The following is
the address Pope Benedict XVI sent Oct. 28 to the international
congress on the theme "The Second Vatican Council in the
Pontificate of John Paul II." The event was sponsored by the St.
Bonaventure Theological Faculty and the Institute for
Documentation and Study of the Pontificate of John Paul II.
To the Most
Reverend Father Marco Tasca
Minister General of the Friars Minor Conventual and Grand
Chancellor
of The Pontifical Theological Faculty of St Bonaventure
Seraphicum:
I learned with joy that the Pontifical Theological Faculty,
together with the Institute for Documentation and Study of the
Pontificate of John Paul II, has chosen to promote an
International Congress on the theme "The Second Vatican Council
in the Pontificate of John Paul II". With this initiative the
Theological Faculty's intention among other things, is to
develop a deeper reflection on the current situation of the
Church in view of the celebration of the eighth centenary of the
Rule that St Francis presented to Pope Innocent III in 1209, for
which he received verbal approval. With this important
scientific event the Institute for Documentation and Study
proposes to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the election of
Karol Wojtyla to the See of Peter with a view to making better
known the great Pontiff's teaching and love for the Church in
the historical and theological context of the Council which was
so dear to his heart.
Dear Minister General, as I address my cordial greeting to you,
I ask you to express to your Conventual Confreres, the
Professors of the Athenaeum, the Director and Members of the
Institute and all who are taking part in the Congress the
sentiments of fatherly affection that I feel for each one of
them.
I can only rejoice at the choice of a theme that unites two
topics of quite special interest to me: on the one hand, the
Second Vatican Council, in which I had the honour of taking part
as an expert and on the other, the figure of my beloved
Predecessor John Paul II who made a significant personal
contribution to that Council as a Council Father and
subsequently, by God's will, became its first executor during
the years of his Pontificate. In this context it seems only
right also to recall that the Council sprang from the great
heart of Pope John XXIII, the 50th anniversary of whose election
to the Chair of Peter we are commemorating today, 28 October. I
said that the Council sprang from John XXIII's heart, yet it
would be more accurate to say that ultimately, like all the
great events in the Church's history, it came from the Heart of
God, from his saving will: "God so loved the world that he gave
his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but
have eternal life" (Jn 3: 16). To make divine salvation
accessible to contemporary man was Pope John XXIII's main reason
for convoking the Council, and the Fathers worked with this in
mind. For this very reason, "As the years have passed, the
Conciliar Documents" as I recalled on 20 April 2005, the day
after my election to the Pontificate, "have lost none of their
timeliness; indeed, their teachings are proving particularly
relevant to the new situation of the Church and the current
globalized society" (Message to Cardinals, 20 April 2005).
In practically all his documents, and especially in his
decisions and his behaviour as Pontiff, John Paul II accepted
the fundamental petitions of the Second Vatican Council, thus
becoming a qualified interpreter and coherent witness of it. His
constant concern was to make known to all the advantages that
could stem from acceptance of the Conciliar vision, not only for
the good of the Church but also for that of civil society itself
and of the people working in it. "We have contracted a debt to
the Holy Spirit", he said in his Reflection prior to the Angelus
on 6 October 1985, referring to the extraordinary session of the
Synod of Bishops which was about to be celebrated precisely in
order to reflect on the Church's response during the 20 years
that had passed since the conclusion of the Second Vatican
Council. "We have contracted a debt to the Spirit of Christ....
This, in fact, is the Spirit who speaks to the Churches (cf. Rv
2: 7); during the Council and by means of it, his word has
become particularly expressive and decisive for the Church"
(ore, 14 October 1985, p. 12).
We are all truly indebted to him for this extraordinary
ecclesial event. The multiple doctrinal legacy that we find in
its Dogmatic Constitutions, Declarations and Decrees still
stimulates us to deepen our knowledge of the Word of God in
order to apply it to the Church in the present day, keeping
clearly in mind the many needs of the men and women of the
contemporary world who are extremely in need of knowing and
experiencing the light of Christian hope. The Synod of Bishops
that has just ended placed these needs at the centre of its own
rich and fruitful reflections, reaffirming the hope expressed in
the past by the Constitution Dei Verbum: "So may it come that,
by the reading and study of the sacred books, "the Word of God
may speed on and triumph' (2 Thes 3: 1), and the treasure of the
Revelation entrusted to the Church may more and more fill the
hearts of men" (n. 26), bringing them the salvation of God and
with it authentic happiness.
This is a commitment that I am pleased to entrust in particular
to you, dear Professors of the Pontifical Theological Faculty,
who venerate the Seraphic Doctor St Bonaventure as its heavenly
Patron. In the wealth of his thought, St Bonaventure can offer
interpretative keys which are still up-to-date and with which
you may approach the Conciliar Documents to seek in them
satisfactory answers to the many questions of our time. The
anxiety for humanity's salvation which motivated the Council
Fathers, guiding their commitment in the search for solutions to
the numerous problems of the day was equally alive in St
Bonaventure's heart as he faced the hopes and anguish of the
people of his own time. On the other hand, since the basic
questions that man carries in his heart do not change with the
changing of times, the answers the Seraphic Doctor attained have
remained substantially applicable also in our day. In
particular, the Itinerarium mentis in Deum that St Bonaventure
composed in 1259 has remained valid. Although it is a guide to
the heights of mystical theology, this precious little book also
speaks to all Christians of what is essential in their lives.
The ultimate goal of all our activities must be communion with
the living God. Thus, for the Fathers of the Second Vatican
Council too, the ultimate aim of all the individual aspects of
the Church's renewal was to lead the faithful to the living God
revealed in Jesus Christ.
I am certain that the Pontifical Faculty of St Bonaventure and
the Institute for Documentation and Study on the Pontificate of
John Paul II will continue to develop their reflection on the
Conciliar texts, also availing themselves of the insights shared
during this Congress. I assure you in this regard of the support
of my prayers and, as a pledge of heavenly illumination for work
that will yield abundant fruit, I impart the Apostolic Blessing
to you, Most Reverend Minister General, to the Relators of the
Congress and to all the participants, as well as to the John
Paul II Foundation which generously contributed to it.
From the Vatican, 28 October 2008
BENEDICTVS PP. XVI
© Copyright 2008 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Look at the One they
Pierced!