"Fear reveals the human condition, which is made up of fears and hopes, of helplessness and the search for consolation. We fail to realize that we are not masters of our destiny. We are at the mercy of forces and situations beyond our control.

"Fear nullifies the joy of life, hinders freedom and clouds the future. Who or what will free us from this nightmare? It won't be relaxation exercises, self-help strategies, or anti-depressants that will free us from the sword hanging over our head.

"Who knows a spiritual route that can enable us to transcend this situation and open us to the prospect of divine protection? Perhaps here is where we might find a path to liberation.

"In any case, we are called to trust in a Greater One, who is infinitely good, who knows us by name, who knows the secrets of our hearts, and who is the true master of our life's fate.

"It is in this contradictory context of fear and trust that we hear the words sung millennia ago by a poet and king, the psalmist David. His Psalm 23 still comforts us today: The Lord is our shepherd; the Lord is with us, the host who invites us to dwell in the house of the Lord.

"Meditative recitation of this psalm will surely not completely relieve us of fear, but it will give us strength to confront it; it will nourish our capacity for trust and bring us back the serenity needed to continue on our personal and group adventure on this tiny planet, the common house we share. God has deigned to make it God's house, and to make us guests and table companions of the Lord.

"If God is with us, we have everything, and we 'shall not want.' That is the divine consolation for the human plight."