Reading
21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do.
22 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is except the Father, and no one knows who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”
23 Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”
Comment
Jesus' prayer introduces us to a purely Trinitarian dimension. He praises the Father, with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit. The reason for this joy is the Father's love for "the little ones", to whom he was pleased to reveal "these things".
What are these things? It is the same mystery of the Trinity: of the Son who can be known only through the Father and of the Father who can only be known through the Son. It is a celestial bliss already anticipated on this earth, through faith, which brings us closer to the intimate nature of God as none of the ancient prophets was given the opportunity.
Blessed are those who discover that they are children incorporated by the Holy Spirit in the Son of God and who understand that they are loved by a Father of infinite mercy. Blessed are those who know the Father by contemplating and listening to the Son, who speaks to us through the scriptures and through the Spirit. Blessed are those who do not consider themselves full of the doctrine and wisdom of this world, but whose highest wisdom, as Paul affirms, resides in the knowledge of Jesus Christ and of him crucified (1 Cor 2:4). Because it is in the mystery of the cross that God's descent among the humblest and most despised things is revealed to us, to redeem them in the light of the resurrection.
Prayer
O Lord, grant us to welcome you with the simplicity of heart; to be introduced into your mystery of salvation, and to grow continuously in your love. Amen.
- Rev. Dr. Luca Vona
