Gospel (Mt 11, 25-30)
At that time Jesus spoke and said: “Father, Lord of heaven and earth, I declare your praise: what you have hidden from the wise and learned, you have revealed to little ones. Yes, Father, you wanted it this way in your benevolence. Everything was handed over to me by my Father; no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son, and him to whom the Son wishes to reveal him. Come to me, all you who labor under the weight of your burden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, become my disciples, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul. Yes, my yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light. »
Other readings: Za 9, 9-10; Ps 144 (145); Rom 8, 9.11-13
To understand
The miracle of faith
To understand Jesus’ prayer and the words that follow, we must see in what context the evangelist Matthew places them. Jesus is on a mission, constantly confronted with questions and condemnations. The towns along the lakeshore, where he performed the miracles previously reported, were not open to the Good News. He laments a few verses above: “Unhappy Chorazin, unhappy Bethsaida…! » In the following chapter Jesus faces the repeated criticisms of the Pharisees who will attribute his miracles to the intervention of Beelzebul and will decide his doom. In this context of distrust and rejection, the faith of the disciples is revealed for what it truly is: a gift from the Father, before whom Jesus enters into praise. Perhaps this praise is ours in the face of the waves of catechumens and the renewal of our communities observed recently. But are we still sensitive to the miracle of faith?
Meditate
Toddlers and the secret
Jesus says that there are things that are hidden from some and that God reveals to others. Those who have the most difficulty entering into the secret are “the wise and the learned”. In the context of the first Gospel, these are the Pharisees and scribes who, because of their in-depth study of the Law, believe they know who God is and how He should act. Their certainties prevent them from letting themselves be affected by the unexpected from God. They know that God is merciful, but when his mercy goes beyond, for example, healing on the Sabbath, they block.
Their disbelief scandalizes us? But do we ourselves know how to let our knowledge about God be displaced? Wouldn’t the right attitude towards Him be a certain “learned ignorance”, the welcoming of questioning and astonishment, the certainty that I do not “know” God, since he is beyond everything. It is not a question of metaphysical questioning but of confronting what is infinitely simple: God is love and his love challenges our human wisdom. Only the one who is “very small” can welcome the One who makes himself infinitely small. This is the secret of Jesus. He Himself is the beloved Child who knows the Father with an experiential and vital knowledge. He can and wants to share it with those who are small enough to receive such a gift.
After the praise, an invitation: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will relieve you. » It is addressed to all those who are tired and discouraged. Jesus does not promise to remove the weights of life, but the anguish of the heart. He does not take the cross from us, but he carries it with us, because a yoke is worn by two. With Him, every weight becomes light, because He is the rest we seek, the peace that remains even in trials. To take the yoke of Jesus is to put oneself in his school. How can we fear a master who is “meek and humble”? His Gospel is demanding, but it is not heavy, because Jesus carries it with us and in us.
Pray
“Yes, Father. » How good it is to repeat to you these two words springing from the heart of your Son. Yes, Father, I believe in your benevolence, in your inexhaustible love, in your infinite desire to reveal yourself to your children. To know you, to know the Son: what grace! Jesus, sweet and humble face of the Father, teach me to come to you when life weighs me down, when the demands of love seem too heavy. I want to go to your school. Let me taste the rest you give.
