Recently we, the Maltese Capuchin friars, had the joy and grace of going on retreat. The time, the place and the preacher were all designed by God's loving Providence. The retreat was held in the second week of Lent at the Porziuncola Retreat House in Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq and preached by Bro Stefan Kozuh, the Vicar General of the Capuchin Order.
In the second day of the retreat, Bro Stefan wisely led us on a day of peace. As a formidable aid in this important journey, he proposed to us Psalm 27. It is that psalm which, Saint John Paul II in his catechesis of Wednesday 21 April 2004, described it as "the guiding thread of prayer [based on] trust in God, both on the day of rejoicing and in time of fear". As Bro Stefan rightly explained, the word peace, which painstakingly tries to translate the Jewish Biblical word shalom (שָׁלוֹם), is in effect a bit wanting. In reality, the word shalom presupposes more than an absence of conflict. As explained by Stong's Exhaustive Concordance, shalom signifies "completeness, soundness, welfare, peace". Shalom is used when speaking of an external peace between two entities - such as individuals or nations - as well as an internal sense of peace within the individual himself or herself.
In the first three lines, the psalm drives home its intent with the powerful words: those who trust in the Lord have nothing to fear. The psalmist says: "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When evildoers assail me, uttering slanders against me, my adversaries and foes shall stumble and fall. Though a host encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident" (Psalm 27:1-3). Just by reading these opening lines, we can get the feeling that for those who trust in the Lord nothing will make them fear!
What a powerful message for all of us who are living in a world full of fear and mistrust! Fear literally paralyzes our God-given capacity to live fully! Pope Francis' homily of 15 May, 2015 emphasized the point that fear is not a Christian emotion. Fear causes a lot of harm both individually and communally. Fear "is an attitude that harms us. It weakens us, diminishes us. It even paralyzes us." A person who is afraid "does nothing, doesn't know what to do." He is focused on himself, overly concerned that nothing bad will happen. Fear, the Pope said, "brings you to a self-centred selfishness and paralyzes you". He added that "a fearful Christian is a person who has not understood the message of Jesus."
"This is why Jesus says to Paul: 'Do not be afraid. Continue to speak.' Fear is not a Christian attitude. It is an attitude, we could say, of a caged animal, without freedom, who does not have the freedom to look ahead, to create something, to do good... no, always: 'No, but this is dangerous, there is something else, something else...' And this is a vice. It is the fear of doing evil." "Do not be afraid, and ask for the grace of courage, the courage of the Holy Spirit that He sends us."
Regarding communal fear, the Pope said: "There are fearful communities that always go on the safe side: 'No, no, we aren't doing this... No, no, this can't be done, this can't be done.' It seems they have written on the gateway: 'Forbidden'. Everything is forbidden because of fear. And you enter this community and the air is stale, because it is a sick community. Fear makes a community sick. The lack of courage makes a community sick."
To recover that Christian joy in times of tribulation, it is essential that you and I stick to some powerful phrases of this psalm which really heal us. Take, for instance, verse 5: "For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent, he will set me high upon a rock."
In times of trouble, I can recover my inner peace by reading carefully Psalm 27!
Fr Mario Attard OFM Cap