Advent latern - 2021

The thoughts of Dr. Jakubinyi György Archbishop Emeritus 

Tuesday, 14 December.

St John of the Cross, communion priest and church teacher. Mt 21,28-32: Parable on the disobedient brothers
It is a well-known parable: a farmer asks his two sons to go out to work in the vineyard. One of them promises, but does not go. The other refuses and then goes out anyway. Which one did his father's will? Clearly, the second one. The two sons symbolize the two covenants: the chosen people of the Old Testament promised to accept the Messiah, but when he came, they rejected him. The Gentile nations did not even know the true God, but when the Messiah came, they accepted him. Therefore the new chosen people is the Church, who--Jews and non-Jews--accepted the Messiah. For us, the lesson is that it is not enough to make baptismal vows and promises, but those promises must be fulfilled! St. John of the Cross, St. Theresa of Avila, reformer and Doctor of the Carmelite Order, did the same when reforming their religious order: they returned to the original promise without any alleviation.

Cikk
Guided and protected by the Risen Jesus, we celebrate on the fourth Sunday of Easter — also called “Good Shepherd Sunday” — the 63rd World Day of Prayer for Vocations. It is an occasion of grace in which we share some reflections on the interior dimension of vocation, understood as the discovery of God’s free gift that blossoms in the depths of our hearts.
Cikk
For World Mission Day 2026, which marks the centenary of a celebration established by Pius XI that is very dear to the Church, I have chosen the theme “One in Christ, united in mission.” Following the Jubilee Year, I wish to encourage the whole Church to continue its missionary journey with joy and zeal in the Holy Spirit.
Cikk
Each year the World Day of Migrants and Refugees invites us to turn our attention to different aspects of the complex phenomenon of migration. For this 112th World Day, the theme, “Even just one of these children,” draws our attention to the minors directly involved in the experience of migration and flight, to the care owed to them, and to the Lord’s promise that “whoever receives one such child in my name receives me” (Mk 9:37).