Vatican City, 1 February 2015 (VIS) –
At midday, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study to pray
the Angelus with the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, and to
reflect on the readings in today's liturgy.
This Sunday's Gospel passage narrates
Jesus' arrival with his disciples in the city of Capernaum, the
birthplace of St. Peter and the largest city in Galilee at the time.
St. Mark writes that, since it was the Sabbath, Jesus went
immediately to the synagogue and began to teach. “This makes us
think of the primacy of the Word of God, a word to listen to, receive
and announce”, explained the Holy Father. Upon his arrival in
Capernaum, Jesus does not delay in proclaiming the Gospel: “He does
not think first of the logistical arrangements, certainly necessary,
for his little community; nor does He take his time over
organisation. His main concern is communicating the Word of God with
the strength of the Holy Spirit. And the people in the synagogue are
impressed, because Jesus 'taught them as one having authority and not
as the scribes'”.
“What does 'with authority' mean?”,
asked the Pope, before explaining that in human words, Jesus felt
“all the strength of the Word of God, He felt the same authority of
God Himself, the inspirer of the Holy Scriptures. And one of the
characteristics of the Word of God is that it accomplishes what it
says”. Indeed Jesus, after preaching, immediately demonstrates His
authority by freeing a man, present in the synagogue, from possession
by a demon. “It was Christ's authority that had provoked the
reaction of Satan, hidden in that man. In turn, Jesus immediately
recognised the voice of the devil and, severely rebuking him,
ordered: 'Quiet! Come out of him!'. With the strength of his word
alone, Jesus freed the person from evil. And again those present were
astounded. 'He commands even the unclean spirits and they obey Him'.
The Word of God creates this wonder in us. It possesses the strength
to astonish us”.
“The Gospel is the word of life: it
does not oppress people, but on the contrary, frees those who are
enslaved by the many evil spirits of this world: the spirit of
vanity, attachment to money, pride, sensuality; the Gospel changes
hearts, changes lives, transforms the inclination to evil into good
resolutions. The Gospel is capable of changing people. Therefore, it
is the duty of Christians to spread this redeeming power everywhere,
becoming missionaries and heralds of the Word of God. … The new
doctrine that Jesus taught with authority is that which the Church
brings to the world, along with the effective signs of His presence:
authoritative teaching and the liberating action of the Son of God
become the words of salvation and the gestures of love of the
missionary Church”.
Pope Francis concluded by reminding
those present that the Gospel has the strength to change life. “It
is the Good News that transforms us only when we let ourselves be
transformed by it. This is why I ask you always to make daily contact
with the Gospel; to read a passage every day, to meditate upon it and
to carry it everywhere with you, in your pocket or in your bag. …
It is the power that changes us, that transforms us. It changes life,
and it changes the heart”.
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