Fullness of small and beautiful works, not petty and childish

(Mt 5:13-16)

"Beautiful works" [which express fullness] are good works, enriched by the splendour of selflessness, listening, hospitality, prayer and humble dialogue, and cordial fraternity.

The plural term (v. 16) indicates - beyond abilities and circumstances - our vocation to reinterpret in a personal way the Self-Portrait of Christ imprinted in the Beatitudes just proclaimed (vv. 1-12).

The theme of the passage is that of fidelity which integrates and overcomes inconstancy - and the need to seal love with risk, which makes us authentic [last Beatitude: vv.10-12].

The Lord has surprising trust, because his plan is to become the flavour and fundamental orientation of human history - not only 'in favour of all', but for each one (even those considered insignificant).

Of course, only Jesus is the liturgical Amen: icon of fulfilled humanity, consistency of dedication, the Yes and the definitiveness of the Promises.

But his story has always been contrary to the prevailing mentality.

Therefore, even we - perhaps "seen" as inadequate - can embody a path where the Gospel arises not only as something common, and therefore "halfway", but as something unique and definitive.

We each have an irreplaceable role in moments of disruption and Exodus.

We are legitimised without conditions.

God has respect for shortcomings and missing functions: who knows what blessed new things they hide and are preparing.

In his commentary on the Tao (ii), Master Ho-shang Kung states:

"The original chi gives life to all creatures and does not appropriate it," that is, it does not return, it does not confer the old, backward and fixed order. It does not run for cover; rather, it gives a charge - not partial, but vital and illuminating.

Of course, it is precisely in consumer goods that constant change lies: this confuses the conventional religious idea.

But the fact that our Vocation is to be and become ever more a Source of Life like the Father, and signs of the Covenant between Heaven and earth (with equal dignity to the Son), values every little divine element in us, or that we promote in our brothers and sisters.

We cannot escape our essence, and we do so with passion - not out of a rigid determination to 'be' 'salt' and 'light' according to opinion.

Thus, instead of yearning to return to functioning like everyone else or as before, we will begin to respect our own and others' retreats of the soul.

In its pauses and questions of meaning, it is nurturing the future of the Kingdom.

In Jesus' time, flames were obtained from fats: blowing out a lamp meant filling the house with nauseating miasmas. 

This is what happens in a voluntaristic and inattentive Church, when there is an excess of dirigisme that does not respect the unique dignity of vocation, which is replaced by manners.

Every blade of grass makes its own distinct contribution to making the field green; this does not make it feel constrained - nor can it be extinguished or reduced by a pretentious and ostentatious context that would risk altering it.

The Beatitudes have their own fragrance, but it is entirely personal: it would be futile to attenuate their aroma by adding ordinary cream, which sweetens various dishes (but makes them all taste the same). Or cotton candy, more suited to festivals of castagnole, castanets and firecrackers, and variety shows.

Their 'salt' combats the insignificance of vain hopes or those of others (bechamel sauce of appearances). It introduces an internal and savoury wisdom into the world of side dishes, salads, carousels and insipidities.

Children look far away, but they stay with the 'pasta'... remaining a living reminder: between God and man [who is himself even in brotherhood] there is an inviolable bond.

In fact, 'Light' is that which does not mix with things, but distinguishes them.

This means that, without too many compliments, spiritual discernment must be torn from the clutches of those who, out of quietism and a desire not to cause trouble for those complacent with power, mitigate and adapt, indeed hide the Gospel - turning it into a lullaby.

The parallel passage in Luke 11:33 gives thought to the reception of pagans: to make 'light' for those who enter the House.

Matthew is primarily concerned with those who already dwell there: whose specific weight and life of relationships based on the conviviality of differences must become Light in itself - to allow everyone to understand the difference between the seeds of death and the tracks of complete Life.

The Israelites considered themselves the 'Light of the world' because of their devotion and impeccable religious practice.

A great Roman parish priest told me that one of the things that struck him on his travels in the USA was seeing too many Catholic citadels on top of hills, clearly visible to the eye but equally clearly equipped with everything - therefore detached, able to provide for themselves, closed to confrontation with today's real urban life.

This is diametrically opposed to the approach of many evangelical communities, which are less ostentatious and do not seek to attract people with their external beauty. They are mixed into the fabric of the city, and for this reason they are able to shed light on the daily lives of people seeking a personal and real relationship with God the Father.

For Jesus, the faithful and the community are 'Light' because they walk in the friendly glory of the Master.

He remains the slain Lamb who becomes food for all, and does not give the impression of magnificence or clamour; he does not shut himself up in fortresses, nor does he terrify.

The disciple and the Assembly are 'Salt' because they appear in the world in all circumstances as those who give it meaning, Wisdom [from the Latin sapĕre, to have taste].

We are called to make ourselves a sign of a new Covenant, because the unexpected Relationship of the Mount that the Son proposes could no longer be contained in the First Covenant.

Christ replaces the ancient demands for purification with those of full brotherhood, which, in valuing every person, gives taste and (precisely) flavour, and becomes a lamp for our steps.

This 'second Covenant' does not crush the believing people. 

The inclination to unravel our own evolution, becoming protagonists in the Name of the New Agreement, will transmit illumination and fragrance to the journey.

In this way, we will allow ourselves to be shaped, yielding to our Core that wants to grow, express itself, and give space to the sides that are still in shadow.

These are signs of a Father who recovers and infuses direction into the individual path and that of the Churches - not from outside, but starting from our roots and like a leaven.

We become living Beauty thanks to an activity that, though imperfect, has an influence on flowering from within.

In this way, we preserve people from the decay of dehumanisation and corruption - like 'salt' with food.

In fact, if not properly understood thanks to the qualitative leap of Faith-love, even religious sense can channel women and men into a thousand streams of cunning...

Towards a decomposition of wisdom, and hasty, disembodied, insipid schematics - as well as, unfortunately, indistinct fog.

'Salt and Light' are every little divine element already within us. Thus, any effort towards beauty, solidity and variety will not be lost - even if reduced and diminished: it has its own Mystery and Appeal.

Of course, even in traditional religion, the value of small things is not denied, but they remain small and fixed - without leaps.

In a climate where 'Ne quid nimis' [nothing excessive] prevails, the basic conditions all seem designed to confirm the system of things and roles.

The cloak of customs weakens the peaks, relegates the personalities of simple people to narrow, insignificant spheres, which urge them to invest their energy in vacuous, childish aspects.

The idiocy of certain details is always there, stifling evolution.

In Fede's experience, we do not despise even the slightest contribution to the construction of an alternative kingdom to the current one - sometimes unifying, but based on nonsense and catwalks in obvious disrepair, and stench.

Our candles can continue to dispel the darkness, but only until we place them under a 'bushel' (v. 15), that is, until we give up, putting them under a slavish 'measure' - which is not the different, propulsive and always new measure of the Beatitudes.

In Christ, we are guided to an evolutionary leap: we are the Sapidità pur minuta delle cose (the tiny Sapidità of things), and we are limited Lights, yes - but not inhibited, nor small and 'baby'.

The life of Faith guides and stimulates the building of a kingdom of personal Flavour and Love, without hysteria or intimate dissociations.

This adventure takes the form of a New Covenant between the soul, reality, the global and local world, the signs of the times and Mystery.

Light of Freedom that coincides with our Vocation by Name. Intelligent energy that knows how to draw alternative life even from the wounds inflicted.

The salt gone mad of religion without Faith: treating ourselves as sick people

(Mt 5:13)

One of the possible translations from Greek of the expression in verse 13 [perhaps the most plausible] is: 'if the salt goes mad'.

Why does it go mad? It refers to personal harmony with the divine Covenant that dwells within us and to which we do not want to give space, even though it would be truly fulfilling.

All this because we are accustomed to living and feeding on external attitudes.

The Covenant would like to guide our little boat even in this time of departure from the tragedies that are blocking the world, but this is made difficult by the recitation of scripts - by what 'must be done' according to previous ideas and routine.

This is the same expression in Matthew 5:13 of the 'foolish' man (Matthew 7:26) who builds his house not on the Rock [of Freedom, which coincides with his Calling].

He also 'builds' impressive realities, but on unstable elements that are sometimes fragile, lacking in substance - therefore without a solid foundation. Rather, they are the reflection of handed-down thoughts, or of calculation and fantasy; excessively sophisticated.This is also the age-old disconnect between ritual devotion and concrete life, which the Christian community unfortunately sometimes demonstrates in the face of a world that expects answers to needs that touch it and urgent hopes (not those of a 'flock' that we do not like at all).

Instead, here and there, there is a desire to rebuild everything as it 'should be' and as it was before... In this way, we would continue carefree in pursuit of things that are now useless, neglecting the new reality and the essence of character.

Embryonic and genuine inclinations that would like to give weight to hidden resources, embedded in our cosmic being as creatures and in our most fragrant personal tendencies.

Internal powers that unblock situations.

The behaviour of those who have become accustomed to listening - and yearn not to celebrate the Presence of the Lord and live their faith intensely, but to return to 'mass' and to the old containers - should not be so blatantly empty, duplicitous, formal and disinterested; so openly contradictory to the authentic Call, which the believer himself emphatically proclaims to believe in.

There is a Mystery to follow, which is leading to a different kind of uniqueness. And it wants to draw alternative life - truly our own - precisely from the wounds inflicted.

Nothing to be done: the underlying lacerations remain firmly in place - those caused by those who would like to engage in critical witness, but do not rise again in unique opportunities... and find themselves constantly prey to constructed ideas, instead of being inspired (and in their intelligent energy).

In the expression 'salt going mad', the author evokes a sort of radical inner division, characteristic of the personal soul and the unknown Elsewhere that we would finally be called upon to welcome, instead of opposing.

The Secret that lurks in the present, in fact, can end up being trampled by external factors, such as institutional expectations, which leave no room for the revolution of habits and goals.

One example among many is the precious tradition of building a prayer corner in every home.

Even in our spiritual life, we often want to be like the devout models we have in mind, or stronger (perhaps to resemble our guides).

These are thoughts that neither convince nor inspire the heart. In reality, they become vocational blocks, inhibiting the primordial virtue that belongs to us - if convincing, it would move us further.

Christ calls us to acknowledge our unfettered uniqueness and unpredictable eccentricity - the only factor for recovery.

Exceptionality that for Him is not a disturbance, but an authentic resource.

We do not know how He will guide us or where He will lead us; what new eras (which will open up Other things, and we do not know what) He will allow us to enjoy as we proceed in the adventure of the Beatitudes just proclaimed (vv. 1-12).

This is the profound experimental difference between religiosity and Faith.

The latter corresponds to us because it is lovable in its intimacy. It does not take a pessimistic view of the tide of life.

It focuses on the innate perfection of our ways of being, however singular and unexpected.

In short:

We are not people who need to be cured. In terms of vocation, each of us is already mysteriously gifted and perfect.

By seriously entrusting ourselves to the Call by Name instead of to identifications that plagiarise and leave us brooding in vain, we will reach the fullness of being.

The golden age will coincide with the time of experiences that make us feel completely alive.

Even moments of emptiness will serve to regenerate us and shift our perspective. We will realise that nothing is missing.

Instead, by entrusting our lives to the narrow-minded idea of perfection and old situations to be regained, multiplying resolutions with expectations that do not concern us, we will only succeed in shattering ourselves.

In this way, we will never feel satisfied with the growth of the sense of immensity in our being and particular development.

The great Models (which ultimately betray us) force us to criticise and chase after things, treating ourselves as if we were sick, full of inner turmoil and mental torment.

It is the madness of the obvious, which through conformist quietude or a crazy expenditure of energy promises to take possession of who knows what, but does not make the germinal leap of the life of Faith.

Spousal trust and a creative gesture that wants to welcome everything: states of unease, aspects in the shadows, rising tides - and expand Happiness.

Lumen Fidei

1. The light of faith: with this expression, the tradition of the Church has indicated the great gift brought by Jesus, who, in the Gospel of John, presents himself thus: 'I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness' (Jn 12:46). St. Paul also expresses it in these terms: "And God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' has shone in our hearts" (2 Cor 4:6). In the pagan world, hungry for light, the cult of the sun god, Sol invictus, invoked at sunrise, had developed. Even though the sun rose every day, it was well understood that it was incapable of radiating its light over the whole of human existence. The sun, in fact, does not illuminate all of reality; its rays are incapable of reaching the shadow of death, where the human eye is closed to its light. "Because of their faith in the sun," says St Justin Martyr, "no one has ever been seen ready to die." Aware of the great horizon that faith opened up for them, Christians called Christ the true sun, "whose rays give life." To Martha, who weeps for the death of her brother Lazarus, Jesus says, "Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?" (Jn 11:40). Those who believe see; they see with a light that illuminates the entire path, because it comes to us from the risen Christ, the morning star that never sets.

An illusory light?

2. Yet, when we speak of this light of faith, we can hear the objection of many of our contemporaries. In modern times, it was thought that such a light might have been sufficient for ancient societies, but that it was no longer needed in the new era, for a man who had become adult, proud of his reason, eager to explore the future in a new way. In this sense, faith appeared to be an illusory light, preventing man from cultivating the audacity of knowledge. The young Nietzsche invited his sister Elisabeth to take risks, to follow 'new paths... in the uncertainty of independent progress'. He added: 'At this point, the paths of humanity diverge: if you want to achieve peace of mind and happiness, have faith, but if you want to be a disciple of truth, then investigate'. Believing would be opposed to seeking. From this point onwards, Nietzsche developed his critique of Christianity for diminishing the significance of human existence, robbing life of novelty and adventure. Faith would then be like an illusion of light that prevents us from walking freely towards tomorrow.

3. In this process, faith ended up being associated with darkness. It was thought that it could be preserved, that a space could be found for it to coexist with the light of reason. The space for faith opened up where reason could not illuminate, where man could no longer have certainties. Faith was then understood as a leap into the void that we take because of a lack of light, driven by blind sentiment; or as a subjective light, perhaps capable of warming the heart and bringing private consolation, but which cannot be offered to others as an objective and common light to illuminate the path. Little by little, however, it became clear that the light of autonomous reason cannot sufficiently illuminate the future; in the end, it remains in darkness and leaves man in fear of the unknown. And so man gave up the search for a great light, for a great truth, contenting himself with small lights that illuminate the brief moment but are incapable of lighting the way. When light is lacking, everything becomes confused; it is impossible to distinguish good from evil, the road that leads to the goal from the one that makes us walk in repetitive circles, without direction.

A light to be rediscovered

4. It is therefore urgent to recover the light-giving character of faith, because when its flame is extinguished, all other lights lose their power. The light of faith has a unique character, being capable of illuminating the whole of human existence. For a light to be so powerful, it cannot come from ourselves; it must come from a more original source; it must come, ultimately, from God. Faith is born in an encounter with the living God, who calls us and reveals his love to us, a love that precedes us and on which we can rely to be steadfast and build our lives. Transformed by this love, we receive new eyes, we experience that there is a great promise of fulfilment in it, and the future opens up before us. Faith, which we receive from God as a supernatural gift, appears as a light for our path, a light that guides our journey through time. On the one hand, it comes from the past; it is the light of a fundamental memory, that of the life of Jesus, where his love was revealed as completely trustworthy, capable of conquering death. At the same time, however, since Christ is risen and draws us beyond death, faith is light that comes from the future, opening up great horizons before us and leading us beyond our isolated 'I' towards the vastness of communion. We understand, then, that faith does not dwell in darkness; that it is a light for our darkness. Dante, in the Divine Comedy, after confessing his faith before St Peter, describes it as a "spark, / which expands into a lively flame / and like a star in the sky, it sparkles within me". It is precisely this light of faith that I would like to talk about, so that it may grow to illuminate the present and become a star that shows us the horizons of our journey, at a time when humanity is particularly in need of light.

(Lumen Fidei)