Isaiah 58.7-10 | 1 Corinthians 2.1-5 | Matthew 5.13-16

Today we begin the fifth week of Ordinary Time with Mother Church. With open minds and hearts, let us welcome the person of Jesus Christ, who touches us deeply with His teachings and works full of wisdom and love.

Today the evangelist Matthew speaks to us of salt and light, elements with which Jesus referred to the missionary vocation of His disciples.

Matthew is continuing the Sermon on the Mount, begun last Sunday, which extends from chapter 5 to 7.

Seeing what His disciples could not see in themselves, Jesus affirmed that they were created by God to positively impact the lives of people in society.

Just as salt gives flavor to food and light illuminates the interior of a house, the disciples – through faith accompanied by charity – would help people understand the meaning of life and suffering, opening them to hope.

Salt and light, in the right quantity and intensity, positively impact food and the interior of a house. In excess, both salt and light are bothersome. In addition to giving flavor, salt also has the incredible ability to preserve food, inspiring the disciples to preserve what is good and beautiful in human realities.

Faith and charity should be practiced and lived in service to people in society, and not exclusively in an individual and private way. This is the social dimension of Christianity. If it lost its ability to salt, salt would lose its meaning; if it were placed under a vessel, light would lose its purpose of shining.

Jesus was revealing to His disciples that God had created them to give flavor to life and to make the light of love shine, which was exactly what Jesus himself was being and doing. He was the salt of the earth and the light of the world par excellence.

When we are baptized, we receive the sign of light that signifies faith. Long ago, a little salt was also placed on the tongue of the baptized child. Thus, our missionary vocation is to practice and live faith and charity in service to society.

Today the prophet Isaiah speaks to us of charity towards the destitute and needy as a light that shines and gives access to the Lord's help.

The light shines like at midday when the instruments of oppression are destroyed and authoritarian habits and malicious language are abandoned, sharing bread with the hungry, welcoming the poor and pilgrims into our homes, and covering the naked.

This valuable exhortation from Isaiah is relevant today and serves us, disciples of Christ. In our missionary vocation to make the light of love shine, let us decisively abandon evil and embrace good, in words and deeds, certain that we will receive blessings and graces from the Lord.

Today the apostle Paul speaks to us in his first letter to the Corinthians about the power of preaching supported by the Holy Spirit, and not by elevated philosophical language.

It is admirable how sincere Paul was, acknowledging his weakness, fear, and apprehension before the Corinthians, who were such admirers and familiar with the famous Greco-Roman philosophy.

The apostle wisely ensured that Christian truth reached the hearts of the Corinthians, and not just their minds, so that the necessary conversion could take place. Among the Corinthians, there were many sufferers who identified with the crucified and resurrected Christ. The truth of the Cross was a hope for overcoming suffering and death through faith and charity.

Theological science is very important for a Christian preacher, with its hermeneutics and exegesis, especially to resist the current tendency to appeal to sentimentality, which stirs emotions in the moment but does not convert in the medium or long terms. However, it is essential for the preacher, in addition to logical arguments, to leave a considerable space in his sermon for the Holy Spirit to warm or refresh the hearts of the faithful, who are so in need of His power and renewal. After all, preaching is also the salt of hearts and the light of souls.