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Pope Benedict XVI- Angelus |
Regina
Caeli Message
On Pentecost
"The Baptism of the Church"
H.H. Benedict XVI
May 11, 2008
www.zenit.org
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today we celebrate the solemnity of Pentecost, an ancient Hebrew
feast in which the covenant made between God and his people on Mount
Sinai (cf. Exodus 19) was celebrated. It became a Christian feast on
account of what happened during this celebration 50 days after
Jesus' resurrection.
We read in the Acts of the Apostles that the disciples were gathered
together in prayer in the Cenacle when the Holy Spirit descended
upon them with power like wind and fire. They then began to proclaim
the glad tidings of Christ's resurrection in many languages (cf.
Acts 2:1-4). That was the "baptism in the Holy Spirit," which had
already been announced by John the Baptist: "I have baptized you
with water," he said to the crowds, "but he who comes after me is
more powerful than me. (...) He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit"
(Matthew 3:11).
In effect, Jesus' whole mission was aimed at giving the Spirit of
God to men and baptizing them in the "bath" of regeneration. This
was realized through his glorification (cf. John 7:39), that is,
through his death and resurrection: Then the Spirit of God was
poured out in a superabundant way, like a waterfall able to purify
every heart, to extinguish the flames of evil and ignite the fire of
divine love in the world.
The Acts of the Apostles present Pentecost as a fulfillment of such
a promise and therefore as the crowning moment of Jesus' whole
mission. After his resurrection, he himself ordered his disciples to
stay in Jerusalem, because, he said, "In a short time you will be
baptized in the Holy Spirit" (Acts 1:8); and he added: "You will
have the power of the Holy Spirit, who will descend upon you and you
will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all of Galilee and Samaria
unto the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
Pentecost is, thus, in a special way, the baptism of the Church who
undertakes her universal mission beginning from the streets of
Jerusalem with prodigious preaching in the different languages of
humanity. In this baptism of the Holy Spirit the personal and
communal dimensions -- the "I" of the disciple and the "we" of the
Church -- are inseparable. The Spirit consecrates the person and at
the same time makes him a living member of the mystical body of
Christ, a participant in the mission to witness to his love.
And this is actualized through the sacraments of Christian
initiation: baptism and confirmation. In my message for World Youth
Day 2008, I invited young people to rediscover the presence of the
Holy Spirit in their lives and, therefore, the importance of these
sacraments. Today I would like to extend this invitation to
everyone: Let us rediscover, dear brothers and sisters, the beauty
of being baptized in the Holy Spirit; let us be aware again of our
baptism and of our confirmation, sources of grace that are always
present.
Let us ask the Virgin Mary to obtain a renewed Pentecost for the
Church again today, a Pentecost that will spread in everyone the joy
of living and witnessing to the Gospel.
[After the Regina Caeli, the Pope continued:]
With great concern in recent days I have followed the situation in
Lebanon, where, political initiatives having stalled, verbal
violence and then armed confrontations followed, with many dead and
wounded. Even if in these last hours the tensions have slackened, I
believe that it is a duty today to exhort the Lebanese to abandon
every argument for aggressive opposition that would cause their
country irreparable damage.
Dialogue, mutual understanding and the search for reasonable
compromise are the only way to restore to Lebanon its institutions,
and to the people, the necessary security for a daily life that is
dignified and rich with hope for tomorrow.
May Lebanon, through the intercession of Our Lady of Lebanon, know
how to respond with courage to its vocation of being, for the Middle
East and for the whole world, a sign of the real possibility of
constructive and peaceful coexistence among men. The different
communities that make up Lebanon, as the postsynodal exhortation "A
New Hope for Lebanon" observed (cf. No. 1), are at the same time "a
richness, an originality and a difficulty. But bringing Lebanon to
life is a common task for all of its inhabitants."
With Mary, the Virgin in prayer at Pentecost, we ask the Almighty
for an abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of unity
and concord, who inspires inspirations of peace and reconciliation
in all.
[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]
[The Holy Father then greeted the people in several languages. In
English, he said:]
I offer a warm welcome to the English-speaking visitors gathered for
this prayer, including the group from Magdalen College in the United
States. On this Pentecost Sunday let us pray for a fresh outpouring
of the Holy Spirit upon the Church. May the Spirit's gifts of life
and holiness confirm us in our witness to the Risen Lord and fill
our hearts with fervent hope in his promises! Upon all of you I
cordially invoke Holy Spirit's gifts of wisdom, joy and peace. God
bless you!
© Copyright 2008 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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