“No man has ascended into heaven except the Son of man who came down from heaven” (John 3:13-17)
Biblical reflections by Mauro Leonardi*, priest and writer
On the day dedicated to the exaltation of the Cross, the Church reminds us that "God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved through him": that's it. The cross is not a sign by which the Christian exalts pain or makes salvation or holiness reside in suffering, but it is like a ladder, a means that the Lord has chosen to give himself completely so that we may be saved. A sign of rebirth, donation, endless love.
From the Gospel according to John 3:13-17
At that time Jesus said to Nicodemus: «No one has ever ascended to heaven except the Son of man who descended from heaven. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that whoever believes in him may have eternal life." In fact, God loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through him.
*Mauro Leonardi (Como 1959) è sacerdote dal 29 maggio 1988 e da allora abita a Roma. Passa molte ore della sua giornata a fare il prete e predilige costruire ponti piuttosto che innalzare muri. Da anni scrive racconti, articoli, saggi e libri che ruotano intorno al rapporto tra l’uomo e Dio. Autore del blog Like Jesus. Abelis (Lindau) is his latest novel. The volunteers of the Gionata Project thank him for wanting to share these reflections on the Word with us.
