OMELIE / Omelie EN

26/6/2016

20/08/2017 - 20ª domenica del T. O.  - anno A

20/08/2017 - 20ª domenica del T. O.  - anno A

1ª lett. Isaia 56,1.6-7  dal Salmo  66/67  2ª lett.  Romani 11,13-15.29-32  Vangelo  Matteo15,21-28

In the three Readings and in the Psalm we can find again a particular attention to the foreigner, to whom is not part of God’s people. This attention is not only driven to the material needs for their survival, but above all to their necessity to get to know the true God’s love, to get to true and lasting joy.

The consciousness of their identity of being the Chosen People has always been very strong among Hebrews, the only people belonging to God. This self-awareness is certainly important, desired by God Himself and full of good fruits, but only if the reasons for this election is still clear. If the people forgets or does not recognize the reasons for which it has been chosen, it risks to put on airs, to get the idea that it is superior to the other peoples, to judge them, to reject them and even to condemn them. That is how it becomes a treacherous people: it does not pursue its God’s plan, it does not fulfill the reason for its own existence!

Isaiah can see, like a vision of the future ahead, the foreigners, that is to say the pagans that do not know God, climb up to the Temple in Jerusalem and find their own joy in praising the true God: the Chosen People then has been chosen to clear the way for the other peoples, to welcome them and guide them in the divine service, it is the people precenting the prayer that fills and transforms everyone’s life, the people setting an example of obedience and faithfulness to the commitments of the allegiance stricken with the God of life! The Chosen People should not live thinking only of itself, about holding its privileges, about basking in the partiality of God; it should instead apply itself to reach a true sanctity, testimony and point of attraction for all the others, a look of affection for all the other peoples, that are destined to the same salvation! The joy of the Chosen People should be the one that comes from the feeling of being mean and way to salvation for all the peoples in the world, creatures still far from the adoration of the same and only God.

Isaiah’s vision has been fulfilled with the spreading of the Church! Jesus started a God’s people that lives the great desire to draw all the peoples to the same faithful obedience, to the same joy of communion, to the same prayer of praise of the Father, oriented towards the same center point, the Jesus Christ Himself!

In the Church gathered around Jesus, the pagans become children of God in the same way as the Hebrews! This is motive for joy for the apostle Paul. However, thinking about all this, he is now confiding us a great suffering of his. The Hebrews, the very Chosen People, his people, are struggling to welcome the person who is the reason for their own existence, Jesus Christ! Even worse, a big part of the Hebrews rejects the Savior of all, rejecting in this way its own salvation as well. It is going to be like this until they realize that they need the divine Mercy: then, full of humility, they will turn to whom can forgive and save them, then they will finally join their voices in the choir of all the voices singing the praises of the Lamb of God!

Saint Paul summarizes the history of salvation in a quite peculiar way: the pagans, disobedient to God, obtained mercy through Jesus’ death, Jesus who was rejected and killed by the Hebrews. The latter, became disobedient by rejecting Jesus, but they will be able to obtain mercy and salvation thanks to the example of an obedient and holy life set by the pagans now become Christians. Everybody must acknowledge that they need salvation in order to welcome the Savior, for without Him nobody can be saved! When somebody turns to Him with faith, He cannot do anything else but bring salvation!

The Gospel tells us about an exemplary event, all about salvation. The Canaanite woman, a pagan, insists and insists asking for Jesus’ intervention in her daughter’s pressing need. She actually realizes that nobody else can be of any use. The momentary hardness and refusal of Jesus provoke her to express in an even more truthful way and with growing humility her faith, that Jesus Himself calls “great”! Even if she is a pagan, she is able to show a “great” faith! Jesus, always concentrated on fulfilling His Father’s will, would like to see the faith of His people first, whom he thinks he was sent for. But the humble faith, humble and then “great”, urges Him to take action with His love to this pagan woman’s benefit!

And what about us? We will pay attention to remain humble, because even who we least expect could have a “great” faith in Jesus, even greater than ours! Do you really believe that your faith, if it is not “great”, could be of help for your children or your grandchildren? If your faith is not “great”, do you really think that your presence in the Church would be a gift for many rather than a burden for everybody? Let us show our “great” and humble faith in Jesus, in order for others – above all who is not Christian but also who is hesitant and unsure even being a Christian –, after seeing us, to be able to know how great is the Lord’s love and to put their faith completely in Him!