"And God saw that it was good" (Gen 1:12, 18, 21, 25). The biblical account of the beginning of the history of the world and of humanity speaks to us of a God who looks at creation, in a sense contemplating it, and declares: "It is good". This allows us to enter into God’s heart and precisely from within him, to receive his message. We can ask ourselves: what does this message mean? What does it say to me, to you, to all of us? 1. It says to us simply that this, our world, in the heart and mind of God, is the "house of harmony and peace", and that it is the space in which everyone is able to find their proper place and feel "at home", because it is "good". All of creation forms a harmonious and good unity, but above all humanity, made in the image and likeness of God, is one family, in which relationships are marked by a true fraternity not only in words: the other person is a brother or sister to love, and our relationship with God, who is love, fidelity and goodness, mirrors every human relationship and brings harmony to the whole of creation. God’s world is a world where everyone feels responsible for the other, for the good of the other. This evening, in reflection, fasting and prayer, each of us deep down should ask ourselves: Is this really the world that I desire? Is this really the world that we all carry in our hearts? Is the world that we want really a world of harmony and peace, in ourselves, in our relations with others, in families, in cities, in and between nations? And does not true freedom mean choosing ways in this world that lead to the good of all and are guided by love? 2. But then we wonder: Is this the world in which we are living? Creation retains its beauty which fills us with awe and it remains a good work. But there is also "violence, division, disagreement, war". This occurs when man, the summit of creation, stops contemplating beauty and goodness, and withdraws into his own selfishness. When man thinks only of himself, of his own interests and places himself in the centre, when he permits himself to be captivated by the idols of dominion and power, when he puts himself in God’s place, then all relationships are broken and everything is ruined; then the door opens to violence, indifference, and conflict. This is precisely what the passage in the Book of Genesis seeks to teach us in the story of the Fall: man enters into conflict with himself, he realizes that he is naked and he hides himself because he is afraid (cf. Gen 3: 10), he is afraid of God’s glance; he accuses the woman, she who is flesh of his flesh (cf. v. 12); he breaks harmony with creation, he begins to raise his hand against his brother to kill him. Can we say that from harmony he passes to "disharmony"? No, there is no such thing as "disharmony"; there is either harmony or we fall into chaos, where there is violence, argument, conflict, fear ....It is exactly in this chaos that God asks man’s conscience: "Where is Abel your brother?" and Cain responds: "I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?" (Gen 4:9). We too are asked this question, it would be good for us to ask ourselves as well: Am I really my brother’s keeper? Yes, you are your brother’s keeper! To be human means to care for one another! But when harmony is broken, a metamorphosis occurs: the brother who is to be cared for and loved becomes an adversary to fight, to kill. What violence occurs at that moment, how many conflicts, how many wars have marked our history! We need only look at the suffering of so many brothers and sisters. This is not a question of coincidence, but the truth: we bring about the rebirth of Cain in every act of violence and in every war. All of us! And even today we continue this history of conflict between brothers, even today we raise our hands against our brother. Even today, we let ourselves be guided by idols, by selfishness, by our own interests, and this attitude persists. We have perfected our weapons, our conscience has fallen asleep, and we have sharpened our ideas to justify ourselves. As if it were normal, we continue to sow destruction, pain, death! Violence and war lead only to death, they speak of death! Violence and war are the language of death! 3. At this point I ask myself: Is it possible to change direction? Can we get out of this spiral of sorrow and death? Can we learn once again to walk and live in the ways of peace? Invoking the help of God, under the maternal gaze of the Salus Populi Romani, Queen of Peace, I say: Yes, it is possible for everyone! From every corner of the world tonight, I would like to hear us cry out: Yes, it is possible for everyone! Or even better, I would like for each one of us, from the least to the greatest, including those called to govern nations, to respond: Yes, we want it! My Christian faith urges me to look to the Cross. How I wish that all men and women of good will would look to the Cross if only for a moment! There, we can see God’s reply: violence is not answered with violence, death is not answered with the language of death. In the silence of the Cross, the uproar of weapons ceases and the language of reconciliation, forgiveness, dialogue, and peace is spoken. This evening, I ask the Lord that we Christians, and our brothers and sisters of other religions, and every man and woman of good will, cry out forcefully: violence and war are never the way to peace! Let everyone be moved to look into the depths of his or her conscience and listen to that word which says: Leave behind the self-interest that hardens your heart, overcome the indifference that makes your heart insensitive towards others, conquer your deadly reasoning, and open yourself to dialogue and reconciliation. Look upon your brother’s sorrow and do not add to it, stay your hand, rebuild the harmony that has been shattered; and all this achieved not by conflict but by encounter! May the noise of weapons cease! War always marks the failure of peace, it is always a defeat for humanity. Let the words of Pope Paul VI resound again: "No more one against the other, no more, never! ... war never again, never again war!" (Address to the United Nations, 1965). "Peace expresses itself only in peace, a peace which is not separate from the demands of justice but which is fostered by personal sacrifice, clemency, mercy and love" (World Day of Peace Message, 1975). Forgiveness, dialogue, reconciliation – these are the words of peace, in beloved Syria, in the Middle East, in all the world! Let us pray for reconciliation and peace, let us work for reconciliation and peace, and let us all become, in every place, men and women of reconciliation and peace! Amen. http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2013/09/07/pope_francis:_homily_at_peace_vigil/en1-726626 Vatican City, Sep 5, 2013 / 11:43 am (CNA/EWTN News).-A five-hour prayer vigil in St. Peter's Square for peace in Syria, initiated by Pope Francis and to be held this Saturday, will be the largest the Vatican has seen in years, according to the Holy See’s press director. “I’ve been here for 23 years and I remember gatherings for peace in Assisi, but I don’t remember anything with this dimension in Saint Peter’s Square,” Fr. Federico Lombardi told a gathering of journalists Sept. 5. He recalled a peace gathering in Italy and prayer vigils held after the Sept. 11 attacks, but none were of the degree that this will be, he said. Pope Francis made a global petition on Sept. 1 asking that everyone, regardless of religion or location, to fast and pray during the whole day of Sept. 7 for world peace, particularly in Syria. “There are so many conflicts in this world which cause me great suffering and worry, but in these days my heart is deeply wounded in particular by what is happening in Syria and anguished by the dramatic developments which are looming,” the Holy Father said Sept. 1. During his first public general audience since his summer break on Sept. 4, he renewed his invitation. While the Sept. 7 fast is not binding on the faithful, Pope Francis' repeated exhortations to participate in the fast indicate how close the issue is to the heart of the vicar of Christ. His call for prayer and fasting comes as nations, including the United States, discuss the possibility of military intervention in Syria, following reports that the Bashar al Assad regime used chemical weapons on its own civilians, killing, according to the U.S. government, more than 1,400 persons. Pope Francis' prayer vigil will be preceded by the hearing of Confessions, beginning in the evening at 5:45 in St. Peter's Square. There will be 50 priests available for Confession under the colonnades of the square. Then at 6:30, Pope Francis' Sept. 1 allocution calling for the day of fasting and prayer will be read to introduce the vigil. Pope Francis will begin the prayer at 7:00, and the Veni Creator Spiritus will be sung. Four Swiss Guards will carry a statue of Mary, Protectress of the Roman People, starting from the obelisk in the square, accompanied by two girls strewing flowers before her. The Roman Pontiff will then begin praying the rosary, invoking the intercession at each mystery of Our Lady, Queen of Peace. There will then be a meditation by the Pope, followed by a minute of silence and Eucharistic Adoration. The vigil will also include readings from the Bible, and responsorial prayers for peace. After Adoration, there will be three minutes of silence followed by the recitation of the Office of Readings, part of the Liturgy of the Hours. At 10:15 there will be a period of extended, prayerful silence, and the vigil will conclude later with Benediction. In solidarity with the vigil of the Diocese of Rome, many Churches worldwide will be holding similar events. The Archdiocese of Madrid announced that all Masses said this Saturday will be offered for peace in Syria, and Bishop Demetrio Fernandez Gonzalez of Cordoba asked that church bells be rung at noon to remind Catholics to pray the Angelus to Mary, Queen of Peace. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York, announced that the anticipated Mass at his cathedral on Sept. 7 would be said for the intention of peace in Syria, and added that in his diocese “I wish all our Catholic people to abstain from meat this Friday (Sept. 6), and add this intention to their prayers at Sunday Mass.” In the Archdiocese of Denver, a vigil of Adoration will be held at the cathedral on Sept. 7 from 7 p.m. until midnight. Message of Pope Francis on September 1st
"Brothers and sisters, I have decided to proclaim for the whole Church on Saturday 7 September, the vigil of the birth of Mary, Queen of Peace, a day of fasting and prayer for peace in Syria, the Middle East, and throughout the world, and I also invite each person, including our fellow Christians, followers of other religions and all men of good will, to participate, in whatever way they can, in this initiative. On 7 September, in Saint Peter’s Square, here, from 19:00 until 24:00, we will gather in prayer and in a spirit of penance, invoking God’s great gift of peace upon the beloved nation of Syria and upon each situation of conflict and violence around the world. Humanity needs to see these gestures of peace and to hear words of hope and peace! I ask all the local churches, in addition to fasting, that they gather to pray for this intention. Let us ask Mary to help us to respond to violence, to conflict and to war, with the power of dialogue, reconciliation and love. She is our Mother: may she help us to find peace; all of us are her children! Help us, Mary, to overcome this most difficult moment and to dedicate ourselves each day to building in every situation an authentic culture of encounter and peace. Mary, Queen of Peace, pray for us!" What the Mainstream Media is Not Saying: http://countdowntozerotime.com/2013/09/03/the-big-reason-for-the-war-in-syria-the-russian-ships-deployment-in-the-mediterranean-16-trillion-cubic-meters-of-natural-gas/
http://www.newswithviews.com/McGuire/paul184.htm http://www.infowars.com/is-the-united-states-going-to-go-to-war-with-syria-over-a-natural-gas-pipeline/ AUG 31 (Medjugorje Today) - In recent days, a message allegedly given by the Virgin Mary in Medjugorje has circulated online. The "message" talks about a pressing need to pray the Rosary to avoid a war in Syria. While the Virgin Mary has requested prayers for peace throughout her 32 years of apparitions in Medjugorje, the message circulating about Syria is false. It was debunked on August 31 by several well-informed sources in and around Medjugorje. Also, an alleged "message" to Medjugorje visionary Ivan Dragicevic about the risk of a major Middle East war has started circulating again. This "message" first appeared in the Winter of 2012 when Ivan hurried to debunk it. (http://www.medjugorjetoday.tv/) |
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