Inimica respuere
Amen, amen, dico vobis:quia plorabitis et flebitis vos,mundus autem gaudebit:vos autem contristabimini,sed tristitia vestra vertetur in gaudium.
Jn 16:20
THE Gospel for this Third Sunday after Easter forms part of the so-called “Farewell Discourse” that Our Lord addressed to the Apostles in the Upper Room on the evening of Holy Thursday before going to pray in Gethsemane and then be arrested by the Temple guards. Judas has already departed to betray Him (Jn 13:30) and, shortly thereafter, will hand over the spotless Lamb to His tormentors, collecting his thirty pieces of silver. The “modicum” or “little while” of which the Lord speaks (Jn 16:16) refers to the brief interval between His Death on the Cross (“you will see Me no more”) and the Resurrection (“again a little while, and you will see Me”), thereby foreshadowing the definitive joy that no trial will ever be able to take away. The comparison of the disciples’ sorrow to the labor pains of a woman giving birth is not coincidental. It evokes the soul’s travail at the moment when all seems lost – the Master put to death, the disciples scattered, Peter’s threefold denial, the apparent victory of the Sanhedrin conspirators – and the joy the soul experiences when its sufferings vanish at the first cry of a new life opening itself to the world.Thus we see the Mystery of Redemption likened to the birth of a child, almost as if to evoke the Regina Crucis, the Woman Clothed with the Sun (Rev 12:1) – a figure of both the Virgin Mother and the Church – who is depicted in the throes of labor while a dragon (Satan) lies in wait to devour her male child (the Messiah, Christ). This birth symbolizes the generation of the Church amidst persecutions and historical trials; the pangs of labor represent the price of Redemption and of bearing witness to the Gospel, yet they culminate in the Divine Victory. The child is caught up to the throne of God (Rev 12:5), prefiguring the Resurrection and the Ascension. As biblical exegesis observes, the labor pains in the Gospel of John illustrate the travail of the Lord’s Passion and of the proclamation of the Gospel, whereas in the Book of Revelation, they express this same mystery as applied to the birth of the Messiah and the life of the Church Militant, hindered by the Evil One, yet protected by God. This biblical image also recurs in the Epistle to the Galatians— “I am in labor pains once again until Christ is formed within you,” says Saint Paul (Gal 4:19)—thereby underscoring the generative fruitfulness of Faith.The pangs of childbirth also symbolize the travail of the soul, called to purify itself of carnal desires so as to be pure and holy in the sight of God, as we read in the Epistle of the Mass: “I exhort you, as strangers and pilgrims, to abstain from the desires of the flesh which wage war against the soul” (1 Pt 2:11). Saint Peter states this explicitly – as strangers and pilgrims – because we are merely passing through this world, journeying toward our supernatural destination. The illusion of a paradise on earth keeps us anchored to the flesh, whereas we are called to the realities of Heaven.On this earth, dear friends, we are indeed merely passing through, yet we are like soldiers enlisted in a spiritual militia. And in this military service, we are called to train ourselves in the use of spiritual weapons and to combat the enemies of the soul, in accordance with the admonition of Saint Paul:Put on the armor of God, so that you may be able to withstand the snares of the devil. For our battle is not against creatures made of flesh and blood, but against the Principalities and Powers, against the rulers of this world of darkness, against the spirits of evil that dwell in the heavenly realms. Therefore, take up the armor of God, so that you may be able to resist on the evil day and remain standing after having overcome all trials. Stand firm, then, with your loins girded with truth, clothed in the breastplate of righteousness, and with your feet shod with the zeal to propagate the gospel of peace. Always hold in your hand the shield of faith, with which you will be able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the Evil One; take also the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit—that is, the word of God (Eph 6, 11-17).Armor, breastplate, greaves, shield, helmet, sword: the military equipment of the miles Christi is secured by the Grace of Baptism—which we have all received—and by the Grace of Confirmation which Davide, Nicola, Ettore, Giovanni, and Nicola have just received, thereby becoming full-fledged soldiers of Christ. The sacramental character imprinted by Confirmation constitutes an indelible seal that permanently configures the soul of the faithful to Our Lord Jesus Christ and incorporates it more deeply into His Mystical Body. This character perfects the Grace of Baptism, enabling the baptized to bear witness to the Faith with greater strength and responsibility. The image of the living stones of the Church, drawn from the First Letter of Saint Peter (1 Pt 2:4–5), effectively expresses this reality: the faithful, united to Christ the Cornerstone are built up as a spiritual edifice, as living and dynamic members of the Mystical Body, each called to contribute to the growth and sanctification of the entire ecclesial community.There is, moreover, a little-known historical aspect of the theology of Confirmation that can further illuminate our meditation. On Roman and Early Christian bricks and roof tiles, it was customary to imprint a sigillum or stamp bearing the name of the brickworks, the name of the owner, and sometimes an indication of the intended use of the edifice (public building, villa, temple). This mark was not ornamental, but rather juridical and functional: it attested to the certain origin of the material and determined its intended purpose, thereby guaranteeing its authenticity and integrity within the structure. In the same way, the sacramental character of Confirmation marks the soul with the divine sigillum. The Divine Craftsman is the Holy Spirit, who acts through the Sacrament conferred by the minister of the Church; the intended use is the building up of the Kingdom of God within history. This spiritual seal indicates that the soul belongs irrevocably to the Most Holy Trinity, who has chosen it and conformed it to Christ; it specifies its function: the confirmed person is destined to be a living stone in the Church, called to bear public witness to the Faith; and it guarantees its permanence, just as the stamp impressed upon a brick cannot be erased without destroying the brick itself, so too is the sacramental character indelible, surviving even grave sin and thereby making it always possible for one who has been confirmed to return to full ecclesial communion.Confirmation, dearest young people, is therefore not merely a rite of passage, but rather the Divine Imprint that transforms you into a structural element of the Church. Marked by this seal, you bear within yourselves the responsibility to contribute steadfastly to the building of the spiritual temple, manifesting in the world the beauty and solidity of God’s dwelling place among men. This awareness invites each of us to live out our vocation with fidelity and courage, conscious that we are, through grace, precious and irreplaceable stones in the eternal edifice of salvation.But how are we to do this? How are we to fight the bonum certamen (2 Tim 4:7) and merit the palm of victory? How are we to dedicate our existence to following Christ and preserving our Faith intact? The Collect of the Mass explains it to us:Deus, qui errantibus, ut in viam possint redire justitiæ, veritatis tuæ lumen ostendis: da cunctis, qui christiana professione censentur, et illa respuere, quæ huic inimica sunt nomini; et ea quæ sunt apta, sectari. O God, who show the light of your truth to those who go astray, so that they may return to the path of righteousness: grant to all who profess the Christian faith that they may reject whatever is contrary to it and follow whatever is in accord with it.And how does one traverse the desert on the pilgrimage toward the Promised Land? Where is one to find the supernatural nourishment that fortifies the soul on this journey? In the Most Holy Eucharist, the Food of Angels, the Mystical Manna, the Medicine of Immortality, the Nourishment of holy souls. Today, in fact, Nicola will approach the Eucharistic Banquet for the very first time; I invite you to pray for him that he may be entirely dedicated to the Sacramental Lord, like a living tabernacle; and that he may grow in the light of Faith and in the fire of Charity.Dearest friends, remain faithful! Safeguard the flame of the Catholic Faith, the Catholic Priesthood, and the Holy Mass. Remain faithful to the Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, Roman Church, rejecting all errors that contradict and indeed deny Catholic Truth, keeping yourselves far from those who spread such falsehood. These times of great spiritual trial, akin to the pangs of childbirth, will soon come to an end: “Truly, truly, I say to you: you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy” (Jn 16:20).And so may it be.+ Carlo Maria Viganò, ArchbishopBassano del Grappa, 26 April MMXXVIDominica III post Pascha
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