Here and Now with Francis 3/15/16 (problems, Jesus, suffering, trust, faith, meaning)


Think today about our life, about the problems we have, and ask for the grace to entrust ourselves to God’s hands ... The only thing that gives me some light — not to the mind, to the soul — is Jesus in Gethsemane: ‘Father, not this cup. But your will be done’.

From the homily
A homeless man who died of exposure in Rome, four sisters of Mother Teresa’s congregation killed in Yemen, the rising incidence of illness in “Terra dei Fuochi” — an area in southern Italy plagued with toxic waste — and refugees abandoned in the cold. These recent tragedies echoed in Francis’ prayers during Mass at Santa Marta on Monday, 14 March. [...] Thus, Jesus “entrusts himself to the Father’s will. [...] It is a true act of faith, “entrusting myself to God who walks with me, who walks with my people, who walks with the Church”. So perhaps “I entrust myself” by saying: “I don’t know why this happens, but I entrust myself: You will know why”. And “this is what Jesus taught: those who entrust themselves to the Lord who is shepherd want for nothing. Even should they walk through a dark valley, they know that evil is a temporary evil, but there will be no definitive evil because of the Lord, ‘for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me’. This, the Pope clarified, “is a grace. We have to ask for it: ‘Lord, teach me to entrust myself to your hands, to entrust myself to your guidance, even in brutal moments, in dark times, at the moment of death, I entrust myself to you for you never disappoint, you are faithful”. [...] The words “Lord, I don’t understand”, the Pope said, are “a beautiful prayer”. Thus, even “without understanding, I entrust myself to your hands”. [link]

Popular posts from this blog

Front Matter (Preface) The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

Front Matter (preface) Lyrical and Critical Essays by Albert Camus

Front Matter (introduction) An Armenian Sketchbook by Vasily Grossman