يا إِخوَتِي : بَعْدَ خَمْسَةِ أَيَّام، نَزَلَ حَنَانِيَّا عَظِيمُ ٱلأَحْبَارِ مَعَ بَعْضِ ٱلشُّيُوخ، وَمُحَامٍ ٱسْمُهُ ترْتِلُّس، وعَرَضُوا أَمَامَ ٱلوَالي شَكْوَاهُم عَلى بُولُس. فَٱسْتَدْعَى ٱلوَالي بُولُس، وبَدَأَ تِرتِلُّسُ يَشْكُوهُ قَائِلاً : «أَيُّهَا ٱلشَّرِيفُ فِيلِكْس، إِنَّ مَا نَنْعَمُ بِهِ مِنْ سَلامٍ شَامِلٍ بِفَضْلِكَ، ومَا جَرَى بِعِنَايَتِكَ مِنْ إِصْلاحَاتٍ لِخَيْرِ أُمَّتِنَا، فَقَدْ وَجَدْنَا هذَا ٱلرَّجُلَ آفَةَ ٱلآفَات، يُثِيرُ ٱلفِتَنَ بَيْنَ جَمِيع ٱليَهُود، في ٱلمَسْكُونَةِ كُلِّهَا، وَهُوَ مُتَقَدِّمٌ في شِيعَةِ ٱلنَّصَارَى. وقَدْ حَاوَل أَنْ يُدَنِّسَ ٱلهَيْكَل ، فَقَبَضْنَا عَلَيْه. وَأَرَدْنَا أَنْ نُحَاكِمَهُ بِحَسَبِ شَريعَتِنَا، وَأَيَّدَ ٱليَهُودُ كَلامَ ٱلمُحَامِي زَاعِمِينَ أَنَّ ٱلأَمْرَ كَذلِكَ. وأَشَارَ ٱلوَالي إِلى بُولُسَ أَنْ يَتَكَلَّم، فَأَجَاب: «أَنَا أَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ قَاضِي أُمَّتِنَا مُنْذُ سَنَوَاتٍ عَدِيدَة، وَلِذَلِكَ أُدَافِعُ عَنْ نَفْسِي مُطْمَئِنًّا. وَيُمِكِنُكَ أَنْ تَتَأَكَّدَ أَنَّهُ لَمْ يَمْضِ أَكْثَرَ مِنِ ٱثْنَيْ عَشَرَ يَوْمًا عَلى صُعُودِي إِلى أُورَشَلِيمَ لِلْعِبَادَة. وَلَمْ يَجِدُونِي مَرَّةً أُجَادِلُ أَحَدًا أَوْ أُثِيرُ جَمْعًا، لا في ٱلهَيْكَل، ولا في ٱلمَجَامِع، ولا في ٱلمَدِينَة. فَهُمْ أَعْجَزُ مِنْ أَنْ يُثْبِتُوا مَا يَشْكُونَنِي بِهِ ٱلآن. وَبَعْدَ سِنِينَ كَثِيرَة، جِئْتُ إِلى أُورَشَلِيمَ أَحْمِلُ صَدَقَاتٍ إِلى أُمَّتِي وَأُقَرِّبُ قَرَابِين. وفِيمَا كُنْتُ أَقُومُ بِذلِكَ، وجَدُونِي في ٱلهَيْكَل، وقَدْ تَطَهَّرْتُ، لا مَعَ جَمْعٍ ولا في شَغَب. وٱلَّذِينَ وَجَدُونِي هُمْ يَهُودٌ مِنْ آسِيَا، وقَدْ كَانَ عَلَيْهِم أَنْ يَحْضُرُوا بَيْنَ يَدَيْكَ ويَشْكُونِي، لَوْ كَانَ لَهُم عَلَيَّ أَيُّ شَكْوَى. أَو فَلْيَقُلْ هؤُلاءِ أَنْفُسُهُم مَاذَا وَجَدُوا فِيَّ مِنْ جُرْمٍ، حِينَ وَقَفْتُ أَمَامَ مَجْلِسِهِم، غَيْرَ تِلْكَ ٱلكَلِمَةِ ٱلَّتِي صِحْتُ بِهَا، وأَنَا وَاقِفٌ بَيْنَهُم: «إِنِّي عَلى قِيَامَةِ ٱلأَمْوَاتِ أُحَاكَمُ ٱليَوْمَ أَمَامَكُم؟».

أين هو القلب المحبّ؟ إنّه موجدٌ في الأشياء التي يحبّها. بالتالي، حيث يكون حبّنا، يكون قلبنا مُحتَجزًا. لا يمكنه الخروج من هذه الأشياء، ولا التّرفّع عنها، ولا الذهاب يمينًا أو شمالاً؛ ها هو متوقّف في مكانه. حيث يوجد كنز البخيل، يكون قلبه؛ وحيث يكون قلبنا، يكون كنزنا. وما يثير الشّفقة أن تلك الأشياء الّتي تستعبدنا هي أمورٌ تافهة جدًّا. أجل! إن أمرًا سخيفًا، أم فكرة خياليّة، أم كلمة قاسية قيلت لنا، أم استقبالاً غير ودّي، أم رفضًا صغيرًا، أم تفكيرًا بأنّنا لسنا محطّ اعتبار عند الآخرين... إنّ هذه الأمور كلّها تؤذينا وتزعجنا إلى حدّ يجعلنا غير قابلين للشفاء! فحبّ الذات يبقينا مكبّلين بهذه الجراح الخياليّة وغير قادرين على التخلّص منها، فتسيطر علينا باستمرار. لكن لماذا؟ لأنّنا نحن سجناء هذا الشغف... هل نحن ضمن "حريّة أبناء الله" (رو 8: 21). أم نحن مكبّلون بالخيرات ووسائل الراحة والأمجاد؟ أيّها المخلّص، لقد فتحت لنا باب الحريّة، فعلّمنا كيف نعثر عليه. اجعلنا نكتشف أهميّة هذه الحصانة، اجعلنا نلجأ إليك للوصول إلى ذلك. نوّرنا، أيها المخلّص، لنرى ما هي الأمور التي تكبّلنا؛ وضعنا، من فضلك، ضمن حريّة أبناء الله.

Five days later the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and an attorney, a certain Tertullus, and they reported their case against Paul to the governor. When Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying: ‘Your Excellency, because of you we have long enjoyed peace, and reforms have been made for this people because of your foresight. We have, in fact, found this man a pestilent fellow, an agitator among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. He even tried to profane the temple, and so we seized him. The Jews also joined in the charge by asserting that all this was true. When the governor motioned to him to speak, Paul replied: ‘I cheerfully make my defence, knowing that for many years you have been a judge over this nation. As you can find out, it is not more than twelve days since I went up to worship in Jerusalem. They did not find me disputing with anyone in the temple or stirring up a crowd either in the synagogues or throughout the city. Neither can they prove to you the charge that they now bring against me. Now after some years I came to bring alms to my nation and to offer sacrifices. While I was doing this, they found me in the temple, completing the rite of purification, without any crowd or disturbance. But there were some Jews from Asia they ought to be here before you to make an accusation, if they have anything against me. Or let these men here tell what crime they had found when I stood before the council, unless it was this one sentence that I called out while standing before them, "It is about the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you today." ’

"Hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come within us.” Now behold, daughters, how great the wisdom of our Master is... I am reflecting here on what we are asking for when we ask for this kingdom. But since His Majesty saw that we could neither hallow, nor praise, nor extol, nor glorify this holy name of the Eternal Father in a fitting way, because of the tiny amount we ourselves are capable of doing, He provided for us by giving us here on earth His kingdom. That is why Jesus put these two petitions next to each other... Now, then, the great good that it seems to me there will be in the kingdom of heaven, among many other blessings, is that one will no longer take any account of earthly things, but have a calmness and glory within, rejoice in the fact that all are rejoicing, experience perpetual peace and a wonderful inner satisfaction that comes from seeing that everyone hallows and praises the Lord and blesses His name and that no one offends Him. Everyone loves Him there, and the soul itself doesn't think about anything else than loving Him; nor can it cease loving Him, because it knows Him. And would that we could love Him in this way here below, even though we may not be able to do so with such perfection or stability. But if we knew Him we would love in a way very different from that in which we do love Him... The above would be possible, through the favor of God, for the soul placed in this exile, but not in perfection... for we are at sea and journeying along this way. But there are times when, tired from our travels, we experience that the Lord calms our faculties and quiets the soul. As though by signs, He gives us a clear foretaste of what will be given to those He brings into His kingdom.