PRAYING “LA PAROLA DEL PADRE”
Living Christ’s humanity
Scripture reading (Rm 8:5–11)
For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, indeed it cannot; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God really dwells in you. Any one who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Confortian response
Parola del Padre 20, August 1919
“The greatest blessing the Lord has bestowed upon us in his infinite kindness was to call us to be part of his Kingdom, which is the Church, the mystical body of Christ, of which he is the head and we are the members. In order to belong to this kingdom, we must participate in the spirit of Christ, just as the members must be joined to the head if they are to have life. This explains why the divine Master said in his Gospel that the kingdom of God is within us. It must dwell, first and foremost, in our mind through truth, in our heart through justice, in our soul through grace”.
Personal reflection
We are members of Christ and we are also disciples of his Spirit. Consequently, what mutual respect, noble conduct and dealings we must practice with each other! What the world calls “etiquette” is, for us as members of Christ, a specific imperative of our “being in him”. Kindness, charity, gentleness, peace and serenity that shine on our face and through everything we do, must confer upon the member of Christ an elegance that inspires love and respect. A coarse way of dealing with others is a lack of respect for the great dignity of the member of Christ, be it a child or an adult, an educated or ignorant person. The essence of our dignity is interior and invisible, whilst the exterior appearance says little to those who have a spirit of faith.
All who knew Guido M. Conforti were unanimous in saying that his life and conduct represented a rare example of perfection in everything, an example of balance and harmony. He wanted his missionaries do the same and he used to say to them: “Love each other as brothers, respect each other like princes”.
In the Fundamental Rule, Conforti gives us a description that we can regard as autobiographical: “In all circumstances the missionary’s behavior should be serious, not haughty, kind, not pretentious, such as to inspire respect in those who approach him; his clothing should be clean and proper, neither slovenly nor excessively elegant. Let him be mindful that his behavior must always be a convincing message confirmed by the eloquence of his deeds. This will be truly so if, in all his dealings with people, he strives to behave in the same way as Christ, his model, would behave in similar circumstances” (FR 14).