May 4, 2026 Written by 

He leaves the world, but does not detach himself from it. Church is born

1. "But now I go to him who sent me, and not one of you asks me: Where are you going? Indeed, because I have told you these things, sadness has filled your hearts. Now I tell you the truth: it is good for you that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you; but when I am gone, I will send him to you" (John 16: 5-7).

Christ's words spoken on the eve of the passion and death on the cross take on their full meaning as the Church prepares for Christ's departure on the 40th day after the resurrection. This day is at hand.

2. And that joy of which Jesus speaks to his disciples on that day, in the Upper Room, before his passion, is close at hand: "your sorrow will be turned into joy" (Jn 16:20). It will be joy at the birth of the Church. The sadness over Christ's departure will be changed into precisely this joy, when the apostles experience - on the day of Pentecost - that the power of the Spirit of Truth is within them, which enables them - above all human regard and all human weakness - to bear witness to the risen Crucified One.

Together with the coming of the Holy Spirit, the time of the Church will begin in the history of mankind, in which the fullness of time, which began on earth with Christ, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin, whose name was Mary, will continue to ripen.

3. It is a great mystery, what is contained in the words at the cenacle: "If I do not go, the Comforter will not come to you, but when I am gone, I will send him to you" (Jn 16:7). These are key-words. These are words that reveal the Trinitarian economy according to which the inscrutable God - Father, Son and Holy Spirit - works in time. It is the economy of the Redemption, that is, of man's salvific return to God through grace: the return "at the price" of God's coming to man in the Incarnation; the return "at the price" of the Incarnate Son's departure through death on the cross; the return of man and the world - which came out of God's hands - to the same fatherly hands, to communion with the Godhead; the return through man's sonship of the Eternal Son, through Grace; the return in the Holy Spirit.

4. "I went out from the Father and came into the world; now I leave the world again, and go to the Father" (Jn 16:28). "I leave the world," though I do not detach myself from the world. I abide in it through the Holy Spirit. I remain in it through the truth of the Gospel. Through the Eucharist and the Church. Through the Word and the Sacraments. Through the grace of Divine sonship. Through faith, hope and charity.

"I leave the world" - but I do not detach myself from the world. I do not detach myself from the man of all times. I lead him to the Father! To the Father's house. Despite all resistance and objections that come from sin in the history of the world, I lead man to the Father.

The Mother of God precedes us on this path. Let us join her in prayer by reciting the "Regina Coeli".

[Pope John Paul II, Regina Coeli 4 May 1986]

136 Last modified on Monday, 04 May 2026 05:11
don Giuseppe Nespeca

Giuseppe Nespeca è architetto e sacerdote. Cultore della Sacra scrittura è autore della raccolta "Due Fuochi due Vie - Religione e Fede, Vangeli e Tao"; coautore del libro "Dialogo e Solstizio".

Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For Jesus, faith has a decisive importance for the purposes of salvation. St Paul will develop Christ's teaching when, in conflict with those who wished to base the hope of salvation on observance of the Jewish law, he forcefully affirms that faith in Christ is the only source of salvation: "We hold that a man is justified by faith apart from works of law" (Rom 3:28) [John Paul II]
Ai fini della salvezza, la fede ha per Gesù un'importanza decisiva. San Paolo svilupperà l'insegnamento di Cristo quando, in contrasto con quanti volevano fondare la speranza di salvezza sull'osservanza della legge giudaica, affermerà con forza che la fede in Cristo è la sola fonte di salvezza: "Noi riteniamo, infatti, che l'uomo è giustificato per la fede, indipendentemente dalle opere della legge" (Rm 3,28) [Giovanni Paolo II]
Jesus did not shun contact with that man; on the contrary, impelled by deep participation in his condition, he stretched out his hand and touched the man — overcoming the legal prohibition [Pope Benedict]
Gesù non sfugge al contatto con quell’uomo, anzi, spinto da intima partecipazione alla sua condizione, stende la mano e lo tocca – superando il divieto legale [Papa Benedetto]
In the heart of every man there is the desire for a house [...] My friends, this brings about a question: “How do we build this house?” (Pope Benedict)
Nel cuore di ogni uomo c'è il desiderio di una casa [...] Amici miei, una domanda si impone: "Come costruire questa casa?" (Papa Benedetto)
Every time we open ourselves to God's call, we prepare, like John, the way of the Lord among men (John Paul II)
Tutte le volte che ci apriamo alla chiamata di Dio, prepariamo, come Giovanni, la via del Signore tra gli uomini (Giovanni Paolo II)
Christian beatitude, as a synonym for holiness, is not separated from a component of suffering or at least of difficulty [...] But the kingdom of heaven is for the nonconformists (John Paul II)
La beatitudine cristiana, come sinonimo di santità, non è disgiunta da una componente di sofferenza o almeno di difficoltà […] Ma il regno dei cieli è per gli anticonformisti (Giovanni Paolo II)
Paolo VI stated that the world today is suffering above all from a lack of brotherhood: “Human society is sorely ill. The cause is not so much the depletion of natural resources, nor their monopolistic control by a privileged few; it is rather the weakening of brotherly ties between individuals and nations” (Pope Benedict)
Paolo VI affermava che il mondo soffre oggi soprattutto di una mancanza di fraternità: «Il mondo è malato. Il suo male risiede meno nella dilapidazione delle risorse o nel loro accaparramento da parte di alcuni, che nella mancanza di fraternità tra gli uomini e tra i popoli» (Papa Benedetto)
Our commitment does not consist exclusively of activities or programmes of promotion and assistance; what the Holy Spirit mobilizes is not an unruly activism, but above all an attentiveness that considers the other in a certain sense as one with ourselves (Pope Francis)
Il nostro impegno non consiste esclusivamente in azioni o in programmi di promozione e assistenza; quello che lo Spirito mette in moto non è un eccesso di attivismo, ma prima di tutto un’attenzione rivolta all’altro considerandolo come un’unica cosa con se stesso (Papa Francesco)

Due Fuochi due Vie - Vol. 1 Due Fuochi due Vie - Vol. 2 Due Fuochi due Vie - Vol. 3 Due Fuochi due Vie - Vol. 4 Due Fuochi due Vie - Vol. 5 Dialogo e Solstizio I fiammiferi di Maria

duevie.art

don Giuseppe Nespeca

Tel. 333-1329741


Disclaimer

Questo blog non rappresenta una testata giornalistica in quanto viene aggiornato senza alcuna periodicità. Non può pertanto considerarsi un prodotto editoriale ai sensi della legge N°62 del 07/03/2001.
Le immagini sono tratte da internet, ma se il loro uso violasse diritti d'autore, lo si comunichi all'autore del blog che provvederà alla loro pronta rimozione.
L'autore dichiara di non essere responsabile dei commenti lasciati nei post. Eventuali commenti dei lettori, lesivi dell'immagine o dell'onorabilità di persone terze, il cui contenuto fosse ritenuto non idoneo alla pubblicazione verranno insindacabilmente rimossi.