"It is beautiful to consider that the first testimony of faith in favor of God was already given by a son of Adam and Eve and by means of a sacrifice. It is explained, therefore, that the Fathers of the Church saw in Abel a figure of Christ: for being a shepherd, for offering a sacrifice pleasing to God, for shedding his blood, for being a "martyr for the faith".
"The Liturgy, in renewing the Sacrifice of Christ, asks God to look with a serene and kindly gaze upon the Lord's Offerings, just as he looked upon the offerings of "righteous Abel" (Cfr. Roman Missal, Eucharistic Prayer I)." We must be generous and love everything that concerns the worship of God, because it will always be little and insufficient for what the infinite excellence and divine goodness deserves. We Christians must have extreme delicacy in this area and avoid inconsideration and stinginess: do not offer anything defective, for it would not be acceptable,5 the Holy Spirit warns us.
For God, the best: a worship full of generosity in the sacred elements that are used, and with generosity in time, as much as necessary - no more - but without haste, without cutting short the ceremonies, or the private thanksgiving after the end of the Holy Mass, for example. The decorum, quality and beauty of the liturgical vestments and of the sacred vessels express that it is for God the best we have, they are a sign of the splendor of the liturgy that the triumphant Church pays tribute in Heaven to the Trinity, and they are a powerful help to recognize the divine presence among us. Lukewarmness and a weak and unloving faith tend not to treat holy things in a holy manner, losing sight of the glory, honor and majesty that belong to the Most Blessed Trinity.
"Do you remember that scene in the Old Testament, when David wished to build a house for the Ark of the Covenant, which up to that time was kept in a tent? In that tabernacle, Yahweh made his presence known in a mysterious way, by means of a cloud and other extraordinary phenomena. And all this was only a shadow, a figure. On the other hand, the Lord is really present in the tabernacles where the Most Holy Eucharist is reserved. Here we have Jesus Christ - how I love to make an explicit act of faith - with his Body, his Blood, his Soul and his Divinity. In the tabernacle, Jesus presides over us, loves us, waits for us".
In the house of Simon the Pharisee, where Jesus missed the attentions that it was customary to have with the guests, the question of the money spent on the things of God became evident. While Jesus is happy for the signs of repentance that he receives from that woman, Judas murmurs and calculates the expense - for him useless - that is being made. That same evening he decided to betray him. He sold her for an amount approximating the cost of the spilled perfume: thirty shekels of silver, about three hundred denarii. "That woman who, in the house of Simon the leper in Bethany, anoints the Master's head with rich perfume, reminds us of the duty to be splendid in the worship of God.
"All luxury, majesty and beauty seem little to me.
"And against those who attack the richness of sacred vessels, ornaments and altarpieces, the praise of Jesus is heard: "opus enim bonum operata est in me" - a good work has he done with me.
The Lord, too, in the face of the gift of our life, in the face of the generosity manifested in a thousand ways (time, goods...), must be able to say: a good work has he done for me, he has manifested his love in works.