To my Venerable Brother Antonio Mattiazzo
Archbishop-Bishop of Padua
To be a Christian for Luke means to follow Jesus
on the path that he takes (Lk 9: 57; 10: 38; 13: 22; 14: 25). It is Jesus
himself who takes the initiative and calls us to follow him, and he does it
decisively, unmistakably, thus showing his extraordinary identity, his mystery
of being the Son who knows the Father and reveals him (cf. Lk 10: 22). At the
origin of the decision to follow Jesus lies the fundamental option in favor of
his person. If we have not been attracted by the face of Christ, it is impossible
to follow him with fidelity and constancy. This is also because Jesus walks a
difficult road; he lays down extremely demanding conditions and heads for a
paradoxical destiny, that of the Cross. Luke emphasizes that Jesus does not
like compromises and requires a commitment of the whole person, a decisive
detachment from any nostalgia for the past, from family demands, from material
possessions (cf. Lk 9: 57-62; 14: 26-33).
Man will always be tempted to lessen these radical
demands and to adapt them to his own weaknesses, or to give up the path
undertaken. But the authenticity and quality of the Christian community's life
depends precisely on this. A Church that lives by compromise would be like salt
that has lost its taste (cf. Lk 14: 34-35).
The importance that Luke gives in his writings to
the presence and action of the Spirit is well known, beginning with the
Annunciation, when the Paraclete descends on Mary (cf. Lk 1: 35), until
Pentecost, when the Apostles, moved by the gift of the Spirit, receive the
necessary strength to announce the grace of the Gospel throughout the world
(cf. Acts 1: 8; 2: 1-4). It is the Holy Spirit who molds the Church. Among the
characteristics of the first Christian community, St Luke describes the model
which the Church should reflect in every age: it is a community that is united
in "one heart and soul", diligent in listening to the Word of God; a
community that lives by prayer, that joyfully breaks the Eucharistic bread, that
opens its heart to the needs of the poor, even to sharing its material goods
with them (Acts 2: 42-47; 4: 32-37). All ecclesial renewal must draw the secret
of its authenticity and freshness from this inspiring source.
Beginning with the mother Church of Jerusalem, the
Spirit widens their horizons and spurs the Apostles and witnesses all the way
to Rome. The history of the early Church unfolds against the background of
these two cities: a Church that grows and spreads despite the opposition that
threatens her from without and the crises that burden her progress from within.
But throughout this whole journey, Luke's real concern is to present the Church
in the essence of her mystery: this mystery consists in the everlasting
presence of the Lord Jesus who, by acting in her by the power of his Spirit,
imbues her with consolation and courage in the trials on her way through
history.
According to a pious tradition, Luke is thought to
have painted the image of Mary, the Virgin Mother. But the real portrait that
Luke draws of Jesus' Mother is the one that emerges from the pages of his work:
in scenes that have become familiar to the People of God, he draws an eloquent
image of the Virgin. The Annunciation, the Visitation, the Nativity, the
Presentation in the Temple, life in the home of Nazareth, Jesus' discussion
with the doctors and his being lost, and Pentecost have provided abundant
material down the centuries for the ever new creations of painters, sculptors,
poets and musicians.
What is most important however is to discover
that, through pictures of Marian life, Luke introduces us to Mary's interior
life, helping us at the same time to understand her unique role in salvation
history.
Mary is the one who says fiat, a personal and total
"yes" to God's invitation, calling herself the "handmaid of the
Lord" (Lk 1: 38). This attitude of total assent to God and unconditional
acceptance of his Word represents the highest model of faith, the anticipation
of the Church as the community of believers.
The life of faith grows and develops in Mary
through sapiential meditation on the words and events of Christ's life (cf. Lk
2: 19, 51). She "ponders in her heart" to understand the deep meaning
of his words, in order to assimilate it and share it with others.
The Magnificat hymn (cf. Lk 1: 46-55) shows
another important aspect of Mary's "spirituality": she embodies the
figure of the poor person, capable of putting all her trust in God, who casts
down the mighty from their thrones and raises up the lowly.
Luke also describes the figure of Mary in the
early Church, showing that she is present in the Upper Room as they await the
Holy Spirit: "All these [the 11 Apostles] with one accord devoted
themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and
with his brethren" (Acts 1: 14).
The group gathered in the Upper Room forms the
original nucleus of the Church. Within it Mary carries out a double role: on
the one hand, she intercedes for the birth of the Church through the Holy
Spirit; on the other, she shares her experience of Jesus with the newborn
Church.
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