Vatican City, 1 March 2015 (VIS) - “On
this second Sunday of Lent, the Church shows us the ultimate goal of
this itinerary of conversion, or rather, participation in the glory
of Christ”, said the Pope before this Sunday's Angelus prayer upon
returning from the week of spiritual exercises. He also recalled that
last Sunday's Gospel passage presented Jesus resisting Satan's
temptations in the desert.
“Today's Gospel tells us of the event
of the Transfiguration, which takes place at the culmination of
Jesus' public ministry. He is on the path to Jerusalem, where the
prophecies of the Servant of God will be fulfilled and His redemptive
sacrifice will be consummated”. Francis remarked that neither the
multitude nor the apostles understood that the outcome of Jesus'
mission of suffering would be His glorious passion, and so He decided
to show a glimpse of His glory to the apostles Peter, James and John,
to confirm them in their faith and to encourage them to follow him on
the path of trial, on the way of the Cross. “From the heavens, they
heard the voice of the Father: 'This is my beloved Son; hear him'”.
The Pope explained that listening to
Christ involves assuming the logic of his Paschal mystery, placing
ourselves on the path with Him in order to make of our existence a
gift of love for others, in docile obedience to the will of God the
Father, with an attitude of detachment from worldly things and of
inner freedom. “It means, in other words, being ready to 'lose
one's life', to sacrifice it so that all men might be saved; in this
way we find eternal joy. There will always be a cross to bear and
there will be trials along the way, but in the end it will always
lead us to happiness”. Finally, the Pope encouraged those present
to let themselves be transfigured by love, which is capable of
transforming everyone, and to invoke the Virgin Mary to support us on
our way.
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