Word of the day

A reading from the letter to Colossians
COL 1:15-20

Brothers and sisters:
Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers;
all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the Body, the Church.
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.
For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the Blood of his cross
through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.

From the Gospel according to Luke
LK 5:33-39

The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,
"The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers,
and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same;
but yours eat and drink."
Jesus answered them, "Can you make the wedding guests fast
while the bridegroom is with them?
But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them,
then they will fast in those days."
And he also told them a parable.
"No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.
Otherwise, he will tear the new
and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.
Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.
Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,
and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.
Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.
And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new,
for he says, 'The old is good.'"

The accusatory style is the style of those believers who always try to accuse others, who live by accusing and always disqualify others. A style, I would say, of failed promoters of justice: they are always trying to accuse others. But they don't realize that it is the style of the devil: in the Bible the devil is called the "great accuser", who is always accusing others. The Lord has offered you the new wine but you have not changed the bottles, you have not changed. Worldliness is what ruins so many people, so many people! Good people, but this spirit of vanity, pride, of being seen, enters in... The Christian style is that of the Beatitudes: meekness, humility, patience in suffering, love for justice, ability to endure persecution, not judging others... If you want to know what the Christian style is like, so as not to fall into this accusatory style, the worldly style and the selfish style, read the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes are the new wineskins, they are the way to get there. (Santa Marta, 21 january 2019)