Subject: VISnews 110311
Organization: VIS - Ufficio Stampa della Santa Sede
From: Vatican Information Service - Eng - txt
VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
TWENTY FIRST YEAR - N. 48
ENGLISH
FRIDAY, 11 MARCH 2011
SUMMARY:
- Faithfulness and Service: Characteristics of Priests
- Presentation of Volume Two of Jesus of Nazareth
- Pope Receives Members of the "Pro Petri Sede" Association
- Audiences
- Other Pontifical Acts
___________________________________________________________
FAITHFULNESS AND SERVICE: CHARACTERISTICS OF PRIESTS
VATICAN CITY, 11 MAR 2011 (VIS) - Yesterday morning, as is traditional at
the beginning of Lent, the Pope met with pastors and priests of the diocese
of Rome to whom he imparted a "lectio divina" inspired by St. Paul's address
to the elders of Ephesus in chapter twenty of the Acts of the Apostles,
focusing on the priesthood as service and faithfulness.
"One cannot be a priest part-time", said the Holy Father. "We are always
priests with all our soul and with all our heart. ... Being an ambassador of
Christ ... is a mission which penetrates our entire being".
The Apostle Paul "did not preach an 'a la carte' Christianity, organised
according to taste, he did not preach a Gospel according to his own
preferred theological ideas". Priests "must announce the will of God entire,
including the 'more difficult' will, ... the themes they may least like
personally".
Referring then to Lent which has just begun, the Pope spoke of conversion
which, he said, must be reflected, above all, in "a change of thinking and
of heart" which leads us to focus not on the things of the world, "but on
the presence of God in the world".
The Pope also highlighted the importance that spiritual life must have for
priests. "Praying and meditating on the word of God is not time lost from
the care of souls, but a condition enabling us to remain in contact with the
Lord, and so be able to speak first hand of Him to others".
Finally, the Pope encouraged priests not to lose hope, despite the
difficulties they may encounter in their ministry.
"The truth is stronger than lies", he concluded, "and love is stronger
than hatred. God is stronger than all adverse forces. With this joy, with
this inner certainty we follow our journey amidst the consolations of God
and the persecutions of the world".
AC/ VIS
20110311 (330)
PRESENTATION OF VOLUME TWO OF JESUS OF NAZARETH
VATICAN CITY, 11 MAR 2011 (VIS) - In the Holy See Press Office yesterday
afternoon, the second volume of Benedict XVI's book on Jesus of Nazareth:
"From the Entrance into Jerusalem to the Resurrection" was presented in the
course of a press conference chaired by Cardinal Marc Ouellet P.S.S. prefect
of the Congregation for Bishops, and Claudio Magris, a writer and German
scholar.
Cardinal Ouellet explained how, apart from the natural interest in a book
about Jesus, "the Pope's book is humbly presenting itself to the forum of
exegetes in order to compare methodology and research results with them. ...
I cannot but see in this book the dawn of a new era of exegesis, a promising
age of theological interpretation", he said.
"The Pope first enters into dialogue with German exegesis, though he does
not overlook other important authors from the French, English or Romance
language areas", the cardinal said. The Holy Father's "is that of 'seeking
the real Jesus', not the 'historical Jesus' of the dominant school in
critical exegesis, but the 'Jesus of the Gospels'".
Cardinal Ouellet explained that, "although the author is not presenting an
official teaching of the Church, it is easy to imagine that his scholarly
authority and the profound consideration given to certain disputed questions
will be of great help in confirming many people's faith. This will also
serve to enliven debates that have become stagnated because of rationalist
or positivist prejudices, impairing the prestige of modern and contemporary
exegesis".
Going on then to comment on the contents of the new book, the cardinal
first noted how "the question of the historical foundation of Christianity
has interested Joseph Ratzinger since his formative years and his first
experience of teaching, as is evident from his book 'Introduction to
Christianity', published forty years ago".
"A second question touches on the Messianism of Jesus. A number of modern
exegetes, under the influence of dominant ideologies, have made Jesus out to
be a revolutionary, a master of morality, an eschatological prophet, an
idealist rabbi, a madman of God, a messiah in some way in the image of His
exegete".
The prefect of the Congregation for Bishops explains how "the Pope
powerfully and clearly outlines the regal and priestly dimensions of this
Messianism, the meaning of which is to establish the new form of worship -
adoration in spirit and in Truth - which involves all of individual and
community life, as an offering of love for the glorification of God in the
flesh.
"A third issue", the cardinal added, "concerns the meaning of redemption
and the place that it should occupy in the expiation of sins. The Pope
examines the modern objections to this traditional doctrine, ... and shows
how mercy and justice go hand in hand within the framework of the Covenant
established by God".
"The fourth problem involves the priesthood of Christ. In terms of today's
ecclesial categories, Jesus was a lay person invested with a prophetic
vocation. He did not belong to the priestly aristocracy of the Temple. ...
This fact has led many interpreters to consider the figure of Jesus as
entirely divorced from any relationship with priesthood. ... The Pope
provides an ample response to the historical and critical objections,
demonstrating how Jesus' new priesthood was coherent with the new worship He
came to establish upon the earth, in obedience to the will of the Father".
"The final issue", the cardinal went on, "concerns the resurrection and
its historical and eschatological dimension, its relationship with
corporeity and with the Church. ... The Pope speaks out against ...
interpretations which declare that the announcement of Christ's Resurrection
is compatible with His body remaining in the tomb. He excludes these
theories observing that the empty tomb, even if it is not proof of the
resurrection, which had no direct witnesses, remains as a sign, ... a trace
in the history of a transcendent event. ... The paradoxical experience of
the apparitions reveals that, in this new dimension of existence, ... Jesus
lives fully, in a new relationship with real corporeity but free from
corporeal ties as we understand them. The historical importance of the
resurrection is clear from the evidence of the early communities, which
instituted the tradition of Sunday [worship] as a sign identifying the fact
that they belonged to the Lord".
"It is clear from this book", the cardinal concluded, "that Peter's
Successor dedicates himself to his specific ministry, which is to confirm
his brothers and sisters in the faith. ... This book will serve, on the one
hand, to mediate between contemporary and Patristic exegesis and, on the
other, to foster the necessary dialogue between exegetes, theologians and
pastors", he said.
"In this work", the cardinal completed his remarks, "I see a great
invitation to dialogue on the essential aspects of Christianity, in a world
seeking points of reference, a world in which religious traditions struggle
to transmit humanity's heritage of religious wisdom to new generations".
OP/ VIS
20110311 (840)
POPE RECEIVES MEMBERS OF THE "PRO PETRI SEDE" ASSOCIATION
VATICAN CITY, 11 MAR 2011 (VIS) - Today in the Consistory Hall, the Pope
received members of the Belgian association "Pro Petri Sede" which offers
annual financial aid for the needs of the Holy See.
"The generous contribution you make to Peter's Successor", said Benedict
XVI, "will enable him to help those who have recently undergone difficult
trials, in particular the people of Haiti. The service of charity forms part
of the very nature of the Church; it is a living expression of God's
solicitude for all humankind. The Church, while bringing vital material
assistance, can also offer that attention and love of which people who
suffer have such need. I thank you in their name for the help you give them
in the struggle against that which vilifies and degrades the dignity of each
person, 'created in the image of God'".
AC/ VIS
20110311 (160)
AUDIENCES
VATICAN CITY, 11 MAR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate
audiences:
- Cardinal Robert Sarah, president of the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum".
- Archbishop Hector Miguel Cabrejos Vidarte O.F.M. of Trujillo, Peru,
president of the Peruvian Episcopal Conference.
- Fr. Bruno Cadore, master general of the Order of Friars Preachers,
Dominicans.
- Claudio Magris, accompanied by his wife.
AP/ VIS
20110311 (70)
OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS
VATICAN CITY, 11 MAR 2011 (VIS) - The Holy Father accepted the resignation
from the pastoral care of the diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee, U.S.A.,
presented by Bishop John H. Ricard S.S.J., in accordance with canon 401
para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.
NER/ VIS
20110311 (50)
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