Brothers and sisters

May the Lord give you peace!

After the celebration of Jesus’ baptism (last Sunday), we entered the liturgical season we call Ordinary Time. Listen carefully: it is no less important a period of the liturgy. Ordinary Time, with its Mass Readings and the Gospel proclaimed each Sunday, once again becomes a journey for our life of faith.

This second Sunday of Ordinary Time offers us the testimony of John the Baptist. From the perspective of the Evangelist John, who was present as a witness, the Baptist recognizes and points Him out. “Behold” in Greek is like an “imperative” verb, meaning “look, see!” Here is the Lamb of God, the One who takes upon Himself, who took upon himself the sin present in the world, who takes away the sin of the world. And this is something Jesus did once and for all on the Cross. And it is renewed at every Eucharistic celebration: “The formula spoken by John the Baptist is significantly repeated every time Christians celebrate the Eucharist. We Christians (Catholic and Orthodox) recognize in the Eucharist, in the Body of Christ presented by the priest, the strength capable of helping all of us who are weak. But through the power of Christ’s sacrifice, yes, through the power of Christ’s one eternal sacrifice. This is why our Orthodox brothers call the Mass the Divine Liturgy. And we Catholics call it the Holy Mass. It is not just a rite, a repetition.

Brothers and sisters, a very provocative question: What does this mean? Jesus frees our hearts from sin. It is He, the Lord Jesus, who reconciles us with the Father. It means that in faith in Jesus we can find peace with God and with ourselves. That in Him we can find the forgiveness that we cannot find on our own. Yes, in Christ we find true peace… it is not a merely psychological peace… It is much deeper. It is a gift.

How many people are wounded in heart and soul… They continue to lose the meaning of life. And here another question arises: Who am I?

If we are here and truly participate in the Holy Mass, in the Holy Sacrifice, without ulterior motives, we find the true meaning of everything: of our difficulties, of our wounds, the meaning of life and even the meaning of death.

The Holy Mass is not just a meeting place… It is not a place for political discussions. It is not a place for gossip… We are here to recognize the Lamb of God who on the Cross, paid the price for our sins.

So what must we do? An act of humility. Confessing our sins to Jesus (through the sacrament of confession), opening our hearts to one of His priests. It is an act of faith: believing that God’s love is greater than our sin, whatever it may be! The Lamb of God “who takes away the sin of the world.” A more literal translation would be: “who takes upon himself the sin of the world.”

The Holy Sacrifice, the Holy Mass, unites Heaven and earth, so that man is no longer alone, but in communion with God. This is why we need to confess: to never lose this constant living relationship. This is why we must not miss Holy Mass every Sunday… I think that if we have truly understood what Holy Mass is, we will no longer exchange it for a Sunday walk. Yes, we can go for a walk, but after Holy Mass, or return in the evening to attend Holy Mass. Dear friends, with this Gospel on this Sunday in Ordinary Time, He is telling us that we have a treasure that the Church has given us: Christ Himself and His forgiveness. And that we must all be more aware that we are truly loved by the Love of God, which is greater than all of us… Amen.