Word of the day

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians
Eph 4:1-7, 11-13

Brothers and sisters:
I, a prisoner for the Lord,
urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received,
with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another through love,
striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit
through the bond of peace:
one Body and one Spirit,
as you were also called to the one hope of your call;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all,
who is over all and through all and in all.

But grace was given to each of us
according to the measure of Christ’s gift.

And he gave some as Apostles, others as prophets,
others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers,
to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry,
for building up the Body of Christ,
until we all attain to the unity of faith
and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood,
to the extent of the full stature of Christ.

From the Gospel according to Matthew
Mt 9:9-13

As Jesus passed by,
he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post.
He said to him, “Follow me.”
And he got up and followed him.
While he was at table in his house,
many tax collectors and sinners came
and sat with Jesus and his disciples.
The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples,
“Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”
He heard this and said,
“Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do.
Go and learn the meaning of the words,
I desire mercy, not sacrifice.
I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.”

This work must be nourished with the memory of that first encounter, of that celebration. And this is not a moment, this is a time: until the end of life. Memory. Memory of what? Of those events! Of that encounter with Jesus who changed my life! Who had mercy! Who was so good to me and who also said to me: ‘Invite your sinful friends, so we can have a party!’ That memory gives strength to Matthew and all these people to go forward. ‘The Lord has changed my life! I have met the Lord!’ Always remember. It's like blowing on the embers of that memory, isn't it? Blowing to keep the fire going, always. (Santa Marta, 5 July 2013)