On Friday 3 June, the solemn Eucharistic celebration presided by the Custos of the Holy Land, Fr. Francesco Patton, accompanied by the Custody Vicar, Fr. Dobromir Jasztal, together with Mons. José Vilalana Blasco and Mons. Antonio Mattiazzo, as well as the friars from the different shrines on the Sea of Galilee and the community of the parish of Nazareth, was held at the Franciscan shrine of the Primacy of Peter in Tabgha.
During the homily, given in Arabic by Fr. Marwan Di’des, the parish priest of Nazareth, starting off from the question, “Jesus, what do you want from me?” underlined the importance of being called by God and, above all staying with Him even though often clearly understanding the divine will is difficult.God summoned twelve men with temperaments that were completely different who, not infrequently, struggled to understand the will of their Master. However, they still decided to follow him.
At the end of the Mass, the Custos, together with the concelebrants and the people of God, went in a procession towards the chapel where the Mensa Christi is kept. In the chapel, the deacon proclaimed the Gospel and, before the solemn blessing, the Custos of the Holy Land recalled a fundamental aspect of that holy place: Tabgha is the shrine of friendship and the love of Jesus for his disciples, which appears through the gesture of preparing roast fish for them to enjoy together in fraternity. This place must still inspire the Church today with the primacy of love and of brotherhood and it can be inspiration for the the synodal path.
Fr. Eduardo Masseo, ofm
