Lake Gennesaret, on which Jesus walked, is up to 50 meters deep. But what is this against those dizzying spiritual depths, at the sight of which we often feel surprised, even frightened? The world in which we live, with which we are in direct contact, or the one shown to us by press reports and television – reveals before us a surprising abyss of misery and evil; whether it is material poverty, from which hands are extended to us begging for help, whether it is the poverty of sin, which people affected by it are not even aware of, whether it is the depth of falsehood into which they willingly sink, or the depth of suffering that we do not know how to prevent – these are the chasms over which we must not only cross, but also bravely look into them, and even descend a little without getting dizzy; the head spins for those who lose heart, curse, or even blaspheme, asking: where is God? What about God? Our daily journey over the deep requires a strong head and heart; The Lord Jesus says: It is I, do not be afraid! But don’t lose heart when looking at the abyss – that’s not all. The psalmist says: The deep echoes into the deep (Psalm 42:8).

Against this depth of evil we must set the depth of our faith, hope, and love, in general, the depth of spiritual life and wealth that we must develop in ourselves. Fortunately, we meet people who have created such depth in themselves, who not only do not despair in the face of suffering and evil – but try to prevent them and stand against them in various ways: by supplicating and intercessory prayer, by acts of practical mercy, and above all, by deepening their own spiritual life . Do we open our eyes and hearts to such depths? The Church shows them to us with more and more recent canonizations. And maybe we also see them with an envious eye not far from us. The resurrected Christ lifts the afflicted from the depths of doubt; it also deepens our faith and trust in the resurrection of all good.

Hunger is man’s great enemy. But in addition to that physical hunger, we also know the soul’s hunger, which is much more painful. The Gospel about the multiplication of loaves is relevant in every era. As we read these wonderful words about the feeding of the five thousand, we are filled with awe. “They all ate and were satisfied, and they even collected twelve baskets full of crumbs and leftover fish” (Mk 6:42-43).

Man is in a constant rush. Gone are the times that our grandparents remembered how they spent their winter evenings. They spent the day calmly, not in a hurry. And they were happy, even if they didn’t have the conveniences we have today. Today, the child has to get up early in the morning so that the working mother can make it to kindergarten and go to work. And when the child wants to play with his parents in the evening, he has to go to bed, because the mother is no longer in control, she is at the end of her strength. My father is also experiencing something similar. And today, the Church wants to tell us: Sit down and rest, at least in the church. Leave your hustle at the door and join the crowd around Jesus. All four evangelists talk about this multiplication of loaves. In some small things, they diverge and complement each other. But they unanimously say that this reproduction happened in silence, in a lonely place. Scholars of Holy Scripture consider this reproduction event to be a foreshadowing of the Eucharist. If we read the 6th chapter of the evangelist of Saint John, we would also see the people’s response to this multiplication: they wanted to make Christ a king. But when Jesus tells them about the bread of life, he will give them his body, for which they will no longer hunger and thirst. Mark also talks about the fact that even the apostles themselves did not understand it, because their hearts were still uncomprehending.

Don’t we also ask Jesus for our material satisfaction, security, and comfort rather than the Bread of eternal life? Don’t we resign as soon as the first obstacles appear with the words: it’s a tough talk?! Let’s be careful about our thinking in society because a consumerist society would like to accept Christ as something it does not need. 

We can see what it means to satisfy the crowd in Canadian martyrs. A young Christian from Spain came to the parish, where Father Amadci is the priest. He settled in the poorest neighborhood, intending to live here for others. Soon his example impressed other believers as well. They formed a group whose goal was to know Jesus best from the Holy Scriptures, in prayer, to talk with him in contemplation, to connect with him in meditation, to unite with him in the Eucharist and to serve him as brothers and sisters. By doing so, they won the hearts of those around them because they all longed for happiness. 

Jesus has prepared a feast for us, too. We are all invited. Let us wish and try not to know mental hunger.

1. According to Teresa, the first step is to become aware of God’s presence, that we are against him, that he is standing by our side, or that he is within us. The Soul must acknowledge what the Lord is like and what is the position of the creature and the sinner. Prayer must begin by asking whom  we will talk to and who we are so that it is clear what  to use (C 22:3). This step is called contemplation  and explains. She is talking to, what she is asking of him, and who she is, I do not consider it prayer (H I, 1, 7). He thinks this fact’s very consciousness is an inner prayer.
   It is possible to guess what Teresa means by this, and her next interpretation will be easier to understand. First, she betrays from the repetition of learned prayers, which need not be to be well heeded, like the turning of prayer mills in the East, and on the other hand, she rejects the classical style of meditation, which consists in thinking hard or reflecting “about Christ,” “on the subject of Christ,” or in an attitude of “looking up 26 to Christ,” but the soul remains somehow distant from it, from what is being meditated upon. Trying to meditate on the life of Christ wearies the mind (Psalm 11:9). To pray it is not enough to “meditate on something”; it requires a personal relationship with God, an association, where there is direct contact, where we can be face to face.

2. For her personally, this means turning to the Lord as someone standing in front of her and to whom she can give a hug or a shout. How to make this living relationship happen? If we imagine Christ in his humanity. But of what kind is it to be Christ to be “pictured”? After all, Teresa recommends this method even to souls who, like her, cannot use their imagery. God has not endowed me with the talent to meditate or to use my imagery, because my imagery is so inept that I could not even imagine the humanity of Christ, even though I tried to do so (Z 4:7). At another place, he says: I was so clumsy and could not to imagine things by reason, so that if I could not really see them; my imagination was useless unlike other people who have made the object of their contemplation could imagine. I could think of Christ as man, but I could never imagine him inwardly.

3. Though I had read so much of his beauty and seen so much of his pictures (Psalm 9:6). If so, what does she really mean when she says that her prayer lies in the fact that we are aware of Christ within us, or when she advises: Imagine that he is with you (C 26:1)? Is this perhaps proof that you are contradictory? Especially when elsewhere he encourages the sisters to remember to imagine Christ looking at them with his beautifully compassionate eyes, which are full of tears (C 26:5). Let us try to understand what he means. Let us first realize that Teresa’s demand to be aware of the Priest (although she was not able to do so according to the instructions of the authors she read) refers to an imagination capable of forming a visual and, at the same time, permanent image of Christ, that is, of conjuring up an appearance in the manner of a painted picture that is dear to us and to which can be freely concentrated on, the soul can gaze at it for a long time, can fix (the mind) long on God (Rev 5:2; cf. Ps 22:4).

4. Teresa certainly did not lack imagery, as evidenced by the images she uses in her writings. She does not deny her role in prayer, because she says that imagining imagery is like watching the Lord hanging on the cross or in another moment of his passion, and we remember within ourselves what was happening at the moment (C 34:8). By this, she means that it was impossible for her to construct an image of Christ in herself almost as something she saw with human eyes, a kind of visualization of Christ. For, in this way, she understood the use of imagery demanded by the spiritual authors. For in this way she could only imagine what she had seen with her eyes (cf. Ps 9:6). She knew, however, that his humanity does not dwell with us in our souls, but his divinity (R 57). Hence, her difficulties. Therefore, the inner idea of Christ of which Teresa speaks is not of the order of imagination but of the order of living faith, which perceives Christ’s presence without seeing him. In this spirit, we can also interpret her explanation: I was like a blind person or as if in some darkness, as if for a more detailed explanation, let us recall what Roland Barthes says: “The Ignatius image is neither a vision nor a mirage, but a plastic view of reality ( in the same sense of the word as in the artistic discipline of engraving. (…) These views (we now extend the meaning of the word, since they are all components of pictorial perception) can “contain” tastes, smells, sounds or other sensory perceptions, but it is a “visual” sight, if we may say so, and this is Ignatius is fully committed to” (op. cit. /see note 5/, p. 60). The author further notes that it was not the case with Teresa of Avila a person who talks to someone, knows that the other is next to him, it is certain, but still cannot see him. This happened to me, when I thought of our Lord (Psalm 9:6). Elsewhere, he specifies that it is the presence of God that does not.

You like solving riddles, puzzles, and crosswords for your inner enrichment. Whoever reads today’s Gospel takes on the role of a diviner who can enrich himself for this world and eternity. Let’s judge. Jesus tells Nicodemus: “He who comes from above is all” (Jn 3:31-32).

Those who compiled the liturgical texts left out ten whole verses between yesterday’s and today’s Gospel text. In the previous text, John the Baptist bore witness to Jesus. In today’s episode, Lord Jesus speaks about a double testimony. “He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks of the earth” (Jn 3:31). He meant John the Baptist. “He who comes from heaven is above all – he testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony.” (John 3:31-32). And that is Jesus. From this we know that a person can accept Christ and his words but reject them. Whoever takes them becomes a Christian and receives God’s word at the same time. However, everything does not end there. Tasks await the Christian. We must convey this knowledge of Christ to others.In the Gospel, we reveal the secret of the person of the Lord Jesus; we recognize that he is God’s messenger, the Savior of the world, but also the Judge of all. We are all witnesses. Even John the Baptist is only a witness, even if we consider him the greatest born of a woman.

With the baptism we received, we also must bear witness to Christ like John the Baptist. This means that not only our words, but our whole life, should speak about Christ. At the same time, a Christian must not put himself before Christ. Like John, the Christian should also stand aside as a witness because he is only a mediator between two parties. Let’s ask God for the light of faith so that we give a good testimony that would be credible and that we would not hide the truth.

Knowing Christ is the duty of every baptized person. Although we received baptism as children and did not realize its significance for our earthly and eternal life, yet in a state where we have acquired the use of reason and are aware of our responsibility, that we have free will, we should multiply the grace of baptism.  Prayer – conversation with Jesus, holy mass – meeting with Jesus, sacrament – receiving Jesus. All this is not only our duty, but also a need, because by this, we fulfill what God rightfully expects of us, but at the same time we acquire the necessary merits without which salvation is impossible. Since the early days of Christianity, followers, including us, have been called Christians. We have a name after Christ, and thus also the obligation that after baptism, we should really bear witness to Christ.

We will only know a few things in faith. Many things we accept, we believe, and although we cannot explain them, this does not prevent us from being able to accept them. The personality of Christ is the pinnacle of our life. 

Violence will not solve things. Freedom must be adequately respected. Violence is an obstacle, not progress. Also, the teachings of Christ, given non-violently, will surely attract more and also strengthen a person in his faith.

The personality of Nicodemus in the Gospel is proof of this. Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish high council, often visited Christ, especially at night. In these meetings, the main topic was faith. Nicodemus became convinced that nothing is as essential for a person as faith. Christ explained to him that without faith it is impossible to be like God and that the victory in which the world triumphs is our faith. Nicodemus believed Christ.

Today, the Church wants to point out to us the circumstances that should prepare us for a proper understanding of the truth of the death and resurrection of Christ. The Church wants us to be broken neither by suffering, torture, nor death so that we may believe more in Christ, the world’s Savior. In the Gospels, we read that Jesus often asked for strong faith from his listeners during his public appearances. For on this he depended on the way forward in following him.

The Church wants to convince us of the great role of faith in human life. It refers today to an event that once took place in the wilderness during the journey of the Jews from Egypt to their promised land (cf. Num. 21:5-9). On the way, they were attacked by poisonous snakes. It was then that the Israelites realized that this was a punishment from God for their grumbling. They begged Moses to beg mercy from God. According to God’s command, Moses made a brazen serpent, placed it on a pole, and declared that whoever looked at the serpent with faith would be saved. And indeed, he was. The brazen serpent mentioned in the Gospel is a picture and symbol of the hanging, dying man on the cross – Christ. His suffering and death cannot be the cause of our doubt or melancholy, but, on the contrary, they are meant to revive our faith and strengthen us in overcoming the difficulties that it is necessary for Christ to endure for us, and so enter into his glory (cf. Lk 26:26). As we reflect on the suffering and death of Christ at this time, we desire to be strengthened in our faith and to believe fully in Christ, and if we are strengthened in the conviction that God did not send His Son into the world that the world should perish, but that he who believes in Him should have eternal life. Thanks be to Jesus Christ that we are saved by his suffering and death, which is not the dramatic end of his life, for it brings new life.

There is only one point of exception, that violence does not attract, does not entice, and that is in the words of Christ: Heaven is gained only by violence. By violence to oneself. By greater self-control, by control, by study, by personal witness.

There is a big difference between talking about someone and talking to someone. Theology is the science of God, i.e., what God is like, what his attributes are, what God has done. However, you also need to talk to God. Listen to what God is saying to me, catch God’s voice, and trying to respond to God’s voice. When a priest preaches, it shouldn’t just be what he has read in a book or seen on YouTube, but he should say how he was personally touched by the gospel. This is how the apostles preached. At various meetings, we often talk about the situation of the Church and different opinions, but we should talk about our engagement with God. A big mistake is when we don’t know anything about our encounter with God, because we didn’t have any personal encounter with God.

We don’t just call various drawings signs; signs include writing, notes, objects, words, and thoughts… The Gospel says: “As Moses lifted the serpent in the wilderness, even so, must the Son of Man be lifted, that whoever believes…may have eternal life” (Jn 3:14). When the chosen nation left slavery in Egypt for the promised land of Canaan, the nation in the wilderness, under the leadership of Moses, often went against God’s will. The people often murmured. During one such grumbling, God sent poisonous snakes upon the Jews. This bit the people, and the nation began to realize that it had offended God. Therefore, they turn to Moses and ask him to plead with God to save them from the horrible death of being bitten by snakes. God then instructed Moses to hang a snake on a pole, which he was to cast out of brass. When he did so, everyone who touched or gazed upon this serpent of brass, even though bitten by snakes, did not die.

These people were saved through the Savior and Redeemer of all people, Jesus Christ. When Christ was dying on the cross, He was nailing the power of evil, the power of sin, to the cross at that time. The cross became the source of new life for us; it became the source of healing. This event wants to tell us that whoever looks at the crucified Christ wants to find eternal life. It is very necessary to take the time to look at the crucified Christ. When his gaze meets ours, it will pierce our pride, and we will feel the power of healing. Everything is Jesus’ answer to Nicodemus’ question: “How can this be?” (cf. Jn 3:9). Nicodemus was troubled; he did not yet understand how a person can believe and be born again of the Holy Spirit. This is the moment when one wants to solve everything by oneself, that is, before the illumination of the Holy Spirit. Jesus wants Nicodemus to believe in the atoning death of the Lord Jesus. Just as those who snakes bit and by looking at the brazen serpent were healed, so anyone who looks with faith at the crucified Christ will gain eternal life, be healed, saved and redeemed. As the Lord Jesus’ death on the cross was a necessary entrance into His glory, so for man, faith is the condition for attaining justification of sins before God, through being born again of the Spirit through baptism, and attaining glory in heaven.

Not only does the sacrament of baptism become for us the gateway to eternal life, but in this sacrament, we are also forgiven of all our sins committed before baptism. By baptism, we have regained what our grandparents lost by their disobedience in paradise. When we renew our baptismal vows, for example, in the church community at First Communion, on White Saturday, we realize that we renounce all sin, confess our faith, and thereby grow in our friendship with God. This, then, is our witness expressed in gestures, in words, and behind all this is something invisible to our eyes and yet so necessary for our life of faith – contact with God: this is what unites us and makes us true brothers and sisters of the Lord Jesus

The experience of God’s mercy develops the human ability to forgive and teaches the necessary civic virtues.

Illustration photo: commons.wikimedia.org