At 11 a.m. in the Sala Clementina of the Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father received the Cardinals and members of the Roman Curia and the Governatorate of Vatican state for the traditional exchange of Christmas greetings.
After a homage by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Dean of the College of Cardinals, the Pope delivered the following address, translated here:
Lord Cardinals,
Venerated brothers in the Episcopate and Priesthood,
Dear brothers and sisters!
Already we breathe during this meeting the joy of Christmas which is a few days away. I am profoundly grateful to you for your participation in this traditional appointment, whose particular atmosphere has been well evoked by the Cardinal Dean, Angelo Sodano, who referred to the central theme of my recent encyclical on Christian hope.
I thank him from the heart for the warm expressions with which he conveyed the Christmas wishes of the College of Cardinals, the members of the Roman Curia and the Governatorate, as well as those of all Pontifical Representatives dispersed around the world.
Ours is truly, as you described it, dear Cardinal, a 'community of work' held together by fraternal love, which the Christmas festivities can only make firmer.
In this spirit, he has not forgotten to remind us of those who once belonged to our curial family and in the past 12 months, have passed beyond the threshold of time to enter the peace of God. On an occasion like this, it is good for the heart to feel close to those who were with us in the service of the Church, and who now, being near God's throne, are interceding for us.
Thank you then, dear Cardinal Dean, for your words, and thanks to you all for the contribution each one has made to the fulfillment of the mission which the Lord has entrusted to me.
Another year is about to end. As the first outstanding event of a year which has passed so quickly, I wish to mention the trip to Brazil. Its purpose was the meeting with the Fifth General Conference of Latin American and Caribbean Bishops, and in general, an encounter with the Church in the vast Latin American continent.
Before dwelling on the conference in Aparecida, I wish to speak of some culminating moments of the trip. Above all, I remember that solemn evening with the youth in the stadium of Sao Paulo. Notwithstanding the rigid temperature, we found ourselves united in great joy, in a vivid experience of communion and a clear will to be - in the spirit of Jesus Christ - servants of reconciliation, friends of the poor and the suffering, and messengers of the good whose splendor we have met in the Gospel.
There are mass manifestations which result only in self-affirmation, in which one lets himself be carried away by rhythm and sounds, ending up by deriving a selfish joy. That night, however, our spirits opened up. The profound communion that was spontaneously established among us, each one being with one another, also each one being for the other. It was not a flight from daily routine, because the event was transformed into the strength to accept life in a new way.
And so, I would like to thank from my heart all those young people who animated that night, for 'being-with' - with their singing, speaking, praying - which purified us all, and made us better, better even for others.
Also unforgettable was the day on which, together with a large number of bishops, priests, religious and lay faithful, I was able to preside at the canonization of Frei Galvao, a son of Brazil, proclaiming him a saint of the universal Church. Everywhere, we were greeted by his image, from which shone the goodness of heart which he found in the encounter with Christ and his relationship with the religious community.
About the definitive return of Christ, of
parousia, it has been said that he will not be coming alone, but together with all his saints. So, every saint who enters history already constitutes a small part of that return of Christ, of his new entry into time, which is presented to us in a new way all the time and assures us of his presence.
Jesus Christ does not belong to the past nor is he confined to a remote future, the 'when' of which we do not even have the courage to ask. He will arrive with a great procession of saints. Together with them, he is already on his way to us, towards our present.
And I recall with special vividness the day at the Fazenda da Esperanca, in which persons who had fallen into the slavery of drugs, find freedom and hope again. Arriving there, the first thing I perceived in a new way was the healing power of God's creation. Green mountains surround the wide valley; they raise one's sight upwards and at the same time, give a sense of protection.
From the tabernacle of the chapel of the Carmelite nuns, there flows a spring of clear water that recalls the prophecy of Ezekiel about the water flowing forth from the Temple, which would detoxify the salty earth and allow the tree of life to grow.
We should defend Creation not only for our own good but for itself - as a message of the Creator, a gift of beauty that is both beauty and hope. Because man has need of transcendence.
God alone suffices, said Teresa of Avila. If he is absent, then man would seek to overcome by himself the limits of the world, to open to himself the unbounded space for which he was created. Then, drugs become a necessity for him. But he will soon discover that this is but an illusory de-confinement - a mockery, one might say, that the devil plays on man.
There, at the Fazenda da Esperanza, the limits of the world are truly overcome, one's sight is opened towards God, towards the amplitude of life, and thus comes healing. To all those who work there, I address my sincere thanks, and to all who seek healing there, my most heartfelt blessing.
Then, I remember the meeting with the Brazilian bishops at the cathedral of Sao Paulo. The solemn music which accompanied us was unforgettable. And making it even more beautiful was that it was executed by a choir and an orchestra from the poor youth of the city. They offered us the experience of beauty which is one of those gifts through which one can overcome the limits of daily routine in this world, and we can perceive greater realities which assure us of the beauty of God.
Then, the experience of "affective and effective collegiality" in the fraternal communion of the common ministry which has made as experience the joy of Catholicism - beyond all the geographical and cultural confines, we are all brothers, together with the risen Christ who has called us to his service.
Finally, Aparecida. In a specially particular way, the little statue of the Madonna moved me. Some poor fishermen who had been casting their nets repeatedly in vain, drew out this little figurine from the river, and afterwards, they found abundant fish.
She is the Madonna of the poor, who herself became poor and small. And through the faith and love of the poor, this great Sanctuary took shape around her figure, which - recalling always the poverty of God, the humility of the Mother - constitutes day after day a home and a refuge for those persons who pray and hope.
It was a good thing that we were gathered there to elaborate this document on the theme "Disciples and missionaries of Jesus Christ - so that in Him they may have life".
Certainly, one could right away ask the question: Was this the right theme for this moment in our history? Was it not perhaps an excessive turn towards interiority at a moment when the great challenges of history, the urgent questions on justice, peace and freedom require the full commitment of all men of good will, particularly of Christianity and the Church? Should we not have faced these problems instead of retreating to the interior world of the faith?
Let us come back to this objection later. Before answering it, in fact, it is necessary to understand the conference theme itself in its true meaning. Once we have done this, the answer to the objection will delineate itself.
The key word of the theme is: to find life - true life. Thus, the theme supposes that this objective, on which perhaps everyone agrees, would be reached through discipleship to Christ and commitment to his word and his presence.
The Christians of Latin America, and with them, those of the whole world, are therefore invited to become better 'disciples of Jesus Christ' - we already are by virtue of Baptism, but that does not take away our duty to always actively make use of the gifts of that sacrament.
To be disciples of Christ - what does it mean? In the first place, it means to get to know him. How does this happen? By listening to how He speaks to us in the text of Sacred Scripture, how he addresses us and comes to us in the common prayers of the Church, in the Sacraments and in the testimony of the saints.
One can never know Christ only in theory. One can know everything about Sacred Scripture without ever having encountered him. An integral part of knowing him is to walk with him, enter into his feelings, as the letter to the Philippians says (2,5). Paul describes those sentiments briefly this way: to have the same love, to be of the same mind (
sym-psychoi), doing nothing out of selfishness or vainglory, not looking at one's own interests only, but also for those of others (cfr 2,2-4).
Catechesis can never be only an intellectual teaching. It should always become, as well, a way of gaining experience in the communion of life with Christ, an exercise in humility, in justice and in love. Only this way do we walk with Jesus Christ along his way. Only this way are the eyes of our hearts opened. Only this way do we learn to understand Scripture and meet him.
Meeting Jesus means listening; it requires an answer in prayer and in practising what he says. In coming to know Christ, we come to know God, and only starting with God will we understand man and the world, a world which would otherwise remain a question without sense.
To become disciples of Christ is therefore a way of education towards our true being, towards the right way of being human. In the Old Testament, the fundamental attitude of the man who lives the Word of God was summarized in the term
zadic - the just one. Whoever lives according to the Word of God becomes a just man - he practises and lives justice.
In Christianity, the attitude of the disciples of Christ was expressed with a different word - the faithful. Faith comprehends everything. This word means both being with Christ and being with his justice. In the faith, we receive the justice of Christ, we live it first-hand and we transmit it.
The final document at Aparecida concretizes all this, in speaking of the good news about the dignity of man, life, the family, science and technology, human labor, the universal destination of the goods of the earth, ecology - dimensions in which our justice is expressed, faith is lived, and answers are given to the challenges of our time.
The disciple of Jesus should also be a 'missionary', a messenger of the Gospel, the document tells us. Even here the objection is raised: Is it still licit to evangelize? Should not perhaps all the religions and concepts of the world coexist peacefully and seek to do their best for mankind, each in its own way?
Well, it is indisputable that we we should all live and cooperate in reciprocal tolerance and respect. The Catholic Church is committed to this with great energy, and with the two encounters in Assisi, has given evident signs of that commitment - signs which were once again evident at the encounter in Naples this year.
In this respect, I am happy to recall here the letter kindly sent last October 13 by 138 Muslim religious leaders to show their common commitment to the promotion of peace in the world. I answered them with joy, expressing my own adherence to such noble intentions and underscoring at the same time the urgency of a mutual commitment to guard and protect the values of reciprocal respect, dialog and collaboration.
The shared acknowledgment of the existence of one God, who is provident Crestor as well as Universal Judge of everyone's actions, constitutes the premise of a common action in defense of effective respect for the dignity of every human being so we may build a society that is more just and fraternal.
But does this desire for dialog and collaboration also mean that we can no longer transmit the message of Jesus Christ, that we can no longer propose to men and to the world the call and the hope which goes with it?
Whoever has come to know a great truth, whoever has found great joy, should transmit it, and cannot, in fact, keep it to himself. Gifts that are this great are never destined for just one person. In Jesus Christ, a great light emerged for us, the great Light: we cannot hide it under a bushel, but we should set it on a lampstand so that it may bring light to all in the house (cfr Mt 5,15).
St. Paul was tireless in travelling, bringing the Gospel with him. He felt himself under a sort of 'constraint' to announce the Gospel (cfr 1 Cor 9, 16) – not so much because of concern for the salvation of a single non-baptized person whom the Gospel had not yet reached, but because he was aware that history in its entirety could not arrive at its fulfillment until the Gospel had reached the totality (pieroma) of peoples (cfr Rm 11,25).
To reach that fulfillment, history needs the proclamation of the Good News to all the peoples, to all men (cfr Mk 13,10). Indeed, how important it is for humanity that forces of reconciliation, peace, love and justice should converge! How important it is that in the 'balance sheet' of mankind, in the face of sentiments and realities of violence and injustice which threaten it, opposing forces should be awakened and given new vigor!
That is precisely what happens in Christian mission. Through the encounter with Jesus Christ and his saints, through the encounter with God, the balance sheet of mankind will be credited with these forces of good without which all our plans for social order will not become reality, but rather - in the face of very powerful interests working against peace and justice - will only remain abstract theories.
And so we come back to the question posed at the start: Did the conference at Aparecida do right, if in its quest for the true life in this world, it gave priority to discipleship in Christ and to evangelization? Was it not a mistaken involution? No. Aparecida decided correctly, because it is precisely through a new encounter with Christ and his Gospel - and only thus - that we can raise the forces necessary to make us able to give the right answers to the challenges of our time.
At the end of June, I sent a letter to the bishops, priests, consecrated persons and the faithful laymen of the Catholic Church in the People's Republic of China. With this letter, I intended to show my profound spiritual affection for all the Catholics in China as well as my cordial esteem for the Chinese people.
I recalled the perennial principles of Catholic tradition and of the Second Vatican Council on ecclesiology. In the light of the 'original design' that Christ had for his Church, I indicated some guidelines for confronting and resolving, in a spirit of communion and truth, the delicate and complex problems of the Church in China.
I also indicated the readiness of the Holy See for a calm and constructive dialog with the civil authorities in order to find solutions to the various problems that concern the Catholic community.
The Letter was received with joy and gratitude by the Catholics in China. And I express the hope that with God's help, it may produce the fruits we expect.
I can only, unfortunately, refer briefly to the other highlights of the year. They were all events that had the same purpose, to place in evidence the same orientations.
So it was with the wonderful visit to Austria. The
Osservatore Romano, using a beautiful expression, characterized the rain which accompanied us during the trip, as 'the rain of faith'. The thunderstorms not only failed to diminish the joy in Christ that we experience when we look at his Mother but reinforced it. And that joy penetrated the curtain of clouds that hung over us.
Looking towards Christ with Mary, we found the light that shows the way through all the shadows of the world. I wish to thank from my heart the Austrian bishops, priests, religious and all the faithful who in those days joined me along the path to Christ, for this encouraging sign of faith that they gave.
The meeting with the Italian youth at the Agora of Loreto was likewise a great sign of joy and hope: If so many young people wanted to meet Mary, and with Mary, Christ, and allowed themselves to be infected by the joy of faith, then we can calmly walk towards the future.
In this sense, I addressed myself on various occasions to young people: in the visit to the Institute for Minors in Casal del Marmo, as in the addresses I gave during the audiences and in at the Sunday Angelus.
I have taken account of their expectations and their generous intentions, by relaunching initiatives for education and soliciting the commitment of the local churches for the vocational ministry. Obviously, I have not failed to denounce the manipulations to which youth today are exposed and the dangers these can become for the society of the future.
Very briefly, I referred to the meeting in Naples. Even there, we encountered much rain - rather unusual for the city of sun and light. But though surrounded by rain, the warm humanity and living faith of the people penetrated the clouds, and allowed us to experience the joy that comes from the Gospel.
Of course, we should not delude ourselves: the problems posed by the secularism of our time and the pressures of ideological presumptions - towards which secular consciousness tends with its exclusive claim to definitive rationality - are certainly not minor. We know that, and we recognize the effort of the struggle which has been imposed on us at this time.
But we also know that the Lord keeps his promise" "Behold, I will be with you all the days to the end of the world" (Mt 28,20).
In this happy certainty, taking the cue from the reflections at Aparecida that we may ourselves renew our being with Christ, let us trustingly face the new year. Let us walk under the maternal look of Our Lady Aparecida, of she who described herself as 'the handmaid of the Lord'. May her protection render us secure and full of hope.
With these words, I impart the Apostolic Blessing from my heart to all of you present here and to all who are part of the great family of the Roman Curia.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 29/12/2007 23:41]