Text 1397, 114 rader
Skriven 2006-05-31 22:11:54 av Marc Lewis (1:396/45)
Ärende: Vatican Information Service (Press Release)
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Hello All!

                The following press release is Copyrighted by the
                          Vatican Information Service.
                ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                               VIS-Press releases

MARY, SCHOOL OF FAITH

VATICAN CITY, MAY 26, 2006 (VIS) - At 5.15 p.m. today, Benedict XVI arrived by
helicopter at the Polish city of Czestochowa to visit the Shrine of the Virgin
of Jasna Gora, Poland's most famous Marian shrine, where John Paul II confided
his pontificate to the Mother of God.

The image of the Virgin of Jasna Gora is decked with new vestments, in
fulfillment of a vow to mark the 350th anniversary of the defense of her shrine
against Swedish troops by Fr. Augustin Kordecki, and as an expression of
gratitude for the life of John Paul II on the 25th anniversary of the birth of
the "Solidarnosc" trade union. The image's golden crowns were blessed and
offered by John Paul II on April 1 2005, the eve of his death.

At 6 p.m., having visited the convent of the shrine, which is under the care of
the Pauline Fathers, the Holy Father met with religious, seminarians and
representatives from Catholic movements and institutes of consecrated life.

In his address to the them, Pope Benedict began by affirming that "Mary, the
Mother of the Lord, is among us. Today it is she who leads our meditation; she
teaches us how to pray. Mary shows us how to open our minds and our hearts to
the power of the Holy Spirit, Who comes to us so as to be brought to the whole
world."

"Mary sustained the faith of Peter and the Apostles in the Upper Room, and
today she sustains my faith and yours," said the Pope. "Faith is contact with
the mystery of God. ... It is the gift, given to us in Baptism, which makes our
encounter with God possible. God is hidden in mystery; to claim to understand
Him would mean to want to confine Him within our thinking and knowing, and
consequently to lose Him irremediably. With faith, however, we can open up a
way through concepts, even theological concepts, and can 'touch' the living
God."

"In the Upper Room the Apostles did not know what awaited them. They were
afraid and worried about their own future. ... Mary, 'she who believed in the
fulfillment of the Lord's words,' ... taught perseverance in the faith. By her
own attitude she convinced them that the Holy Spirit, in His wisdom, knew well
the path on which He was leading them, and that consequently they could place
their confidence in God."

"Many of you here present have experienced this secret call of the Holy Spirit
and have responded. ... It was Jesus who called you, inviting you to a more
profound union with Him."

"Do you remember," the Holy Father asked the religious, "your enthusiasm when
you began the pilgrimage of the consecrated life, trusting in the grace of God?
Try not to lose this first fervor, and let Mary lead you to an ever fuller
adherence."

He cried: "Dear men and women religious, dear consecrated persons! Whatever the
mission entrusted to you, ... maintain in your hearts the primacy of your
consecrated life" which, "lived in faith, unites you closely to God, calls
forth charisms and confers an extraordinary fruitfulness to your service."

Turning to address seminarians, the Pope recommended they reflect "on the way
Mary learned from Jesus! From her very first 'fiat,' through the long, ordinary
years of the hidden life, as she brought up Jesus, ... she 'learned' Him moment
by moment. ... On your journey of preparation, and in your future priestly
ministry, let Mary guide you as you 'learn' Jesus. Keep your eyes fixed on Him.
Let Him form you, so that in your ministry you will be able to show Him to all
who approach you."

"The vitality of your communities," Benedict XVI told representatives of the
new movements in the Church, "is a sign of the Holy Spirit's active presence!
It is from the faith of the Church and from the richness of the fruits of the
Holy Spirit that your mission has been born. ... Believe in the grace of God
which accompanies you and bring it into the living fabric of the Church,
especially in places the priest or religious cannot reach."

"You are nourished," he continued, "by different schools of spirituality
recognized by the Church. Draw upon the wisdom of the saints, have recourse to
the heritage they have left us. Form your minds and your hearts on the works of
the great masters and witnesses of the faith, knowing that the schools of
spirituality must not be a treasure locked up in convents or libraries.

"The Gospel wisdom, contained in the writings of the great saints and attested
to in their lives, must be brought in a mature way, not childishly or
aggressively, to the world of culture and work, to the world of the media and
politics. ... The authenticity of your faith and mission, which does not draw
attention to itself but truly radiates faith and love, can be tested by
measuring it against Mary's faith. ... Remain in her school!"

"God is love," the Holy Father concluded, "These were the words that I placed
at the beginning of the first Encyclical of my pontificate. ... This is the
most important, most central truth about God. To all for whom it is difficult
to believe in God, I say again today: 'God is love.' Dear friends, be witnesses
to this truth."

At the end of the meeting, Benedict XVI returned by helicopter to Krakow where,
after dinner, he appeared at the balcony of the archbishop's palace to greet
people gathered in the street below, following a custom of John Paul II when he
visited Krakow.

"I know," he told them, "that on the second of each month, at the time my
beloved predecessor died, you meet here to commemorate him and pray for his
elevation to the honors of the altar. May this prayer be of support to those
who concern themselves with his cause [of beatification] and enrich your hearts
with grace."

"Despite his death, he - young in God - is among us, he invites us to
reinvigorate the grace of faith and renew ourselves in the Spirit."
PV-POLAND/CLERGY:MOVEMENTS/CZESTOCHOWA VIS 060527 (1030)

SUMMARY

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