Reflection: Evening Prayer
(David M. Kammler - Rome/Germany)

Dear companions in the service of preaching the Gospel,

Which ideas are given us to in the parting texts of Holy Scripture in this celebration?

(Book of wisdom 2, 1.12-22 / John 7,1-2.10.25-30)

Jesus leaves Judea and goes back to Galilee, his home.

Tomorrow we will also leave for our home countries again. Very different from Jesus however, because we, unlike Jesus, are not in danger of our lives here in Argentina! On the contrary: Many of us would prefer to get to know even more of this beautiful country and experience the hospitality of its inhabitants. Our mission, to let the ‘seed’ rise and grow the in these days entrusted to us, that mission begins at home where we are rooted. From there, our task during the coming years will be to remain in contact with each other and to realize the good inputs and ideas little by little. That is what Galilee is for Jesus, the familiar surroundings that allow growth and development of the inner concerns of Jesus: the preaching of the Lord’s abundant love and kindness for all creation! We are not alone in this – as Jesus was. In today’s gospel it is said:

Jesus joins his sisters and brothers in their pilgrimage for Jerusalem for the feast of Passover; he keeps in the background, but - so it is said: ’he is speaking freely'.

In community with God’s loving proximity and aware of the sisters and brothers at our side, we too are strong and do not fear places and opportunities as much as we did before - just like Jesus on his journey to Jerusalem - where for us also, conflicts are inevitable. There are of course, single-pilgrims and famous individualists. However, rooted in our Dominican Family it will better help us to manage the pilgri-mage together. We must not draw attention to ourselves standing at the centre of public interest. Without having a bad conscience we can in our society keep in the background - just like Jesus in the gospel of  today –and from there preach indepen-dently and freely through our life itself, our lifestyle, the liberty of  God’s children. We need not indeed, preach ourselves.

Jesus proclaims: "I have not come from myself, there is One, who sent me.“

That is the big goal of our common Dominican Preaching: to let Christ become transparent in our time, our families, under our social and religious conditions. What gives us the strenght to succeed in it? What gave Jesus the strength for that? He brought himself by prayer and contemplation into ever and ever closer connection with God’s incomprehensible love. By prayer and contemplation, we also receive the ability to receive God's light and revitalizing energy into the most hopeless situations in life. Soon we approach - like Jesus on the way to Jerusalem - the Holy week of His Passion and Resurrection. United with God by prayer, spread over the continents and with a reinforced unity among each other in the Order of St. Dominic, let us also become more ‘passionate’ sisters and brothers in the service of preaching the gospel!

A famous fellow countryman of mine, Karl Marx (- born in Trier at the shore of  Mosel river, as well as the father of the church St.Ambrose many more than 1000 years before him -) put his Communist Declaration under the motto: " Workers of all nations: Unite!“ My appeal at the beginning of my service as your Promoter General will be: "Dominican Laity of all nations: Unite!“ –with each other on continental, national and local levels, - together with the brothers and sisters in the other branches of our Order and the Church worldwide; - and above all with our Lord and brother Jesus Christ, who sends us to the common service of  preaching. In that combination of unity, we become strong and credible!