Benedict XVI's Address at Gregorian
University
Vatican City, November 3, 2006
As a Pontifical Ecclesiastical University, this academic
Centre is committed to sentire in Ecclesia et cum Ecclesia.
It is a commitment born from love for the Church, our Mother
and the Bride of Christ. We must love her as Christ himself
loved her, assuming the suffering of the world to complete what
is lacking in Christ's afflictions in our own flesh (cf. Col 1:
24).
Dear friends, with fatherly affection, I entrust all of you
who are the living stones of the Gregorian University --
Professors and Lecturers, students, non-teaching staff,
benefactors and friends -- to the intercession of St Ignatius of
Loyola, St Robert Bellarmine and the Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen
of the Society of Jesus, who is referred to in the University's
coat of arms with the title: "Sedes Sapientiae."
Papal Mass for Deceased Cardinals
and Bishops November 4, 2006
The Holy Father concluded by asking the Lord "to
enable our dear deceased brother cardinals and bishops to attain
the longed-for goal. We ask this trusting in the intercession of
Mary Most Holy and in the prayers of the many people who knew
them in life and appreciated their Christian virtues."
Angelus Address November 5, 2006
Through the intercession of Mary Most Holy and of
St. Joseph, let us pray to the Lord for the grace to prepare
serenely to depart from this world, when he wills to call us,
with the hope of being able to be with him eternally, in the
company of the saints and of our deceased loved ones
A Plea to End World Hunger
Vatican City, November 12, 2006 Angelus Address
Dear Brothers and Sisters: Today, the Day of
Thanksgiving invites us, on one hand, to thank God for the
fruits of agricultural labor and, on the other, it encourages us
to be committed concretely to eradicate the scourge of hunger.
May the Virgin Mary help us to be grateful for the benefits of
Providence and to promote justice and solidarity in all parts of
the globe.
In Praise of Cloistered
Religious
Vatican City, November 19, 2006 Angelus Address
The day after tomorrow, November 21,
on the occasion of the liturgical memorial of the Presentation
of Mary Most Holy in the Temple, we celebrate "pro Orantibus"
Day, dedicated to remembering cloistered religious communities.
It is a particularly appropriate occasion to thank the Lord for
the gift of so many persons who, in monasteries and hermitages,
are totally dedicated to God in prayer, silence and hiddenness.
Benedict XVI on
the Goal of Diocesan Newspapers
November 25, 2006
"A Means of Gospel Penetration"
I entrust your
Federation and the vast public readership of the diocesan
weeklies to the Virgin Mary. May she help you in the daily
service which you diligently carry out.
Christ, King of
the Universe
Vatican City, November 26, 2006 Conclusion of the Angelus
Address
The Virgin Mary is associated in a
very special way to Christ's royalty. God asked her, humble
maiden of Nazareth, to become the Mother of the Messiah, and
Mary corresponded to this call with her whole being, uniting her
unconditional "yes" to that of her Son, Jesus, becoming with him
obedient to the point of sacrifice. Because of this, God exalted
her above all creatures and Christ crowned her Queen of Heaven
and earth. We entrust the Church and the whole of humanity to
her intercession, so that the love of God might reign in all
hearts and his plan of justice and peace be fulfilled.
Conclusion of Pope's Letter to
Pan-Asian Meeting on Culture
Vatican City, November 27, 2006 [signed 15 November 2006] -
Benedict XVI's letter to Cardinal Paul Poupard, president of the
pontifical councils for Culture and for Interreligious Dialogue.
In commending you and all those
present at this gathering to the intercession of the Blessed
Virgin Mary, Mother of the Incarnate Word, I cordially impart my
Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of joy and peace in our living
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Papal Address to Turkey's Religious
Affairs Director
Ankara, Turkey, November 28, 2006
Your country is very dear to Christians: many of
the earliest Church communities were founded here and grew to
maturity, inspired by the preaching of the Apostles,
particularly Saint Paul and Saint John. The tradition has come
down to us that Mary, the Mother of Jesus, lived at Ephesus, in
the home of the Apostle Saint John.
Papal Homily at "Mary's House" in Ephesus
Ephesus, Turkey, November 29, 2006
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In this Eucharistic celebration we praise the
Lord for Mary's divine motherhood, a mystery solemnly confessed
and proclaimed in Ephesus at the Ecumenical Council of 431. To
this place, so dear to the Christian community, my venerable
predecessors the Servants of God Paul VI and John Paul II came
as pilgrims; the latter visited this Shrine on 30 November 1979,
just over a year after the beginning of his Pontificate. Another
of my Predecessors was in this country not as Pope, but as the
Papal Representative, from January 1935 to December 1944,
Blessed John XXIII, Angelo Roncalli, whose memory still
enkindles great devotion and affection. He very much esteemed
and admired the Turkish people. Here I would like to quote an
entry in his Journal of a Soul: "I love the Turks; I appreciate
the natural qualities of these people who have their own place
reserved in the march of civilization" (pp. 233-4). He also left
to the Church and the world the legacy of his Christian
optimism, rooted in deep faith and constant union with God. In
that same spirit, I turn to this nation and, in a special way,
to the "little flock" of Christ living in its midst, in order to
offer a word of encouragement and to manifest the affection of
the whole Church. With great love I greet all of you here
present, the faithful of Izmir, Mersin, Iskenderun and Antakia,
and others from different parts of the world, as well as those
who could not take part in this celebration but are spiritually
united with us. I greet in particular Archbishop Ruggero
Franceschini of Izmir, Archbishop Giuseppe Bernardini,
Archbishop emeritus of Izmir, Bishop Luigi Padovese, the priests
and the religious. Thank you for your presence, your witness and
your service to the Church in this blessed land where, at its
very beginnings, the Christian community experienced great
growth, a fact reflected in the numerous pilgrimages made to
Turkey to this day.
Mother of God -- Mother of the Church
We have listened to a passage from Saint John's
Gospel which invites us to contemplate the moment of the
Redemption when Mary, united to her Son in the offering of his
sacrifice, extended her motherhood to all men and women, and in
particular to the disciples of Jesus. A privileged witness to
that event was the author of the Fourth Gospel, John, the only
one of the Apostles to remain at Golgotha with the Mother of
Jesus and the other women. Mary's motherhood, which began with
her fiat in Nazareth, is fulfilled at the foot of the Cross.
Although it is true -- as Saint Anselm says -- that "from the
moment of her fiat Mary began to carry all of us in her womb",
the maternal vocation and mission of the Virgin towards those
who believe in Christ actually began when Jesus said to her:
"Woman, behold your son!" (Jn 19:26). Looking down from the
Cross at his Mother and the beloved disciple by her side, the
dying Christ recognized the first fruits of the family which he
had come to form in the world, the beginning of the Church and
the new humanity. For this reason, he addressed Mary as "Woman",
not as "Mother", the term which he was to use in entrusting her
to his disciple: "Behold your Mother!" (Jn 19:27). The Son of
God thus fulfilled his mission: born of the Virgin in order to
share our human condition in everything but sin, at his return
to the Father he left behind in the world the sacrament of the
unity of the human race (cf. "Lumen Gentium," 1): the family
"brought into unity from the unity of the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit" (Saint Cyprian, "De Orat. Dom.," 23: PL 4,
536), at whose heart is this new bond between the Mother and the
disciple. Mary's divine motherhood and her ecclesial motherhood
are thus inseparably united.
Mother of God -- Mother of Unity
The first reading presented what could be called
the "Gospel" of the Apostle of the Gentiles: all men and women,
including the pagans, are called in Christ to share fully in the
mystery of salvation. The text also contains the expression that
I have chosen as the motto for my Apostolic Journey: "He,
Christ, is our peace" (Eph 2:14). Inspired by the Holy Spirit,
Paul tells us that Jesus Christ has not only brought us peace,
but that he is our peace. And he justifies this statement by
referring to the mystery of the Cross: by shedding "his blood",
by offering in sacrifice "his flesh", Jesus destroyed hostility
"in himself" and created "in himself one new man in place of the
two" (Eph 2:14-16). The Apostle explains how, in a truly
unforeseen way, messianic peace has now come about in Christ's
own person and his saving mystery. He explains it by writing,
during his imprisonment, to the Christian community which lived
here, in Ephesus: "to the saints who are in Ephesus and are
faithful in Christ Jesus" (Eph 1:1), as he says in the
salutation of the Letter. The Apostle wishes them "grace and
peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Eph 1:2).
Grace is the power that transforms man and the world; peace is
the mature fruit of this transformation. Christ is grace; Christ
is peace. Paul knows that he has been sent to proclaim a
"mystery", a divine plan that only in the fullness of time has
been carried out and revealed in Christ: namely, that "the
Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and
sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the Gospel" (Eph
3:6). This mystery is accomplished, in salvation history, in the
Church, the new People in which, now that the old dividing wall
has been broken down, Jews and pagans find themselves united.
Like Christ himself, the Church is not only the instrument of
unity, but also its efficacious sign. And the Virgin Mary, the
Mother of Christ and of the Church, is the Mother of that
mystery of unity which Christ and the Church inseparably signify
and build up, in the world and throughout history.
Let us implore peace for Jerusalem and the whole
world
The Apostle of the Gentiles says that Christ "has
made us both one" (Eph 2:14): these words properly refer to the
relationship between Jews and Gentiles in the mystery of eternal
salvation, yet they can also extend, by analogy, to the
relationship between the peoples and civilizations present in
the world. Christ "came to proclaim peace" (Eph 2:17), not only
between Jews and non-Jews, but between all nations, since all
have their origin in the same God, the one Creator and Lord of
the universe. Strengthened by God's word, from here in Ephesus,
a city blessed by the presence of Mary Most Holy -- who we know
is loved and venerated also by Muslims -- let us lift up to the
Lord a special prayer for peace between peoples. From this edge
of the Anatolian peninsula, a natural bridge between continents,
let us implore peace and reconciliation, above all for those
dwelling in the Land called "Holy" and considered as such by
Christians, Jews and Muslims alike: it is the land of Abraham,
Isaac and Jacob, destined to be the home of a people that would
become a blessing for all the nations (cf. Gen 12:1-3). Peace
for all of humanity! May Isaiah's prophecy soon be fulfilled:
"They shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their
spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword
against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Is 2:4).
We all need this universal peace; and the Church is called to be
not only the prophetic herald, but even more, the "sign and
instrument" of this peace. Against the backdrop of universal
peace, the yearning for full communion and concord between all
Christians becomes even more profound and intense. Present at
today's celebration are Catholic faithful of various rites, and
this is a reason for joyful praise of God. These rites, when
they converge in unity and common witness, are an expression of
that marvelous variety which adorns the Bride of Christ. In this
regard, the unity of the Ordinaries of the Episcopal Conference
in fellowship and the sharing of pastoral efforts must set an
example.
Magnificat
In today's liturgy we have repeated, as the
refrain of the Responsorial Psalm, the song of praise proclaimed
by the Virgin of Nazareth on meeting her elderly kinswoman
Elizabeth (cf. Lk 1:39). Our hearts too were consoled by the
words of the Psalmist: "steadfast love and faithfulness will
meet, righteousness and peace will kiss" (Ps 85:10). Dear
brothers and sisters, in this visit I have wanted to convey my
personal love and spiritual closeness, together with that of the
universal Church, to the Christian community here in Turkey, a
small minority which faces many challenges and difficulties
daily. With firm trust let us sing, together with Mary, a
magnificat of praise and thanksgiving to God who has looked with
favor upon the lowliness of his servant (cf. Lk 1:48). Let us
sing joyfully, even when we are tested by difficulties and
dangers, as we have learned from the fine witness given by the
Roman priest Don Andrea Santoro, whom I am pleased to recall in
this celebration. Mary teaches us that the source of our joy and
our one sure support is Christ, and she repeats his words: "Do
not be afraid" (Mk 6:50), "I am with you" (Mt 28:20). Mary,
Mother of the Church, accompany us always on our way! Holy Mary,
Mother of God, pray for us! "Aziz Meryem Mesih'in Annesi bizim
iηin Dua et." Amen.
[Translation of Italian original issued by the
Holy See]
