Question of questions: " Art thou he that should come or look we for another? "We are now in the middle of the short path that leads us to the rediscovery of our Christmas, the real one, that personal, intimate, because - as we have already said - we can celebrate one hundred native born without God than ever in our hearts. Also this Sunday, brothers and sisters, let us take, let rip from swirl of our daily lives, to live as Mary and listening, to recognize the many prophets who are around us and show us the Christ.
Today's Word makes us see a very different John exaltation and grumpy screamer last week: he is in prison and knows he is about to be executed because of the dull anger of angry and hysterical courtesan who controls the weakness of a king puppet. John has lived his entire life as a preacher uncomfortable and irritating just to prepare the way for the Messiah, and he finally acknowledged, the Messiah, hidden among the crowd of penitents who came to be baptized, welcomed him, amazed and confused at heart his attitude to the hidden and humble the Savior of the world.
But now is perplexed, John, is doubtful. The news came to him from his disciples leave him dismayed: the Messiah is not following in his footsteps, vehemently does not incite the people, not revolutionary and catastrophic, but has assumed a low profile, mediocre. He (remember?) Threatened the vengeance of God, the consuming fire. Jesus, however, offers an unconditional forgiveness, puts the blame, not threat or implementing revenge, says that it wants to turn that fire, sure, but from the love, not fear.
is too different from this Messiah Messiah awaited by John and Israel, too different.
Out of the God who would also like us, that I too, because it displaces God always, always radically different from what we imagine. Even people who, like John, the radical nature of living faith, are likely to build a God in his own image and likeness. The coming of God that John expects is coming a clear break in history with a deafening roar of angels and triumphant. But Jesus reveals the face of a God reserved, almost hidden, it is clear, yes, but not trivial, full of all tenderness and sensitivity.
We, like John, we are used to divide the world into good and bad, the good (we often do!) To be saved and the evil to be punished, to set a bit 'sixth in the apparent imbalance of this world that rewards the righteous arrogant and sticks.
Jesus instead displaces us, revealing that God divides the world into those who love, or looking for love, or at least let himself be loved, and who's not. And love is a great opportunity, the only thing that binds us all. Not the results, not efforts, no good deeds save us, but the will to love in the fragility of what we are or want to be.
We are confident of God? Let us pick up the Gospel and we ask in prayer to God to lead us in the authenticity, always. We are full of doubts? Even the greatest of men, the last of the Prophets, was assailed by doubts. "Go and tell John what you hear and see ..." replied Jesus the disciples of John the Baptist, sent to inquire as to his identity, of course, not 'an explicit response. They have to draw her own. Faith is not clear, God is not the result of scientific reasoning, no "evidence" in faith, with all due respect to those skeptics, funny guys that claim to find their soul in the X-rays! There are clues offered only weak evidence that leave intact the ambiguity of the sign. It is God who must prove something, it's me and realize that I have to change. Jesus lists the messianic signs prophesied by Isaiah and told his cousin: "Look around you, John."
And we, brethren, look around and recognize the signs of God's presence: how many friends they have met God, desperate people who converted his own heart, scarred by the pain that people have learned to forgive, brothers blinded by envy or greed that have grown wings and they have become good and joy and love everyday, crucified , won! Look, John, look brothers, the signs of victory in the silent coming of the Messiah! Signs that certainly we have seen in our lifetime. We certainly have seen at least once, the disruptive power of the Gospel, to see people around us change, heal, discover God, to see into the folds of our corrupt world and restless gestures of total gratuity, lives consumed in the gift and hope, glimpses of fraternity in hell of loneliness and selfishness. Yes, brothers, we could also see the many signs of the Kingdom. But many, too many still do not see them, do not realize it, we do not want to see, because the main problem of our time is its interior a myopia that prevents you to enjoy the hidden and subtle presence of God
Preparing for Christmas means then convert the look, to see the many distracted, and of course ourselves, that the United forward, is that all, we ourselves, we can make this. We learn to recognize all the signs of God's presence, we raise our eyes from the pain of realizing that salvation is realized in our stifled city.
In this handful of days before Christmas, we too become a sign of hope for the many (too many, again and again) that they feel lonely at Christmas, and I really am! A few days to tell those who do not know if God exists (and there, and it is love!) And wonders if the Nazarene, after all, is not that a great drum, "God is, as it looks changed my life, I do not see how the pain has worn down, look at the beautiful falling snow, look how he smiles, happy, your child, see how much I love you ...». Behold, brethren, this is our perspective, in this world that only unresolved issues, assumptions weird, piercing questions, pervasive uncertainty. As individual believers, as well as Church, we must ask ourselves continually if we are the living answer to the deep and pressing questions of many people. Response, which in turn must offer solidarity attitude of listening, the message of hope ... Amen.
