Speechs 2007 - TO HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
Your Beatitude and Dear Brother,
I welcome you today with joy, hearing the words of the Apostle ring out in my heart: "May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rm 15,5-6).
Your visit is a gift of the God of steadfastness and encouragement of which St Paul speaks, addressing those who heard the message of salvation for the first time in Rome. Today, we are experiencing the gift of perseverance because, despite the presence of centuries-old divisions, diverging paths and the effort required in stitching up grievious wounds, the Lord has not ceased to guide our steps on the path of unity and reconciliation. And for all of us this is a cause of consolation because our meeting today is part of an ever more intense process in the search of that full communion so longed for by Christ: "ut omnes unum sint" (cf. Jn Jn 17,21).
We know well that adherence to the Lord's ardent desire cannot and must not be proclaimed solely in words or in a purely formal manner. For this reason, Your Beatitude, in following in the footsteps of the Apostle to the Gentiles, you did not come from Cyprus to Rome merely for an "exchange of ecumenical courtesy", but rather to reaffirm your firm decision to persevere in praying to the Lord to show us how to achieve full communion. At the same time, your visit is a cause of intense joy, for in our encounters we have already been granted to sample the beauty of the desired full Christian unity.
Thank you, Your Beatitude, for this gesture of esteem and brotherly friendship. In you, I greet the Pastor of an ancient and illustrious Church, a shining tessera of that bright mosaic, the East, which, to use a favourite phrase of the Servant of God John Paul II of venerable memory, constitutes one of the two lungs with which the Church breathes.
Your appreciated presence reminds me of the fervent preaching of St Paul in Cyprus (cf. Acts Ac 13, 4ff.) and the adventurous voyage which brought him to Rome, where he proclaimed the same Gospel and sealed his luminous witness of faith with martyrdom.
Does not the memory of the Apostle to the Gentiles perhaps invite us to turn our hearts with humility and hope to Christ, who is our one Teacher?
With his divine help we must not tire of seeking together the ways of unity, overcoming those difficulties which in the course of history have given rise to divisions and reciprocal diffidence among Christians. May the Lord grant us that we may soon be able to approach the same altar, to partake together of the one Banquet of the Eucharistic Bread and Wine.
In welcoming you, dear Brother in the Lord, I would like to pay homage to the ancient and venerable Church of Cyprus, rich in saints, among whom I would like to remember in particular Barnabas, a companion and collaborator of the Apostle Paul, and Epiphanius, Bishop of Constantia, once called Salamis, today Famagusta.
Epiphanius, who exercised his episcopal ministry for 35 years in a turbulent period for the Church because of the Arian revival and the controversies of the "Pneumatomachians", wrote works with a clear catechetical and apologetic intention, as he himself explained in his Ancoratus.
This interesting treatise contains two Creeds, the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed and the Creed of the Baptismal Tradition of Constantia, which corresponds to the Nicene faith but is differently formulated and amplified and "more suited", Epiphanius himself pointed out, "to combating the errors that arise because it conforms to that [faith] determined by the aforementioned Holy Fathers" of the Nicean Council (Ancoratus, n. 119). In it, he explained, we affirm our faith in the "holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, the perfect Spirit. The Spirit Consoler, not created, who proceeds from the Father and comes from the Son, the object of our faith" (ibid.).
As a good Pastor, Epiphanius pointed out to the flock entrusted to him by Christ, the truth in which to believe, the way to take and the pitfalls to avoid.
This is a method for proclaiming the Gospel that is also effective today, especially to the new generations strongly influenced by currents of thought contrary to the Gospel spirit. At the beginning of this Third Millennium, the Church finds herself facing challenges and problems not at all unlike those which Bishop Epiphanius had to tackle.
It was as necessary then as it is now to be on the alert in order to put the People of God on their guard against false prophets and the errors and superficiality of proposals that are not in conformity with the teaching of the divine Teacher, our one Saviour.
At the same time, it is urgently necessary to find a new language in which to proclaim the faith that brings us together, a shared language, a spiritual language that can transmit faithfully the revealed truths and thereby help us to reconstruct, in truth and charity, communion among all members of the one Body of Christ.
This need, for which we are all aware, impels us to persevere without being discouraged in the theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church as a whole. It leads us to using effective and permanent instruments to ensure that the search for communion is not interrupted or sporadic in our Churches' life and mission.
As we face the immense task expected of us, whose implementation is far beyond human capacities, we must entrust ourselves first of all to prayer. This does not mean that it is not only right to have recourse, today as well, to every effective human means that can serve this purpose.
In this perspective, I consider your visit a particularly useful initiative for enabling us to progress towards the unity desired by Christ. We know that this unity is a gift and fruit of the Holy Spirit; but we also know that it requires at the same time a constant effort, enlivened by a sure will and steadfast hope in the power of the Lord.
Thank you, therefore, Your Beatitude, for coming to pay me a visit, together with the brothers who have accompanied you; thank you for this presence, which gives concrete expression to the desire to seek full communion together.
For my part, I assure you that I share in this same desire, sustained by firm hope. Yes, "may the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus".
Thus, let us turn confidently to the Lord, so that he may guide our footsteps on the path of peace, joy and love.
"To all God's beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Rm 1,7).
Your Holiness, Pope of Ancient Rome and Bishop of the historical Chair of the Blessed Apostle Peter,
The grace of the Holy Spirit and our duty as Archbishop-Primate of the Most Holy Martyr Church of the Holy Apostle Barnabas for the unity and peace of our Apostolic Churches, have guided our footsteps here today, together with our reverend entourage. We have come to the place of the martyrdom of the Coryphaei of the Apostles, Peter and Paul, the shrine of the Catacombs of the martyrs of our common faith, to meet you, the one among the Bishops who holds the primacy of honour of undivided Christianity, to give you the fraternal kiss of peace and, after a non-fraternal journey down the centuries, to build new bridges of reconciliation, collaboration and love!
This is our third meeting after the unforgettable funeral of your beloved Predecessor Pope John Paul II, of blessed memory, and the joyful ceremony of your own elevation to this Apostolic Throne. The whole of the Christian Ecumene looks with great hopes to this throne, awaiting gestures of dialogue, re-pacification, rapprochement and love from the wise theologian, the tireless pastor, the dynamic ecclesiastical leader who presides over it. In this regard, the development of the official theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church - in which our Apostolic Church of Cyprus takes part, with responsibility and coherence - is of paramount importance.
Our eyes will perhaps not be able to see the longed for unity of the Church, but with the grace of the Holy Spirit we will have done our duty in time and space as peacemakers and true brothers "ut omnes unum sint".
Furthermore, it is our personal conviction that since the drifting apart of our Sister Churches and the schism between them took place over so many centuries of accumulated misunderstandings, so their reunification and the re-establishment of mutual trust and true love between them will need time, patience and sacrifices.
Yet, with an awareness of our great responsibility, we take it upon ourselves to bring this task to completion "in truth and charity" under the infallible guidance of God's life-giving Spirit.
Our meeting today is felicitously taking place on the eve of the 35th anniversary of the beginning of official diplomatic relations between the Holy See and the Republic of Cyprus. Indeed, in 1973, after the encounter of the Ethnarch, Archbishop Makarios III, with Pope Paul VI in Castel Gandolfo, the representation of these two parties was entrusted respectively to the current Cardinal Pio Laghi, who was then titular Archbishop of Mauriana and Apostolic Delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine, and to H.E. Mr Polys Modinòs, then Ambassador of Cyprus in Paris.
Your Holiness, allow me to mention here the first Ambassador of Cyprus to the Holy See, resident in Rome: our dear friend, H.E. Mr Georgios Poulides, and to thank him warmly for his devotion, respect and love for the Church, and his important and indispensable work.
In recent decades after the Second Vatican Council, some of our Cypriot theologians, clerics and lay people have done post lauream studies at various Pontifical Universities with scholarships awarded by the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. We would therefore like to express our gratitude to you and likewise our own intention to offer as a minimal antidoron of gratitude, summer scholarships in Cyprus for Catholic theologians interested in learning modern Greek together with the liturgical riches of the Orthodox Church from close at hand, so that they in turn may one day contribute to the vision of the united Church.
Recently, Your Excellency, the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Mr Tassos Papadopoulos, said very gracefully: "Cyprus has always been Europe, even before Europe was established. With its entry into the European Union, Cyprus has come home". Yet, this common home of ours, Europe, the cradle of Western civilization, the glorious seat of the Christian spirit, the Mother of Saints and Missionaries, is passing through a period of crisis and confusion, of atheism and doubt, of secularization and decadence.
Society and the people of our time are thirsting and seeking. They have values and principles, traditions and customs that were formed in the light of the Gospel and under the wise guidance of the Fathers of the Church and of other ecclesiastical personalities, but are unable to recognize Christ's presence and the power of his soteriological message. They refuse to admit the fundamental importance of Europe's Christian roots: it is the hour of the Church and the new evangelization, the hour of the mission ad intra!
Yet, without the collaboration of the European Churches and our common Christian witness, it is certain that very little will have a positive outcome and that the many isolated efforts of the various Churches and Christian denominations will unfortunately be doomed to failure.
Instead of exercising a positive influence on the convinced European Christian, our globalized epoch seems to reject the historical ecumenicity of the Christian message and to marginalize its dynamic and effectiveness. Secularization, eudaemonism, the deification of technology and atheistic science confuse our neighbour and lead him inevitably to existential desperation. His anguished cry is heard: "Lord, to whom shall we go?" (Jn 6,68).
What, then, is our responsibility as spiritual fathers? What is our approach to spiritual care for our young people? Shall we succeed at last in protecting the sacred institution of the family? The sacredness of the human person, now defenceless in the face of medical research, abortion, euthanasia? And the oneness of God's creation which surrounds us and risks being destroyed irreparably by us?
The Orthodox path passes through spirituality, ascesis, fasting, the study of the texts of the Church Fathers who were inspired by God, the sense of the sacred and first and foremost the Divine Eucharist: these are our spiritual weapons and we wish to fight side by side with the Sister Church of Rome to transform European society, which is anthropocentric, into a Christocentric society with respect for our brethren of other religions, for immigrants, the poor, refugees and the weak of this earth.
Our presence here today, Your Holiness, is an appeal to you, the Pope who comes from a friendly country, traumatized by division for decades, like ours, but thanks be to God reunited. Therefore, you alone can understand how sad we feel! Our Homeland and Your Sister, the Apostolic Church of Cyprus, is suffering but is also persevering with dignity through the intercession of her saints and in particular the protection of her founder, the blessed Apostle Barnabas.
Human rights are trampled upon, monuments are destroyed, works of our spiritual patrimony become the object of international trade, and the division of the last European capital, Nicosia, seems doomed to continue. Will no one hear our just lament and raise their voices in protest to the powerful of the earth, who exploit Christ's Name but are deaf to the law of love?
Your Holiness,
We ask your support through the invincible weapons of brotherly prayer, but also through your fatherly cry for the defence of the inalienable rights of the Ancient and Apostolic Sister Church of Cyprus, this crossroads of peoples, religions, languages and civilizations of the Mediterranean and Middle East.
We want you beside us! Through us the Holy Apostle Barnabas invites his elder brother, the Blessed Apostle Peter, to make a first Visit to his humble home and to receive hospitality in it, to feel as though it were his own home and to bless it!
We await you, Your Holiness, as Bishop of the Roman See which presides in charity, in the Cyprus of dialogue, democracy, dignity, faith, monasticism, hospitality, monuments and works of art! May you deign to come to us and give us the opportunity to reciprocate your fraternal hospitality during these splendid days that we have spent in the Eternal City!
Your Holiness, with the intercession of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, Patrons of the Diocese of Rome, of the Holy Apostle Barnabas, Founder of the Church of Cyprus, and of the Holy Greeks Isapostolic Cyril and Methodius, Co-Patrons of Europe, we offer you our heartfelt good wishes for health, a long life and the illumination of the Holy Spirit for the success of your lofty mission as Pontiff-builder of bridges between peoples, religions and cultures.
"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope" (Rm 15,13).
"Blessed be God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places" (Ep 1,3).
1. We, Benedict XVI, Pope and Bishop of Rome, and Chrysostomos II, Archbishop of Nea Justiniana and All Cyprus, full of hope for the future of our Churches' relations, thank God with joy for this fraternal meeting in our common faith in the Risen Christ. This visit has enabled us to observe how these relations have increased, both at a local level and in the context of the theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church as a whole. The Delegation of the Church of Cyprus has always made a positive contribution to this dialogue; among other things, for instance, in 1983 it hosted the Coordination Committee of the International Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue, so that in addition to doing the demanding preparatory work, the Catholic and Orthodox Members were able to visit and admire the great spiritual riches and wealth of art works of the Church of Cyprus.
2. On the happy occasion of our fraternal encounter at the tombs of Sts Peter and Paul, the "coryphaei of the Apostles", as liturgical tradition says, we would like to declare of common accord our sincere and firm willingness, in obedience to the desire of Our Lord Jesus Christ, to intensify our search for full unity among all Christians, making every possible effort deemed useful to the life of our Communities. We desire that the Catholic and Orthodox faithful of Cyprus live a fraternal life in full solidarity, based on our common faith in the Risen Christ. We also wish to sustain and encourage the theological dialogue which is preparing through the competent International Commission to address the most demanding issues that marked the historical event of the division.
For full communion in the faith, the sacramental life and the exercise of the pastoral ministry, it is necessary to reach substantial agreement. To this end, we assure our faithful of our fervent prayers as Pastors in the Church and ask them to join us in a unanimous invocation "that they may all be one... so that the world may believe" (Jn 17,21).
3. At our meeting, we reviewed the historical situations in which our Churches are living. In particular, we examined the situation of division and tensions that have marked the Island of Cyprus for more than 30 years, with its tragic daily problems which impair the daily life of our communities and of individual families. More generally, we considered the situation in the Middle East, where the war and conflicts between peoples risk spreading with disastrous consequences. We prayed for the peace that "comes from the heavenly places". It is the intention of our Churches to play a role of peacemaking in justice and solidarity and, to achieve all this, it is our constant wish to foster fraternal relations among all Christians and loyal dialogue between the different religions present and active in the Region. May faith in the one God help the people of these ancient and celebrated regions to rediscover friendly coexistence, in reciprocal respect and constructive collaboration.
4. We therefore address this appeal to all those who, everywhere in the world, raise their hand against their own brethren, exhorting them firmly to lay down their weapons and to take steps to heal the injuries caused by war. We also ask them to spare no effort to ensure that human rights are always defended in every nation: respect for the human person, an image of God, is in fact a fundamental duty for all. Thus, among the human rights to be safeguarded, freedom of religion should be at the top of the list. Failure to respect this right constitutes a very serious offence to the dignity of the human being, who is struck deep within his heart where God dwells. Consequently, to profane, destroy or sack the places of worship of any religion is an act against humanity and the civilization of the peoples.
5. We did not omit to reflect on a new opportunity that is opening for more intense contact and more concrete collaboration between our Churches. In fact, the building of the European Union is progressing, and Catholics and Orthodox are called to contribute to creating a climate of friendship and cooperation. At a time when secularization and relativism are growing, Catholics and Orthodox in Europe are called to offer a renewed common witness to the ethical values, ever ready to account for their faith in Jesus Christ, Lord and Saviour. The European Union, which will not be able to restrict itself to merely economic cooperation, needs sound cultural foundations, shared ethical references and openness to the religious dimension. It is essential to revive the Christian roots of Europe which made its civilization great down the centuries and to recognize that in this regard the Western and Eastern Christian traditions have a common task to achieve.
6. At our encounter, therefore, we considered our Churches' long journey through history and the great tradition which has come down to our day, starting with the proclamation of the first disciples, who came to Cyprus from Jerusalem after the persecution of Stephen, and reviewing Paul's voyage from the coasts of Cyprus to Rome as it is recounted in the Acts of the Apostles (Ac 11,19 Ac 27, 4ff. ). The rich patrimony of faith and the solid Christian tradition of our lands should spur Catholics and Orthodox to a renewed impetus in proclaiming the Gospel in our age, in being faithful to our Christian vocation and in responding to the demands of the contemporary world.
7. The treatment of bioethical issues gives rise to serious concern. Indeed, there is a risk that certain techniques, applied to genetics, intentionally conceived to meet legitimate needs, actually go so far as to undermine the dignity of the human being created in the image of God. The exploitation of human beings, abusive experimentation and genetic experiments which fail to respect ethical values are an offence against life and attack the safety and dignity of every human person, in whose existence they can never be either justified or permitted.
8. At the same time, these ethical considerations and a shared concern for human life prompt us to invite those nations which, with God's grace, have made significant progress in the areas of the economy and technology, not to forget their brothers and sisters who live in countries afflicted by poverty, hunger and disease. We therefore ask the leaders of nations to encourage and promote an equitable distribution of the goods of the earth in a spirit of solidarity with the poor and with all those who are destitute in the world.
9. We also concurred in our anxiety about the risk of destroying the creation. Man received it so that he might implement God's plan. However, by setting himself up at the centre of the universe, forgetting the Creator's mandate and shutting himself in a selfish search for his own well-being, the human being has managed the environment in which he lives by putting into practice decisions that threaten his own existence, whereas the environment requires the respect and protection of all who dwell in it.
10. Let us address together this prayer to the Lord of history, so that he will strengthen our Churches' witness in order that the Gospel proclamation of salvation may reach the new generations and be a light for all men and women. To this end, we entrust our desires and commitments to the Theotokos, the Mother of God Hodegetria, who points out the way to Our Lord Jesus Christ.
From the Vatican, 16 June 2007
Benedictus PP. XVI
Chrysostomos II
Basilica of St Clare
Sunday, 17 June 2007
Thank you for your most beautiful singing! It is singing to accompany the expectation of the Lord's coming. But the Lord is always coming. Therefore, this is precisely a welcome song for the Lord. We ourselves are going to meet the Lord.
This encounter makes me think of similar encounters in past times, very beautiful encounters which are deeply engraved in my memory. To see again this life of love for the Lord, this life of Mary - totally absorbed in listening to the Lord and thus listening to the Word of God for humanity today - is always a great inspiration to me, a great encouragement.
We are celebrating 800 years since the conversion of St Francis. Conversion is not only a moment, an instant of life: it is a journey. And you are going ahead, you go before us on the path of conversion, on this journey which is sometimes very arduous but is always accompanied by the joys of the Lord.
And let us hope that today will be just such a day, lived in the joy of the Lord, a day when God's sun, so beautifully praised by St Francis, may also truly be our "centre" and brighten our hearts and our lives.
I am not prepared to say anything else now, but I thank you warmly for everything. For me Assisi is always an interior reference point, because I know that it has a great power of prayer, a power for the Pope in his mission to be helmsman of the Barque of Peter, of the Barque of Christ.
Therefore, let us move ahead with the Lord! I pray for you and please pray for me! Thus, despite the exterior distance we will remain profoundly united.
Thank you again!
Chapter Hall of the Sacro Convento
Sunday, 17 June 2007
Dear Sisters,
When Archishop Sorrentino and I arranged this Visit, I immediately said: "I have to meet the Bavarian, the German, Capuchins". For me, they comprise a profound part of Assisi, and I cherish so many beautiful memories of the meetings I have had at their House - both before and after the earthquake - that for me a Visit to Assisi without a Meeting with the Capuchin nuns, the German ones, would be only half an Assisi experience.
So I rejoice: here we are together, almost as though we were at your Convent.
I am very grateful and glad that centuries ago Providence founded this convent, that it is still alive, and that young girls constantly come here from Germany and in particular from the Land of Bavaria to take the way of the Lord in communion with St Francis: the way of poverty, chastity, obedience and, above all, the way of love for Christ and for his Church.
I know that you say many prayers for me and for the whole Church. Knowing that I am backed by so many prayerful people, so many dear Sisters who pray and support my work from within, gives me constant strength. Hence, I also wish to say a word of thanks for this.
This year we are celebrating the conversion of St Francis. We know that we are always in need of conversion: we know that throughout life we find ourselves on the ascent, often arduous but also always beautiful, of successive conversions; we know that this is how, day after day, we come closer to the Lord.
And St Francis also shows us that in his life, beginning with his first deep encounter with the Crucified Christ of San Damiano, his communion with Christ developed increasingly until he became one with him in the event of the stigmata.
For this reason we seek him, for this we fight: to listen to his voice with ever greater attention so that it may penetrate our hearts ever more deeply and increasingly shape our lives, and so that from within we may be conformed to him and the Church may live within us.
Just as Mary was in herself a living Church, through your praying, your believing, your hoping and your loving, you become a living Church and thus one with the one Lord. Thank you for everything. I am truly grateful to the Lord that we have been able to see one another here.
We also have a small present. (Of course, I say thank you for the flowers!). We have brought you an image of Our Lady, which will remind you of this Visit during which we were able to meet.
I believe I can hear more singing... (at this point a song is sung).
Thank you! That was a hymn we often used to sing at the Seminary of Traunstein and it takes me back to my early youth, thus enabling me to perceive all the joy in the Lord and in the Mother of God, then as now, which we carry in our hearts. I can now impart to you my Blessing.
Cathedral of San Rufino
Sunday, 17 June 2007
Dear Priests and Deacons,
Dear Men and Women Religious,
I can sincerely say that I was looking forward to meeting you in this ancient Cathedral in which the diocesan Church usually gathers around the Bishop.
This morning, after being with the different members of the People of God during the Eucharistic Celebration outside the Basilica of St Francis, it seemed to me beautiful to arrange a special Meeting with you, also because of the presence of so many consecrated people in this Diocese.
I thank Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino, Pastor of this Church, for expressing your sentiments of communion and affection. And I have indeed sensed your affection right from the start. I offer you heartfelt thanks.
I also warmly greet the Bishop emeritus, Bishop Sergio Goretti, who for years, as we heard, 25 years, guided this Church, renowned for her long and holy history. I remember so many wonderful meetings that we had here in Assisi. Thank you, Your Excellency!
As you know, as Archbishop Sorrentino has recalled, the occasion which brings me to Assisi today is the commemoration of the Eighth Centenary of the Conversion of Francis. I too have become a pilgrim.
Already as a student and when I was preparing for a professorship, I studied St Bonaventure and consequently, St Francis, too. I was making a spiritual pilgrimage to Assisi well before coming here in person. Thus, in this long pilgrimage of my life, I am glad to be with you today in the Cathedral, with you priests and men and women religious.
Having trodden in the footsteps of the "Poverello", I shall be inspired mainly by him in what I say. However, in the context of this Cathedral, I cannot fail to mention the other Saints who have made this Church famous, starting with the Patron, St Rufinus, joined by St Rinaldo and Blessed Angelo.
It goes without saying that, beside Francis, there is Clare, whose house was in the neighbourhood of this Cathedral. I have just been able to see the baptistery where tradition claims that both St Francis and St Clare were baptised and later, St Gabriel of Our Lady of the Sorrowful Virgin.
This detail gives me a starting point for a first reflection. If we are speaking today of Francis' conversion, thinking of the radical life choice he made as a young man, we cannot forget that his first "conversion" took place in the gift of Baptism. The full response which he was to give as an adult would merely be the ripening of the seed of holiness that he received then.
It is important that we have a deeper awareness of the baptismal dimension of holiness in our life and in our pastoral approach. It is a gift and a duty for all the baptized.
My venerable and beloved Predecessor was referring to this dimension when he wrote in his Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio Ineunte: "To ask catechumens: "Do you wish to receive Baptism?' means at the same time to ask them: "Do you wish to become holy?'" (n. 31).
The millions of pilgrims attracted by Francis' charism who walk along these streets must be helped to grasp the essential core of Christian life and to aspire to the "high standard", which is precisely, holiness. It is not enough for them to admire Francis: through him they must be able to encounter Christ, to profess him and love him with "true faith; certain hope; perfect love" (Prayer Before the Crucifix, 1).
Christians of our time are more and more confronted by the trend to accept a diminished Christ, whose extraordinary humanity is admired but whose divinity in its profound mystery is rejected. Francis himself suffers a sort of mutilation when he is cast as a witness of albeit important values appreciated by contemporary culture, which overlooks the fact that his profound decision, we might say the heart of his life, was his choice for Christ.
In Assisi, a high-profile pastoral approach is more necessary than ever. To this end, you, priests and deacons, and you, persons of consecrated life, must have a strong sense of the privilege and responsibility of living in this territory of grace. It is true that all who visit this City receive a beneficial message, even from its "stones" and history. The stones speak clearly but this does not prescind from making a vigorous spiritual proposal, which can help when confronting the many seductions of relativism that are a feature of today's culture.
Assisi has the gift of appealing to people of many cultures and religions, in the name of a dialogue that constitutes an indispensable value. John Paul II linked his name with this icon of Assisi as the City of dialogue and peace. I appreciated, in this regard, that you also wished to honour the memory of his special relationship with this City by dedicating to him a hall with paintings portraying him right beside this Cathedral.
It was clear to John Paul II that Assisi's vocation to dialogue is bound to Francis' message and must continue to be hinged on the structural pillars of his spirituality.
In Francis everything started from God and returned to God. His Praises of God Most High reveal his constantly enraptured heart in conversation with the Trinity. His relationship with Christ found its most meaningful place in the Eucharist. Even his love for neighbour developed from his experience of God's love.
When he mentioned in his Testament his meeting with lepers as the event that began his conversion, he emphasized that it was God himself who led him to that merciful embrace (cf. Testament 2).
The various biographical testimonies agree in describing his conversion as a gradual opening to the Word which comes from on high. The same logic emerged in his begging for alms and his almsgiving, motivated by the love of God (cf. 2 Cel 47, 77).
His gazing at nature was actually contemplation of the Creator in the beauty of his creatures. His actual hope of peace is thus modulated as a prayer, since the way in which he was to express it was revealed to him: "May the Lord give you peace" (2 Test. 23).
Francis was a man for others because he was a man of God through and through. To seek to separate the "horizontal" dimension of his message from the "vertical" would make Francis unrecognizable.
It is up to you, ministers of the Gospel and of the altar, to you, men and women religious, to develop a proclamation of the Christian faith that is equal to today's challenges. You have a great history and I desire to express my appreciation for all that you already do.
If today I am returning to Assisi as Pope, you know, however, that it is not my first Visit to this City and that it has always made a most beautiful impression on me. Your spiritual and pastoral traditions must retain their perennial values, yet at the same time they must be renewed in order to give an authentic answer to new questions.
I would therefore like to encourage you to adhere confidently to the pastoral programme that your Bishop has presented to you. In it are pointed out the great and demanding perspectives of communion, charity and mission, and it emphasizes the fact that they are rooted in an authentic conversion to Christ.
Lectio divina, the centrality of the Eucharist, the Liturgy of the Hours and Eucharistic Adoration and contemplation of the mysteries of Christ in the Marian perspective of the Rosary ensure that atmosphere and spiritual tension without which all pastoral commitments, fraternal life, even the commitment to the poor, would risk being shipwrecked because of our frailty and weariness.
Have courage, dear friends! The Church of all regions of the world looks with special sympathy to this City, to this Ecclesial Community. Francis' name, accompanied by Clare's, asks that this City be distinguished by a special missionary enthusiasm; but for this very reason it also requires that this Church live an intense experience of communion.
The "Motu Proprio" Totius Orbis fits into this perspective. With it, as your Bishop mentioned, I established that the two important Papal Basilicas of St Francis and St Mary of the Angels, although continuing to enjoy the Holy See's special attention through the Papal Legate, for pastoral concerns would come under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of this Church.
I am truly delighted to know that the new journey has begun under the banner of great willingness and collaboration, and I am certain that it will bear rich fruit.
Indeed, the time was right to take this step for various reasons. It was suggested by the new breath that the Second Vatican Council brought to the theology of the particular Church, showing how the mystery of the universal Church is expressed in her. The particular Churches, in fact, "are constituted after the model of the universal Church; it is in these and formed out of them (in quibus et ex quibus) that the one and unique Catholic Church exists" (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium LG 23).
There is a mutual inner appeal between the universal and the particular Churches. Precisely while they live their identity as "portions" of the People of God, the individual Churches also express communion and "diakonia" in relation to the universal Church, scattered across the world and enlivened by the Spirit and served by the ministry of unity of the Successor of Peter.
Such "catholic" openness belongs to each Diocese and in a certain way marks all the dimensions of her life. However, it is accentuated when a Church possesses a charism which attracts people and is active beyond her own boundaries.
And how can we deny that this is the charism of Francis and of his message? The many pilgrims who come to Assisi spur this Church on to surpass herself. Moreover, it is undeniable that Francis would have had a special relationship with his hometown. Assisi, in a certain way, is identified with the journey of holiness of its great son. This is demonstrated by my own Pilgrimage today, which sees me stopping at so many places, of course not all, that were part of Francis' life in this City.
I am then also pleased to emphasize that the spirituality of Francis of Assisi helps both in understanding the universality of the Church, which he expressed in his special devotion to the Vicar of Christ, and in understanding the value of the particular Church, given that his relationship with the Bishop of Assisi was strong and filial.
It is necessary to rediscover not only the biographical but also the "ecclesiological" value of that encounter of the young Francis with Bishop Guido, to whose discernment and in whose hands, stripping himself of everything, he made his choice of life for Christ (cf. 1 Cel I, 6, 14-15).
The timeliness of a unifying arrangement, as was assured by the "Motu Proprio", became advisable also because of the need for better coordinated and more effective pastoral action.
Since the Second Vatican Council and the subsequent Magisterium, it has been necessary for consecrated people and communities of consecrated life, also those of pontifical right, to fit organically into the life of the particular Church, in conformity with their Constitutions and the laws of the Church (cf. Christus Dominus CD 33-35 CIC 678-680).
If these communities are entitled to expect acceptance and respect for their own charism, they must nevertheless avoid living as "islands" and must integrate themselves with conviction and generosity into the service and pastoral programme adopted by the Bishop for the entire diocesan community.
I address a special thought to you, dear priests, who work every day together with the deacons at the service of the People of God. Your enthusiasm, your communion and your life of prayer and generous ministry are indispensable. It can happen that you feel weariness or fear as you face the new demands and problems, but we must trust that the Lord will give us the necessary strength to do what he asks of us.
He - let us pray and we are sure - will never let vocations be lacking if we implore him with prayer and at the same time are concerned to seek and foster them with a fervent and imaginative youth and vocations ministry, which can reveal the beauty of the priestly ministry. In this context, I also gladly greet the superiors and students of the Pontifical Seminary of the Umbrian Region.
You, consecrated persons, give account with your lives of the hope you have placed in Christ. You are a great treasure for this Church, both in the context of parish pastoral work and for the benefit of the very many pilgrims who often come and ask you for hospitality and also expect a spiritual witness of you.
May you in particular, cloistered Religious, be able to hold high the torch of contemplation. I would like to repeat to each one of you the words which St Clare wrote in a letter to Agnes of Bohemia, asking her to make Christ her "mirror": "Look into this mirror every day, O Queen, spouse of Jesus Christ, and continually examine your face in it..." (Fourth Letter to Agnes, 15).
May your hidden life of prayer never leave you out of the Church's missionary dynamism; on the contrary, may it place you at its heart. The loftier the apostolic challenges are, the greater is the need for your charism. Be signs of the love of Christ, to whom all the other brothers and sisters exposed to the toil of apostolic life and secular commitment in the world may look.
As I renew the expression of my affection to you, full of trust, and entrust you to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of your Saints, starting with Francis and Clare, I impart a special Apostolic Blessing to you all.
Speechs 2007 - TO HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI