Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark 9, 38-43, 45, 47-48
At that time, John said to Jesus,
“Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name,
and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us.”
Jesus replied, “Do not prevent him.
There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name
who can at the same time speak ill of me.
For whoever is not against us is for us.
Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink
because you belong to Christ,
amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.
“Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin,
it would be better for him if a great millstone
were put around his neck
and he were thrown into the sea.
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off.
It is better for you to enter into life maimed
than with two hands to go into Gehenna,
into the unquenchable fire.
And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off.
It is better for you to enter into life crippled
than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna.
And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.
Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye
than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,
where ‘their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'”
Those who are with us
1) Do not prevent it. Here, I would like to refer to two aspects: ‘ad intra’ and ‘ad extra.’ Well, yes, “ad intra” is the situation within the Church itself, one in which among ourselves we destroy one another through rivalry. We even say “No, look, this guy has just begun and he already believes he is Saint Paul,” and we begin to compete with other people and other Church groups so that instead of the Church being a place of adoration, it becomes a battleground where everyone wants to win. “Ad extra” refers to the relationship of our Church with our separated brothers. It’s great to see how many go out to announce Jesus! I love seeing my evangelical brothers who go out on Saturday mornings, even if it is very hot or very cold, and they visit every house proclaiming the gospel. Thank you very much for the testimony! Many times, I have tried to imitate them, but some said: “I can’t,” “we are not trained,” and so on. But how important it is to see that many are also led to Jesus. Let’s not prevent them; let’s work on that as well!
2) Scandal. You know that as a church we are living difficult times and it hurts to see all these situations that we are experiencing. The reports of abuse by priests and the issue of scandals is a critical part of our Church and we cannot just look to the side. We must accept this reality that touches us and know that God makes all things new. The Church has gone through more difficult moments and it consoles me to know that in the most difficult moments of the Church, great saints emerge. Today, you and I must have a great desire to struggle on to be saints and help our mother Church purify all that suffering.
3) Entering life. Of course, you cannot have everything in life; sooner or later you will have to give up things to grow and gain others. Today, think and reflect, not about what you have to give up (because we have already talked about that millions of times), but instead reflect on what you would win. What would you gain by giving up certain things and how would you enjoy it in your life? How important it is to see and know what you want. Having this, you can move ahead with strength in your life.
God bless you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. And don’t forget Heaven is our goal.
