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Pope Benedict XVI- Homilies |
"Prayer
IS THE FIRST FORM OF CHARITY"
Homily during a Pastoral Visit to Viterbo
H.H. Benedict XVI
Viterbo, Italy
September 6, 2009
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
The setting in which we celebrate the Holy Mass today is truly
unusual and suggestive: we find ourselves in the valley in view of
the ancient city gate of Viterbo called "FAUL;" the letters stand
for Fanum, Arbanum, Vetulonia and Longula. On the one side there
stands the imposing palace, at one time a residence of the Popes,
which in the 13th century -- as your bishop observed -- saw five
conclaves; we are surrounded by buildings and spaces, witnesses of
many events of the past, and today the fabric of the life of your
city and province. In this context, which recalls centuries of civil
and religious history, your whole diocesan community is gathered, at
least in spirit, with the Successor of Peter to be confirmed by him
in fidelity to Christ and his Gospel.
To all of you, dear Brothers and Sisters, I offer my grateful
thoughts with affection for the warm welcome you reserved for me.
First, I greet your pastor, Bishop Lorenzo Chiarinelli, whom I thank
for the words of welcome. I greet the other bishops, especially
those from Lazio with the Cardinal Vicar of Rome, the dear diocesan
priests, deacons, seminarians, religious, the young people and
children, and I extend my remembrance to all the members of the
diocese, whom, in the recent past, I saw gathered in Viterbo
together with the Abbey of San Martino al Monte Cimino, and the
dioceses of Acquapendente, Bagnoregio, Montefiascone and Tuscania.
This new configuration is now artistically sculpted in the bronze
doors of the cathedral that, as I began my visit in Piazza San
Lorenzo, I was able to bless and admire.
With deference I turn to the civil and military authorities, to the
representatives of parliament, the government, the region and
province, and in a special way to the mayor, who acted as the bearer
of the cordial sentiments of people of Viterbo. I thank the security
forces and greet the numerous members of the military who are
present in this city, along with those who are engaged in missions
of peace in the world. I greet and thank the volunteers and those
who helped to make my visit possible. I reserve a very special
greeting for the older people and those who live by themselves, the
sick, those in prison and those who were not able to take part in
this meeting of ours of prayer and friendship.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, every liturgical assembly is the space of
the presence of God. Gathered together for the Holy Eucharist, the
disciples of the Lord proclaim that he is risen, that he is alive
and the giver of life, and they bear witness that his presence is
grace, is a task, is joy.
Let us open our hearts to his word and welcome the gift of his
presence! In the first reading the prophet Isaiah (35:4-7)
encourages "those whose hearts are frightened" and announces this
stupendous novelty, that experience confirms: when the Lord is
present, the eyes of the blind are reopened, ears of the deaf hear,
the lame "leap" like a stag. Everything is reborn and everything
revives because wholesome waters spring up in the desert. The
"desert," in its symbolic language, can evoke the dramatic events,
difficult situations and solitude that often mark life; the most
profound desert is the human heart, when it loses the ability to
hear, to speak, to communicate with God and with others. One then
becomes blind because he is incapable of seeing reality; he closes
his ears to not hear the cry of those who implore his help; his
heart is hardened in indifference and egotism. But now -- the
prophet announces -- all is destined to change; into the "arid land"
of this closed heart a new divine blood will flow. And when the Lord
comes, he will say to "the frightened of heart" of every age,
"Courage, fear not!" (35:4).
The Gospel episode narrated by Mark in which Jesus heals a deaf mute
in pagan territory (7:31-37) connects well here. First he encounters
and cares for him with the language of deeds, more immediate than
that of words; and then with an expression in Aramaic he says to
him: "Ephphatha," that is, "Be open," giving that man hearing and
speech. Full of wonder, the crowd exclaims: "He has done all things
well!" (7:37).
We can see in this "sign" Jesus' ardent desire to conquer in man the
solitude and incommunicability created by egotism, to give a face to
a "new humanity," a humanity that listens and a humanity of the
word, of dialogue, of communication, of communion with God. A "good"
humanity, as all of God's creation is good; a humanity without
discrimination, without exclusions -- as the Apostle James
admonishes in his Letter (2:1-5) -- so that the world truly be a
"place of genuine brotherhood" ("Gaudium et Spes," 37) for all, in
the opening of the common Father who created us and made us his sons
and daughters.
Dear Church of Viterbo, may the Christ whom we see in the Gospel
open the ears and loosen the tongue of a deaf mute person, reveal
your heart and always give you the joy to listen to his Word, the
courage to announce his Gospel, the ability to speak with God and
thus to speak with your brothers and sisters, and finally, may he
give you the courage of the discovery of his face and his beauty!
But, so that this might happen -- St. Bonaventure of Bagnoregio
recalls (I will be traveling to Bagnoregio this afternoon) -- the
mind must "go beyond everything through contemplation and go beyond
not only the world of the senses, but also beyond itself" ("Itinerarium
mentis in Deum" VII,1). This is the itinerary of salvation,
illumined by the light of the Word of God and nourished by the
sacraments that are common to all Christians.
I would like to take up some spiritual and pastoral points about
this road that you too, beloved Church of this land, are called to
travel. Education in the faith -- as search, as Christian
initiation, as life in Christ -- is a priority that is very close to
the heart of your bishop. It is the "becoming Christian" that
consists in that "learning Christ" that St. Paul expresses with the
formula: "It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me"
(Galatians 2:20). The parishes, families and various groups are
involved in this experience. Catechists and all educators are called
to commit themselves; the schools are also called to make their
contribution, from the primary schools to the University of Tuscia,
which is growing in importance and prestige, and, in particular, the
Catholic school, with the Istituto Filosofico-Teologico "San Pietro."
There are models that are always relevant, authentic pioneers in
education in the faith from which to draw inspiration. I gladly
mention, among others, St. Rosa Venerini (1656-1728) -- who I had
the joy to canonize three years ago -- a true forerunner of girls'
schools in Italy, during the Enlightenment; St. Lucia Filippini
(1672-1732) who, with the help of Venerable Cardinal Marco Antonio
Barbarigo (1640-1706), founded the worthy "Maestre Pie." One could
still happily draw from these spiritual sources to confront, with
lucidity and coherence, the current inescapable and pressing
"educational emergency," a great challenge for every Christian
community and for society as a whole, which is precisely a process
of "Ephphatha," of opening the ears, loosening the tongue and
opening the eyes.
Along with education, the testimony of the faith. "Faith," St. Paul
writes, "works through charity" (Galatians 5:6). The charitable work
of the Church takes on a face in this perspective: her initiatives,
her works are signs of faith in and love of God, who is Love -- as I
amply noted in the encyclicals "Deus Caritas Est" and "Caritas in
Veritate." This is where voluntary service flourishes and must
always increase, whether at the personal level or the organized
level. In charity this voluntary service has its propulsive and
educative organism. The young St. Rose (1233-1251), co-patroness of
the diocese, whose feast is celebrated during this time, is a
radiant example of faith and generosity toward the poor. How can one
not also recall that from her monastery St. Giacinta Marescotti
(1585-1640) promoted Eucharistic adoration in the city and gave life
to institutions and initiatives to benefit prisoners and the
marginalized? Nor can we forget the Franciscan witness of the
Capuchin St. Crispino (1668-1759), who continues to inspire worthy
aid groups. It is significant that in this climate of evangelical
fervor many houses of consecrated life were born, for both men and
women, and in particular cloistered monasteries, which constitute a
visible reminder of the primacy of God in our existence and show us
that prayer is the first form of charity.
Emblematic in this regard is the example of the Trappist nun Blessed
Gabriella Sagheddu (1914-1939): in the monastery of Vitorchiano,
where she is entombed, spiritual ecumenism continues to be proposed,
nourished by the incessant prayer, strongly solicited by the Second
Vatican Council (cf. "Unitatis Redintegratio," no. 8). I would also
like to mention another citizen of Viterbo, Blessed Domenico Bārberi
(1792-1849), the Passionist priest who, in 1845, welcomed John Henry
Newman -- who later became a cardinal -- into the Catholic Church.
Newman was a high profile intellectual and a man of luminous
spirituality.
Finally I would like to touch on a third point, a pastoral one:
attention to the signs of God. As Jesus did with the deaf mute
person, God continues to reveal his plan to us through "events and
words." Listening to his word and discerning his signs must be the
work of every Christian community. The most immediate of God's signs
is certainly care for one's neighbor, according to what Jesus said:
"Everything that you did for these least of my brothers you did for
me" (Matthew 25:40). Furthermore, as the Second Vatican Council
affirms: the Christian is called to "stand before the world as a
witness to the resurrection and life of the Lord Jesus and a sign of
the living God" ("Lumen Gentium," no. 38). The priest, whom Christ
has chosen entirely for himself, must first of all be this. During
this Year for Priests, pray with greater intensity for priests, for
seminarians and for vocations, that they be faithful to this
vocation of theirs! He must be the sign of the living God, as every
consecrated person and all the baptized must likewise be.
Faithful laypeople, young people, families, do not be afraid to live
and bear witness to the faith in the various spheres of society, in
the multiple situations of human existence! Viterbo also has a
prestigious figures in this respect. On this occasion it is a duty
and a joy to remember the young Mario Fani of Viterbo, founder of
the "Circolo Santa Rosa" ("Circle of St. Rose"), who then, along
with Giovanni Acquaderni, of Bologna, started the Catholic Action
movement in Italy. The seasons succeed each other, social contexts
change, but the vocation of Christians to live the Gospel in
solidarity with the human family does not change or go out of
fashion with the passing of time. This is social commitment, this is
the service proper to political action, this is integral human
development.
Dear brothers and sisters! When the heart is frightened in the
desert of life, do not be afraid, give yourselves to Christ, the
firstborn of the new humanity: a family of brothers built up in
freedom and justice, in the truth and charity of the sons of God.
Saints who are dear to you are part of this family: Lorenzo,
Valentino, Ilario, Rosa, Lucia, Bonaventure and many others. Our
common Mother is Mary, whom you venerate with the title of Madonna
della Quercia (Madonna of the Oak) as patroness of the whole diocese
in its new configuration. May they guard you always in unity and
nourish in each of you the desire to proclaim, with words and deeds,
the presence and love of Christ!
Amen.
[Translation by Joseph G. Trabbic]
Look
at the One they Pierced!
This page is the work of the Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and
Mary
