For a spirituality incarnate

Fr. Livio Tonello, director

Those who think that spirituality has nothing to do with social problems risk living separately from history. Politics, economics, the administration of the common good, security... are issues that concern the life of every believer and are inherent in what we call the “spiritual dimension”. The famous Swiss theologian Urs von Balthasar (1905-1988) said that spirituality «is that basic practical or existential attitude of man which is the consequence and expression of the way in which he understands his religious – or more generally, his ethically committed – existence». We are continually swamped with debates, with the disputes among the various political parties, with announcements and slogans that promise future benefits. Whether we like it or not, all this is part of the democratic life of a people. And it cannot remain absent from the interest of a Christian.

A shining example is precisely Saint Anthony, who on several occasions became involved in the social issues of his fellow citizens. For example, when his fervent preaching against usury led to the passing of a law that saved insolvent debtors from prison. Or when he went to the fierce tyrant Ezzelino to ask for the liberation of some Guelph knights. Indignation, a sense of justice, courage cannot be lacking in those who have made the Gospel their own horizon of values. The “spirit” is the animating center of every person: it reveals the entirety of his/her being, harmonizing body and soul, interiority and exterior, being and acting. It is a small input in this time of Lent, an invitation to an examination of conscience to verify whether and how our spiritual sensitivity intercepts life and brings social problems into prayer, devotions, practices of piety.

What sensitivity dwells in our heart? For some years now “The Saint of Miracles” has also been present in the maximum security prison in Padua. There are inmates who have made mistakes and are paying for them. They are, however, people with a dignity to recover even in the eyes of the world. They’re not strangers even though we’ll never get a chance to meet them. Volunteers do it by involving them in cultural projects in which school children, parishes, educational groups participate. It is good for prisoners and guests. The passion for the common good, for justice, for reconciliation, for peace comes from a deep inner spirituality. We have to go beyond the clichés, such as “politics is dirty”, “they are all the same”, “nothing will ever change”, “it’s all wasted time”... The dawn of a new day is born with the first glow of light. The light brought by men and women who have fought for a better world and have always paid in person.

People like that still exist today: they are those who have a great soul, a wide horizon of thought and values, a deep humanity that makes them able to get passionate about the fate of this planet. Not all are Christians, perhaps not even believers, but animated by deep spirituality because they do not stop at their own interest, to base their lives on the possession of goods. They go beyond, grasping and valuing human dignity, what allows people to live a fulfilled life, putting the future of humanity at the center. Men and women who think big, of great humanity and with a high civic sense.