S. John Paul II Homil. 549
CONCLUSION OF THE 44th INTERNATIONAL EUCHARISTIC CONGRESS
Youido Plaza, Seoul (Korea)
Sunday, 8 October 1989
"Yorobuni i ppang'ul mokko i chanul mashil ttaemada,
Chunim-kkeso tashi oshil ttaekkaji,
Chunim-e chugu sonpo-hanun koshimnida" (1Co 11,26).
Han'guk Kyohoe'e hyongje chamae yorobun,
Songchaneso Chu Yesu Kristo-rul chanyang-hagoya on sesang'eso
hanaro moishin hyongje chamae yorobun,
Chanmi Yesu! Yorobune Soure tto wassumnida.
550 Pan'gap-ssumnida. Uri modu Chunim-kke kamsa-hapshida.
1. Five years ago, here in Youido Plaza, we celebrated together the bicentenary of the Church’s presence in this land with the solemn canonization of the 103 Martyr Saints of Korea. They are the shining witness of how deeply the sons and daughters of this land have been grafted onto Christ. Today, our heavenly Father gives me the grace of celebrating this solemn Eucharist at the closing of the Forty-fourth International Eucharistic Congress. The Sacrifice of the Mass marvellously deepens our communion with those courageous martyrs, and with all the saints – in the first place with Mary, Mother of the Redeemer – for all who share in the Body and Blood of Christ in every time and place are brought together in unity by the Holy Spirit (Cfr. Prex Eucharistica II).
The communion of saints has its deepest source in Christ and its fullest sacramental expression in the Eucharist: “Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body” (1Co 10,17). In fact, every time we celebrate the Eucharist, we return to the Upper Room in Jerusalem on the evening before the Passover. The Church’s celebration of the Eucharist cannot be separated from that moment. There, Jesus spoke to the apostles of his redemptive death. There, he instituted the Sacrament of his Body and Blood under the forms of bread and wine, following the traditional Hebrew rite of the paschal meal.
Giving them the bread, he says it is his Body which he was about to offer on the Cross. Giving them the chalice of wine, he says it is his Blood which he would shed in the sacrifice of Calvary. Then Jesus commands them: “Do this in memory of me” (Ibid.11, 24). The apostles received the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of the Redeemer as the Passover that truly saves.
2. While all this was happening in the Upper Room at Jerusalem, the apostles perhaps recalled those other words pronounced one day at Capernaum, where Jesus had miraculously multiplied the bread for the crowd that listened to his teaching: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day (Jn 6,53-54).
Capernaum had prepared the apostles for the Upper Room. What had been promised in Capernaum became a reality in Jerusalem. “For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him” (Ibid. 6, 55-56).
Yes, Jesus Christ is “our Life and Resurrection”. The sons and daughters of Israel had eaten the manna which God had provided for them in the desert, but nevertheless they died. Jesus gave the Eucharistic Bread, on the other hand, as the source of the life that is stronger than death. Through the Eucharist, he continues to give life, that is, the life that is in God and from God. This is the meaning of Jesus’ words: “As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me” (Jn 6,57).
3. All this is at the heart of this Forty-fourth International Eucharistic Congress. This gathering of God’s holy people clearly reveals the very nature of the Church (cf. Sacrosanctum Concilium SC 41), the community of those reborn to a new life. United in prayer and thanksgiving around the altar, the whole Church is one with Christ, her Head, her Saviour and her Life. For, in fact, the Church comes into being through the Eucharist – the memorial of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The whole Church is here to honour Christ in the Eucharist; to hear the words of eternal life that Jesus gives us; and to deepen the Church’s experience of sharing in the bread of life which satisfies the deepest hunger of our immortal being: the world’s hunger for “life” which God alone can satisfy.
In the Statio Orbis the whole Christian community renews its determination to share the “ bread of life ” with all those who thirst for the truth, for justice, for peace and for life itself. This the Christian community can do only by becoming an effective instrument of reconciliation between sinful humanity and the God of holiness, and between the members of the human family themselves. The Eucharist is the sacrament of the unity of the Church. The Church, by her relationship with Christ, is a kind of sacrament or sign of the unity of all mankind as well as a means of achieving that unity (Cfr. Lumen Gentium LG 1).
4. The words “Christ, our Peace” have been chosen as the theme of this Congress. We have heard what the Apostle proclaims: “in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near in the blood of Christ. For he is our peace who has made us both one and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility” (Ep 2,13-14).
551 The Apostle is perhaps thinking of the wall in the Temple of Jerusalem which divided Jew from Gentile. But how many walls and barriers divide the great human family today? How many forms of conflict? How many signs of mistrust and hostility are visible in countries all over the world?
East is divided from West; North from South. These divisions are the heritage of history and of the ideological conflicts which so often divide peoples who otherwise would wish to live in peace and brotherhood with one another. Korea too is marked by a tragic division that penetrates ever more deeply into the life and character of its people. The Korean nation is symbolic of a world divided and not yet able to become one in peace and justice.
Yet there is a way forward. True peace – the shalom which the world urgently needs – springs eternally from the infinitely rich mystery of God’s love, the “mysterium pietatis” (Cfr. 1Tm 3,16), about which Saint Paul writes: “God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself” (2Co 5,19).
As Christians we are convinced that Christ’s Paschal Mystery makes present and available the force of life and love which overcomes all evil and all separation. Your admirable ancestors in the Faith knew that “in Christ” all are equal in dignity, and all are equally deserving of loving attention and solicitude. Just like the early Christians described in the Acts of the Apostles (Cfr. Ac 2,42 ss.), they boldly abolished the inviolable class barriers of their time in order to live as brothers and sisters. Noble masters and humble servants sat together at the same table. They shared the riches of their new-found knowledge of Christ by composing catechisms and beautiful prayer poems in the language of the common people. They held their possessions in common so as to aid those most in need. They lovingly looked after the orphans and widows of those imprisoned and martyred. They persevered day and night in common prayer, thanksgiving and fellowship. And they gladly died for each other and in each other’s stead. They pardoned and prayed for those who persecuted them. Theirs was indeed a Eucharistic life, a true breaking of the life-giving bread!
5. In this great assembly of the Statio Orbis, we proclaim before the world that Christ, the only-begotten Son of the Father, continues to reconcile people “to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end” (Ep 2,16).
Yesu kristo-nun uri’e pyong’hwa-ishimnida.
(Jesus Christ is our peace) (Cfr. Ibid. 2, 14).
From the Eucharist springs the Church’s mission and capacity to offer her specific contribution to the human family. The Eucharist effectively transmits Christ’s parting gift to the world: “Peace I give you, my peace I leave you” (Cfr. Io Jn 14,27). The Eucharist is the sacrament of Christ’s “peace” because it is the memorial of the salvific redemptive sacrifice of the Cross. The Eucharist is the sacrament of victory over the divisions that flow from personal sin and collective selfishness. Therefore the Eucharistic community is called to be a model and instrument of a reconciled humanity. In the Christian community there can be no division, no discrimination, no separation among those who break the Bread of Life around the one Altar of Sacrifice.
6. As the Third Christian Millennium approaches, the urgent challenge facing Christians, in the present circumstances of history, is to carry this fullness of life, this “peace” into the structure and fabric of everyday living, in the family, in society, in international relations. But we must listen carefully to Christ’s words: “I do not give (peace) as the world gives (it)” (Cfr. Io Jn 14,27). Christ’s peace is not merely the absence of war, the silencing of weapons. It is nothing less than the communication of “God’s love that has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us” (Rm 5,5). Our sharing in the Body and Blood of the risen Lord cannot be separated from our own continuing efforts to share this lifegiving love through service. “Do this in memory of me” (Lc 22,19): do for one another as I did for you and for all. Yes, we must not only celebrate the liturgy but actually live the Eucharist. The Eucharist compels us
– to give thanks for the created world, and respect and share it in a wise and responsible way;
– to esteem and love the great gift of life, especially of every human life created, from its beginning, in God’s own image and redeemed by Christ;
552 – to cherish and promote the inalienable and equal dignity of every human being through justice, freedom, and concord;
– to give of ourselves generously as the bread of life for others, as exemplified in the “One Heart One Body Movement”, so that all may truly be united in Christ’s love.
7. Each International Eucharistic Congress, each Statio Orbis is a solemn profession of the Church’s faith in the Good News proclaimed and realized in the Eucharist: “ Lord, through your Death and Resurrection you have set us free. You are the Saviour of the world ”.
In the great assembly of the Eucharistic Congress here in Seoul, on this soil of the Asian continent, we profess the Life in which we share through the Redeemer’s Death. And we pray for all – for Korea, for Asia, for the world: that all may have this Life in themselves and have it in abundance (Cfr. Io Jn 10,10).
Uri modu soro saengmyong'e pabi toe'o-chupshida!
Cham pyong'hwa'e toguga toepshida!
Chanmi Yesu!
Jakarta (Indonesia)
Monday, 9 October 1989
Saudara-saudaraku yang terkasih dalam Yesus Kristus: para Uskup, Imam, Bruder, Frater dan Suster, serta umat beriman yang berhimpun di sini.
1. Saya ingin mengajak Anda semua untuk bersama saya bersyukur kepada Tuhan, bahwa Ia telah memperkenankan kita bertemu dari muka ke muka.
553 1. In every age the Church is on pilgrimage, journeying to the peoples of every continent, preaching the Good News of God’s saving love to those far and near. Today, after more than four hundred years of the Church’s presence in this archipelago, that pilgrimage is experiencing a moment of great spiritual intensity here, in Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia. For the second time the Pope, the Successor of Peter, has come to Indonesia. I come with the same love and esteem which brought Pope Paul VI to Jakarta in 1970. All the travels of the Bishop of Rome are a response to the command of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ whose servants we are. He enjoined on his disciples: “You shall be my witnesses... to the end of the earth” (Ac 1,8). Therefore, in union of heart with all of you I am profoundly happy to repeat on Indonesian soil the words of the Responsorial Psalm: “I will sing to you, O Lord... of mercy and justice” (Ps 101,1).
2. My pastoral visit to you, my Catholic brothers and sisters, is part of my ministry which is, above all, a service to the faith and unity of the universal Church. I have also come as a friend of every Indonesian in our common humanity and our common concern for the development and peace of the world in which we live. I greet the public authorities present at this solemn Eucharistic celebration and I express my appreciation to President Soeharto and to the Government for graciously inviting me and thus making this visit possible.
In a special way my greetings go to Cardinal Darmojuwono, to Archbishop Soekoto and to all the bishops of the Catholic Church in Indonesia who repeatedly made known their desire for me to come. My affection reaches out to all the priests, religious and laity. It will be impossible for me to meet all of you during these days, but I assure each one of you of my concern and prayerful encouragement.
In the fellowship that unites us through the sacramental bond of Baptism, I express my cordial esteem for all the members of the various Christian communities present in Indonesia. And to our Muslim brothers and sisters, who are so numerous in this country, I extend the hand of sincere and heartfelt friendship in our common belief in the one God, our Creator and merciful Lord..
Kepada para anggauta semua agama saya ucapkan: Semoga damai sejahtera dan kasih karania berada ditengah-tengah kita.
3. “Laetentur insulae multae”: let the many islands rejoice (Ps 96 Ps 1). For Bishop Walter Staal, Apostolic Vicar of Batavia at the end of the last century, this motto taken from the Psalms expressed the significance of the Church’s presence in this vast archipelago. Today, the whole Church in these islands cries out with joy: “Laetentur insulae multae”!
Dear brother bishops and faithful of the Church in Indonesia: because the bonds of faith, sacramental life and ecclesial communion receive their fullest expression in the celebration of the Eucharist – especially in this Eucharist which gathers the people of God around their bishops in union with the Pope, the head of the Episcopal College – we live this moment with hearts filled with gratitude to the Most Blessed Trinity.
Our hearts sing a hymn of thanksgiving to our heavenly Father for the life of the Church in Indonesia: for her history, for the missionaries who have preached God’s word with wisdom and love, for the holiness of life which the Gospel has inspired, for the good deeds that have been done in its name, for the solidarity it has produced in the building up of modern Indonesia as a unified and dynamic country on the road to ever greater human development, social harmony and peace. We raise our hearts in thanksgiving for the vitality of each of the particular Churches represented here.
As sons and daughters of independent Indonesia, Catholics have nurtured a profound sense of pride in their country. Pro Ecclesia et Patria: “We must be fully Catholic and fully Indonesian”. These words are deeply inscribed in the modern history of the nation. They express the attitude of many Catholics during the struggle for independence, and they continue to inspire the Church’s life in the Indonesia of today.
4. In today’s Gospel reading we heard a significant teaching of Jesus concerning the religious and political dimensions of our existence in society. Some religious leaders had asked Jesus: “Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” (Lc 20,22). Pointing to one of the coins in circulation in their country, Jesus answers with a question: “Whose likeness and inscription has it.? They replied, ‘Caesar’s’”. Then, in response to their initial question Jesus said: “Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s” (Ibid. 20, 25).
By replying in this way Jesus acknowledges a distinction but not a separation between the kingdom of God which he preached and the earthly realm to which all belong as citizens of their country and members of the one great human family (Cfr. Congr. Pro Doctrina Fidei Libertatis Conscientia, 60). Above all Jesus makes known the nature of his own mission, which is to bear witness to the truth (Cfr. Jn 18,37), the truth expressed in the words: “The kingdom of God is at hand” (Marc. 1, 14). The Lord is teaching us that God is close to every aspect of our existence in society and in the world. His presence in our lives is most deeply experienced in the life of grace and the exercise of moral responsibility.
554 Jesus’ injunction to “render to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s” is a specific application of the greatest of all the commandments: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself” (Lc 10,27). It is precisely when we recognize the moral obligation to love our neighbour – all our neighbours, all our fellow citizens – that we acknowledge and fulfil our duties to the State and to those responsible for public life. Furthermore, those who love God know that it is his will that they be active and responsible builders of a just and humane society.
5. The Letter of Peter helps us to apply Jesus’ response in the Gospel to life in the political community: “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution... for it is God’s will... Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil: but live as servants of God” (1Petr.2, 13-16). For the believer all authority has its origin in God, and those who exercise it for the common good should be respected “for the sake of conscience” (Cfr. Rom Rm 13,1-7). The words of Christ and the teaching of the New Testament are the basis of what the Catholic Church has always taught, namely, that political authority and the duties of citizens have to do with the moral order. As a nation, you have incorporated this truth into your own national ethos.
In a certain sense Indonesia’s official attitude of respect for religion reflects the truth of Jesus’ saving in today’s Gospel. You seek to promote the well-being of your country according to the human values on which it is built – rendering to civil society what is its due. At the same time, all are encouraged to render to God what is his, recognizing that the right to practise one’s religion takes its origin directly from the very dignity of the human person as a creature of God. This understanding ensures peace and collaboration among the followers of different religious traditions and permits all to be actively involved in serving the common good.
Maka saya menyerukan kepada seluruh Umat Katolik Indonesia: Jadilah putera bangsa dan warga negara Indonesia yang baik.
6. “Teacher, we know that you speak and teach rightly... you truly teach the way of God” (Lc 20,21).
Today the Church in Jakarta and in all Indonesia, in union with the Bishop of Rome, renews this profession of faith in our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. We do so in imitation of Mary who was blessed because she believed (Cfr. ibid. 1, 45), and of Peter who spoke on behalf of the other Apostles to proclaim: “Lord, you have the words of eternal life!” (Jn 6,86). We profess this faith in continuity with the men and women who have been the zealous witnesses of the Gospel in these islands.
This is a fitting moment for you, the present generation of Indonesian Catholics, to take up with renewed hope and vigour the evangelical challenge which you have inherited from your forebears. This is a fitting moment for all of you, especially the Catholic laity of Indonesia, to rededicate yourselves to the great tasks of transmitting the faith whole and entire to each new generation, of sustaining family life against all that weakens it, of serving the needs of your fellow citizens, especially the poor, the sick and suffering, those lacking education, and those who for any reason are left behind in the processes of growth and development.
And you, dear brother bishops, who are the teachers and pastors of the Church of Christ in Indonesia! It is you above all, together with your priests, who must lead the Church in Indonesia to her fullness in Christ. For this you have been invested with the episcopal ministry through the Holy Spirit whom Christ has given to the Church, that you may be able to teach in truth the ways of God. This is your vocation and your ministry. Christ who lives in his Church in every part of the world expects this service of you.
May the peace and love of him, who teaches the “way of God” – Jesus Christ, who is “the Way and the Truth and the Life” (Jn 14,6) – be ever with the Church that is present on the islands of this splendid archipelago of Indonesia! May God abundantly bless the Indonesian people!
Damai dan sejahtera menyertai kamu sekalian yang berada dalam Kristus (1Petr. 5, 4).
Amen.
555 Yogyakarta (Indonesia)
Tuesday, 10 October 1989
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Para putera-puteriku yang tarkasih dalam Kristus, khususnya yang berasal dari keuskupan Agung Semarang, keuskupan Purwokerto, Surabaya, Malang, Denpasar, Banjarmasin, Samarinda dan ketapang. Saya ucapkan selamat kepada Bapak Kardinal Darmajuwana yang saya kenal baik sakau Uskup Agung Semarang, MonsignorJulius Darmaatmadja, y para Uskup dan anda Sekalian. Saya sungguh merasa bergembira berada ditengahtengah anda, yang merupakan Gereja muda, hidup dan berkembang.
“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (Jn 1,14).
Every time we repeat these words we proclaim the Mystery of the Incarnation, by which God became man and entered into our earthly history. The Word who is God, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, the Son of one being with the Father, “for us men and for our salvation... came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man”.
The Incarnation took place in a precise historical setting. “Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king” (Mt 2,1). He was forced to flee into Egypt in order to escape the king’s cruelty. After Herod’s death he returned with Mary and Joseph to Nazareth, where he lived, until at the age of thirty he began to proclaim the Good News of salvation.
At the same time the Incarnation of the Son of God holds meaning for every human being irrespective of time and place. There is an unbreakable bond between man created “in the image of God” (Gn 1,27) and Christ who took upon himself our human condition, “being born in the likeness of men” (Ph 2,7). From all eternity he was the exemplary cause of all things, “and without him was not anything made that was made” (Jn 1,3). In the Incarnation, Jesus Christ, “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation” (Col 1,15), became the source of a new creation: “to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God” (Ibid. 1, 12). As Saint Paul wrote: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come” (2Co 5,17).
To know the exemplar is to have a more perfect knowledge of those made in his image. That is why John teaches that Christ is “the true light that enlightens every man” (Jn 1,9). Christ reveals what is in each one of us. That is why the Second Vatican Council could say that Christ, in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father, “fully reveals man to himself and makes his supreme calling clear” (Gaudium et Spes GS 22).
God’s closeness to man through the Incarnation is the result of a free act of love on his part. Without this loving closeness humanity would be irretrievably lost. The Word became flesh in order to teach us that God is our Father, and that he is filled with love for his children. But he also came among us to teach us the way to the Father. “I am the Way”, Jesus said (Jn 14,6). In fact he teaches that there is no way that does not take its value from him. He said to his disciples: “I am the door; if anyone enters by me, he will be saved” (Ibid.10, 9). Furthermore, he gave and continues to give the “power” to walk the path that leads to salvation. As we read in the Prologue of Saint John’s Gospel: “grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (Ibid. 1, 17). How did they come? He poured out the Holy Spirit, through whom we have access to the Father (Cfr. Eph Ep 2,18). In the heart of each of Christ’s faithful followers the Holy Spirit generates grace and teaches the truth. In this way the image of God in us is restored and completed.
The eternal work of the Most Blessed Trinity, brought close in the Incarnation of the Word, continues through time in the life and mission of the Church. There is a particular time in the history of each people when the “newness” of life in Christ is announced and the seed of the Kingdom is sown. This is the time of courageous missionaries and often of glorious martyrs. That has been the history of the “plantatio Ecclesiae” in your own country and culture. As with the Prophet Jonah in ancient Nineveh, the heralds of the Gospel faced all kinds of difficulties. Together with you, I wish to thank God for the brave and generous missionaries he gave the Church in Indonesia. The memory of the great Saint Francis Xavier is for ever linked with the Archipelago. But here in the heart of Java, I wish especially to recall the memory of those who laid the foundations of this community which has come together with the Pope in order to praise God. We remember especially Father Franciskus van Lith of the Society of Jesus, who struggled with you for your freedom; Bisbop Kanjeng Albertus Sugijapranata, who was the first Indonesian-born bishop and is a national hero; and the renowned Bapak Ignatius Yosef Kasimo Hendrowahyono.
556 The glorious history of the “plantatio Ecclesiae” in central Java continues today. I rejoice with you at the Christian fervour of your families, from which so many vocations to the priesthood and religious life have come; I rejoice at the enthusiasm and commitment of your young people in the practice of their faith. I rejoice at the zeal and dedication of the lay people actively engaged in various apostolates: in education and health-care, in works of charity and assistance to those in need. In this context I wish to offer a special greeting to all the catechists:
Wahai para kategis yang terkasih: Dengan penuh pengurbanan dan pengabdian, Anda telah memberikan yang terbaik dari hidup Anda demi berkembangnya Kerajaan Allah di sini. Karya-karya Anda itu merupakan mutumanikam yang indah dan sangat berharga bagi seluruh Geraja. Maka Gereja sangat menghargai karya-karya Anda itu. Karena itu saya dengan ini menyampaikan penghargaan, berkah dan doa khusus bagi Anda dan seluruh keluarga Anda.
To the priests and religious I express my deep affection in the Lord and assure them of my prayers. Brothers and sisters: recognize the unique value of your call from Christ. You are his special friends (Cfr. Io Jn 15,15). Persevere with joy in your vocations! The Christian community, indeed the whole of society, has absolute need of you, not only because of the many activities in the field of religion, education and human development which you inspire and provide, but above all for what you are as priests and religious: witnesses to God’s saving presence in the midst of his people. May God’s grace sustain you always!
The mystery of the Incarnation – “ the Word became flesh ” – remains for ever the basis of the link between the Church and the various human cultures by which the peoples of the world give expression to their native qualities. The development of a culture is, in a sense, a response to God’s original command “to fill the earth and subdue it” (Gn 1,28). The ancient theatre, music and dance of Java embody the concepts and wisdom of a civilization which recognized man’s absolute need of God, “One, Supreme and Almighty”, and emphasized the value of living together in peace. Significant is the myth of the garuda, the eagle which allows man to fly to a great height where the light from above enables him to grasp the true meaning of things and the deeper dimensions of life and love.
In this promising setting the Gospel seed was sown. In the Bible, evangelization is often referred to in agricultural terms. Saint Paul in fact calls the Christian community “God’s field” (1Co 3,9). The seed of the word of God is good seed. The ground is properly prepared. It is up to you, the workers whom the Lord of the harvest, the Eternal Father, has sent into his field, to find the way for it to bring forth abundant fruit – like your forefathers who tended the soil carefully and patiently so that they might harvest their rice crops three times a year. Unlike the first evangelizers, you are not strangers to this culture. You are the sons and daughters of Java. You can carry the Good News to the very heart of your own culture.
At the same time, as members of the Catholic and universal Church, you are conscious of the fact that the Church’s role is also to help to enrich every culture. Through the power of Christ – the Word made flesh – a divine current, so to speak, passes through all nations and cultures. As Saint Paul says to the Philippians in our first reading, Christ is constantly “encouraging” humanity (Cfr. Phil Ph 2,1) by his example of self-sacrificing love. From his Cross there flows an “incentive of love” (Ibid. 2, 1) which banishes selfishness and pride, and encourages openness to all. In this way the example of Christ and the power of his Paschal Mystery penetrate, purify and elevate all culture, every culture. Do not let the seed of the world of God remain fruitless. Do not cease to ask the Almighty to grant increase to what has been sown in humble trust!
In this homeland of Bishop Sugijapranata and of Pak Kasimo, it is helpful to remember that Christian faith must be translated into service for the good of society.Alongside these well-known figures, the Church offers the nation the testimony of innumerable honest and dedicated citizens. They too are the harvest of God’s field.
Dear brothers and sisters, I urge you: make selfless love your rule of life. Let it be the object of our personal and community prayer; let it lead and guide you in your daily contact with family, friends, neighbours and fellow workers, as you share in the mission of the Church and in the public life of your country. Remember that you build up the universal Church when you bring to it the unique riches of Indonesian culture; you build up Indonesia when, working in harmony with all your fellow citizens for the common good, you bring to it the unique riches of your Catholic faith.
Christian commitment, however, is not limited to this service to the world. Its main purpose in the glory of God and the salvation of souls. Its moment of greatest intensity is precisely here, in the Eucharist, the celebration of the sacred mysteries of our Redemption. Together we pray: “ May the Lord accept (this) sacrifice... for the praise and glory of his name, for our good, and the good of all his Church ”. In union with Christ we offer to the Father the Church in Yogyakarta and in Java, the entire Church in Indonesia, this whole splendid archipelago and all its peoples, with their hopes and aspirations, their joys and sufferings.
“You are my praise in the great assembly”, says the Psalmist (Ps 22,28). And through this praise which is sung in countless languages throughout the world, all the ends of the earth return to the Lord, all families of the nations worship before him. In this praise sung by all creation, by all earth’s peoples and nations, there resounds today the voice of Indonesia.
Putera-puteriku yang terkasih: Jadilah terus murid-murid Kristus yang sejati. Doaku selalu mengiringi usaha Anda sekalian di sini. Semoga Tuhan kita Yesus Kristus, selalu melimpahkan rahmatNya kepada Anda sekalian.
S. John Paul II Homil. 549