In his first sermon for Lent 2021, the pastor of the papal household, the newly established Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, OFM Cap., Gives an overview of the season and reflects on Jesus’ call to conversion.
By the Vatican News employee reporter
Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, who was made cardinal by Pope Francis at the consistory of November 28, 2020, delivered his first sermon before Lent 2021 in the Paul VI Hall in the Vatican. The theme for this year’s Lent reflections is “Who Do You Say I Am?”, Taken from the Gospel of Matthew.
For his introductory sermon, the pastor of the papal family reviewed the season of Lent, emphasizing the passage “Repent and Believe in the Gospel!”
Three moments of conversion
Repentance or repentance, Cardinal Cantalamessa said, is mentioned in “three different moments and contexts” in the New Testament, corresponding to different moments in our own lives.
The first is based on the words Jesus spoke at the beginning of his ministry: “Repent and believe in the gospel!” This, according to Cardinal Cantalamessa, does not primarily have a moral sense, but instead consists primarily in having faith, in believing, in changing our view of our relationship with God.
The second call to repentance in the New Testament comes when Jesus invites His disciples to “turn and become like children.” Here, Jesus “brings forth a real revolution” and calls them – and we – “to shift the center of yourself and re-focus yourself on Christ.” Becoming children, Cardinal Cantalamessa said, means going back to when we first really met Jesus.
Finally, in the book of Revelation, Jesus mentions those who are neither hot nor cold to “be sincere … and repent.” “The focus here,” said Cardinal Cantalamessa, is on the conversion from mediocre and lukewarm to fiery. This is not our own work, he insisted, but rather the work of the Holy Spirit.
From being lukewarm to fiery
Cardinal Cantalamessa recalled the experience of the disciples when they were filled with the Spirit on the first Pentecost. The Church Fathers described this experience with the picture of “sober drunkenness” – the disciples were not drunk on wine as the people imagined, but instead, after receiving the Holy Ghost, they were spiritually intoxicated.
“How can we take over this ideal of sober drunkenness and embody it in the current situation in history and in the church?” Asked Cardinal Cantalamessa. Beyond the ordinary means of the Eucharist and Scripture, the Cardinal, quoting Saint Ambrose, points to a third, “extraordinary” means, which is not institutional, but instead involves “reliving the experience of the apostles. the day of Pentecost.
One way this is done, he said, is in the “so-called ‘Baptism in the Spirit,'” which involves “a renewal with a new consciousness, not only of baptism and confirmation, but of the entire Christian life.” the main fruit. is the discovery of what it means to have a “personal relationship” with the risen and living Jesus. “
Cardinal Cantalamessa stressed the importance of “a genuine conversion from being lukewarm to fervent, and invited his audience to pray for Mary’s intercession for this grace.
You can read the full text of Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa’s sermon on his website