The Weekly Benedict

Introduction

The Weekly Benedict is a compilation of documents, speeches, and other texts brought into an ebook format.

The Weekly Benedict was inspired by Catholic Apologist Jimmy Akin who came up with the idea to create a weekly link page to the words of the Holy Father.

All texts are © Copyright 2012 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Considering the increasing prevalence of electronic book readers and their ease in reading textual documents this provides an ideal format in making available the wonderful and insightful words of Pope Benedict XVI. This ebook compilation is provided as a public service with no associated fees.

Jeff Miller The Curt Jester blog

Catholic Apologist Jimmy Akin's blog can be found at JimmyAkin.org

While this ebook publication take it's cue from Jimmy Akin's weekly post with links, it is done without association and any copyright problems or formatting mistakes are entirely my own.

Index of Source Links

List of direct document links on Vatican.va used.

Angelus

- 6 January 2013

General Audiences

- 2 January 2013

Homilies

Messages

- 2 January 2013 - Message on the occasion of the 21st World Day of the Sick, 2013

- 7 January 20123 - Video Message to the Catholic Church of Cambodia on the occasion of the National Conference on the Second Vatican Council [Phnom Penh, 5–7 January 2013]

Speeches

- 17 December 2012 - To the delegation of the Italian National Olympic Committee

- 20 December 2012 - To a delegation of boys and girls of the Italian Catholic Action (A.C.R.)

- 7 January 2013 - To the Members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See for the traditional exchange of New Year greetings

Tweets

- https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/288249875001405440

- https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/288253653138169856

- https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/288964083825405952

- https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/290416655857770496

- https://twitter.com/Pontifex/status/290417911355551744

Angelus

Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, Angelus 6 January 2013 - Saint Peter's Square, Benedict XVI

SOLEMNITY OF THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD

BENEDICT XVI

ANGELUS

Saint Peter's Square

Sunday, 6 January 2013

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Please excuse the delay. I ordained four new Bishops in St Peter's Basilica and the rite lasted a little longer. But today we are celebrating above all the Epiphany of the Lord, his manifestation to the nations, while many Eastern Churches, according to the Julian Calendar, celebrate the Birth. This slight difference that makes these two events overlap highlights that that Child, born in the humility of a grotto in Bethlehem, is the light of the world, who orients the path of all peoples.

It is a juxtaposition which also makes us reflect also from the viewpoint of faith: moreover, at Christmas in front of Jesus, we see the faith of Mary, of Joseph and of the shepherds; and today on the Epiphany the faith of the three Magi, come from the East to worship the King of the Jews.

The Virgin Mary, together with her husband, represents the “stump” of Israel, the “remnant” foretold by the prophets, from which the Messiah was to spring. Instead the Magi represent the peoples, and we can say even civilizations, cultures, religions that are — so to speak — on their way to God, searching for his kingdom of peace, justice, truth and freedom. There was first a nucleus, embodied above all by Mary, the “daughter of Zion”: a nucleus of Israel, the people that know and have faith in that God who revealed himself to the Patriarchs and on the path of history. This faith is fulfilled in Mary, in the fullness of time; in her, “blessed because she believed”, the Word was made flesh, God “appeared” in the world. Mary’s faith becomes the first fruits and the model of the faith of the Church, the People of the New Covenant. But from the beginning this people is universal and we can see this today in the figures of the Magi who arrive in Bethlehem, following the light of a star and the instructions of Sacred Scripture.

St Leo the Great says: “A promise had been made to the holy Patriarch Abraham in regard to these nations. He was to have a countless progeny, born not from his body but from the seed of faith” (Sermo 3 in Epiphania Domini, 1: PL 54, 240). Mary’s faith can be compared to Abraham’s. It is a new beginning of the same promise, of the same immutable plan of God which now finds fulfilment in Jesus Christ. And the light of Christ is so clear and strong that it makes both the language of the cosmos and of the Scriptures intelligible, so that all those who, like the Magi, are open to the truth can recognize it and come to contemplate the Saviour of the world. St Leo continues: “Let the full number of the nations now take their place in the family of the patriarchs... let all people adore the Creator of the universe; let God be known, not only in Judaea, but in the whole world” (ibid.). In this perspective we can also look at the episcopal ordinations which I had the joy of conferring this morning in St Peter’s Basilica: two new bishops will remain at the service of the Holy See, and the other two will be leaving to serve as Pontifical Representatives to two nations. Let us pray for each one of the them, for their ministry, and that the light of Christ may shine throughout the world.

After the Angelus:

Dear brothers and sisters, as I already pointed out, tomorrow the Eastern Churches that follow the Julian calendar will be celebrating the Lord’s Birth: in the joy of our common faith I address my most cordial good wishes for peace with a special remembrance in prayer.

I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims present today, including the boys of the Palestrina Choir of St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, Dublin, who sang this morning at the solemn Mass of the Epiphany. At that ceremony I had the joy of conferring episcopal ordination upon four priests, including Archbishop Fortunatus Nwachukwu of Nigeria. May the new Bishops be faithful successors of the Apostles, always bearing witness to Christ, who today reveals the face of God to the nations. May the Lord bless all of you and grant you his peace! I wish everyone a good feast day and a happy New Year!

© Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

General Audiences

General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI, 2 January 2013

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Once again the Nativity of the Lord illuminates the gloom that often envelops our world and our hearts and with its light brings hope and joy. Where does this light come from? From the Bethlehem Grotto where the shepherds found “Mary and Joseph, and the babe, lying in a manger” (Lk 2:16). Another, deeper question arises before this Holy Family: how can that tiny, frail Child have brought into the world a newness so radical that it changed the course of history? Is there not perhaps something mysterious about his origins which goes beyond that grotto?

The question of Jesus’ origins recurs over and over again. It is the same question that the Procurator Pontius Pilate asked during the trial: “where are you from?” (Jn 19:9). Yet his origins were quite clear. In John’s Gospel when the Lord says: “I am the bread which came down from heaven”, the Jews reacted, murmuring: “is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” (Jn 6:41, 42).

Moreover, a little later the citizens of Jerusalem strongly opposed Jesus’ messianic claim, asserting that “where this man comes from” was well known; and that “when the Christ appears, no one will know where he comes from” (Jn 7:27). Jesus himself points out how inadequate their claim to know his origins is and by so doing he already offers a clue to knowing where he came from: “I have not come of my own accord; he who sent me is true, and him you do not know” (Jn 7:28). Jesus was of course a native of Nazareth, he was born in Bethlehem; but what is known of his true origins?

In the four Gospels, the answer is clear as to where Jesus “comes from”. His true origins are in the Father, God; he comes totally from him [God], but in a different way from that of any of God’s prophets or messengers who preceded him. This origin in the mystery of God, “whom no one knows” is already contained in the infancy narratives in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke that we are reading during this Christmastide. The Angel Gabriel proclaimed: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God” (Lk 1:35).

We repeat these words every time we recite the Creed, the Profession of Faith: “Et incarnatus est de Spiritu Sancto, ex Maria Virgine”, “and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary”. At this sentence we kneel, for the veil that concealed God is lifted, as it were, and his unfathomable and inaccessible mystery touches us: God becomes the Emmanuel, “God-with-us”. When we hear the Masses written by the great composers of sacred music — I am thinking, for example, of Mozart’s Coronation Mass — we immediately notice how they pause on this phrase in a special way, as if they were trying to express in the universal language of music what words cannot convey: the great mystery of God who took flesh, who was made man.

If we consider carefully the words: “by the Holy Spirit [he] was incarnate of the Virgin Mary”, we notice that they include four active subjects. The Holy Spirit and Mary are mentioned explicitly, but “he”, namely, the Son, who took flesh in the Virgin’s womb, is implicit. In the Profession of Faith, the Creed, Jesus is described with several epithets: “Lord... Christ, Only-Begotten Son of God... God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God... consubstantial with the Father” (Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed). We can therefore see that “he” refers to another person, the Father. Consequently the first subject of this sentence is the Father who, with the Son and the Holy Spirit, is the one God.

This affirmation of the Creed does not concern God’s eternal being but, rather, speaks to us of an action in which the three divine Persons take part and which is brought about “ex Maria Virgine”. Without Mary God’s entry into the history of humanity would not have achieved its purpose, and what is central to our Profession of Faith would not have taken place: God is a “God-with-us”. Thus Mary belongs irrevocably to our faith in God who acts, who enters history. She makes her whole person available, she “agrees” to become God’s dwelling place.

Sometimes, on our journey and in our life of faith, we can sense our poverty, our inadequacy in the face of the witness we must offer to the world. However God chose, precisely, a humble woman, in an unknown village, in one of the most distant provinces of the great Roman Empire. We must always trust in God, even in the face of the most gruelling difficulties, renewing our faith in his presence and action in our history, just as in Mary’s. Nothing is impossible to God! With him our existence always journeys on safe ground and is open to a future of firm hope.

In professing in the Creed: “by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary”, we affirm that the Holy Spirit, as the power of the Most High God, mysteriously brought about in the Virgin Mary the conception of the Son of God. The Evangelist Luke recorded the Archangel Gabriel’s words: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (1:35).

Two references are obvious: the first is to the moment of the Creation. At the beginning of the Book of Genesis we read that “the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters” (1:2); this is the Creator Spirit who gave life to all things and to the human being. What is brought about in Mary, through the action of this same divine Spirit, is a new creation: God, who called forth being from nothing, by the Incarnation gives life to a new beginning of humanity. The Fathers of the Church sometimes speak of Christ as the new Adam in order to emphasize that the new creation began with the birth of the Son of God in the Virgin Mary’s womb. This makes us think about how faith also brings us a newness so strong that it produces a second birth. Indeed, at the beginning of our life as Christians there is Baptism, which causes us to be reborn as children of God and makes us share in the filial relationship that Jesus has with the Father. And I would like to point out that Baptism is received, we “are baptized” — it is passive — because no one can become a son of God on his own. It is a gift that is freely given. St Paul recalls this adoptive sonship of Christians in a central passage of his Letter to the Romans, where he writes: “all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship. When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ it is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Rom 8:14-16), not slaves. Only if we open ourselves to God’s action, like Mary, only if we entrust our life to the Lord as to a friend whom we totally trust, will everything change, will our whole life acquire a new meaning, a new aspect: that of children with a father who loves us and never deserts us.

We have spoken of two elements: the first was the Spirit moving on the surface of the waters, the Creator Spirit: there is another element in the words of the Annunciation. The Angel said to Mary: “The power of the Most High will overshadow you”. This is an re-evocation of the holy cloud that, during the Exodus, halted over the tent of meeting, over the Ark of the Covenant that the People of Israel were carrying with them and that indicated God’s presence (cf. Ex 40:34-38).

Mary, therefore, is the new holy tent, the new ark of the covenant: with her “yes” to the Archangel’s words, God received a dwelling place in this world, the One whom the universe cannot contain took up his abode in a Virgin’s womb.

Let us therefore return to the initial question, the one about Jesus’ origins that is summed up by Pilate’s question: “where are you from?”. What Jesus’ true origins are is clear from our reflections, from the very beginning of the  Gospels: he is the Only-Begotten Son of the Father, he comes from God. We have before us the great and overwhelming mystery which we are celebrating in this Christmas season. The Son of God, through the work of the Holy Spirit, was incarnate in the womb of the Virgin Mary. This is an announcement that rings out ever new and in itself brings hope and joy to our hearts because, every time, it gives us the certainty that even though we often feel weak, poor and incapable in the face of the difficulties and evil in the world, God’s power is always active and works miracles through weakness itself. His grace is our strength (cf. 2 Cor 12:9-10). Many thanks.

* * *

I am pleased to greet all the English-speaking visitors present, including pilgrims from Norway, Japan, Vietnam and the United States. Upon you and your families I invoke the Lord’s blessings of joy, peace and prosperity for the year which has just begun. Happy New Year!

Messages

Video Message to the Catholic Church of Cambodia on the occasion of the National Conference on the Second Vatican Council, Benedict XVI, 7 January 2013

VIDEO MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI

TO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH OF CAMBODIA

ON THE OCCASION OF THE NATIONAL CONFERENCE

OF THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL

[PHNOM PENH, 5-7 JANUARY 2013]

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Cambodia

It is with great pleasure that I join you in prayer these days and through the heart, send you warm greetings while you gather around your pastors to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council and the twentieth anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I hope that the Cambodian language translation of the conciliar documents and the Catechism that you will receive on this occasion will allow you to better understand the teaching of the Church and grow in faith.

In this Year of Faith, I invite you to keep your eyes fixed on the person of Jesus Christ who is the origin and end of our faith (cf. Heb 12: 2) and to reiterate the Good News to the world today. In Him, the examples of faith that have marked our history, find their full light. Also, remembering the period of troubles that precipitated your country in the darkness, I would like to emphasize the faith, courage and perseverance of your pastors and of your Christian brothers and sisters, those so many who have died, is a noble testimony to the truth of the Gospel. And this testimony has become a priceless spiritual strength to rebuild the church community in your country. Today, many catechumens and adult baptisms show your dynamism and is a happy sign of the active presence of God in you.

Dear brothers and sisters, after the Apostle Paul, I urge you to "keep the unity of the Spirit by the bond of peace" (Eph 4, 3). Be assured of the prayers of your brothers and sisters whose blood flowed in the rice field! Be a leaven in the dough of your society, witnessing to the love of Christ for all, building bonds of brotherhood with members of other religious traditions, and walking on the paths of justice and mercy.

Dear young people, my friends who have been baptized in these recent years, do not forget that the Church is your family; she is counting on you to witness the life and the love that you have found in Jesus. I pray for you and I invite you to be generous disciples of Christ.

Cambodian seminarians, priests and religious, you are a sign of the seeds of the Church that is building up herself. You have offered your life and your prayers are a source of hope. May they be also an invitation to other young people to give their lives as priests and religious in the heart of God.

Missionaries, religious, consecrated laity from five continents, be the beautiful sign of ecclesial communion around your pastors so that your brotherhood in the diversity of your charismas may lead many people you serve and love with zeal to meet Jesus Christ.

And all of you, who seek God, persevere and be sure that Christ loves you and offers you His peace!

Beloved brothers and sisters, pastors and faithful of Cambodia, the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of the Mekong, in her humility and fidelity to the will of the Lord, enlighten you throughout this Year of Faith. Be sure that I keep you in my prayers and in the bottom of my heart I convey you all an affectionate Apostolic Blessing!

BENEDICTUS PP XVI

© Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Message for the 21st World Day of the Sick, 11 February 2013 - Benedict XVI, 2 January 2013

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI

FOR THE TWENTY-FIRST WORLD DAY OF THE SICK

(11 FEBRUARY 2013)

“Go and do likewise” (Lk 10:37)

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

1. On 11 February 2013, the liturgical memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, the Twenty-first World Day of the Sick will be solemnly celebrated at the Marian Shrine of Altötting. This day represents for the sick, for health care workers, for the faithful and for all people of goodwill “a privileged time of prayer, of sharing, of offering one’s sufferings for the good of the Church, and a call for all to recognize in the features of their suffering brothers and sisters the Holy Face of Christ, who, by suffering, dying and rising has brought about the salvation of mankind” (John Paul II, Letter for the Institution of the World Day of the Sick, 13 May 1992, 3). On this occasion I feel especially close to you, dear friends, who in health care centres or at home, are undergoing a time of trial due to illness and suffering. May all of you be sustained by the comforting words of the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council: “You are not alone, separated, abandoned or useless. You have been called by Christ and are his living and transparent image” (Message to the Poor, the Sick and the Suffering).

2. So as to keep you company on the spiritual pilgrimage that leads us from Lourdes, a place which symbolizes hope and grace, to the Shrine of Altötting, I would like to propose for your reflection the exemplary figure of the Good Samaritan (cf. Lk 10:25-37). The Gospel parable recounted by Saint Luke is part of a series of scenes and events taken from daily life by which Jesus helps us to understand the deep love of God for every human being, especially those afflicted by sickness or pain. With the concluding words of the parable of the Good Samaritan, “Go and do likewise” (Lk 10:37), the Lord also indicates the attitude that each of his disciples should have towards others, especially those in need. We need to draw from the infinite love of God, through an intense relationship with him in prayer, the strength to live day by day with concrete concern, like that of the Good Samaritan, for those suffering in body and spirit who ask for our help, whether or not we know them and however poor they may be. This is true, not only for pastoral or health care workers, but for everyone, even for the sick themselves, who can experience this condition from a perspective of faith: “It is not by sidestepping or fleeing from suffering that we are healed, but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it and finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love” (Spe Salvi, 37).

3. Various Fathers of the Church saw Jesus himself in the Good Samaritan; and in the man who fell among thieves they saw Adam, our very humanity wounded and disoriented on account of its sins (cf. Origen, Homily on the Gospel of Luke XXXIV,1-9; Ambrose, Commentary on the Gospel of Saint Luke, 71-84; Augustine, Sermon 171). Jesus is the Son of God, the one who makes present the Father’s love, a love which is faithful, eternal and without boundaries. But Jesus is also the one who sheds the garment of his divinity, who leaves his divine condition to assume the likeness of men (cf. Phil 2:6-8), drawing near to human suffering, even to the point of descending into hell, as we recite in the Creed, in order to bring hope and light. He does not jealously guard his equality with God (cf. Phil 2:6) but, filled with compassion, he looks into the abyss of human suffering so as to pour out the oil of consolation and the wine of hope.

4. The Year of Faith which we are celebrating is a fitting occasion for intensifying the service of charity in our ecclesial communities, so that each one of us can be a good Samaritan for others, for those close to us. Here I would like to recall the innumerable figures in the history of the Church who helped the sick to appreciate the human and spiritual value of their suffering, so that they might serve as an example and an encouragement. Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face, “an expert in the scientia amoris” (Novo Millennio Ineunte, 42), was able to experience “in deep union with the Passion of Jesus” the illness that brought her “to death through great suffering” (Address at General Audience, 6 April 2011). The Venerable Luigi Novarese, who still lives in the memory of many, throughout his ministry realized the special importance of praying for and with the sick and suffering, and he would often accompany them to Marian shrines, especially to the Grotto of Lourdes. Raoul Follereau, moved by love of neighbour, dedicated his life to caring for people afflicted by Hansen’s disease, even at the world’s farthest reaches, promoting, among other initiatives, World Leprosy Day. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta would always begin her day with an encounter with Jesus in the Eucharist and then she would go out into the streets, rosary in hand, to find and serve the Lord in the sick, especially in those “unwanted, unloved, uncared for”. Saint Anna Schäffer of Mindelstetten, too, was able to unite in an exemplary way her sufferings to those of Christ: “her sick-bed became her cloister cell and her suffering a missionary service. Strengthened by daily communion, she became an untiring intercessor in prayer and a mirror of God’s love for the many who sought her counsel” (Canonization Homily, 21 October 2012). In the Gospel the Blessed Virgin Mary stands out as one who follows her suffering Son to the supreme sacrifice on Golgotha. She does not lose hope in God’s victory over evil, pain and death, and she knows how to accept in one embrace of faith and love, the Son of God who was born in the stable of Bethlehem and died on the Cross. Her steadfast trust in the power of God was illuminated by Christ’s resurrection, which offers hope to the suffering and renews the certainty of the Lord’s closeness and consolation.

5. Lastly, I would like to offer a word of warm gratitude and encouragement to Catholic health care institutions and to civil society, to Dioceses and Christian communities, to religious congregations engaged in the pastoral care of the sick, to health care workers’ associations and to volunteers. May all realize ever more fully that “the Church today lives a fundamental aspect of her mission in lovingly and generously accepting every human being, especially those who are weak and sick” (Christifideles Laici, 38).

I entrust this Twenty-first World Day of the Sick to the intercession of Our Lady of Graces, venerated at Altötting, that she may always accompany those who suffer in their search for comfort and firm hope. May she assist all who are involved in the apostolate of mercy, so that they may become good Samaritans to their brothers and sisters afflicted by illness and suffering. To all I impart most willingly my Apostolic Blessing.

From the Vatican, 2 January 2013

BENEDICTUS PP XVI

© Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Speeches

Address to the members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, Benedict XVI, 7 January 2013

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI

TO THE MEMBERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS

ACCREDITED TO THE HOLY SEE

Sala Regia

Monday, 7 January 2013

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

As at the beginning of each New Year, I am happy to receive you, the distinguished Members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, and to offer you my greetings and personal good wishes, which I extend to all the beloved nations which you represent, together with the assurance of my constant thoughts and prayers. I am especially grateful to your Dean, Ambassador Alejandro Valladares Lanza, and to your Vice-Dean, Ambassador Jean-Claude Michel, for the kind words which they addressed to me in the name of all. In a special way I wish to greet those who take part in this meeting for the first time. Your presence is a significant and valued sign of the fruitful relations which the Catholic Church entertains with civil authorities the world over. It involves a dialogue which has at heart the integral spiritual and material good of each man and woman, and seeks to advance their transcendent dignity everywhere. As I stated in my Address on the occasion of the last Ordinary Public Consistory for the creation of new Cardinals: “the Church, from its origins, is oriented kat’holon, it embraces the whole universe”, and with it each people, each culture and each tradition. This “orientation” does not represent an intrusion in the life of the different societies, but serves rather to illumine the right conscience of their citizens, encouraging them to work for the good of each person and for the progress of the human race. It is in this context, and with the aim of fostering fruitful cooperation between Church and State in the service of the common good, that in the past year bilateral Accords were signed between the Holy See and Burundi, and with Equatorial Guinea, and the Accord with Montenegro was ratified. In this same spirit, the Holy See takes part in the work of various International Organizations and Institutions. In this regard, I am pleased that this past December its request to become an Extra-regional Observer in the Central American Integration System was accepted, not least by reason of the contribution which the Catholic Church offers in several sectors of the societies of that region. The visits of the various Heads of State and of Government whom I received in the course of the past year, as well as the memorable Apostolic Journeys which I made to Mexico, Cuba and Lebanon, were privileged occasions for reaffirming the civil commitment of Christians in those countries, and for promoting the dignity of the human person and the foundations of peace.

Here I am also pleased to mention the valued work accomplished by the Papal Representatives in constant dialogue with your Governments. I would like in particular to recall the esteem enjoyed by Archbishop Ambrose Madtha, Apostolic Nuncio in Côte d’Ivoire, who died tragically a month ago in an automobile accident, together with the chauffeur who was accompanying him.

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

The Gospel of Luke recounts that on Christmas night the shepherds heard choirs of angels who gave glory to God and invoked peace on mankind. The Evangelist thus emphasizes the close relationship between God and the ardent desire of the men and women of every age to know the truth, to practise justice and to live in peace (cf. Blessed John XXIII, Pacem in Terris: AAS 55 [1963], 257). These days, we are sometimes led to think that truth, justice and peace are utopian ideals, and mutually exclusive. To know the truth seems impossible, and efforts to affirm it appear often to lead to violence. On the other hand, according to a now widespread way of thinking, peacemaking consists solely in the pursuit of compromises capable of ensuring peaceful coexistence between different peoples or between citizens within a single nation. Yet from the Christian point of view, the glorification of God and human peace on earth are closely linked, with the result that peace is not simply the fruit of human effort, but a participation in the very love of God. It is precisely man’s forgetfulness of God, and his failure to give him glory, which gives rise to violence. Indeed, once we no longer make reference to an objective and transcendent truth, how is it possible to achieve an authentic dialogue? In this case, is it not inevitable that violence, open or veiled, becomes the ultimate rule in human relationships? Indeed, without openness to the transcendent, human beings easily become prey to relativism and find it difficult to act justly and to work for peace.

The consequences of forgetfulness of God cannot be separated from those resulting from ignorance of his true countenance, the root of a baneful religious fanaticism which, again in 2012, reaped victims in some countries represented here. As I have often observed, this is a falsification of religion itself, since religion aims instead at reconciling men and women with God, at illuminating and purifying consciences, and at making it clear that each human being is the image of the Creator.

Consequently, if the glorification of God and earthly peace are closely linked, it seems evident that peace is both God’s gift and a human task, one which demands our free and conscious response. For this reason, I wished my annual Message for the World Day of Peace to bear the title: Blessed are the Peacemakers. Civil and political authorities before all others have a grave responsibility to work for peace. They are the first called to resolve the numerous conflicts causing bloodshed in our human family, beginning with that privileged region in God’s plan, the Middle East. I think first and foremost of Syria, torn apart by endless slaughter and the scene of dreadful suffering among its civilian population. I renew my appeal for a ceasefire and the inauguration as quickly as possible of a constructive dialogue aimed at putting an end to a conflict which will know no victors but only vanquished if it continues, leaving behind it nothing but a field of ruins. Your Excellencies, allow me to ask you to continue to make your Governments aware of this, so that essential aid will urgently be made available to face this grave humanitarian situation. I now turn with deep concern towards the Holy Land. Following Palestine’s recognition as a Non-Member Observer State of the United Nations, I again express the hope that, with the support of the international community, Israelis and Palestinians will commit themselves to peaceful coexistence within the framework of two sovereign states, where respect for justice and the legitimate aspirations of the two peoples will be preserved and guaranteed. Jerusalem, become what your name signifies! A city of peace and not of division; a prophecy of the Kingdom of God and not a byword for instability and opposition!

As I turn my thoughts towards the beloved Iraqi people, I express my hope that they will pursue the path of reconciliation in order to arrive at the stability for which they long.

In Lebanon, where last September I met the various groups which make up society, may the many religious traditions there be cultivated by all as a true treasure for the country and for the whole region, and may Christians offer an effective witness for the building of a future of peace, together with all men and women of good will!

In North Africa too, cooperation between all the members of society is of primary concern, and each must be guaranteed full citizenship, the liberty publicly to profess their religion and the ability to contribute to the common good. I assure all Egyptians of my closeness and my prayers at this time when new institutions are being set in place.

Turning to sub-Saharan Africa, I encourage the efforts being made to build peace, especially in those places where the wounds of war remain open and where their grave humanitarian consequences are being felt. I think particularly of the Horn of Africa, and the East of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where new of acts of violence have erupted, forcing many people to abandon their homes, families and surroundings. Nor can I fail to mention other threats looming on the horizon. Nigeria is regularly the scene of terrorist attacks which reap victims above all among the Christian faithful gathered in prayer, as if hatred intended to turn temples of prayer and peace into places of fear and division. I was deeply saddened to learn that, even in the days when we celebrated Christmas, some Christians were barbarously put to death. Mali is also torn by violence and marked by a profound institutional and social crisis, one which calls for the effective attention of the international community. In the Central African Republic, I hope that the talks announced as taking place shortly will restore stability and spare the people from reliving the throes of civil war.

The building of peace always comes about by the protection of human beings and their fundamental rights. This task, even if carried out in many ways and with varying degrees of intensity, challenges all countries and must constantly be inspired by the transcendent dignity of the human person and the principles inscribed in human nature. Foremost among these is respect for human life at every stage. In this regard, I was gratified that a resolution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, in January of last year, called for the prohibition of euthanasia, understood as the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being. At the same time, I must note with dismay that, in various countries, even those of Christian tradition, efforts are being made to introduce or expand legislation which decriminalizes abortion. Direct abortion, that is to say willed as an end or as a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law. In affirming this, the Catholic Church is not lacking in understanding and mercy, also towards the mother involved. Rather, it is a question of being vigilant lest the law unjustly alter the balance between the right to life of the mother and that of the unborn child, a right belonging equally to both. In this area, the recent decision of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights regarding in vitro fertilization, which arbitrarily redefines the moment of conception and weakens the defence of unborn life, is also a source of concern.

Sadly, especially in the West, one frequently encounters ambiguities about the meaning of human rights and their corresponding duties. Rights are often confused with exaggerated manifestations of the autonomy of the individual, who becomes self-referential, no longer open to encounter with God and with others, and absorbed only in seeking to satisfy his or her own needs. To be authentic, the defence of rights must instead consider human beings integrally, in their personal and communitarian dimensions.

Pursuing our reflection, it is worth emphasizing that education is another privileged path to peacemaking. The current economic and financial crisis, among other things, has also made this clear. The crisis developed because profit was all too often made absolute, to the detriment of labour, and because of unrestrained ventures in the financial areas of the economy, rather than attending to the real economy. There is a need, then, to rediscover the meaning of work and proportionate profit. To that end, it would be well to teach people how to resist the temptations of particular and short-term interests, and to look instead to the common good. Furthermore, it is urgent to train leaders who will one day guide national and international public institutions (cf. Message for the 2013 World Day of Peace, 6). The European Union also requires farsighted representatives capable of making the difficult choices necessary to rectify its economy and to lay solid foundations for growth. Alone, certain countries may perhaps advance more quickly, but together, all will certainly go further! If the credit spread represents a source of concern, the increasing differences between those few who grow ever richer and the many who grow hopelessly poorer, should be a cause for dismay. In a word, it is a question of refusing to be resigned to a “spread” in social well-being, while at the same time fighting one in the financial sector.

Investment in education in the developing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America means helping them to overcome poverty and disease, and to create legal systems which are equitable and respectful of human dignity. Certainly, if justice is to be achieved, good economic models, however necessary, are not sufficient. Justice is achieved only when people are just! Consequently, building peace means training individuals to fight corruption, criminal activity, the production and trade in narcotics, as well as abstaining from divisions and tensions which threaten to exhaust society, hindering development and peaceful coexistence.

Continuing our meeting today, I would like to add that peace in society is also put at risk by certain threats to religious liberty: it is a question sometimes of the marginalization of religion in social life; sometimes of intolerance or even of violence towards individuals, symbols of religious identity and religious institutions. It even happens that believers, and Christians in particular, are prevented from contributing to the common good by their educational and charitable institutions. In order effectively to safeguard the exercise of religious liberty it is essential to respect the right of conscientious objection. This “frontier” of liberty touches upon principles of great importance of an ethical and religious character, rooted in the very dignity of the human person. They are, as it were, the “bearing walls” of any society that wishes to be truly free and democratic. Thus, outlawing individual and institutional conscientious objection in the name of liberty and pluralism paradoxically opens by contrast the door to intolerance and forced uniformity.

Moreover, in an ever more open world, building peace through dialogue is no longer a choice but a necessity! From this perspective, the joint declaration between the President of the Bishops’ Conference of Poland and the Patriarch of Moscow, signed last August, is a strong signal given by believers for the improvement of relations between the Russian and Polish peoples. I would also like to mention the peace accord concluded recently in the Philippines and I would like to underline the role of dialogue between religions for a peaceful coexistence in the region of Mindanao.

Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the end of the Encyclical Letter Pacem in Terris, whose fiftieth anniversary will be celebrated this year, my predecessor Blessed John XXIII remarked that peace remains “an empty word” if it is not nourished and completed by charity (AAS 55 [1963], 303). Indeed, it is at the heart of the diplomatic activity of the Holy See and, above all, of the concern of the Successor of Peter and of the whole Catholic Church. Charity cannot take the place of justice that has been denied; nor can justice, on the other hand, replace charity that has been refused. The Church daily practises charity in works of social assistance such as hospitals and clinics, her educational institutions such as orphanages, schools, colleges and universities, and through help given to peoples in distress, especially during and after conflicts. In the name of charity, the Church wishes also to be near all those who suffer due to natural disasters. I am thinking of the flood victims in Southeast Asia and of those of the hurricane which struck the East coast of the United States. I am also thinking of those who experienced the earthquake that devastated some regions of Northern Italy. As you know, I wanted to go there personally and see for myself the earnest desire to rebuild what had been destroyed. In this moment of its history, I hope that such a spirit of tenacity and shared commitment will move the entire beloved Italian nation.

To conclude our encounter, I would like to recall that, at the end of the Second Vatican Council – which started fifty years ago - the Servant of God, Pope Paul VI, sent out messages which remain relevant, including one addressed to world leaders. He encouraged them in this way: “Your task is to be in the world the promoters of order and peace among men. But never forget this: It is God […] who is the great artisan of order and peace on earth” (Message to Leaders, 8 December 1965, 3). Today, as I make those sentiments my own, I convey to you, the Ambassadors and other distinguished Members of the Diplomatic Corps, as well as to your families and colleagues, my very best wishes for the New Year. Thank you!

© Copyright 2013 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Address to the Italian National Olympic Committee, Benedict XVI, 17 December 2012

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI

TO THE ITALIAN NATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE

Clementine Hall

Monday, 17 December 2012

Dear Friends,

I am very pleased to receive you, the Leaders of the Italian National Olympic Committee and, above all, you athletes who represented Italy at the recent Olympic Games in London. I cordially greet you, beginning with the President of CONI, Dr Giovanni Petrucci, whom I thank for his courteous and convincing words to me on behalf of all. You participated this past summer in the greatest international sports competition: the Olympic Games. You competed at that venue with other athletes who came from nearly every country in the world. You competed in the field of athletics and of technical skill — but eventually — in the area of human qualities, displaying your gifts and talents, acquired with great commitment, rigorous preparation, consistent training and the awareness of your own limits. Far from the spotlight, you followed a strict regimen and several of you saw your merit recognized: I believe that you won 28 medals at London, and eight of them gold! However, you athletes are not only required to compete and win. Every sporting activity, whether amateur or professional, requires integrity in competition, respect for one’s body, a sense of solidarity and unselfishness, and then joy, pleasure and celebration. All this presupposes a path of authentic human maturation, made up of self-denial, tenacity, patience and — above all — humility, which receives no applause but is the secret of victory.

Any sport that aims to be worthwhile for the one who practices it must always be at the service of the person. At stake therefore is not only respect for the rules, but the vision of the person, who does sports and simultaneously is in need of education, spirituality and transcendent values. Sports, in fact, are an instructive and cultural good, able to reveal man to himself and bring him closer to understanding his life’s profound worth. The Second Vatican Ecumenical Council spoke of sports in its Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, in the broad framework of the relations between the Church and the modern world, and places sports in the cultural sector, namely, in the context in which the ability to interpret life, the person and relations is displayed. The Council wished that sports would contribute to improve man’s spirit, that people would enrich themselves with a mutual understanding, help to create a harmony of feeling, foster friendly relations between people of all classes, countries, and races (cf. n. 61). In sum, a sports culture is founded on the primacy of the human person; sports at the service of man and not man at the service of sports.

The Church is interested in sports because she has man — the whole man — at heart, and she realizes that games effect education, on the formation of the person, on relationships and on spirituality. Playing fields and sports areas in parish recreation centres and in youth centres prove this; the  Christian-inspired sports associations — a gymnasium of humanity — illustrate this . These are meeting-places in which to nurture that strong love of life and of the infinite that exists in adolescents and young people. The athlete who lives his/her practice fully becomes conscious of God’s plan for their life, learning to hear his voice in the long period of training. Thus, athletes learn to recognize him in the face of their teammates and in their opponents! The experience of sports can “contribute to answering the fundamental questions the new generations are asking about the meaning of life, its purpose and its goal” (John Paul II, Discourse to the Italian Sports Centre, 26 June 2004, n. 2), when it is lived in its fullness; it can teach human values and it encourages opening to the transcendent. Therefore I am thinking of you, dear athletes, as champion-witnesses, with a mission to accomplish: may you be good models to imitate for all who admire you. Yet, you too, dear directors, coaches and trainers — the various workers in sports — are called to be witnesses to a good humanity, co-workers with families and formative institutions for the education of the young, teachers of a sports routine that should be ever loyal and transparent. The pressure to obtain important results must never push anyone to take shortcuts, as in the case of doping. Let the same team spirit serve as a spur to avoid these dead-end streets, but also as a support for those who realize they have made a mistake, so that they may feel accepted and helped.

Dear friends, in this Year of the Faith I would like to emphasize that sports can also help to educate the person in spiritual “competition”, that is, to resolve live everyday seeking to make good triumph over evil, truth over dishonesty, love over hatred, above all in oneself. Then thinking about the commitment to the New Evangelization, the world of sports can also be considered a modern “courtyard of the Gentiles”, that is, a precious opportunity for meeting that is open to all, believers and non-believers alike, where there is the experience of joy and also the effort to converse with people of a different culture, language and religious affiliation.

I would like to finish by calling to mind the radiant figure of Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati: a youth who combined passion for sports — he especially loved mountain-climbing — with passion for God. Dear athletes, I invite you to read his biography: Bl. Pier Giorgio shows us that to be Christians means to love life, nature, and above all, our neighbour, particularly those in difficulty. I wish each of you the greatest joy — may you improve and succeed day after day loving ever a bit more. We seek this from the Lord Jesus as a gift for this Christmas. I thank you for coming and I bless you all and your families from my heart. Thank you.

© Copyright 2012 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Address to Boys and Girls of Catholic Action for Children, 20 December 2012 - Benedict XVI

ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI

TO BOYS AND GIRLS OF CATHOLIC ACTION FOR CHILDREN

Consistory Hall

Thursday, 20 December 2012

Dear Boys and Girls of Catholic Action for Children,

I am pleased to meet you and accept your greetings for the Birth of the Lord. I greet you with affection together with your teachers, Prof. Franco Miano, your President and Bishop Domenico Sigalini, your General Chaplain.

You have told me that you are “in search of an author”. This is the key phrase that guides you on your way this year in ACR. My immediate question would be: Who is this author? Have you already discovered him? I am certain that with your formators and the other friends of Catholic Action, you will find an ever clearer answer to your search and that you will be able to help many others find one too. Moreover I would also like to tell you something. First, I know that you are looking for an author of life, someone who helps you live well and be happy with yourselves and with others. We know who this author is: it is God, who has shown us his face. God made us, he made us in his likeness, and above all he gave us his Son Jesus, who became a child, whom we shall soon contemplate in Holy Christmas. He grew up from childhood like you, he walked the streets of our world to convey to us God’s love which makes life beautiful and happy, full of goodness and generosity.

Of course you are also looking for the author of your joy. If I asked you what brings you joy perhaps the answer would be: playing, sports, your friends, and your parents who live for you and love you. There are many things that make you happy but there is one great Friend, who is the author of the joy of all and who fills our hearts with a joy that surpasses all other joys and lasts a lifetime: he is Jesus. Remember, dear friends, that the more you learn to know him and to speak with him, the more you will feel happiness in your hearts and you will be able to overcome the small sorrows that sometimes trouble our minds.

Besides, you are also in search of the author of love. Can we live on our own, closed in on ourselves? If you think for a moment, you will see that the answer is clearly no. We all need to love and to feel that others accept us and love us. Feeling loved is necessary for life but it is also important to be able to love others in order to make their life and everyone’s life beautiful, also the life of your peers who find themselves in difficult situations. With his life, Jesus showed us that God loves everyone without distinction and wants everyone to be happy. So I like your initiative for the month of January to support a project in Egypt by giving practical help to street children.

Finally, you are certainly looking for the author of peace, of which the world has such great need. We often think that we are able to build peace alone but it is important to realize that it is God who can give us true and solid peace. If we know how to listen to him, if we make space for him in our lives, God dissolves the selfishness that so often pollutes relationships between people and between nations and he fosters a longing for reconciliation, forgiveness and peace — even in those with hardened hearts.

Dear boys and girls of ACR, I hope you make this search together, among yourselves and with your schoolmates and playmates. If you help one another to find the great Author of life, of joy, of love and of peace you will find that this Author is never far away, rather he is very near: he is the God made Child in Jesus!

Dear friends, I wish you and all of Catholic Action a happy Christmas!

© Copyright 2012 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Papal Tweets

Please join me in praying for Syria, so that constructive dialogue will replace the horrendous violence.

@pontifex, 7 January 2013

Nigerians have a special place in my heart, as so many have been victims of senseless violence in recent months.

@pontifex, 7 January 2013

May we defend the right of conscientious objection of individuals and institutions, promoting freedom and respect for all.

@pontifex, 7 January 2013

Following Christ’s example, we have to learn to give ourselves completely. Anything else is not enough.

@pontifex, 9 January 2013

In this Year of Faith, may every Christian rediscover the beauty of being reborn in the love of God and living as his true children.

@pontifex, 13 January 2013

What happens in Baptism? We become united forever with Jesus, to be born again to a new life.

@pontifex, 13 January 2013

Table of Contents

Introduction

Index of Source Links

Angelus

Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord, Angelus 6 January 2013 - Saint Peter's Square, Benedict XVI

General Audiences

General Audience of Pope Benedict XVI, 2 January 2013

Messages

Video Message to the Catholic Church of Cambodia on the occasion of the National Conference on the Second Vatican Council, Benedict XVI, 7 January 2013

Message for the 21st World Day of the Sick, 11 February 2013 - Benedict XVI, 2 January 2013

Speeches

Address to the members of the Diplomatic Corps accredited to the Holy See, Benedict XVI, 7 January 2013

Address to the Italian National Olympic Committee, Benedict XVI, 17 December 2012

Address to Boys and Girls of Catholic Action for Children, 20 December 2012 - Benedict XVI

Papal Tweets