Through the meditations of the last few days, we have had the opportunity to encounter God the Father more closely. Sometimes negative experiences that we may have had in our lives prevent us from recognizing the true image of God, for example, if the relationship with our biological father was rather problematic. However, one should not get caught up in these experiences; instead, it becomes even more necessary to discover God as our loving Father, who is able to heal our wounds and fill any inner emptiness with Himself.
As we mentioned at the beginning of the novena, this celebration of God the Father as the Father of all humanity responds to a request that He Himself transmitted through Mother Eugenia Ravasio. Only the ecclesiastical hierarchy can establish it as an official feast in the liturgical calendar, but until that happens, priests who share this intention could celebrate on this day a votive Mass to the Blessed Trinity, especially dedicated to the Heavenly Father.
What would be the benefits of establishing a feast specifically in honor of God the Father? What would be the fruits of spreading a deeper love for Him? In the message given to Mother Eugenia, Heavenly Father mentions great promises. For example, that if the Feast is established in His honor, people will be converted more easily and firmly, that people will receive more hope, and many other promises.
There is one concrete aspect that I would like to dwell on.
If we consciously cultivate the relationship with God as our Heavenly Father, the intimacy and closeness of our relationship with Him would be strengthened, and thus our bonds as a spiritual family of believers would also be strengthened. This would increase our trust in God, and He would have easier access to our hearts.
Without diminishing in the least the true reverence for the Heavenly Father that is part of any authentic father-child relationship, we would regain what we lost as a result of original sin: familiarity and trust with our Creator, who reveals Himself to us as a loving Father.
Moreover, God offers Himself to us as a friend and confidant, as close as He wants to be! Perhaps it is still foreign to us to cultivate such a close, heart-to-heart relationship with God, and perhaps it is even more difficult for us to understand from the inside how close He is to us. But as we set out and encounter the Father more and more deeply through our Lord Jesus Christ, it will become increasingly natural to us. What a rewarding experience!
Let us consider how tender was the relationship of John, the beloved disciple, with Jesus, even to the point of lying on His breast. All these references, together with so many words of Scripture that testify to God’s love, invite us again and again to let ourselves be loved by Him.
In addition to meditating on the Word of God and receiving the Sacraments, we should always take some time to be alone with God the Father, just to talk to Him, to learn to listen to Him, to offer Him all that we carry in our hearts. God always has time for us, and He will never tire of listening to His children. We should not only come to Him to bring the big problems and issues, but also the “little things” are important to Him, just as they are to our Heavenly Mother.
The more we understand His love, the more we allow it to enter our hearts, the more we become familiar with it and find our security in it, the more our hearts will also open up to our brothers and sisters, and the more we will grow in the longing that all people become our brothers and sisters, children of the same Father: one family with one divine Father.
The establishment of this feast in honour of God the Father as “Father of all mankind”, as He Himself wished, would contribute greatly to such a noble goal. Therefore, I cordially invite all our listeners to pray that this wish of our Heavenly Father may be fulfilled.
With this intention, exactly four years ago today, a group of believers was formed – we call it “Abba’s Family” – who have been called by the Father Himself to know, honour and love Him in a special way and to make His love known to people. At present there are about 1,900 members from 58 different nations. If, after this novena, anyone would like to join the Abba Family and represent their country before the Father, they can register at this link: https://www.amadopadrecelestial.org/contacto
We would also like to inform our listeners that, in addition to the daily meditations, we are also publishing a small daily impulse to deepen the relationship of love with God the Father. We call them “3 minutes for Abba”. You can find them on the following links
-Telegram: https://t.me/threeminutesforAbba
-Webpage: http://en.elijamission.net/category/3-minutes-for-god-the-father/
Let us accept God’s invitation to enter more deeply into the love of our Father! Surely this will bring Him great joy and in this way we could already fulfil the deepest meaning of the feast we celebrate today in His honour.
