St. Anthony of Padua, priest and doctor of the Church
José Alberto Rincón, L.C.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ, our King, Thy Kingdom come!
Preparatory prayer (to put me in the presence of God)
Lord, may I live facing You, with joy and simplicity.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew 5, 33-37
At that time Jesus said to his disciples, ‘You have heard that it was said to those of old: Thou shalt not swear falsely, and thou shalt perform unto the Lord what thou hast promised him with an oath.. But I say to you, do not swear by any means, neither by heaven, which is the throne of God, nor by the earth, for that is where he sets his feet, nor by Jerusalem, which is the city of the great King.
Do not swear by your head either, for you cannot make a single hair black or white. Say simply yes, when it is yes; and no, when it is no. What is said in excess, comes from the evil one. Whatever more is said, comes from the evil one.’
Word of the Lord.
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
‘You have heard...but I say to you,’" Jesus said. What is Jesus doing here? Has He not said that He is not coming to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it? Yes, that's right. To fulfill means to bring to fullness. And the fullness of the Law is love. That is the change that Jesus operates: from love for the Law, to the Law of love.
That is why it makes no sense to swear in any way. Whoever swears, seeks to commit himself by putting someone else as a witness. To swear is to use an object or a person as a guarantee. That is not love. He who loves, should not worry about swearing, because he commits himself, not out of obligation but with the freedom that comes precisely from living in that love. To swear is to want to fulfill something out of duty; to serve is to want to fulfill someone out of love. Do we see the difference?
But there is more! St. Augustine already said: love and do what you will. This is not a license to act intemperately, justifying ourselves in what we call love. No. Rather, it means that in the heart in which love reigns, every action becomes a consequence of that love and, therefore, cannot err. The one who loves is free enough to recognize the limits of his love, the imperfection that characterizes it.
From here the last verses follow. Loving makes us free. Freedom allows us to move with simplicity. And that simplicity generates in our lives the coherence that leads us to love more. It is a virtuous circle. Lead yourself with simplicity, in the freedom of a true child of God, and each day you will love more completely. But how hard it is for us to accept this simplicity! Let us ask for this grace, for only then will we stop paying attention to what we have heard and listen to what Jesus is telling us now.
«This also means to be free before the public: to speak in the evangelical style: “yes, yes”, “no, no”, because the rest comes from the evil one (cf. Mt 5,37). Communication needs real words in the midst of so many empty words. And in this you have a great responsibility: your words tell the story of the world and shape it, your stories can generate spaces of freedom or slavery, of responsibility or dependence on power.»
(Address H.H. Francis, September 23, 2019)
Dialogue with Christ
This is the most important part of your prayer, prepare yourself to talk with much love with the One who loves you.
Purpose
Propose a personal one. The one that involves the most love in response to the Beloved... or, if you believe that this is what God is asking of you, live what is suggested below.
When a situation exceeds my strength today, instead of despairing or complicating my life, I will try to live it from the point of view of love with simplicity, thanking God for the opportunity to serve Him and love Him more.
Farewell
We thank You, Lord, for all Your benefits, You who live and reign forever and ever.
Amen.
Christ, our King!
Thy Kingdom come!
Most prudent Virgin, Mary, Mother of the Church.
Pray for us.
In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
