Gospel (Jn 16,20-23a) - At that time, Jesus to his disciples: «Truly, truly, I say to you: you will weep and groan, but the world will rejoice. You will be in sadness, but your sadness will be changed into joy. The woman, when she gives birth, is in pain, because her time has come; but, when she gave birth to the child, she no longer remembers the suffering, for the joy that a man has come into the world. So you too, now, are in pain; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice and no one will be able to take away your joy. That day you will no longer ask me anything."

The commentary on the Gospel by Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia

Jesus compares faith to childbirth, which is the fruit of a long and tiring gestation. Faith is not the sudden outcome of someone who believes he is brilliant and therefore ready to believe, nor is faith the spontaneous outcome of a natural condition of life. In short, here we can see first-hand the fact that we are not born Christians, but we become one by making a serious commitment. In fact, just as during pregnancy the woman personally participates in the growth of a new life welcomed into her womb, but at the same time the child's development is not the result of her ability or some gift, so the Word of God grows if welcomed into one's heart and it develops, generates a new life not because we are particularly deserving or capable, but because the Word of God acts powerfully in those who welcome it and work effectively, despite the thousand difficulties that we too often put in our way. We must not be discouraged by the difficulties we often encounter, due to our limitations, in living the Word of God, or by the ease with which we let it slip away because we practice it little or believe we know it. The work of encountering the Word of God requires patience and perseverance. If we let the Word of God enter our hearts and do not resist it, we will feel the inner man growing within us. This is the gift the Gospel speaks of. And no one can deny it or take it away from us because it is the fruit of faithful listening.