SUMMARY:
-
EACH HUMAN BEING IS A MIRACLE OF GOD
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MAY THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT SUPPORT THE FAITH OF THE CHRISTIAN
COMMUNITY
______________________________________
EACH
HUMAN BEING IS A MIRACLE OF GOD
Vatican
City, 23 May 2012 (VIS) - "God is our Father because He is our
Creator. Each one of us, each man and each woman, is a miracle of
God, desired by Him and known personally by Him. ... For Him we are
not anonymous and impersonal, we have a name. The Holy Spirit, which
speaks within us and says 'Abba! Father!', leads us to this truth,
communicating it to the most intimate depths of our being and filling
our prayer with serenity and joy". These words were pronounced
this morning by the Holy Father to more than 20,000 faithful filling
St. Peter's Square for his weekly general audience.
The Holy
Father focused his catechesis on two passages from the Letters of St.
Paul, wherein the Apostle speaks of the power of the Holy Spirit
which enables us to call God "Abba", our Father. The Pope
explained that "that great master of prayer which is the Holy
Spirit teaches us to address God with the affectionate terms of
children, calling Him 'Abba, Father'. This is what Jesus did, even at
the most dramatic moment of His earthly life. He never lost faith in
the Father and always invoked Him with the intimacy of a beloved
Son".
The Holy
Spirit, gift of the risen Christ, "places us in a filial
relationship with God, a relationship of profound trust, like that of
children; a filial relationship analogous to that of Jesus though
different in origin and importance. Jesus is the eternal Son of God
Who became flesh, while we become God's children in time through
faith in the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation".
The Holy
Father went on: "Perhaps mankind today does not perceive the
beauty, greatness and profound consultation contained in the word
'Father' with which we can address God in prayer, because often the
paternal figure is not sufficiently present or positive in daily
life". Yet, the Pope explained, "the love of Jesus, the
only-begotten Son Who even gave Himself on the cross, reveals the
true nature of the Father: He is Love".
In his
Letter to the Galatians, St. Paul tells us that the the Spirit cries
out within us saying 'Abba! Father!', while in his Letter to the
Romans he writes that we ourselves make this cry in the Spirit. The
Apostle, Benedict XVI explained, "wants us to understand that
Christian prayer is never unidirectional, from us to God. ... Rather,
it is an expression of a reciprocal relationship in which it is
always God Who acts first. It is the Spirit which cries within us,
and we too can cry out because the impulse comes from the Holy
Spirit. ... This presence opens our prayers and our lives to the
horizons of the Trinity and the Church".
"When
we address the Father in our hearts, in silence and meditation, we
are never alone. ... We are within the great prayer of the Church, we
are part of a great symphony which the Christian community in all
places and times raises to God. ... Prayer guided by the Spirit
causes us to cry out 'Abba! Father!' with Christ and in Christ. It
makes us part of the great mosaic of the family of God, in which
everyone has an important place and role, profoundly united to all
things".
The Pope
concluded his catechesis by exhorting the faithful: "When we
pray, let us learn to appreciate the beauty of being friends, or
rather children, of God, invoking Him with the confidence and trust
of a child addressing his parents who love him. Let us open our
prayers to the action of the Holy Spirit, that it may cry out within
us: 'Abba! Father!'".
MAY
THE GIFT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT SUPPORT THE FAITH OF THE CHRISTIAN
COMMUNITY
Vatican
City, 23 May 2012 (VIS) - Following his catechesis in this morning's
general audience, Benedict XVI pronounced greetings in various
languages to the more than 20,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's
Square. Speaking Polish, he recalled that next Sunday marks the
Solemnity of Pentecost. "Together with Mary and the Apostles,
let us persevere in prayer", he said. "With Christ, let us
ask our Father God for His Spirit to permeate our thoughts and
actions, that we may become increasingly worthy of the dignity of
children of God".
In other
languages the Holy Father said "Let us pray to God to send the
Holy Spirit with abundance of gifts that we may become courageous
witnesses of Christ. ... May the gift of the Holy Spirit on the day
of Pentecost always support and nourish the life of faith of the
Christian community. Dear young people, place the search for God
above all other things. ... Dear sick people, may the Spirit be a
help and comfort in your moment of greatest need".
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