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Pope Francis talks about Service 07.04.20


Pope Francis: talks about Service  07.04.20



Pope Francis      07.4.20 Holy Mass Casa Santa Marta (Domus Sanctae Marthae)        Isaiah 49: 1-6
Tuesday of Holy Week - Lectionary Cycle II
Pope Francis talks about Service 07.04.20

The prophecy of Isaiah that we have heard is a prophecy about the Messiah, the Redeemer, but also a prophecy about the people of Israel, about the people of God: we can say that it may be a prophecy about each of us. In essence, the prophecy emphasizes that the Lord chose his servant from his mother's womb: twice it says this. (Is. 49:1). From the beginning his servant was chosen, from birth or before birth. The people of God were chosen before birth, even each of us. None of us fell into the world by chance. Everyone has a destiny, he has a free destiny, the destiny of the election of God. I am born with the destiny of being a child of God, of being a servant of God, with the task of serving, of building, of building. And this, from the mother's womb.

Yahweh's Servant, Jesus, served to the death: it seemed like defeat, but it was the way to serve. And this underscores the way we serve in our lives. To serve is to give to others. Serving is not pretending that we have any other benefit to give other than to serve. It is glory to serve; and the glory of Christ is to serve to the point of annihilating himself, to the death, death on the Cross .cf. Phil 2:8). Jesus is the servant of Israel. The people of God are a servant, and when God's people move away from this attitude of service, they are an apostate people: they move away from the vocation that God has given them. And when each of us distances ourselves from this vocation to serve, we move away from God's love. And we construct our lives on other loves, often idolatrous.

The Lord chose us from our mother's womb. There are, in life, falls: each of us is a sinner and can fall and has fallen. Only Our Lady and Jesus: all the others, we have fallen, we are sinners. But what matters is our behaviour before the God who chose us, who anointed me as a servant; and the attitude of a sinner who is able to ask for forgiveness, like Peter, who swears that "no, I will never deny you, Lord, never, never!" then, when the cock crows, he cries. He repents. (Mt. 26:75). This is the path of a servant: when he slips, when he falls, he asks for forgiveness.

Instead, when the servant is not able to understand that he has fallen, when passion takes hold of him in such a way that it leads him to idolatry, he opens his heart to Satan, the night enters: it is what happened to Judas (cf. Mt. 27: 3-10).

Let us think today of Jesus, the servant, faithful in service. His vocation was to serve, until death and death on the Cross (cf. Phil. 2:5-11). Let us think of each of us, part of God's people: we are servants, our vocation is to serve, not to take advantage of our place in the Church. Serve. Always on duty.
Let us ask for the grace to persevere in service. Sometimes with slips, falls, but the grace at least to weep as Peter cried.