Text of the Eucharistic adoration of March 29, 2015

Palm Sunday

First moment

Jesus the Eucharist, today we want to keep You company and to follow and share with You both the joy of Your triumphal entry in Jerusalem and the pain of Your passage to Calvary. These two events, which we celebrate on Palm Sunday, occurred within a few days and yet they are so at odds with each other as to be incomprehensible. You, Lord, as you went into Jerusalem greeted by cheers and shouts of joy, You knew already what would have happen shortly thereafter. But those who followed you, your apostles, what did they think or understand of what happened? First the cheers and shortly thereafter the crucifixion. We too, if we take the apostles’ place, if we try to understand what emotions they felt, or what doubts were attacking them in those moments, we feel a swirl of mixed feelings and a lot of confusion. Enthusiastic people waved olive branches in the air when you came in the holy city, and after a while they condemned You to death on the cross, which was considered, at that time, most heinous and most humiliating and for this reason it was imposed on the worst criminals.

What would you like to teach us, Lord? What would you like us to appreciate from the analysis of these events? Surely we understand that we must not rely on man, for man is fickle, he follows his interests and not always or necessarily the way of love. You alone, God, are forever faithful. Since the Old Testament you have encouraged us to trust in You, when prophet Jeremiah shouted:

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreads out its roots by the river, and shall not fear when heat comes, but its leaf shall be green, and it shall not be anxious in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. (Jer 17:7-8)

It is noteworthy, in this case, that being united to You, Lord, does not mean being deprived of the sufferings and difficulties of life. A great example is our Bishop and our sister Marisa, to whom You really have spared no suffering. It actually means that if we allow You to act in our lives, You also give us the strength and ability to face the dark moments.

Also prophet Isaiah is sealing the fallibility of man and his resources:

Cease regarding man, whose breath is in his nostrils; for why should he be esteemed? (Is 2:22)

In the New Testament, with the Sermon on the Mount, you taught us clearly what should be our attitude towards You, ourselves and our brothers. The first beatitude "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven" (Mt 5:3), foundation on which the whole life of Christians stands, means that man must empty of himself and fully rely on You, God. The poor in spirit are those who are conscious of not being able to count on their own resources and search for Your will, making it the purpose for the choices of their lives.

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who remains in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit. For without Me you can do nothing. (Jn 15:5)

That's right, Jesus, without You we can do nothing, from You we draw our strength, joy, hope and, above all, love. This is, my God, the path we want to go, the path of one who knows he cannot do it on his own and cannot rely on the fickleness of the world and its instability. We want to follow You Lord, help us to do it always with love and growing commitment.

Second moment

While coming in Jerusalem Jesus is hailed with joy as a King and celebrated with enthusiasm by the children who, in turn, involve the adults too. As it was revealed by our Bishop in his prayer dated March 16, 2008, on the occasion of the same solemnity, he was a witness outside of time of that historic event, through the eyes of the soul. In this vision the great moral suffering experienced by Jesus was shown, as He saw, through the ages, all those who would have betrayed Him. Only the Mother of the Eucharist became aware of the infinite sadness in her Son’s heart and stepped in to encourage Him. Following this encouragement, Jesus experienced joy in looking into the future and find the many people who "would have loved him and would become his disciples". Among them He saw the Bishop and the Seer who, in order to follow him and carry out the mission entrusted to them, would be exposed to "terrible persecution" and "unjust sentences". With them he also saw us, a small group of people, of little importance in the eyes of the world, but moved by genuine love for Him. The thought that our little flock was a source of comfort for Jesus, at the time of suffering, is filling us with joy and should be a strong incentive to continue with renewed vigor on this wonderful journey, despite the moments of fatigue or difficulties of life.

From the letter of God, May 24, 2004:

When you feel disheartened and you feel down, do not let yourself go, come to this thaumaturgic place, or approach the tabernacle, call upon Jesus and say: “Jesus, help me, today is a very sad day”. This applies to everybody, it applies to the Bishop, to the seer, to all of you and to your dear ones. Courage, my little children.

The Lord has laid his eyes filled with love of this holy place and on those who choose to attend it with commitment. Each of us has received from God great spiritual and material gifts. We should never forget to be grateful to him by loving Him and our neighbor. So, we want to take as our own the famous words of St. Augustine that our Bishop would often repeat: "Love and do what you like". The thoughts and actions of those who love are dictated by the love and respect for themselves and for the others and, consequently, for the law of our Lord.