GOSPEL, Matthew (11: 25-27)
Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew
Jesus Thanks His Father
25 At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
The Gospel of the Lord
REFLECTION
Today’s Gospel passage allows a timid glimpse, of the intimate atmosphere of Jesus’ filial prayer: “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.”(vv.25-26)
Jesus reveals himself to the little ones and hides himself from the wise. The “sages and doctors” are the religious elite of Israel, the theologians and specialists in the Mosaic Law, as were the rabbis and Pharisees. The “simple”, the object of contempt of scribes and Pharisees, are the meek and the poor, the ignorant and the socially and religiously disregarded. These, enter into communion with Him. His Spirit opens their hearts and intellect to the revelation of the mystery and good news of the Kingdom. The way to understand Christ’s person and message is not through science and wisdom, but God’s free revelation to those he loves.
Listening to the Word, with a pure and sincere heart, is to enable God to enter our hearts and assume the consciousness of our identity, to divest us from ourselves and our pride; to launch us on the path of fraternity and humanity, to cling to the essential: to live “as if we saw the invisible”.
If we do so, we enter the world of the “little ones”. We belong to the Lord. We are disciples of Jesus, we acquire the true wisdom to, faithful to our vocation, carry out our mission: to announce the Kingdom, a kingdom of peace and justice, freedom and forgiveness!
PRAYER
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, open our hearts to hear and understand your word of life, to grasp the signs of your love and tenderness, to know you as Father and Jesus as brother. Amen.