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]

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