. 9). All of them. Big and small, rich and poor, good and bad. Everyone. This "everyone" is a bit of the vision of the Lord who came for everyone and died for everyone. "But did he also die for that wretched person who made my life impossible?" He died for him, too. "And for that robber?": he died for him. For everyone. And also for people who do not believe in him or are of other religions: he died for everyone. That doesn't mean you have to proselytize: no. But he died for everyone, he justified everyone.

Here in Rome there is a lady, a good woman, a teacher, Professor Mara, who when there were difficulties with various things, among different parties, said: "But Christ is dead for everyone: let's just go ahead with it!". That constructive ability. We have only one Redeemer, one unity: Christ died for everyone. Instead the temptation ... Paul also suffered: "I am from Paul, I am from Apollo, I am of this, I am of the other ...". And let us think of us, fifty years ago, after the Council: the divisions that the Church suffered. "I am on this side, I think so, you do ...". Yes, it is permissible to think so, but in the unity of the Church, under Jesus the Shepherd.

Two things. The reproach of the faithful to Peter because he had entered the house of the pagans and Jesus who says: "I am the shepherd of all". I'm everyone's shepherd. And who says: "I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also must I lead, and they will hear my voice and there will be one flock" (cf. John 10:16). It is prayer for the unity of all men, because all men and women all have one Shepherd: Jesus.

May the Lord frees us from that psychology of division, from dividing, and help us to see this of Jesus, this great thing of Jesus, that in him we are all brothers and sisters and he is the Shepherd of everyone. That word, today: "Everyone, everyone!", to accompany us throughout the day.

04.05.20

Jesus leaves the quiet and hidden life of Nazareth and moves to Capernaum, a port city located along the Sea of Galilee, at the crossroads of different peoples and cultures. The urgency that impels him is the proclamation of the Word of God, which must be brought to everyone. Indeed, we see in the Gospel that the Lord invites all to conversion and calls the first disciples so that they may also spread the light of the Word to others (cf. Mt 4:12-23). Let us appreciate this dynamism, which will help us live out the Sunday of the Word of God: the Word is for everyone, the Word calls everyone to conversion, the Word makes us heralds.

The Word of God is for everyone. The Gospel presents us with Jesus always on the move, on his way to others. On no occasion in his public life does he give us the idea that he is a stationary teacher, a professor seated on a chair; on the contrary, we see him as an itinerant, we see him as a pilgrim, travelling through towns and villages, encountering faces and their stories. His feet are those of the messenger announcing the good news of God’s love (cf. Is 52:7-8). In Galilee of the Gentiles, on the sea route, beyond the Jordan, where Jesus preaches, there was – the text notes – a people plunged into darkness: foreigners, pagans, women and men from various regions and cultures (cf. Mt 4:15-16). Now they too can see the light. And so Jesus “enlarges the boundaries”: the Word of God, which heals and raises up, is not only destined for the righteous of Israel, but for all; he wants to reach those far away, he wants to heal the sick, he wants to save sinners, he wants to gather the lost sheep and lift up those whose hearts are weary and oppressed. In short, Jesus ‘reaches out’ to tell us that God’s mercy is for everyone. Let us not forget this: God’s mercy is for everyone, for each one of us. Each person can say, “God’s mercy is for me”.

This aspect is fundamental also for us. It reminds us that the Word is a gift addressed to everyone; therefore we can never restrict its field of action, for beyond all our calculations, it springs forth in a spontaneous, unforeseen and unpredictable way (cf. Mk 4:26-28), in the ways and times that the Holy Spirit knows. Moreover, if salvation is destined for all, even the most distant and lost, then the proclamation of the Word must become the main priority of the ecclesial community, as it was for Jesus. May it not happen that we profess a God with an expansive heart, yet become a Church with a closed heart – this, I dare say, would be a curse; may it not happen that we preach salvation for all, yet make the way to receive it impractical; may it not happen that we recognize we are called to proclaim the Kingdom, yet neglect the Word, losing ourselves in so many secondary activities or discussions. Let us learn from Jesus to put the Word at the centre, to enlarge our boundaries, to open ourselves up to people, and to foster experiences of encounter with the Lord, realizing that the Word of God “is not encased in abstract or static formulas, but has a dynamic power in history which is made up of persons and events, words and actions, developments and tensions”. [1]

Let us now come to the second aspect: the Word of God, which is addressed to all, calls everyone to conversion. In fact, Jesus repeats in his preaching: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mt 4:17). This means that God’s nearness is not inconsequential, his presence does not leave things as they are, it does not advocate a quiet life. On the contrary, his Word shakes us, disturbs us, incites us to change, to conversion. It throws us into crisis because it “is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb 4:12). Like a sword, the Word penetrates life, enabling us to discern the feelings and thoughts of the heart, that is, making us see where the light of goodness is to be afforded room and where, instead, the thick darkness of vices and sins is to be resisted. When it enters us, the Word transforms our hearts and minds; it changes us and leads us to direct our lives to the Lord.

Here is Jesus’ invitation: God has come close to you; recognize his presence, make room for his Word, and you will change your outlook on life. I can also put it like this: place your life under the Word of God. This is the path the Church shows us. All of us, even the pastors of the Church, are under the authority of the Word of God. Not under our own tastes, tendencies and preferences, but under the one Word of God that moulds us, converts us and calls us to be united in the one Church of Christ. So, brothers and sisters, we can ask ourselves: Where does my life find direction, from where does it draw its orientation? From the many “words” I hear, from ideologies, or from the Word of God that guides and purifies me? What are the aspects in me that require change and conversion?

Finally – the third step – the Word of God, which is addressed to everyone and calls us to conversion, makes us heralds. Indeed, Jesus walks along the shore of the Sea of Galilee and calls Simon and Andrew, two brothers who were fishermen. With his Word he invites them to follow him, telling them that he will make them “fishers of men” (Mt. 4,19): no longer just experts in boats, nets and fish, but experts in seeking others. And just as in sailing and fishing they had learned to leave the shore and cast their nets into the deep, in the same way they would become apostles capable of sailing upon the open seas of the world, of going out to meet their brothers and sisters and proclaiming the joy of the Gospel. This is the dynamism of the Word: it draws us into the “net” of the Father’s love and makes us apostles moved by an unquenchable desire to bring all those we encounter into the barque of the Kingdom. This is not proselytism because it is the Word of God that calls us, not our own word.

Today let us also hear the invitation to be fishers of men: let us feel that we are called by Jesus in person to proclaim his Word, to bear witness to it in everyday life, to live it in justice and charity, called to “give it flesh” by tenderly caring for those who suffer. This is our mission: to become seekers of the lost, oppressed and discouraged, not to bring them ourselves, but the consolation of the Word, the disruptive proclamation of God that transforms life, to bring the joy of knowing that He is our Father and addresses each one of us, to bring the beauty of saying, “Brother, sister, God has come close to you, listen and you will find in his Word an amazing gift!”

Brothers and sisters, I would like to conclude by simply thanking those who work to make sure that the Word of God is shared, proclaimed and put at the centre of our lives. Thank you to those who study and delve into the riches of the Word. Thank you to the pastoral workers and to all Christians engaged in the work of listening to and spreading the Word, especially lectors and catechists. Today I will confer these ministries on some of you. Thank you to those who have accepted the many invitations I have made to take the Gospel with them everywhere and to read it every day. And finally, I especially thank our deacons and priests. Thank you dear brothers, for you do not let God’s holy people be deprived of the nourishment of the Word. Thank you for committing yourselves to meditating on it, living it and proclaiming it. Thank you for your service and your sacrifices. May the sweet joy of proclaiming the Word of salvation be a consolation and reward for all of us.

[1] The Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church, Instrumentum laboris for the XII Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, 2008, n. 10.

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