Who is with the children? Listen, no, tell her where she needs to go because if you don't, she won't find the child. On the way.

We were talking about how, as the Christians who make up the Church, we form a single body, and about this union of wills, thoughts, and feelings that Christians are now called to live. What is extraordinary about this union is its permanence and its realism, which Saint Luke emphasizes strongly. He says: they persevered in this communion. Acts 2:42. They persevered in the teaching of the apostles and in the communion, in the breaking of bread and in the prayers.

Exactly, the word communion there does not mean Eucharist. Because the Eucharist is mentioned right after, as you have seen. It means that they persevered in communion, that is, in unity of thoughts, affections, wills, and feelings. That is what it means, why?

That a family occasionally celebrates the feast of their patron saint, or the birthday of one of the family members, and they have a party, and there is merriment, and that day they have a good time, or a fairly good time. That is not the main thing; the main thing is to enjoy themselves together and to celebrate and love each other every day. Every day is a celebration in the sense of affection for the members of a family. Every day is a day to love and help each other, to give our lives for one another, to have a wonderful time with our siblings, and to miss them when we do not have them before us or when they are far away. To miss them. How sad it would be if we did not miss them. I always, very much, miss all my children who are out there. And this is a grace from God, isn’t it?

Do not think that this is something that happens on its own and is so natural. Let us miss each other, then, and let us rejoice when we are together. When someone is absent, let us feel their absence, let us notice that so-and-so is not here, that this person is missing. That is very important, and I agree with you. Without that, there is nothing. The Lord says that if we do not love each other, we are not His disciples. By this they will know that you are my disciples. Without that, there is nothing, there is nothing. It is not just one more element. It is the essential element. Without that, there is nothing. And with that, we are truly on the way to being disciples of the Lord.

Also, it is a great time. When people love each other so much, they have a blast. And it is very unpleasant when people simply live together. Peaceful coexistence. They do not scratch, they do not bite, they do not throw things at each other's heads. At least not very often. And so, that is peaceful coexistence. But that is, at best, a bore. Just imagine living with people like that in the same house, without loving each other, and not really understanding each other. My goodness.

For this is a blessing from God. And that is every day, not just on your birthday, or on Christmas, or on some other special day, but it is for every day.

Every day is a day to love each other, to miss each other, to pray for one another, to need each other, to complement each other. One of the things that strikes me the most at my age is how God has arranged things in such a way that we all need each other. No one is complete, and others always have things, virtues, gestures, attitudes, and qualities that we do not have and that we need, and without which we cannot manage.

For example, I am extraordinarily delighted when I see, and it is not very hard to see, that people are better than I am, when I see how good people are. As I said, it is not very hard to see, but still, it brings me great joy to see that people are good, that people are wonderful, that people are ahead of you, that you need them. That you owe them so much, that one is somewhat bad, but would be even worse if it were not for them. Who knows how much God helps us because of the merits and graces earned by our own brothers and sisters? Only in heaven will we know, in this sense, how much we owe to our own brothers and sisters.

And to feel in this sense dependent on others is very beautiful, very lovely, it is wonderful. So, children, take heart, because this is how it is, this is the Christian life. Above all, we understand this as the communion of faith and charity, says Spik. Communion of faith and communion of charity. Here Spik quotes Philemon, verse 6: That the unity of your faith may become evident through the knowledge of every good that is for us.

As you can see, he refers to Saint Paul in the letter he addresses to Philemon, appealing to the unity of faith that they share as disciples of the Lord. The union of faith and the union of charity, then... Let's see, 2 Corinthians 9:13: For when they see what you are through this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your faith in the Gospel of Christ and for the generosity of your communion with them and with everyone.

This communion and this generosity in communion, in affection, in love, in caring, in feelings, in thoughts, making collections for one another, sending goods to each other, having everything in common, with no one considering anything as their own, as the Acts of the first Christians say, in the earliest Christian communities, was something completely normal.

And you already know what happened to the one who gave his possessions to Saint Peter and kept a part for himself without Saint Peter knowing. This magician, what was his name? It’s in the Book of Acts, and Saint Peter cursed him. The one who wanted to buy from Saint Peter the power to work miracles. Simon the Magician, yes, that’s him. He gave a part of his possessions and kept another part without Saint Peter knowing. It’s not even about keeping part of the possessions; in this case, the amount doesn’t matter. It’s the attitude that matters. The quantity doesn’t matter at all; it’s the attitude.

The sense of ownership, not buying things without consulting, things that go beyond what is most ordinary and common, etc. May the virtue of poverty be lived with delicacy and with love. And as you can see, the virtue of poverty is intimately connected with the virtue of charity.

Anyone who keeps things for himself without his brothers knowing does so because he does not love them. He does not fully trust them, he trusts himself poorly, and, of course, he does not trust that individual either. He is condemned to not live in charity, obviously. So we have seen 2 Corinthians 9:13 and 1 John 1:7: "But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we are in communion with one another, and the blood of His Son Jesus purifies us from all sin."

This intimacy or this agreement can only be true. The intimacy and union exist for the sake of the union of all believers in the Lord or with the Lord. If we are united with each other and believe in each other, it is because, in turn, and each one of us, we are united with the Lord. He is the only source, the only path, and the only way that we can truly trust one another and be truly united with each other. Thus, we are brothers, and more than brothers, we are one heart and one soul.

Two things equal to a third are equal to each other. If I am intimately united with the Lord and another brother of mine is also intimately united with the Lord, there is no doubt that both of us—my brother and I—or better said, all three of us, are intimately united. Two things equal to a third are equal to each other. If my brother is united with the Lord and I am too, then the two of us, or if you prefer, all three of us, are equally united. This is the foundation of the affection we have for each other, of our unity.

To the extent that we are united with the Lord and love Him, to that same extent, and not otherwise, we will be united with one another and will love one another. Let us first look at 1 Corinthians 1:9: "God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord." Philippians 3:10: "The fellowship is with his Son, Jesus Christ." This is the source of all unity among Christians.

Philippians 3:10: "To know Him, the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death." And that fellowship in His sufferings, in His death, in His resurrection, in His life and in His destiny, in everything, because He is the Lord, belongs to me and to each one of my brothers; it belongs to all of us. First Letter of Saint John, 1-3: "That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us. We are in fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ." Do you see? That is what it is about. If there is no perfect fellowship, there is no Christian life.

It is not, I repeat once again, it is not peaceful coexistence, it is not just getting along, it is not harmony of wills, not even that, or harmony of opinions. It is true affection and true tenderness, a union of feelings, of thoughts, of wills.

Let us look at verse 6. If we say that we are in communion with Him and walk in darkness, we lie and do not act according to the truth. That is how it is. If we are in communion with the Lord and that is true, everything is clear. Things stop being clear to the extent that we are no longer truly united to the Lord and when we stop truly loving the Lord. Then, our hearts begin to become clouded, our vision begins to become clouded, and our lives begin to become clouded. If your eye is pure, your whole body will be pure. If we truly love the Lord, everything will be perfectly clear. That is it. Well, participating in His life and in union with the Holy Spirit.

Second Corinthians 13:13. He is the one who intimately unites spirits and hearts. Let us not forget that the Holy Spirit is the love of God. It is the love of the Lord that binds us to Him and to our brothers and sisters. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God. And the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. The Holy Spirit is the love of God. The fellowship of the Holy Spirit means that the love of God is in me. And that through the Holy Spirit I love Jesus Christ. And Jesus Christ loves me.

This love for Jesus Christ, which is reciprocal—I love Him and He loves me—is what leads me to love my brothers. It is the presence of the Holy Spirit in my soul that makes me love Jesus and love my brothers. That is what Saint Paul refers to when he speaks of communion in the Holy Spirit. That.

If I love God, I necessarily love my brothers. With the presence of the Holy Spirit in my soul, I love Jesus Christ. Without that presence, I cannot love Jesus Christ. The one who leads me, guides me, and teaches me to love Jesus Christ is the Holy Spirit. And the one who makes me love my brothers is the Holy Spirit. That is what the apostle Saint Paul is referring to there.

Philippians 2:1: "Therefore, if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, let it not be." And when this works, then everything else works. There is no need, all the social encyclicals and all the social doctrine would be unnecessary. When people love each other, all the social doctrine would be unnecessary. When people do not love each other, all the social option is also unnecessary.

That is why I am going to write a diary, I am going to write a treatise in Latin that will be titled "De Superfluitate." I will tell you about this, right? About this and many other similar things. When men love each other, all social doctrine is superfluous. When men do not love each other, all social doctrine is superfluous. And that is the reason for the treatise on superfluity.

How bad you are, Paulo. Faustino, you are wicked. Do not forget that the Lord, for telling the truth many times, was also called wicked.

And it was simply that he was telling the truth. If I tell you the truth, why do you not believe me? And he says: For which of the good things I have done do you stone me? For which one? I have done many good things with you and for you. For which of them do you stone me?

For a man who tells the truth, they call him wicked. They say he is very wicked. It is the truth. Deny that to me. What your doctor Nicolás says and tells you: "Look, you have an excellent grade, you don't need to take more classes because I see that you know enough. I see that you know everything", just as Saint Peter said to the Lord: "Lord, I see that you know everything, you know everything, you know that I love you".

So it is, a treatise on superfluity. There are a lot of superfluous things in this Church of God and in our world, a lot of superfluous things as well. But in the end, maybe superfluous things are also necessary in a certain way. If a total love tends to abolish all separation, to harmonize social conditions, and finally to place all property in common... This is where love leads.

Here, for example, he cites the passage from the parable of the prodigal son, Luke 15:31. But he replied to him, "Son, you are always with me and all that is mine is yours." My son, you are always with me and, therefore, all that is mine is yours. This phrase is very beautiful; it would be worthwhile for us to meditate on it at some point and understand it as it is, as its true meaning, spoken by the Lord. Let us not forget that the Father of Peace is the Father of Peace. The words of the prodigal son personify the Lord.

Notice how the father in the parable links the belonging of everything he wants for his son to the fact that they are together. Because you are always with me. And since you are always with me, all that is mine is yours. And could it be any different between two people who love each other? If they truly love each other, how could everything not be new for both? How could two people who truly love each other stop giving each other, mutually and reciprocally, all that they possess? If you are always with me, if we are in perfect communion, if you are always with me, that is, in my heart, with my heart, with my life, in my life; all that is mine is yours.

We can apply those phrases to God, saying them to ourselves in all truth. That is really what the parable intends: to make us see as well. Let us not forget that this is the parable of mercy, of tenderness, of affection, and it concerns a son who has been a sinner, who left home and wasted his inheritance, everything he had received from his parents he squandered.

It is very understandable that the fervor of the believers led them in Jerusalem to share all their resources with others. These are the famous collections of some for others and how the believers put their property and goods in common. Acts 2:44: ... they believed and had everything in common. Do I have much more for you? What did you say? Let's see, read it again. 2:44.

And all who believed were united and had everything in common. Go on, go on. They sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to everyone according to each person’s need. But of course, this is based on the presence of love, isn’t it? Because the idea of giving to each one, to each one, of putting everything in common to give to each person according to their needs, is one of the greatest stupidities ever spoken in history, in the history of humanity.

And that, as you know, is Marxist doctrine, communism, Marx's communism: everything in common, and then to give to each according to their needs. That is nonsense, and the proof that it is nonsense is... It is the result to which communism has led. Who would have told us a few years ago that today he would be in Moscow? This man, Mr. Suárez, and Mr. so-and-so, some minister. The truth is that it’s Borrell, the Crab Minister, giving a seminar in Moscow on market economy.

The truth is that communism has been driven to the most horrifying and tremendous of failures. Now they want perestroika, now they want democracy, but above all what they want, and a market economy, but above all what they want is to be able to eat. Because communism tells a lot of stories, but gives little food. Everything in common and then to each according to his needs. That is a horrifying idea, one of the greatest foolishnesses that history has ever heard.

That is true, it can be true, and only when people, based on people, love each other with Christian charity. But of course, Christian charity—or even non-Christian charity—is something very strange to Marxism. Marx was irritated by hearing the word charity, it made him extremely nervous, he would rant about it. When there is affection involved, then everything in the house or wherever it may be is shared and everything belongs to everyone, and each person uses things according to their need.

Man, there is an order, because there must be an order. There is the education of children. You cannot put an extremely expensive and complex computer in the hands of a child who does not know how to use a computer. But that is not it, but neither is it a necessity for the child. The child has to start from the bottom and work his way up, and he learns, in short, and then, well, like that, on that basis, with what is in everyone’s home.

But on the basis of the love of God, of authentic love for God and authentic fraternal love, that is, on the basis of true Christian life. If Christian charity is excluded, to say that everything will be shared and each one will be given according to his needs is nonsense. Because also, think for a moment about what each person's needs are. My goodness. Each one thinks that his needs are... Well, I remember that law of economics I used to study when I was studying economics. It said: man's needs are unlimited in quantity. There is a limit to the... the number. When a man is given what he wants, he thinks he could still have more. When you give him more, he thinks he could still have something better.

Now, you cannot give everything to everyone; they are limited in quantity. Not everyone can ride in a Mercedes or a Rolls Royce, like in the movie last night. They say the Germans were in the Rolls Royce, which is an English car, and we were in a Jeep, which is an American car, and that is why we could not catch up to them.

Very well, what time is it, children? Five past. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Father Alfonso Gálvez