Dear friend:

"evangeli.net Subjects" is discussing some aspects of the life of Jesus Christ in the Mysteries of Light:

. “The Baptism of the Lord in the Jordan River” (read here).

. “Christ's Self Revelation at the weddings of Cana” (read here).

. “The Announcement of the kingdom of God and the invitation to conversion" (1st part) (read here).

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Below, other christological reflections related to the 3rd Mystery of Light:

4th) «Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God» (Mt 4,4; cf. Dt 8,3). The authority of the Lord also came from his Wisdom: he knew and handled the Sacred Scripture like nobody else: in fact, the Scriptures were fulfilled in Him (read more). One day, after quoting the famous Messianic passage Is 61,1-2 («The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me…») he said quite naturally: «Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing» (Lk 4,21). Christ is unique!: his arrival was long prepared and his stay widely biographed (¡four Gospels!, plus the rest of the writings of the New Testament). All the prophesied messianic titles: Son of man, Son of David, Servant of Yahweh, Son of God... converge in Him. (Their hearts filled with ardent yearning when He was explaining the Scriptures: read more).

If the Bible is the "manual of life", the Gospel is the "manual of happiness"; If the Bible is the "biography of God," the Gospel is the "portrait of the visible face of God." Consequently, many prostrated themselves before Christ (the Syro-Phoenician woman, the father of the lunatic child, Mary Magdalene ...), and me?

5th) «Every teacher of the law who has become a disciple in the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old» (Mt 13,52). The message of Jesus Christ has a surprising relevance, going through all the times and eras of humanity (read more). The parables of Jesus are explanations of delightful pedagogy about the Kingdom of God for past, present and future. Let's take a single example, that of the yeast that ferments the dough: today more than ever Christians see ourselves as yeast that must act from within the world to encourage the world (yeast without dough can not exercise its function of giving consistency). Hence the importance of participation by all the baptized in the priesthood of Christ (the Church is composed of a Priestly people), the leading role of the lay faithful, the sanctification of work and marriage…

6th) «Neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin» (Jn 8,11). To receive the Kingdom of God we need converting to God. We can not receive God in any manner! From the beginning of his public ministry, Christ made a strong call to conversion (read more) but this is a call that includes the gift of mercy. The men of the Church may have insisted over the years more on the former, ignoring the latter. Whatever it is, the truth is that in more recent times the Holy Spirit has prompted the announcement of Divine Mercy, which - without humiliating - invites to conversión. From the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus sponsored by St. Margaret Mary of Alacoque, through the devotion to the Divine Mercy spread by St. Faustina Kowalska, etc., the Church has entered into what has been called "Time of Mercy". This time is an irreversible advance in History our Salvation.

We save the considerations on the 4th and 5th Mysteries of Light for January and February. During Advent and Christmas we will focus on the Joyful Mysteries.

Fr. Antoni Carol i Hostench

(General Coordinator of evangeli.net)