He is alive! He is risen! He has conquered sin and death and has won victory for us! St. Gregory of Nyssa eloquently proclaimed in his Easter homily that “The reign of life has begun. The tyranny of death is ended. A new birth has taken place; a new life has come; a new order of existence has appeared; our very nature has been transformed. This birth is not brought about by human generation, by the will of man or the desire of the flesh, but by God who raised Jesus from the dead.”
On this holiest of days, “the resurrection is God’s potent yes, his amen pronounced on the life of Jesus,” therefore you and I are alive and thanks be to God! Today like no other day we have been reconciled with God; elevated to new heights and are called to a new life in Christ and I am thrilled to be part of it. For just as Christ is risen, we too are risen from sin to life so that Easter blessings may be made manifest in and through us to many in our world.
The resurrection is the foundation and essence of our faith, a sign par excellence (John 2:18) of Christ divine authenticity. Our faith is not in vain thanks to the resurrection of Jesus, a joyful occasion of God’s love for his people – a delight to the heart and an exhortation to enter into this great event for all eternity.
This day of rejoicing calls for a big celebration in all churches and homes throughout the world, for God has wrought great wonders in our lives and indeed we are glad. It is truly the day the Lord has made and all earth exults in this glorious life!
Easter is a time when we awake from darkness into light – darkness dispelled by the Son of God who became our leader and in turn leading us into his light – the light of eternal salvation. Today we praise God among the peoples and chant his praises among the nations for his love reaches to the heavens and his faithfulness to the skies.
Riveting indeed is the message that the women heard from the angels in the gospel “Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised.” The Lord has been raised thus conquering sin and death and calling us to begin a new phase in our lives – walking in newness of life. This is the time to think of what is above, because our life is hidden with Christ.
While Easter proclaims life, resurrection and calls for rejoicing, we know that we cannot fully celebrate without recalling that there are many throughout our world that are not rejoicing with us because of war, health issues, family problems, death of a loved one and what have you.
Jesus’ resurrection has a powerful message for all, that our suffering is not the end of our lives but if endured with patience and faithfulness we too will rise above it and live a more perfect life with God forever.
Easter message challenges us to become heralds of the good news just as the women who went out to announce Christ resurrection to the disciples and to others, that we be alive with the message – be on fire for Christ! Christ is alive to the extent that we are Christ and manifest him to others.
Through the resurrection, we have been made intimate participants in the glorious life of Christ because he is drawing us to himself by giving us eternal life. Having received a new life in Christ, you and I are challenged to become life for others by loving and caring for all peoples, living the best life you can live for God and remaining faithful at all times to God.
I am humbled and grateful that Jesus suffered for me and for many people that I do not know, nonetheless connected to spiritually. Grateful that he chose to come into the world to ransom us, I want to be alive in Christ because like St. Paul, “He has appeared to me too” and hopefully you are ready to say the same and embark on this life-changing journey!
May Easter blessings be and remain with us all now and forever. Amen
Peace and blessings to all of you and May God’s love dwell in your hearts richly.
We have begun the semester alla grande. God has and continues to do marvels for us this semester thanks to all our benefactors, board members, university community, our staff and especially our students. I am overwhelmed at the talents and generosity of our students who in the course of a month where able to organize and pull off something as complex as family weekend Mass despite the inclement weather. Our students are simply ambassadors for Christ – motivated to promoting the gospels all over campus and beyond – we are committed to the teachings of the Church. We have seen our students promote the gospel of life and continue to remind us here on Campus that life ought and should be accorded its dignity from conception to natural death. They are engaged in several activities as a means of reminding each and everyone one of us that the Church permeates all aspects of life. We are grateful to God for that.
I thank the Knights of Columbus for their unwavering support of CCM – they are truly an integral part of our ministry and Troy Strom whose commitment to spreading the good news of Jesus Christ is worth emulating. Our music ministers were absolutely awesome!
Finally I thank and bless our new Campus Minister – Kristen Rainey(Krainey@ccmin.org). This young woman comes to us with an unprecedented knowledge and love for the Church. She has added very much to the CCM community in her brief time here. I pray and hope that you will have time to meet with her in the coming weeks and months. May the name of the Lord be praised both now and forever.
May the Lord bless you and your loved ones and I thank you for your generosity of heart.
Please feel free to drop by anytime for a visit or send me an e-mail @ fatherpatrick@ccmin.org.
Dear Friends in Christ,
I hope you are all doing very well! I just thought I share this with all of you. This is a great piece - a source of encouragement to all you young people who are thinking about the Priesthood and Religious life but are looking for that 'push'.
God bless you as you strive to do HIs Will for you in this life.
http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/25692545/
Let me know what you think by e-mailing me at Fatherpatrick@ccmin.org
Also for more info on vocations, please contact
Bishop Johnston @ 417-8660841
Ordination Mass of Fr.s' Kizito Wenani and Saviour Nundwe
5/23/08
Saint Agnes Cathedral, Springfield, Missouri
Readings: Jeremiah 1: 4-9; Acts 20: 17-18a, 28-32, 36; John 15: 9-7
Dear Friends in Christ, and especially, Kizito and Saviour, throughout history, God amazes us by including us in the awesome work of salvation. At times, it even seems that God chooses to make himself dependent upon us!
We see this most evidently in the event which we know as the Annunciation:
God sends his angel, Gabriel, to Mary, announcing His intentions for her, but God depends upon her “yes” before He acts. Before the Word can become flesh and make his dwelling among us, Mary must agree and give her “yes.”
Each year during the fourth week of Advent, I am struck by a homily of St. Bernard which we read in the Liturgy of the Hours, which is titled: “The Whole World Awaits Mary’s Reply”. At one point in that homily, St. Bernard says, as if speaking directly to Mary: “The price of our salvation is offered to you. We shall be set free at once if you consent. . . Answer with a word, receive the Word of God. Speak your own word, conceive the divine Word. Breathe a passing word, embrace the eternal Word.” It is both awesome and humbling to realize that God chooses to rely on human choices to bring about his will. He chooses us, and then waits for us to choose him.
This mystery is also evident today at this Mass in which two men, Kizito and Saviour will be ordained priests. We are once again confronted with the reality that God chooses to carry out his purposes through his people, and in effect, chooses to rely on them to say “yes.” Perhaps this amazement is why the prophet Jeremiah responds to God’s call the way he does: “Ah, Lord God, . . . I know not how to speak; I am too young.” It is almost as if Jeremiah is saying to God: “God, you want to depend upon me? You have got to be kidding!” If he is honest, every priest looks upon his own life and vocation with amazement . . . amazement that God would depend upon him for such important work; work that will have eternal consequences for so many, including himself.
Like Mary, if a man called to priesthood does not give his “yes” there will be no “Incarnation” in the great sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. If he does not give his “yes,” the Word is not spoken in absolution over the penitent. When a priest is ordained, we realize that, like the call of the prophet Jeremiah, and like Mary at the Annunciation, God continues to make His work, to an extent, dependent on us, and our acts of faith. Certainly, God can, and often does, act without us; but he chooses to work in and through us as members of his Body, as branches on the vine.
Kizito and Saviour, in a few moments, you will be asked five questions, which touch on the duties of a priest. First, you will be called to dedicate yourself to working with me your bishop to care for the needs of the Lord’s flock. In this, we recognize the words of advice that the apostle Paul gives to the presbyters of the Church of Ephesus in the reading from Acts which we heard tonight: “Keep watch over yourselves and over the whole flock of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you overseers, in which you tend the Church of God that he acquired with his own Blood.” (Acts 20: 28)
In one of his homilies, St. Augustine comments on this term that Paul uses, “overseers,” and contrasts it with another word from Scripture, the hireling.”
Augustine asks, “Who then is the hireling, who deserves reproach but is also indispensable?” Augustine seeks this answer so that he will not become a hireling, and he answers, “In the Church there are certain people in positions of authority of whom the apostle Paul says, They seek their own ends, not those of Christ. (Philippians 2: 19-20) . . . It means that they do not love Christ for nothing, they do not seek God for the sake of God; they pursue worldly rewards.” (Homilies on John’s Gospel, 46)
By contrast, the overseer is genuinely concerned for the sheep. Augustine says the overseer is truly a shepherd because he is a member of the one Shepherd, Jesus. He loves God and His flock, not so that he can get something out of it, or be popular, but so that the sheep will be safe and protected from the danger of the wolf. Augustine says that among the clergy there will be both genuine shepherds and unfortunately, hirelings, and that both are needed. God uses both, even the hirelings, to proclaim the Gospel. But, he warns that the hirelings will not inherit the shepherd’s reward, because the hireling is after an earthly reward. Kizito and Saviour, as you care for the flock, always do so with a true shepherd’s heart.
You will also commit to the ministry of the word, preaching the Gospel and teaching the Catholic Faith. You will resolve to celebrate faithfully and reverently the mysteries of Christ, especially the sacrifice of the Holy Eucharist and the sacrament of Reconciliation, for the sanctification of the flock. You will resolve to pray without ceasing for God’s people and unite yourself more each day to Christ, giving your life, like he did for the salvation of all.
We know that through sacred ordination, it is Christ himself that acts in and through the priest. But, we also know that for this work of Christ in us to be credible, we priests must adopt a lifestyle that is consistent with the word we preach and the Catholic faith we teach. This is at the heart of the Gospel reading we have tonight. This discourse in John’s Gospel is taken from the last discourse of Jesus with his disciples, in which He speaks in terms of the vine and the branches. In these words, our Lord is especially praying for these ones he has chosen to carry on his priestly ministry in the world.
As He does so, He prays that they might love one another with a sacrificial love, laying down their lives for each other.
As priests, we realize we are not mere functionaries, but we are called to be living witnesses and examples of the way of life we preach . . . or better yet, we are called to be living witnesses of the person we preach. When we celebrate the Eucharist and speak the words of Jesus, “This is my Body, which will be given up for you” we are doing so in persona Christi, “in the person of Christ,” which means that it is actually Christ himself speaking his words in and through us. But there is another dimension of meaning that Christ intends. He wishes those words to be evident in the priest who speaks them, and who represents him as his witness, so that the priest himself is also saying to his people, “Here too, is my body, my person, my life, given for you as your priest.”
Here we might return to Jeremiah again because at this point, realizing what God is calling us to do with all its seriousness and responsibility, we might wish to point out our deficiencies, our youth, our inexperience; but, like Jeremiah, the Lord reassures us, “it was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you.” (John 15: 16) The Lord calls and sends, and he equips us for the mission. We not only have to say “yes” on the day of our ordination but we have to continue to say “yes” our whole lives, otherwise we lose our first love and what we sometimes call “priestly zeal” and can even drift into indifference or cynicism. It is then that we start looking for other rewards in the way a hireling does.
To renew our “yes” each day as priests, we must remember that we are missionaries and that America today has again become missionary territory. Kizito and Saviour, you are reminders of this reality. You come to us from the Church in Africa, to proclaim the Gospel in America. But, like you, all of us in the presbyterate are also missionaries. The Church in America is in need of a new evangelization as we know. Our people need Christ revealed to them, even those who already have the name “Catholic.” They need to know Him and have a living relationship with Him, otherwise their lives are empty. But, we first need to seek Christ with joy and enthusiasm. We have to be men of prayer, because we cannot give to others what we ourselves do not have.
We also must be deliberate about following the command of Jesus in tonight’s Gospel. We must love one another as brothers, and we must do so as brother priests. We must teach what we believe and practice what we teach. We welcome you as our brothers tonight and we pledge to love you as our brothers.
Catholic priesthood, we begin to see, is an “all or nothing” proposition from God. This is why priesthood has to affect all the detail of our lives and why the holiness of the office and our own personal holiness must go together.
Saint Catherine of Siena once said: “If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world ablaze.” Kizito and Saviour, through your “yes” to God’s call you become priests of Jesus Christ tonight. Recommit yourselves each day to being what you should be and set the world ablaze with the love of God, always remembering the example of the Good Shepherd, who came not to be served but to serve, and to seek out and rescue those who were lost.
And may Mary, who through her “yes” to the Father conceived the “Word Made Flesh” be for you a guide and a protector.
CELEBRAZIONE EUCARISTICA IN SUFFRAGIO
DEL DEFUNTO CARDINALE BERNARDIN GANTIN
OMELIA DI SUA SANTITÀ BENEDETTO XVI
Altare della Cattedra, Basilica Vaticana
Venerdì, 23 maggio 2008
Signori Cardinali,
venerati Fratelli nell’Episcopato e nel Sacerdozio,
cari fratelli e sorelle!
“Profetizza e annunzia loro: Ecco io apro i vostri sepolcri, vi risuscito dalle vostre tombe” (Ez 37,12). Risuonano cariche di speranza queste parole tratte dal Libro del profeta Ezechiele. La liturgia le ha riproposte alla nostra meditazione mentre siamo riuniti intorno all’altare del Signore per offrire l’Eucaristia in suffragio del caro Cardinale Bernardin Gantin, giunto al termine del suo cammino terreno martedì, 13 maggio scorso. Al popolo oppresso e sfiduciato, affranto dalle sofferenze dell’esilio, il Signore annuncia la restaurazione di Israele. E’ una scena grandiosa, quella evocata dal profeta, che preannuncia l’intervento risolutivo di Dio nella storia degli uomini, intervento che supera quanto è umanamente possibile. Quando ci si sente stanchi, impotenti e sfiduciati dinanzi alla realtà incombente, quando si è tentati di cedere alla delusione e persino alla disperazione, quando l’uomo è ridotto ad un cumulo di “ossa inaridite”, è allora il momento della speranza “contro ogni speranza” (cfr Rm 4,18). La verità che la Parola di Dio ricorda con potenza è che nulla e nessuno, nemmeno la morte, può resistere all’onnipotenza del suo amore fedele e misericordioso. Questa è la nostra fede, fondata sulla risurrezione di Cristo; questa è la consolante assicurazione che il Signore ci ripete anche oggi: “Riconoscerete che io sono il Signore, quando aprirò le vostre tombe e vi risusciterò dai vostri sepolcri… Farò entrare in voi il mio spirito e rivivrete” (Ez 37,13-14).
E’ in questa prospettiva di fede e di speranza nella risurrezione che facciamo memoria del venerato Cardinale Bernardin Gantin, fedele e devoto servitore della Chiesa per lunghi anni. E’ difficile sintetizzare in brevi cenni le mansioni, i compiti e gli incarichi pastorali che in rapida successione hanno caratterizzato le tappe della sua esistenza terrena conclusasi, all’età di 86 anni, nell’ospedale parigino “Georges Pompidou”. Sino alla fine ha voluto dedicarsi con amabile disponibilità al servizio di Dio e dei fratelli, mantenendo fede al motto che si era scelto in occasione dell’Ordinazione episcopale: “In tuo sancto servitio”. La sua personalità, umana e sacerdotale, costituiva una sintesi meravigliosa delle caratteristiche dell’animo africano con quelle proprie dello spirito cristiano, della cultura e dell’identità africana e dei valori evangelici. E’ stato il primo ecclesiastico africano ad aver ricoperto ruoli di altissima responsabilità nella Curia Romana, e li ha svolti sempre con quel suo tipico stile umile e semplice, il cui segreto va ricercato probabilmente nelle sagge parole che la mamma gli volle ripetere quando divenne Cardinale, il 27 giugno del 1977: “Non dimenticarti mai del lontano e piccolo villaggio dal quale proveniamo”.
Non pochi ricordi personali mi legano a questo nostro Fratello, a partire proprio da quando insieme ricevemmo la berretta cardinalizia dalle mani del venerato Servo di Dio, il Papa Paolo VI, 31 anni or sono. Insieme abbiamo collaborato qui, nella Curia Romana, avendo frequenti contatti, che mi hanno permesso di apprezzare sempre più la sua prudente saggezza, come pure la sua solida fede e il suo sincero attaccamento a Cristo e al suo Vicario in terra, il Papa. Cinquantasette anni di sacerdozio, cinquantuno anni di Episcopato e trentuno di porpora cardinalizia: ecco la sintesi di una vita spesa per la Chiesa.
Aveva solo 34 anni quando a Roma, nella cappella del Collegio di Propaganda Fide, ricevette l’Ordinazione episcopale, il 3 febbraio del 1957. Tre anni dopo divenne Arcivescovo di Cotonou, Capitale della sua Patria, il Benin: fu il primo Metropolita africano di tutta l’Africa. Resse la diocesi con doti umane e ascetiche, che lo rendevano autorevole Pastore dedito soprattutto alla cura dei sacerdoti e alla formazione dei catechisti fino a quando, nel 1971, Paolo VI lo volle a Roma come Segretario aggiunto della Congregazione per l’Evangelizzazione dei Popoli. Due anni dopo lo nominò Segretario del medesimo Dicastero e alla fine del 1975 lo scelse come vice Presidente della Pontificia Commissione della Giustizia e della Pace; di essa divenne in seguito Presidente, assumendo nel 1976 anche la responsabilità di Presidente del Pontificio Consiglio Cor unum. Il Servo di Dio Giovanni Paolo II, l’8 aprile del 1984, lo chiamò ad essere Prefetto della Congregazione per i Vescovi e Presidente della Pontificia Commissione per l’America Latina, incarico che egli resse sino al 25 giugno di dieci anni or sono, quando lo lasciò per raggiunti limiti di età.
Ripercorrendo, sia pur rapidamente, la biografia del Cardinale Gantin che, oltre agli ambiti sopra citati, ebbe ad offrire il suo contributo in diversi altri Uffici e Dicasteri della Curia, viene alla mente l’affermazione di san Paolo, che abbiamo ascoltato nella seconda Lettura: “Per me il vivere è Cristo e il morire un guadagno” (Fil 1,21). L’Apostolo legge la propria esistenza alla luce del messaggio di Cristo, perché da Lui è stato totalmente “afferrato, conquistato” (cfr Fil 3,12). Possiamo dire che anche questo nostro amico e fratello, al quale oggi rendiamo il nostro grato omaggio, fu permeato di amore a Cristo; amore che lo rendeva amabile e disponibile all’ascolto e al dialogo con tutti; amore che lo spingeva a guardare sempre, come era solito ripetere, all’essenziale della vita che dura, senza perdersi nel contingente che invece passa rapidamente; amore che gli faceva sentire il suo ruolo nei vari Uffici della Curia come un servizio scevro di umane ambizioni. Fu questo spirito a spingerlo, il 30 novembre del 2002, raggiunta la veneranda età di 80 anni, a rassegnare le dimissioni da Decano del Collegio Cardinalizio e a fare ritorno tra la sua gente, nel Benin, dove riprese l’attività evangelizzatrice che aveva avviato il giorno della sua ordinazione sacerdotale, avvenuta a Ouidah nel lontano 14 gennaio del 1951.
Cari fratelli e sorelle, ieri abbiamo celebrato la solennità del Corpus Domini. Il tema eucaristico ritorna nella pagina evangelica proclamata in quest’assemblea liturgica. San Giovanni ricorda come solo mangiando “la carne” e bevendo “il sangue” di Cristo possiamo dimorare in Lui e Lui in noi. Nel ministero pastorale del Cardinale Gantin emerge un costante amore per l’Eucaristia, sorgente di santità personale e di solida comunione ecclesiale, che trova nel Successore di Pietro il suo visibile fondamento. E fu proprio in questa stessa Basilica che, celebrando l’ultima Santa Messa prima di lasciare Roma, egli ebbe a sottolineare l’unità che l’Eucaristia crea nella Chiesa. Nella sua omelia citò la celebre frase del Vescovo africano san Cipriano di Cartagine, incisa nella Cupola: “Di qui l’unica fede rifulge per il mondo: di qui scaturisce l’unità del sacerdozio”. Potrebbe essere questo il messaggio che noi raccogliamo dal venerato Cardinale Gantin come suo testamento spirituale. Lo accompagni nell’ultima tappa del suo viaggio terreno la nostra preghiera alla Vergine Maria, Regina dell’Africa, della quale egli fu teneramente devoto - la sua morte è avvenuta in una significativa ricorrenza mariana, il 13 maggio, memoria di Nostra Signora di Fatima. Sia la Madonna a consegnarlo alle mani misericordiose del Padre celeste e ad introdurlo con gioia nella “Casa del Signore”, verso la quale siamo tutti incamminati. Nell’incontro con Cristo questo nostro Fratello implori per noi, e specialmente per l’amata sua Africa, il dono della pace. Cosi sia!
© Copyright 2008 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
In the early 90's while I was a student at the Lateran, I had the opportunity to meet Cardinal Bernardin Gantin - I quickly noticed that he was not only a prince of the Church but also a humble and holy man - whose love for the Church has been an incredible source of inspiration.
Over the years, His Eminence has dedicated himself totally at the service of the Church. Though a man of few words - he personified Christ to all. He was truly a great listener with a great sense of the other. Cardinal Gantin - a son of Africa, a son of the Church will forever remain in the heart of this African as a man who loved and served the Church and his people faithfully. A man who always reminded us to focus our attention totally on the person of Jesus.
His Eminence reminds us that holiness is everything. His humility, love and holiness of heart is to be emulated. May his soul and the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace.
Fr. Patrick Ike
A Hero's Sendoff
Yesterday was a national holiday in Benin, as thousands converged on a Cotonou stadium to attend the funeral liturgy for Cardinal Bernardin Gantin. The dean-emeritus of the College of Cardinals -- the highest-ranking African prelate in the church's modern history --
died last week in Paris at 86.
Dispatched to preside at the rites as papal legate was Gantin's onetime #2 and eventual successor at the Congregation for Bishops, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, who led a phalanx of red-hats that included Cardinals Francis Arinze, the Ghanaian Peter Appiah Turkson, Kenya's John Njue and Tanzania's Polycarp Pengo, all joined by the nuncio, Indiana-born Archbishop Michael Blume SVD. Mixing the military pomp of a state occasion with the solemnity of high-church worship, the days-long rites ended with the cardinal's burial in the chapel of his alma mater, the national seminary of St Gall at Ouidah.
In Rome, the cardinal was mourned at a Memorial Mass held this morning at the Altar of the Chair in St Peter's. While the current Cardinal-Dean Angelo Sodano celebrated the liturgy, Pope Benedict emerged at its close to deliver the homily.
Remembering his close ally as a "friend and brother," the pontiff said that Gantin was "permeated with love for Christ," with a "typical humble, simple style" that made him "affable and ready to listen and talk to everyone."
A railway worker's son, Benedict said that "his personality, human and priestly, made for a magnificent synthesis of the qualities of the African soul with those of the Christian spirit, of the culture and identity of Africa and the values of the Gospel." Despite being, at age 38, the first native-born African archbishop and the continent's first son to assume a top role in the Roman Curia, the Pope said that Gantin never let the accolades get to his head, adding that the "secret" to his humility likely lay in "the wise words that his mother repeated when he became a cardinal... 'Never forget the little faraway village from which you came.'"
For the second time in a month, the pontiff has a vacancy to fill in the top rank of his "senate," the order of cardinal-bishops. If the usual practice of curial seniority is followed, the appointment would go to the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal William Levada.
No US cardinal has ever been tapped to join the senior group within the college, whose six members are given the titles to the suffragan sees of Rome (and, once upon a time, were the sole electors of the Popes). As cardinal-bishops are bound in a particular way to the Roman church, naming Levada to the first order would have the practical side benefit of snuffing out once and for all the nagging buzz that the California native could be
making a return to these shores as archbishop of New York.
-30-
MEETING WITH THE BISHOPS
OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
RESPONSES OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
TO THE QUESTIONS POSED BY THE BISHOPS
National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
Wednesday, 16 April 2008
1. The Holy Father is asked to give his assessment of the challenge of increasing secularism in public life and relativism in intellectual life, and his advice on how to confront these challenges pastorally and evangelize more effectively. (Bishop James Vann Johnston)
I touched upon this theme briefly in my address. It strikes me as significant that here in America, unlike many places in Europe, the secular mentality has not been intrinsically opposed to religion. Within the context of the separation of Church and State, American society has always been marked by a fundamental respect for religion and its public role, and, if polls are to be believed, the American people are deeply religious. But it is not enough to count on this traditional religiosity and go about business as usual, even as its foundations are being slowly undermined. A serious commitment to evangelization cannot prescind from a profound diagnosis of the real challenges the Gospel encounters in contemporary American culture.
Of course, what is essential is a correct understanding of the just autonomy of the secular order, an autonomy which cannot be divorced from God the Creator and his saving plan (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 36). Perhaps America’s brand of secularism poses a particular problem: it allows for professing belief in God, and respects the public role of religion and the Churches, but at the same time it can subtly reduce religious belief to a lowest common denominator. Faith becomes a passive acceptance that certain things “out there” are true, but without practical relevance for everyday life. The result is a growing separation of faith from life: living “as if God did not exist”. This is aggravated by an individualistic and eclectic approach to faith and religion: far from a Catholic approach to “thinking with the Church”, each person believes he or she has a right to pick and choose, maintaining external social bonds but without an integral, interior conversion to the law of Christ. Consequently, rather than being transformed and renewed in mind, Christians are easily tempted to conform themselves to the spirit of this age (cf. Rom 12:3). We have seen this emerge in an acute way in the scandal given by Catholics who promote an alleged right to abortion.
On a deeper level, secularism challenges the Church to reaffirm and to pursue more actively her mission in and to the world. As the Council made clear, the lay faithful have a particular responsibility in this regard. What is needed, I am convinced, is a greater sense of the intrinsic relationship between the Gospel and the natural law on the one hand, and, on the other, the pursuit of authentic human good, as embodied in civil law and in personal moral decisions. In a society that rightly values personal liberty, the Church needs to promote at every level of her teaching – in catechesis, preaching, seminary and university instruction – an apologetics aimed at affirming the truth of Christian revelation, the harmony of faith and reason, and a sound understanding of freedom, seen in positive terms as a liberation both from the limitations of sin and for an authentic and fulfilling life. In a word, the Gospel has to be preached and taught as an integral way of life, offering an attractive and true answer, intellectually and practically, to real human problems. The “dictatorship of relativism”, in the end, is nothing less than a threat to genuine human freedom, which only matures in generosity and fidelity to the truth.
Much more, of course, could be said on this subject: let me conclude, though, by saying that I believe that the Church in America, at this point in her history, is faced with the challenge of recapturing the Catholic vision of reality and presenting it, in an engaging and imaginative way, to a society which markets any number of recipes for human fulfillment. I think in particular of our need to speak to the hearts of young people, who, despite their constant exposure to messages contrary to the Gospel, continue to thirst for authenticity, goodness and truth. Much remains to be done, particularly on the level of preaching and catechesis in parishes and schools, if the new evangelization is to bear fruit for the renewal of ecclesial life in America.
2. The Holy Father is asked about “a certain quiet attrition” by which Catholics are abandoning the practice of the faith, sometimes by an explicit decision, but often by distancing themselves quietly and gradually from attendance at Mass and identification with the Church.
Certainly, much of this has to do with the passing away of a religious culture, sometimes disparagingly referred to as a “ghetto”, which reinforced participation and identification with the Church. As I just mentioned, one of the great challenges facing the Church in this country is that of cultivating a Catholic identity which is based not so much on externals as on a way of thinking and acting grounded in the Gospel and enriched by the Church’s living tradition.
The issue clearly involves factors such as religious individualism and scandal. Let us go to the heart of the matter: faith cannot survive unless it is nourished, unless it is “formed by charity” (cf. Gal 5:6). Do people today find it difficult to encounter God in our Churches? Has our preaching lost its salt? Might it be that many people have forgotten, or never really learned, how to pray in and with the Church?
Here I am not speaking of people who leave the Church in search of subjective religious “experiences”; this is a pastoral issue which must be addressed on its own terms. I think we are speaking about people who have fallen by the wayside without consciously having rejected their faith in Christ, but, for whatever reason, have not drawn life from the liturgy, the sacraments, preaching. Yet Christian faith, as we know, is essentially ecclesial, and without a living bond to the community, the individual’s faith will never grow to maturity. Indeed, to return to the question I just discussed, the result can be a quiet apostasy.
So let me make two brief observations on the problem of “attrition”, which I hope will stimulate further reflection.
First, as you know, it is becoming more and more difficult, in our Western societies, to speak in a meaningful way of “salvation”. Yet salvation – deliverance from the reality of evil, and the gift of new life and freedom in Christ – is at the heart of the Gospel. We need to discover, as I have suggested, new and engaging ways of proclaiming this message and awakening a thirst for the fulfillment which only Christ can bring. It is in the Church’s liturgy, and above all in the sacrament of the Eucharist, that these realities are most powerfully expressed and lived in the life of believers; perhaps we still have much to do in realizing the Council’s vision of the liturgy as the exercise of the common priesthood and the impetus for a fruitful apostolate in the world.
Second, we need to acknowledge with concern the almost complete eclipse of an eschatological sense in many of our traditionally Christian societies. As you know, I have pointed to this problem in the Encyclical Spe Salvi. Suffice it to say that faith and hope are not limited to this world: as theological virtues, they unite us with the Lord and draw us toward the fulfillment not only of our personal destiny but also that of all creation. Faith and hope are the inspiration and basis of our efforts to prepare for the coming of the Kingdom of God. In Christianity, there can be no room for purely private religion: Christ is the Savior of the world, and, as members of his Body and sharers in his prophetic, priestly and royal munera, we cannot separate our love for him from our commitment to the building up of the Church and the extension of his Kingdom. To the extent that religion becomes a purely private affair, it loses its very soul.
Let me conclude by stating the obvious. The fields are still ripe for harvesting (cf. Jn 4:35); God continues to give the growth (cf. 1 Cor 3:6). We can and must believe, with the late Pope John Paul II, that God is preparing a new springtime for Christianity (cf. Redemptoris Missio, 86). What is needed above all, at this time in the history of the Church in America, is a renewal of that apostolic zeal which inspires her shepherds actively to seek out the lost, to bind up those who have been wounded, and to bring strength to those who are languishing (cf. Ez 34:16). And this, as I have said, calls for new ways of thinking based on a sound diagnosis of today’s challenges and a commitment to unity in the service of the Church’s mission to the present generation.
3. The Holy Father is asked to comment on the decline in vocations despite the growing numbers of the Catholic population, and on the reasons for hope offered by the personal qualities and the thirst for holiness which characterize the candidates who do come forward.
Let us be quite frank: the ability to cultivate vocations to the priesthood and the religious life is a sure sign of the health of a local Church. There is no room for complacency in this regard. God continues to call young people; it is up to all of us to encourage a generous and free response to that call. On the other hand, none of us can take this grace for granted.
In the Gospel, Jesus tells us to pray that the Lord of the harvest will send workers. He even admits that the workers are few in comparison with the abundance of the harvest (cf. Mt 9:37-38). Strange to say, I often think that prayer – the unum necessarium – is the one aspect of vocations work which we tend to forget or to undervalue!
Nor am I speaking only of prayer for vocations. Prayer itself, born in Catholic families, nurtured by programs of Christian formation, strengthened by the grace of the sacraments, is the first means by which we come to know the Lord’s will for our lives. To the extent that we teach young people to pray, and to pray well, we will be cooperating with God’s call. Programs, plans and projects have their place; but the discernment of a vocation is above all the fruit of an intimate dialogue between the Lord and his disciples. Young people, if they know how to pray, can be trusted to know what to do with God’s call.
It has been noted that there is a growing thirst for holiness in many young people today, and that, although fewer in number, those who come forward show great idealism and much promise. It is important to listen to them, to understand their experiences, and to encourage them to help their peers to see the need for committed priests and religious, as well as the beauty of a life of sacrificial service to the Lord and his Church. To my mind, much is demanded of vocation directors and formators: candidates today, as much as ever, need to be given a sound intellectual and human formation which will enable them not only to respond to the real questions and needs of their contemporaries, but also to mature in their own conversion and to persevere in life-long commitment to their vocation. As Bishops, you are conscious of the sacrifice demanded when you are asked to release one of your finest priests for seminary work. I urge you to respond with generosity, for the good of the whole Church.
Finally, I think you know from experience that most of your brother priests are happy in their vocation. What I said in my address about the importance of unity and cooperation within the presbyterate applies here too. There is a need for all of us to move beyond sterile divisions, disagreements and preconceptions, and to listen together to the voice of the Spirit who is guiding the Church into a future of hope. Each of us knows how important priestly fraternity has been in our lives. That fraternity is not only a precious possession, but also an immense resource for the renewal of the priesthood and the raising up of new vocations. I would close by encouraging you to foster opportunities for ever greater dialogue and fraternal encounter among your priests, and especially the younger priests. I am convinced that this will bear great fruit for their own enrichment, for the increase of their love for the priesthood and the Church, and for the effectiveness of their apostolate.
Dear Brother Bishops, with these few observations, I once more encourage all of you in your ministry to the faithful entrusted to your pastoral care, and I commend you to the loving intercession of Mary Immaculate, Mother of the Church.
MESSAGE OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
TO THE JEWISH COMMUNITY
POPE JOHN PAUL II CULTURAL CENTER
WASHINGTON
17 APRIL 2008
My dear friends,
I extend special greetings of peace to the Jewish community in the United States and throughout the world as you prepare to celebrate the annual feast of Pesah. My visit to this country has coincided with this feast, allowing me to meet with you personally and to assure you of my prayers as you recall the signs and wonders God performed in liberating his chosen people. Motivated by our common spiritual heritage, I am pleased to entrust to you this message as a testimony to our hope centered on the Almighty and his mercy.
* * *
To the Jewish community on the Feast of Pesah
My visit to the United States offers me the occasion to extend a warm and heartfelt greeting to my Jewish brothers and sisters in this country and throughout the world. A greeting that is all the more spiritually intense because the great feast of Pesah is approaching. "This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord; throughout your generations you shall observe it as an ordinance for ever" (Exodus 12: 14). While the Christian celebration of Easter differs in many ways from your celebration of Pesah, we understand and experience it in continuation with the biblical narrative of the mighty works which the Lord accomplished for his people.
At this time of your most solemn celebration, I feel particularly close, precisely because of what Nostra Aetate calls Christians to remember always: that the Church "received the revelation of the Old Testament through the people with whom God in His inexpressible mercy concluded the Ancient Covenant. Nor can she forget that she draws sustenance from the root of that well-cultivated olive tree onto which have been grafted the wild shoots, the Gentiles" (Nostra Aetate, 4). In addressing myself to you I wish to re-affirm the Second Vatican Council's teaching on Catholic-Jewish relations and reiterate the Church's commitment to the dialogue that in the past forty years has fundamentally changed our relationship for the better.
Because of that growth in trust and friendship, Christians and Jews can rejoice together in the deep spiritual ethos of the Passover, a memorial (zikkarôn) of freedom and redemption. Each year, when we listen to the Passover story we return to that blessed night of liberation. This holy time of the year should be a call to both our communities to pursue justice, mercy, solidarity with the stranger in the land, with the widow and orphan, as Moses commanded: "But you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore I command you to do this" (Deuteronomy 24: 18).
At the Passover Sèder you recall the holy patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the holy women of Israel, Sarah, Rebecca, Rachael and Leah, the beginning of the long line of sons and daughters of the Covenant. With the passing of time the Covenant assumes an ever more universal value, as the promise made to Abraham takes form: "I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing... All the communities of the earth shall find blessing in you" (Genesis 12: 2-3). Indeed, according to the prophet Isaiah, the hope of redemption extends to the whole of humanity: "Many peoples will come and say: 'Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths'" (Isaiah 2: 3). Within this eschatological horizon is offered a real prospect of universal brotherhood on the path of justice and peace, preparing the way of the Lord (cf. Isaiah 62: 10).
Christians and Jews share this hope; we are in fact, as the prophets say, "prisoners of hope" (Zachariah 9: 12). This bond permits us Christians to celebrate alongside you, though in our own way, the Passover of Christ's death and resurrection, which we see as inseparable from your own, for Jesus himself said: "salvation is from the Jews" (John 4: 22). Our Easter and your Pesah, while distinct and different, unite us in our common hope centered on God and his mercy. They urge us to cooperate with each other and with all men and women of goodwill to make this a better world for all as we await the fulfillment of God's promises.
With respect and friendship, I therefore ask the Jewish community to accept my Pesah greeting in a spirit of openness to the real possibilities of cooperation which we see before us as we contemplate the urgent needs of our world, and as we look with compassion upon the sufferings of millions of our brothers and sisters everywhere. Naturally, our shared hope for peace in the world embraces the Middle East and the Holy Land in particular. May the memory of God's mercies, which Jews and Christians celebrate at this festive time, inspire all those responsible for the future of that region-where the events surrounding God's revelation actually took place-to new efforts, and especially to new attitudes and a new purification of hearts!
In my heart I repeat with you the psalm of the paschal Hallel (Psalm 118: 1-4), invoking abundant divine blessings upon you: "O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever. Let Israel say, 'His steadfast love endures forever.' . . . Let those who fear the Lord say, 'His steadfast love endures forever'."
ADDRESS OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
TO THE REPRESENTATIVES OF INTERFAITH COMMUNITIES
POPE JOHN PAUL II CULTURAL CENTER
WASHINGTON
17 APRIL 2008
My dear friends,
I am pleased to have this occasion to meet with you today. I thank Bishop Sklba for his words of welcome, and I cordially greet all those in attendance representing various religions in the United States of America. Several of you kindly accepted the invitation to compose the reflections contained in today's program. For your thoughtful words on how each of your traditions bears witness to peace, I am particularly grateful. Thank you all.
This country has a long history of cooperation between different religions in many spheres of public life. Interreligious prayer services during the national feast of Thanksgiving, joint initiatives in charitable activities, a shared voice on important public issues: these are some ways in which members of different religions come together to enhance mutual understanding and promote the common good. I encourage all religious groups in America to persevere in their collaboration and thus enrich public life with the spiritual values that motivate your action in the world.
The place where we are now gathered was founded specifically for promoting this type of collaboration. Indeed, the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center seeks to offer a Christian voice to the "human search for meaning and purpose in life" in a world of "varied religious, ethnic and cultural communities" (Mission Statement). This institution reminds us of this nation's conviction that all people should be free to pursue happiness in a way consonant with their nature as creatures endowed with reason and free will.
Americans have always valued the ability to worship freely and in accordance with their conscience. Alexis de Tocqueville, the French historian and observer of American affairs, was fascinated with this aspect of the nation. He remarked that this is a country in which religion and freedom are "intimately linked" in contributing to a stable democracy that fosters social virtues and participation in the communal life of all its citizens. In urban areas, it is common for individuals from different cultural backgrounds and religions to engage with one another daily in commercial, social and educational settings. Today, in classrooms throughout the country, young Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and indeed children of all religions sit side-by-side, learning with one another and from one another. This diversity gives rise to new challenges that spark a deeper reflection on the core principles of a democratic society. May others take heart from your experience, realizing that a united society can indeed arise from a plurality of peoples - "E pluribus unum": "out of many, one" - provided that all recognize religious liberty as a basic civil right (cf. Dignitatis Humanae, 2).
The task of upholding religious freedom is never completed. New situations and challenges invite citizens and leaders to reflect on how their decisions respect this basic human right. Protecting religious freedom within the rule of law does not guarantee that peoples - particularly minorities - will be spared from unjust forms of discrimination and prejudice. This requires constant effort on the part of all members of society to ensure that citizens are afforded the opportunity to worship peaceably and to pass on their religious heritage to their children.
The transmission of religious traditions to succeeding generations not only helps to preserve a heritage; it also sustains and nourishes the surrounding culture in the present day. The same holds true for dialogue between religions; both the participants and society are enriched. As we grow in understanding of one another, we see that we share an esteem for ethical values, discernable to human reason, which are revered by all peoples of goodwill. The world begs for a common witness to these values. I therefore invite all religious people to view dialogue not only as a means of enhancing mutual understanding, but also as a way of serving society at large. By bearing witness to those moral truths which they hold in common with all men and women of goodwill, religious groups will exert a positive influence on the wider culture, and inspire neighbors, co-workers and fellow citizens to join in the task of strengthening the ties of solidarity. In the words of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt: "no greater thing could come to our land today than a revival of the spirit of faith".
A concrete example of the contribution religious communities make to civil society is faith-based schools. These institutions enrich children both intellectually and spiritually. Led by their teachers to discover the divinely bestowed dignity of each human being, young people learn to respect the beliefs and practices of others, thus enhancing a nation's civic life.
What an enormous responsibility religious leaders have: to imbue society with a profound awe and respect for human life and freedom; to ensure that human dignity is recognized and cherished; to facilitate peace and justice; to teach children what is right, good and reasonable!
There is a further point I wish to touch upon here. I have noticed a growing interest among governments to sponsor programs intended to promote interreligious and intercultural dialogue. These are praiseworthy initiatives. At the same time, religious freedom, interreligious dialogue and faith-based education aim at something more than a consensus regarding ways to implement practical strategies for advancing peace. The broader purpose of dialogue is to discover the truth. What is the origin and destiny of mankind? What are good and evil? What awaits us at the end of our earthly existence? Only by addressing these deeper questions can we build a solid basis for the peace and security of the human family, for "wherever and whenever men and women are enlightened by the splendor of truth, they naturally set out on the path of peace" (Message for the 2006 World Day of Peace, 3).
We are living in an age when these questions are too often marginalized. Yet they can never be erased from the human heart. Throughout history, men and women have striven to articulate their restlessness with this passing world. In the Judeo-Christian tradition, the Psalms are full of such expressions: "My spirit is overwhelmed within me" (Ps 143:4; cf. Ps 6:6; 31:10; 32:3; 38:8; 77:3); "why are you cast down, my soul, why groan within me?" (Ps 42:5). The response is always one of faith: "Hope in God, I will praise him still; my Savior and my God" (Ps 42:5, 11; cf. Ps 43:5; 62:5). Spiritual leaders have a special duty, and we might say competence, to place the deeper questions at the forefront of human consciousness, to reawaken mankind to the mystery of human existence, and to make space in a frenetic world for reflection and prayer.
Confronted with these deeper questions concerning the origin and destiny of mankind, Christianity proposes Jesus of Nazareth. He, we believe, is the eternal Logos who became flesh in order to reconcile man to God and reveal the underlying reason of all things. It is he whom we bring to the forum of interreligious dialogue. The ardent desire to follow in his footsteps spurs Christians to open their minds and hearts in dialogue (cf. Lk 10:25-37; Jn 4:7-26).
Dear friends, in our attempt to discover points of commonality, perhaps we have shied away from the responsibility to discuss our differences with calmness and clarity. While always uniting our hearts and minds in the call for peace, we must also listen attentively to the voice of truth. In this way, our dialogue will not stop at identifying a common set of values, but go on to probe their ultimate foundation. We have no reason to fear, for the truth unveils for us the essential relationship between the world and God. We are able to perceive that peace is a "heavenly gift" that calls us to conform human history to the divine order. Herein lies the "truth of peace" (cf. Message for the 2006 World Day of Peace).
As we have seen then, the higher goal of interreligious dialogue requires a clear exposition of our respective religious tenets. In this regard, colleges, universities and study centers are important forums for a candid exchange of religious ideas. The Holy See, for its part, seeks to carry forward this important work through the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies, and various Pontifical Universities.
Dear friends, let our sincere dialogue and cooperation inspire all people to ponder the deeper questions of their origin and destiny. May the followers of all religions stand together in defending and promoting life and religious freedom everywhere. By giving ourselves generously to this sacred task - through dialogue and countless small acts of love, understanding and compassion - we can be instruments of peace for the whole human family.
Peace upon you all!
ADDRESS OF POPE BENEDICT XVI
TO THE COMMUNITY OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION
CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA, PRSBYLA AUDITORIUM
17 APRIL 2008
Your Eminences,
Dear Brother Bishops,
Distinguished Professors, Teachers and Educators,
"How beautiful are the footsteps of those who bring good news" (Rom 10:15-17). With these words of Isaiah quoted by Saint Paul, I warmly greet each of you - bearers of wisdom - and through you the staff, students and families of the many and varied institutions of learning that you represent. It is my great pleasure to meet you and to share with you some thoughts regarding the nature and identity of Catholic education today. I especially wish to thank Father David O'Connell, President and Rector of the Catholic University of America. Your kind words of welcome are much appreciated. Please extend my heartfelt gratitude to the entire community - faculty, staff and students - of this University.
Education is integral to the mission of the Church to proclaim the Good News. First and foremost every Catholic educational institution is a place to encounter the living God who in Jesus Christ reveals his transforming love and truth (cf. Spe Salvi, 4). This relationship elicits a desire to grow in the knowledge and understanding of Christ and his teaching. In this way those who meet him are drawn by the very power of the Gospel to lead a new life characterized by all that is beautiful, good, and true; a life of Christian witness nurtured and strengthened within the community of our Lord's disciples, the Church.
The dynamic between personal encounter, knowledge and Christian witness is integral to the diakonia of truth which the Church exercises in the midst of humanity. God's revelation offers every generation the opportunity to discover the ultimate truth about its own life and the goal of history. This task is never easy; it involves the entire Christian community and motivates each generation of Christian educators to ensure that the power of God's truth permeates every dimension of the institutions they serve. In this way, Christ's Good News is set to work, guiding both teacher and student towards the objective truth which, in transcending the particular and the subjective, points to the universal and absolute that enables us to proclaim with confidence the hope which does not disappoint (cf. Rom 5:5). Set against personal struggles, moral confusion and fragmentation of knowledge, the noble goals of scholarship and education, founded on the unity of truth and in service of the person and the community, become an especially powerful instrument of hope.
Dear friends, the history of this nation includes many examples of the Church's commitment in this regard. The Catholic community here has in fact made education one of its highest priorities. This undertaking has not come without great sacrifice. Towering figures, like Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton and other founders and foundresses, with great tenacity and foresight, laid the foundations of what is today a remarkable network of parochial schools contributing to the spiritual well-being of the Church and the nation. Some, like Saint Katharine Drexel, devoted their lives to educating those whom others had neglected - in her case, African Americans and Native Americans. Countless dedicated Religious Sisters, Brothers, and Priests together with selfless parents have, through Catholic schools, helped generations of immigrants to rise from poverty and take their place in mainstream society.
This sacrifice continues today. It is an outstanding apostolate of hope, seeking to address the material, intellectual and spiritual needs of over three million children and students. It also provides a highly commendable opportunity for the entire Catholic community to contribute generously to the financial needs of our institutions. Their long-term sustainability must be assured. Indeed, everything possible must be done, in cooperation with the wider community, to ensure that they are accessible to people of all social and economic strata. No child should be denied his or her right to an education in faith, which in turn nurtures the soul of a nation.
Some today question the Church's involvement in education, wondering whether her resources might be better placed elsewhere. Certainly in a nation such as this, the State provides ample opportunities for education and attracts committed and generous men and women to this honorable profession. It is timely, then, to reflect on what is particular to our Catholic institutions. How do they contribute to the good of society through the Church's primary mission of evangelization?
All the Church's activities stem from her awareness that she is the bearer of a message which has its origin in God himself: in his goodness and wisdom, God chose to reveal himself and to make known the hidden purpose of his will (cf. Eph 1:9; Dei Verbum, 2). God's desire to make himself known, and the innate desire of all human beings to know the truth, provide the context for human inquiry into the meaning of life. This unique encounter is sustained within our Christian community: the one who seeks the truth becomes the one who lives by faith (cf. Fides et Ratio, 31). It can be described as a move from "I" to "we", leading the individual to be numbered among God's people.
This same dynamic of communal identity - to whom do I belong? - vivifies the ethos of our Catholic institutions. A university or school's Catholic identity is not simply a question of the number of Catholic students. It is a question of conviction - do we really believe that only in the mystery of the Word made flesh does the mystery of man truly become clear (cf. Gaudium et Spes, 22)? Are we ready to commit our entire self - intellect and will, mind and heart - to God? Do we accept the truth Christ reveals? Is the faith tangible in our universities and schools? Is it given fervent expression liturgically, sacramentally, through prayer, acts of charity, a concern for justice, and respect for God's creation? Only in this way do we really bear witness to the meaning of who we are and what we uphold.
From this perspective one can recognize that the contemporary "crisis of truth" is rooted in a "crisis of faith". Only through faith can we freely give our assent to God's testimony and acknowledge him as the transcendent guarantor of the truth he reveals. Again, we see why fostering personal intimacy with Jesus Christ and communal witness to his loving truth is indispensable in Catholic institutions of learning. Yet we all know, and observe with concern, the difficulty or reluctance many people have today in entrusting themselves to God. It is a complex phenomenon and one which I ponder continually. While we have sought diligently to engage the intellect of our young, perhaps we have neglected the will. Subsequently we observe, with distress, the notion of freedom being distorted. Freedom is not an opting out. It is an opting in - a participation in Being itself. Hence authentic freedom can never be attained by turning away from God. Such a choice would ultimately disregard the very truth we need in order to understand ourselves. A particular responsibility therefore for each of you, and your colleagues, is to evoke among the young the desire for the act of faith, encouraging them to commit themselves to the ecclesial life that follows from this belief. It is here that freedom reaches the certainty of truth. In choosing to live by that truth, we embrace the fullness of the life of faith which is given to us in the Church.
Clearly, then, Catholic identity is not dependent upon statistics. Neither can it be equated simply with orthodoxy of course content. It demands and inspires much more: namely that each and every aspect of your learning communities reverberates within the ecclesial life of faith. Only in faith can truth become incarnate and reason truly human, capable of directing the will along the path of freedom (cf. Spe Salvi, 23). In this way our institutions make a vital contribution to the mission of the Church and truly serve society. They become places in which God's active presence in human affairs is recognized and in which every young person discovers the joy of entering into Christ's "being for others" (cf. ibid., 28).
The Church's primary mission of evangelization, in which educational institutions play a crucial role, is consonant with a nation's fundamental aspiration to develop a society truly worthy of the human person's dignity. At times, however, the value of the Church's contribution to the public forum is questioned. It is important therefore to recall that the truths of faith and of reason never contradict one another (cf. First Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Catholic Faith Dei Filius, IV: DS 3017; St. Augustine, Contra Academicos, III, 20, 43). The Church's mission, in fact, involves her in humanity's struggle to arrive at truth. In articulating revealed truth she serves all members of society by purifying reason, ensuring that it remains open to the consideration of ultimate truths. Drawing upon divine wisdom, she sheds light on the foundation of human morality and ethics, and reminds all groups in society that it is not praxis that creates truth but truth that should serve as the basis of praxis. Far from undermining the tolerance of legitimate diversity, such a contribution illuminates the very truth which makes consensus attainable, and helps to keep public debate rational, honest and accountable. Similarly the Church never tires of upholding the essential moral categories of right and wrong, without which hope could only wither, giving way to cold pragmatic calculations of utility which render the person little more than a pawn on some ideological chess-board.
With regard to the educational forum, the diakonia of truth takes on a heightened significance in societies where secularist ideology drives a wedge between truth and faith. This division has led to a tendency to equate truth with knowledge and to adopt a positivistic mentality which, in rejecting metaphysics, denies the foundations of faith and rejects the need for a moral vision. Truth means more than knowledge: knowing the truth leads us to discover the good. Truth speaks to the individual in his or her the entirety, inviting us to respond with our whole being. This optimistic vision is found in our Christian faith because such faith has been granted the vision of the Logos, God's creative Reason, which in the Incarnation, is revealed as Goodness itself. Far from being just a communication of factual data - "informative" - the loving truth of the Gospel is creative and life-changing - "performative" (cf. Spe Salvi, 2). With confidence, Christian educators can liberate the young from the limits of positivism and awaken receptivity to the truth, to God and his goodness. In this way you will also help to form their conscience which, enriched by faith, opens a sure path to inner peace and to respect for others.
It comes as no surprise, then, that not just our own ecclesial communities but society in general has high expectations of Catholic educators. This places upon you a responsibility and offers an opportunity. More and more people - parents in particular - recognize the need for excellence in the human formation of their children. As Mater et Magistra, the Church shares their concern. When nothing beyond the individual is recognized as definitive, the ultimate criterion of judgment becomes the self and the satisfaction of the individual's immediate wishes. The objectivity and perspective, which can only come through a recognition of the essential transcendent dimension of the human person, can be lost. Within such a relativistic horizon the goals of education are inevitably curtailed. Slowly, a lowering of standards occurs. We observe today a timidity in the face of the category of the good and an aimless pursuit of novelty parading as the realization of freedom. We witness an assumption that every experience is of equal worth and a reluctance to admit imperfection and mistakes. And particularly disturbing, is the reduction of the precious and delicate area of education in sexuality to management of 'risk', bereft of any reference to the beauty of conjugal love.
How might Christian educators respond? These harmful developments point to the particular urgency of what we might call "intellectual charity". This aspect of charity calls the educator to recognize that the profound responsibility to lead the young to truth is nothing less than an act of love. Indeed, the dignity of education lies in fostering the true perfection and happiness of those to be educated. In practice "intellectual charity" upholds the essential unity of knowledge against the fragmentation which ensues when reason is detached from the pursuit of truth. It guides the young towards the deep satisfaction of exercising freedom in relation to truth, and it strives to articulate the relationship between faith and all aspects of family and civic life. Once their passion for the fullness and unity of truth has been awakened, young people will surely relish the discovery that the question of what they can know opens up the vast adventure of what they ought to do. Here they will experience "in what" and "in whom" it is possible to hope, and be inspired to contribute to society in a way that engenders hope in others.
Dear friends, I wish to conclude by focusing our attention specifically on the paramount importance of your own professionalism and witness within our Catholic universities and schools. First, let me thank you for your dedication and generosity. I know from my own days as a professor, and I have heard from your Bishops and officials of the Congregation for Catholic Education, that the reputation of Catholic institutes of learning in this country is largely due to yourselves and your predecessors. Your selfless contributions - from outstanding research to the dedication of those working in inner-city schools - serve both your country and the Church. For this I express my profound gratitude.
In regard to faculty members at Catholic colleges universities, I wish to reaffirm the great value of academic freedom. In virtue of this freedom you are called to search for the truth wherever careful analysis of evidence leads you. Yet it is also the case that any appeal to the principle of academic freedom in order to justify positions that contradict the faith and the teaching of the Church would obstruct or even betray the university's identity and mission; a mission at the heart of the Church's munus docendi and not somehow autonomous or independent of it.
Teachers and administrators, whether in universities or schools, have the duty and privilege to ensure that students receive instruction in Catholic doctrine and practice. This requires that public witness to the way of Christ, as found in the Gospel and upheld by the Church's Magisterium, shapes all aspects of an institution's life, both inside and outside the classroom. Divergence from this vision weakens Catholic identity and, far from advancing freedom, inevitably leads to confusion, whether moral, intellectual or spiritual.
I wish also to express a particular word of encouragement to both lay and Religious teachers of catechesis who strive to ensure that young people become daily more appreciative of the gift of faith. Religious education is a challenging apostolate, yet there are many signs of a desire among young people to learn about the faith and practice it with vigor. If this awakening is to grow, teachers require a clear and precise understanding of the specific nature and role of Catholic education. They must also be ready to lead the commitment made by the entire school community to assist our young people, and their families, to experience the harmony between faith, life and culture.
Here I wish to make a special appeal to Religious Brothers, Sisters and Priests: do not abandon the school apostolate; indeed, renew your commitment to schools especially those in poorer areas. In places where there are many hollow promises which lure young people away from the path of truth and genuine freedom, the consecrated person's witness to the evangelical counsels is an irreplaceable gift. I encourage the Religious present to bring renewed enthusiasm to the promotion of vocations. Know that your witness to the ideal of consecration and mission among the young is a source of great inspiration in faith for them and their families.
To all of you I say: bear witness to hope. Nourish your witness with prayer. Account for the hope that characterizes your lives (cf. 1 Pet 3:15) by living the truth which you propose to your students. Help them to know and love the One you have encountered, whose truth and goodness you have experienced with joy. With Saint Augustine, let us say: "we who speak and you who listen acknowledge ourselves as fellow disciples of a single teacher" (Sermons, 23:2). With these sentiments of communion, I gladly impart to you, your colleagues and students, and to your families, my Apostolic Blessing.
Yesterday was a national holiday in Benin, as thousands converged on a Cotonou stadium to attend the funeral liturgy for Cardinal Bernardin Gantin. The dean-emeritus of the College of Cardinals -- the highest-ranking African prelate in the church's modern history -- died last week in Paris at 86.
In Rome, the cardinal was mourned at a Memorial Mass held this morning at the Altar of the Chair in St Peter's. While the current Cardinal-Dean Angelo Sodano celebrated the liturgy, Pope Benedict emerged at its close to deliver the homily.
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