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Cardinal and Bishop Attend 40th Anniversary Celebrations The following is the homily given by His Eminence Cardinal Alfonsus Lopez Trujillo on Sunday, January 11, 2004 in Mesa Arizona during the celebration of the 40th Anniversary of Miles Jesu. Beloved brothers and sisters,During these days we have experienced the newness of the presence of God who has placed his tent among us, who through the mystery of God-incarnate has entered our history. We have discovered him in Bethlehem, in the manger, as the Savior of the world and we have adored him with the three Magi guided by the star. The Lord has given us the wonderful gift of Faith, through which we recognize the Divine Infant whom we are called to follow through the waters of Baptism. We have the eminent dignity of being the image of God. The most perfect way of being the image of God is by being sons and daughters by adoption. Our Lord encountered Saint John the Baptist on two occasions. When Mary was on her way to Ainkarim and greeted Elizabeth. Still in the womb John exalted with joy, because he, the last and greatest of the prophets, felt the closeness of the Son that Mary was carrying in her womb. That is why we call her Ark of the Covenant. With John the Baptist, the Old Testament closes and the new one opens, with the goodness of the reign that becomes present in the Lordship of Christ. The second occasion is the Lord’s Baptism; the innocent lamb goes to the waters of the Jordan River, even though John protests that he is only his precursor who announces him. At the beginning of his public life, the Holy Spirit descended as a dove and the voice that came from heaven proclaimed him as the Messiah. “This is my beloved Son.” This is a proclamation in history, a unique revelation of the One who could call the Father, “Abba,” Daddy, like the child who pronounces the first words before the gaze of his father. Today, in a new manifestation he reveals himself as the Son through whom we receive the dignity of being sons. He is the one who calls us to follow him and rouses his disciples to announce him. What a joy to celebrate with this dear community the fortieth year of its foundation, when Father Alphonsus Maria Duran, in this city, received the call to this new work of Miles Jesu. Today, it is a dream made into a reality full of hope. During these years the large Miles Jesu family has been blessed in the mission of preaching the Gospel, as the Holy Father has entrusted me to say, for the renovation of the world with the values of the civilization of love. And this community, with complete fidelity to the Church of the Lord and to the successor of Peter, has grown, has made itself present in various countries with the richness of its charism. You have received strength from the Eucharist, from prolonged prayer before the Blessed Sacrament, the Bread of Life, in an attitude of availability, like Mary, who with motherly tenderness accompanies you. The Holy Father blesses you so that you continue your dedication and fervor that inspires vocations, and leads you to serve the poor in cities, especially the children. We gather in union with the General Director to give thanks for these first forty years of invigorating work, and to ask that this family continues to grow with enthusiasm and that it consolidates with the strength of the Spirit. At the end of Mass I will have the honor of giving the Apostolic blessing in the name of the Holy Father. May the Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, guide you through the paths of the world, and may the Son, Fruit of her womb, bless you. |