Homily of H.E. Mons. Claudio Gatti of October 24, 2007

1st reading: Rom 6:12-18; Psalm 123; Gospel: Lk 12:39-48

Today's Theophany, hence the apparition, takes place in two steps, the first reserved to the Bishop and seer, the other is the one all of you attended. You have been listening to what Marisa said and what Our Lady said. Today Marisa talked more because she has been given a chance to let steam off. This is an important day because a vacuum has been officially filled on what happened at the Last Supper. In fact, today, after two thousand years since Christ celebrated the Last Supper, enters in the Church the presence of the Our Lady in the Upper Room and I'll explain the reason why. You must first of all make some assumptions: the Last Supper was celebrated during the Jewish Easter, and the Jews on that occasion had to comply with some laws. One of these stated that all members of the same family would gather and if there were not enough people to fully consume the Easter lamb, more families would have had to get together. Christ always respected the earthly family where he belonged and this respect was shown even more on that occasion: Jesus and Mary knew that this would be the last Passover they would spend together and to celebrate it away from each other would have been a contradiction. To those who say that the Gospel does not mention it, you have to answer that the Scripture does not tell the whole life of Jesus, and John too is saying that. Also one of the fathers of the Church said that the Gospel presumes an intelligent reading and it is intelligent to say that Mary was close to her Son at that such a significant time. If on the day when Jesus shed his first drops of blood, the day of circumcision, he turned to his mother and heard only by her, he said: "You are Mother of the Eucharist", it is unthinkable that in the day when Jesus instituted the Eucharist she was not present. See how many elements we have in order to reach the conclusion that Mary was present. But Mary's style is the one she told us many times in the letters of God: Jesus walked, went, proceeded, surrounded by the apostles and she was always at the bottom, far from him, because she wanted to give all the room to her Son and the apostles. As a testimony of it we remember that Jesus himself sometimes stopped, turned, smiled and beckoned to her mother telling her to come closer: "Come on Mom, come closer to me". His mother would approach Jesus who took her under his arm and together they would resume the walk. Mary's style has always been to stand apart, so that people would turn their attention to Jesus. I have already said, and it is not absurd to think that in the written Gospels, which are transcripts of the oral preaching of the apostles, she herself would say: speak little about me, stop and focus your attention solely on Jesus, my Son, the Messiah and Savior. You know that if I were not quite sure of what I say, I would not make any claim. Today, officially, this vacuum has been filled and it already occurred to fill it to a sensitive and intelligent artist like Leonardo da Vinci. I have already mentioned that according to recent studies, in the fresco he painted in the refectory of Delle Grazie convent in Milan, was present initially the image of a Madonna, placed exactly in the space you see between Jesus and John. Scholars have even shown what Madonna, what fresco he painted and drawn. Today I state that Mary has officially made her entry into the Upper Room as Mother of the Eucharist. In the first moment of the Theophany and today's apparition, this statue of Our Lady was blessed by God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. There is their agreement in placing Our Lady exactly where we have chosen so she could be seen and be present in the image of the Last Supper. In my opinion it was our Lord who inspired our artist Claudia to make this statue of Our Lady where we see her deeply meditating, unlike the apostles who are talking and gesticulating. Here is an evident example, as it is shaped in a visible way, so that everyone may be aware of it. God liked it and for God it is like that. Today, 24 October 2007, we officially recognize this presence blessed by God, suggested by Him, and we will talk about it and will spread this important confirmation of the presence of Our Lady in the Upper Room, as we have done for so many other things. The Mother of the Eucharist, Jesus the Eucharist, the Eucharistic ministers, represent a single set not only to our view, but also for our meditation and reflection. I also like to tell a story somehow recalling this event and this fact. It is an event concerning me but you will know it next Saturday, when I will continue the story of Our Lady's life. I won't talk about it today, if you are curious to know it, you will fulfill your curiosity on Saturday, so you have three days to think over it. If you wonder what your Bishop wanted to say and recount, then come and you will know. Let's experience again what happened with the first apostles, John and Andrew, when they asked Jesus: "Master, where do you live?". He answered: "Come, come and see", and they went together, they talked and become apostles. I hope that for you there is the same path: to become apostles first of all with your life, example, testimony and word. To become apostles of the Mother of the Eucharist, of Jesus, of the Eucharist, the importance of love for the Eucharist that finally has begun to be massively and really present in the Church: this is the most beautiful fruit coming from these apparitions, from the Eucharistic miracles which occurred in this small, humble and simple place, yet holy and thaumaturgic. From here started it all and here everything must return and in the future we will know of any feedback. Messages, announcements, prophecies, catechesis and prayers flew off from this place like doves and in this place they will come back, together with all those people who have been visited by them and wish to return to the doves nest, that is to say to the thaumaturgic place. Fourteen years have passed since October 24, 1993 to October 24, 2007. I greatly enjoyed a thought contained in the greeting letter Teresa wrote to us; in this letter there is an image, a very nice comparison: the rosary mysteries are fifteen, we are at the fourteenth year of public apparitions and today starts the fifteenth year, so fifteen mysteries, fifteen years from the start of public apparitions of the Mother of the Eucharist. The fifteenth glorious mystery is the coronation, hence the conclusion of this wonderful life of the Virgin Mary, of this great and exceptional woman. The fifteenth year since the start of public apparitions beginning today, so we have already entered the fifteenth year, and it is legitimate to ask, or to hope at least, that something will happen. I think that today you too have heard what Marisa said many times, especially in the first moment of the apparition: "Enough words, we want facts". I hope these "facts" may take place and the promises come true, I hope that what has been announced so far in advance may have a start and then continue in the timing that God has established. This is what I ask you, the reason and intention I ask you officially to pray for. Today I said a lot more things to God than what I am saying to you. Today was a painful, suffered, hard and difficult day for us, then it is logical to turn to God for strength, support and courage. Since this morning, when I stopped in front of the Eucharist, until this evening, during the Trinitarian Theophany and the apparition of the Mother of the Eucharist, I prayed a lot and then I ask you to do the same, put in your prayers this intention: may God realize what he has promised. We may say, and we humbly recognize it, that we do not deserve it, we do not even have the right to ask because if we look at our own behavior we see in it a series of faults, imperfections and weaknesses. While making this request, we cannot lean on our spiritual qualities, but on what God said, and He is faithful. We must not put ourselves in the state of mind of those who say: I am entitled to receive, but simply of someone who says: "My God, You promised, keep your promise". Take note on how different is the attitude and manner to ask God. Perhaps, until a few days ago, it was stronger the feeling to be in order and to demand. We do not demand, but ask with humility and gratitude that God may do what He promised. May there always be this spirit in the prayer and not the presumption demonstrated by the mother of Zebedee's sons, when she asked to put her sons one on the right and another to the left. What rights do we have to expect this from God? Someone may expect it, but it is not our community that has this right and then pray with humility, with love, with simplicity, saying to God: "I ask you what your will has shown us", no more no less. May our Lord enlighten and encourage us, let's pray that He may let us go always forward. Keep in mind that not only is it important to remember, but also to put into practice the motto I launched a few years ago: "Flying wing by wing".

Praised be Jesus Christ.