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)
Jesus, like Peter, I do not like, on many occasions, the road I must travel to aspire to holiness. That is why today, with great faith and hope, I seek you in prayer to beg you to grant me to perceive your feelings and to know your heart in depth. May you be the center of my prayer, and not so much my personal problems or difficulties.
Gospel of the day (to guide your meditation)
From the Holy Gospel according to St. Matthew 16:13-23
When Jesus arrived in the region of Caesarea Philippi, he put this question to his disciples, «Who do men say that the Son of man is?» They said, «Some, John the Baptist; others, Elijah; others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.» He said to them, «But who do you say that I am?» Simon Peter answered, «You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.» Jesus answered and said to him, «Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I in turn say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. To you I will give the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.» Then He commanded His disciples to tell no one that He was the Christ. From that time Jesus began to tell his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day rise again. Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, «Away with you, Lord, by no means will that happen to you!» But he turned and said to Peter, «Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, for your thoughts are not those of God, but those of men!
Word of the Lord
Meditate on what God tells you in the Gospel
You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. In these words, simple but profound, I have a summary of the message contained in the Gospel. «One does not begin to be a Christian by an ethical decision or a great idea, but by an encounter with an event, with a Person, who gives a new horizon to life and, with it, a decisive orientation» (Deus Caritas est, 1). Christ himself is the Good News that has entered my life. Knowing that I have a Savior gives a whole new perspective to everything I do, a «decisive orientation» of every action toward a God who lives in me.
How does one get to know Christ? Certainly, He is much more than what may appear in a book or what rumors say out there. Much more! There is a richness in Him that I can hardly imagine. To really know Him is, deep down, a gift from the Father, something that reaches to the depths of my soul and illumines my whole reality. I ask, then, in this prayer: Lord, teach me who Jesus is, who your Son is.
Knowing Christ is not a sudden, overnight phenomenon. Just as the sun rises at dawn, and little by little light and warmth flood everything, but there is still some darkness, so it is with discovering Christ. Peter already had an idea of Jesus, but shortly after his profession of faith I see that he did not grasp the whole message. His life was not fully conformed to the Lord.
And in the same way, my Christian life is more like a path where it is already dawning, but I still have to continue advancing in the knowledge of Christ. The fullness will come in heaven, and here on earth I hope to grow a little more each day. I ask God, this day, to make me discover Christ a little better; I will be docile so that He may illuminate a new space in my life today.
«The Lord Jesus repeats to each one of us his question: “Who do you say that I am? A clear and direct question, before which it is not possible to flee or remain neutral, nor to postpone the answer or delegate it to another. But there is nothing inquisitorial about it, indeed, it is full of love! The love of our only Master, who today calls us to renew our faith in Him, recognizing Him as Son of God and Lord of our life. And the first to be called to renew his profession of faith is the Successor of Peter, who has the responsibility of confirming the brethren”.
(Homily of H.H. Francis, February 22, 2016).
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.
To give up something that costs me a lot (like listening to music one day), and offer it to God for those people who have lost their faith.
Farewell
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.
