Bilancio di un quinquennio e prospettive future

L’articolo che segue è apparso, in francese, sull’ultimo numero della rivista Catholica (n. 139, Primavera 2018, pp. 39-48), diretta da Bernard Dumont (www.catholica.fr). Riportiamo qui il testo originale italiano (scritto nel mese di marzo).

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Il 13 marzo 2018 ricorre il quinto anniversario dell’elezione al soglio pontificio di Jorge Mario Bergoglio. È forse giunto il momento di fare un bilancio del quinquennio trascorso e tentare di prevedere, in base all’attuale situazione, i possibili scenari futuri.

«Sanctificati in veritate»

This Sunday falls between the Ascension and Pentecost. By now Jesus has left his disciples and has come back to the Father; before ascending to heaven, he has told them to wait for the promise of the Father, that is to say, the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Acts of the Apostles tells us what the Eleven did after the ascension of Jesus: they remained in Jerusalem, namely in the upper room where Jesus had eaten the last supper with them. They were not alone; there was with them Mary, the mother of Jesus, and many others; they prayed together waiting for the fulfillment of the promise. Today’s first reading informs us of another activity the apostles did during those days. After Judas’ betrayal and suicide, there were only eleven apostles left; but Jesus had chosen twelve apostles, the same number as the twelve tribes of Israel; so there was need for someone to replace Judas. What were the requirements? “One of the men who accompanied us the whole time the Lord Jesus came and went among us, beginning from the baptism of John until the day on which he was taken up from us.” So, there was need of someone who had been with Jesus before and after his death. The apostles are to be witnesses of Jesus; they have to report what they saw and heard; more specifically, they are to be witnesses to his resurrection. We have heard how Judas’ successor was chosen: the apostles limit themselves to propose two names and ask God to show them which one he has chosen.

Paolo VI e la “riforma della riforma”

Il 19 aprile scorso Sandro Magister ha pubblicato sul blog Settimo Cielo una recensione del libro Paolo VI. Una storia minima, curato da Mons. Leonardo Sapienza (Edizioni Viverein, Monopoli, 2018), nel quale il Curatore, sulla base dei Diari del Cardinale Virgilio Noè, offre uno spaccato del Paolo VI “segreto”. Essendo stato il Card. Noè per molti anni (1970-1982) Maestro delle cerimonie pontificie, gran parte delle note riguardano questioni liturgiche. 

«Domino cooperante et sermonem confirmante»

In the whole New Testament it is said that Christ is now seated at the right hand of the Father. However, only some books of the New Testament openly speak of the ascension of Jesus into heaven. The place where this event is described with plenty of details is the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles, as we have heard in the first reading, where Jesus, before being lifted up, confirms the promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit, who will make the disciples witnesses to the ends of the earth. 

«Manete in dilectione mea»

Today’s gospel is the continuation of that of last Sunday. It is the second part of chapter 15 of John. Jesus has compared himself to a vine and his disciples to the branches of this vine, inviting them to remain in him, in order for them to bear fruit. Now Jesus stresses this point, saying, “Remain in my love” (Manete in dilectione mea). This passage is so inspiring that it would deserve a reflection on each verse. I leave it to your personal meditation.

Volare alto

Che la polemica contro lo gnosticismo e il pelagianesimo fosse uno dei cavalli di battaglia di Papa Francesco, lo sapevamo da tempo. Ne aveva già parlato nel documento programmatico del suo pontificato, l’esortazione apostolica Evangelii gaudium (n. 94), ed era tornato sull’argomento nel discorso pronunciato a Firenze il 10 novembre 2015, nell’ambito del V convegno nazionale della Chiesa italiana (qui). Senza contare le innumerevoli stoccate lanciate soprattutto contro i “nuovi pelagiani” durante le omelie mattutine in Santa Marta. 

A petra Petrus

Sono un po’ di anni che si parla di un “ripensamento” del papato. Giovanni Paolo II, nel 1995, auspicava che si potesse trovare «una forma di esercizio del primato che, pur non rinunciando in nessun modo all’essenziale della sua missione, si apra ad una situazione nuova» (enciclica Ut unum sint, n. 95). Papa Francesco, nell’esortazione apostolica Evangelii gaudium (2013), ha parlato di una vera e propria “conversione del papato” (n. 32). Ai nostri giorni sono sorprendentemente soprattutto i tradizionalisti a interrogarsi sui limiti dell’autorità pontificia. Penso che qualsiasi riflessione su un problema tanto delicato non possa che prendere le mosse dalla tradizione dei Padri, che conserva un carattere normativo per la Chiesa di tutti i tempi. 

«Sine me nihil potestis facere»

Last week, we were saying that Jesus often used images in his preaching. In the synoptic gospels, he usually resorts to parables, which are stories, to speak of the kingdom of God. In the gospel of John, instead, we do not find parables, but simple metaphors, that is to say, images that Jesus applies to himself, to illustrate some aspects of his own mystery. Last Sunday, Jesus compared himself with the good shepherd; but he had already likened himself to bread and light. In the speech delivered during the last supper, he identifies himself with the way, the truth and the life. 

“Se il chicco di grano...”

L’altro giorno stavo preparando un post su Sua Maestà (la Regina Elisabetta), i parrucconi di Sua Maestà (i giudici inglesi), i boia di Sua Maestà (i medici dell’Alder Hey Hospital) e i cappellani di Sua Maestà (l’episcopato d’Inghilterra e del Galles), quando è arrivato l’appello di Thomas Evans a sospendere qualsiasi tipo di intervento che non fosse la preghiera. E cosí quel post è rimasto incompiuto, e forse è stato bene cosí. Arrivati a questo punto, non conviene piú occuparsi di Sua Maestà e della sua Corte. Meglio lasciarli al loro destino, dal momento che l’ira di Dio incombe su di loro (Gv 3:36). E su tutti noi. 

Lapis et pastor

The Bible is not a philosophy handbook nor a theological treatise and neither is a catechism. As a rule, we do not find in it precise and abstract definitions, but stories, poems and parables. Since it deals with the mystery of God, in order to speak of him, it generally resorts to images that depict some of his aspects, without claiming to exhaust his mystery, which is infinite. Even the New Testament often uses images to speak of Jesus, although he was a man, but—let us not forget it—a man bearer of a mystery. Jesus himself employed parables to illustrate the mystery of the kingdom of God, and made recourse to metaphors to speak of himself. We find two of these images in today’s liturgy. 

Una vicenda che spiazza

La vicenda di Alfie Evans, che sta giustamente attirando la nostra attenzione in questi giorni, mi ha fatto fare alcune brevi riflessioni, che vi propongo cosí come mi sono venute in mente, senza alcuna pretesa di completezza e sistematicità. E scusandomi per l’eventuale confusione.

“Noi amiamo perché egli ci ha amati per primo”

Il lezionario biblico-patristico a ciclo biennale curato dall’Unione monastica italiana per la liturgia (L’Ora dell’Ascolto, Piemme-Edizioni del Deserto, Casale Monferrato, 1989) riporta, come seconda lettura dell’Officium lectionis odierno, un bel testo di Sant’Agostino tratto da uno dei suoi discorsi sull’Antico Testamento (Sermo 34: PL 38, 209-213; CCL 41, 424-427). Nella Liturgia delle ore tale lettura verrà utilizzata martedí prossimo. Si tratta di una riflessione sul Salmo 149: Cantate Domino canticum novum. Una riflessione particolarmente adatta per il tempo pasquale, durante il quale tutto parla di novità: uomo nuovo, canto nuovo, testamento nuovo.

«Paenitemini igitur et convertimini»

The appearance of the risen Lord narrated in today’s gospel is the same as the first of the two we found in last Sunday’s gospel, namely the appearance to the disciples on the evening of the very day of his resurrection. The disciples were gathered together in the place where Jesus had eaten the last supper with them, and Jesus revealed himself to them, after appearing to two of them who were going back to their village, Emmaus. After recognizing the Lord in the breaking of the bread, these two had returned to Jerusalem to inform the apostles and, while they were recounting their experience, Jesus appeared again to all of them. 

«Esiste uno sviluppo della dottrina»

Nei giorni scorsi Sandro Magister ha pubblicato sul suo blog Settimo Cielo un post in cui evidenziava come Papa Francesco usi tre diverse modalità di comunicazione:

— dicendo lui in pubblico ciò che vuole, senza passare da nessun controllo o verifica preliminare;
— facendo sí che altri dicano in pubblico ciò che lui dice loro in colloqui privati;
— raccomandando l’ascolto di persone che dicono ciò che lui stesso non dice né in pubblico né in privato, ma gli piace che sia detto.

«Qui venit per aquam et sanguinem»

Christianity is a complex religion: there are different aspects to be considered. It is not like human ideologies, where there is only one idea, and everything revolves around it; Christianity has to keep together requirements often at odds with each other. For instance, what is more important, faith or love? There are some who stress the first virtue; others, the second one. Nowadays there is even a tendency in the Church to downplay faith—which would be divisive—and emphasize almost exclusively love for the neighbor, because this would be—and actually it is—the greatest commandment in the law. Of course, there is no contradiction between the constituents of Christianity, and it would be wrong to oppose them as if they were mutually exclusive. On the contrary, it is of the greatest importance to keep them together. Today’s liturgy can help us to do it.

«Praecucurrit citius Petro»

Running is what strikes more in today’s gospel. Mary Magdalene ran, full of anguish, since she had found the tomb open and empty. Her first thought—her only thought—was that someone might have taken away the body of Jesus. Where was he now? So she ran and went to the apostles—Peter and John—to inform them of the incident. She did not tell them what she had seen—the empty tomb—but her interpretation of what she had seen—the only interpretation, in her opinion, plausible: “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.”

«Non est hic»

“He is not here” (Non est hic), the young man found in the tomb said to the women, who had gone there to anoint the body of Jesus, since his burial had been rushed through because of the sabbath. 

«Videbunt in quem transfixerunt»

Christians, over the centuries, have meditated on the passion of Christ. Usually, their attention has been focused on the different moments before his death. Suffice it to think of the Way of the Cross or of the sorrowful mysteries of the Holy Rosary. It would seem that everything ended with Jesus’ death, and everything resumed with his resurrection, as if between death and resurrection there was nothing. We know, instead, from the Creed that between the death and the resurrection of Jesus there are other two mysteries—his burial and his descent into hell. Just to say that between death and resurrection there is no vacuum. Burial and descent into hell are the mysteries on which Christians are invited to meditate on Holy Saturday.

«Est Pascha Domini!»

Not always do the gospels agree with each other; sometimes we find some discrepancies among them. One of most controversial cases is the question about the last supper of Jesus with his disciples: was it a Passover meal, like that described in today’s first reading?

Sacerdos alter Christus

During the Chrism Mass a proper preface is used, which illustrates the mystery we are celebrating: “The priesthood of Christ and the ministry of priests.” It is a newly composed preface, maybe the longest one in the Roman Missal, full of theology and spirituality. It is subdivided into four sections.