The homily in the Cathedral of the archbishop of Milan, Mario Delpini: “Berlusconi was a man with a desire for life, love and joy, now he meets God”

MILAN. «Silvio Berlusconi was certainly a politician, he was certainly a businessman, he was certainly a character in the limelight of fame. But in this moment of farewell and prayer, what can we say about Silvio Berlusconi? He was a man: a desire for life, a desire for love, a desire for joy. And now we celebrate the mystery of fulfillment. Here’s what I can say about Silvio Berlusconi. He is a man and now he meets God ». It is with these words that the archbishop of Milan Mario Delpini, the only bishop among more than twenty priests who are concelebrating the funeral of Silvio Berlusconi, concludes his homily after reading the passage from John’s Gospel in which Jesus speaks of the resurrection.

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And those on “man meeting God” are also the only sentences in which the head of the Milanese church names Berlusconi directly. In fact, his previous reflections, which according to those who know him have been carefully studied and not without a certain degree of apprehension (in fact, instead of speaking off the cuff, he prefers to read them), revolve around the many public faces of the four-time prime minister. Thoughts that, without ever mentioning his name, put down black and white the fact that Berlusconi, in all the roles he has played, has aroused much appreciation but also much criticism. «When a man is a businessman, then he tries to do business – says Delpini -. He therefore has customers and competitors. He has moments of success and moments of failure. He ventures into reckless enterprises. He looks at the numbers and not at the criteria. He has to do business. He can’t trust others too much and knows that others don’t trust him too much. He’s a businessman and he has to do business. When a man is a politician, then he tries to win. He has supporters and opponents. There are those who praise it and those who cannot bear it. A politician is always a partisan. When a man is a character, then he’s always on stage. He has admirers and detractors. He has those who applaud him and those who hate him ».

Even at the beginning of the sermon, however, references to Berlusconi’s personality are not lacking. Delpini speaking of “living and loving life” highlights the “accepting the challenges of life” and living without “escaping from challenges, contrasts, insults, criticisms, and continuing to smile, to challenge, to contrast, to laugh at insults.” While discussing loving and being loved, the archbishop dwells on “desiring to be loved and fearing that love can only be a concession, a condescension, a stormy and precarious passion”. And there is also a passage on the meaning of “being happy, loving parties and enjoying the beauty of life”. Here too the words chosen by Delpini are strong: «To be happy with the smallest things that make you smile, with the pleasant gesture, with the gratifying result. Being happy and experiencing that joy is precarious. Being happy and feeling the insinuation of a dark threat that covers the things that make you happy with greyness. To be happy and to feel lost in the face of the irremediable exhaustion of joy».