1. From Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, an apostle called and set apart for God's Good News,

2. the very promises he foretold through his prophets in the sacred Scriptures,

3. regarding his Son, who was born in the flesh a descendant of David,

4. and has been recognized as the Son of God endowed with Power, upon rising from the dead through the Holy Spirit. Through him, Jesus Christ, our Lord,

5. and for the sake of his Name, we received grace and mission in all the nations, for them to accept the faith:

6. All of you, the elected of Christ, are part of them, you, the beloved of God in Rome, called to be holy:

7. May God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, give you grace and peace.

8. First of all, I give thanks to my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is spoken of all over the world.

9. And God, whom I serve in spirit by announcing the Good News of his Son, is my witness that I remember you in my prayers at all times.

10. I pray constantly that, if it is his will, he make it possible for me to visit you.

11. I long to see you and share some spiritual blessings with you to strengthen you.

12. In that way, we will encourage each other by sharing our common faith.

13. You must know, brothers and sisters, that many times I have made plans to go to you, but till now I have been prevented.

14. I would like to harvest some fruits among you, as I have done among other nations. Whether Greeks or foreigners, cultured or ignorant, I feel under obligation to all.

15. Hence my eagerness to give the message also to you who are in Rome.

16. For I am not ashamed at all of this Good News; it is God's power saving those who believe, first the Jews, and then the Greeks.

17. This Good News shows us how God makes people upright through faith for the life of faith, as the Scripture says: The upright one shall live by faith.

18. God is now ready to condemn the wickedness and any kind of injustice of those who have silenced the truth by their wicked ways.

19. For everything that could have been known about God was clear to them: God himself made it plain.

20. For, though we cannot see him, we can at least discover him through his works; for he created the world and through his works we understand him to be eternal and all-powerful, and to be God. So they have no excuse,

21. for they knew God and did not glorify him as was fitting, nor did they give thanks to him. On the contrary, they lost themselves in their reasoning and darkness filled their minds.

22. Believing themselves wise, they became foolish:

23. they exchanged the Glory of the immortal God for the likes of mortal human beings, birds, animals and reptiles.

24. Because of this God gave them up to their inner cravings; they did shameful things and dishonored their bodies.

25. They exchanged God's truth for a lie; they honored and worshiped created things instead of the Creator, to whom be praise for ever, Amen!

26. Because of that, God gave them up to shameful passions: their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones.

27. Similarly, the men, giving up natural sexual relations with women, were lustful of each other, they did, men with men, shameful things, bringing upon themselves the punishment they deserve for their wickedness.

28. And since they did not think that God was worth knowing, he gave them up to their senseless minds so that they committed all kinds of obscenities.

29. And so they are full of injustice, perversity, greed, evil; they are full of jealousy, murder, strife, deceit, bad will and gossip.

30. They commit calumny, offend God, are haughty; they are proud, liars, clever in doing evil. They are rebellious towards their parents,

31. senseless, disloyal, cold-hearted and merciless.

32. They know of God's judgment which declares worthy of death anyone living in this way; yet not only do they do all these things, they even applaud anyone who does the same.






“Não se desencoraje, pois, se na alma existe o contínuo esforço de melhorar, no final o Senhor a premia fazendo nela florir, de repente, todas as virtudes como num jardim florido.” São Padre Pio de Pietrelcina