Pope Benedict XVI frees a dove upon his arrival at Istanbul's Holy Spirit Cathedral
during the last day of his during his four-day visit to Turkey,
Friday, Dec. 1, 2006. (AP / Pier Paolo Cito)
|
Wednesday, 13 February 2013
|
"We implore you on behalf
of Christ, be reconciled to God" (2Cor 5,20)
Behold, now is the acceptable
time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (2 Cor 6: 1-2). Indeed in the
Christian vision of life every moment must be favorable and every day must be a
day of salvation but the Church's Liturgy speaks of this in a very special way
in the Season of Lent. This is the appeal that the austere rite of the
imposition of ashes addresses to us...: "Turn away from sin and be
faithful to the Gospel"...
The appeal to conversion lays bare and denounces the facile superficiality that
all too often marks our lives. To repent [or convert] is to change direction in
the journey of life: not, however, by means of a small adjustment, but with a
true and proper about turn. Conversion means swimming against the tide, where
the "tide" is the superficial lifestyle, inconsistent and deceptive,
that often sweeps us along, overwhelms us and makes us slaves to evil or at any
rate prisoners of moral mediocrity.
With conversion, on the other hand, we are aiming for the high standard of
Christian living, we entrust ourselves to the living and personal Gospel which
is Jesus Christ. He is our final goal and the profound meaning of conversion,
he is the path on which all are called to walk through life, letting themselves
be illumined by his light and sustained by his power which moves our steps. In
this way conversion expresses his most splendid and fascinating Face: it is not
a mere moral decision that rectifies our conduct in life, but rather a choice
of faith that wholly involves us in close communion with Jesus as a real and
living Person... Repentance is the total "yes" of those who consign
their whole life to the Gospel responding freely to Christ who first offers
himself to humankind as the Way, the Truth and the Life (Jn 14,6), as the only
One who sets us free and saves us. This is the precise meaning of the first
words with which, according to the Evangelist Mark, Jesus begins preaching the
"Gospel of God": "The time is fulfilled, and the Kingdom of God
is at hand; repent, and believe in the Gospel" (Mk 1: 15).
+ + +
http://www.catholicculture.org/news/headlines/index.cfm?storyid=17037
Pope to retire to monastery after resignation
Pope Benedict plans to retire to a former cloistered monastery within the Vatican, the director of the Vatican press office has disclosed.
Father Federico Lombardi told reporters that immediately after his resignation on February 28, the Pope will spend some time at the papal summer residence in Castel Gandalfo, while renovations are done on the monastery. Once settled into his new quarters, Father Lombardi said that the former Pope would like to continue his theological studies.
Father Lombardi admitted that he has been taken by surprise by the Pope's February 11 announcement, but observed that Pope Benedict’s prior comments on the possibility of a papal resignation were consistent with his ultimate decision to resign. In a book-length interview with journalist Peter Seewald in July 2010, which was later published asLight of the World, the Pope said that a Pontiff should step down if and when he became physically unable to carry out his duties.
“Personally,” Lombardi concluded, “I received the announcement of the Pope's resignation with great admiration, for its great valour, for the Holy Father's freedom of spirit and great concern for the responsibility of his ministry.”
In related news:
- Msgr. Georg Ratzinger, the Pontiff's older brother, said that Benedict XVI had been thinking about resignation for some months. "His age is weighing on him," Msgr. Ratzinger said.
- Speaking in his capacity as Dean of the College of Cardinals, Cardinal Angelo Sodano told the Pontiff that other cardinals had heard his surprise announcement “with a sense of loss and almost disbelief.” But he acknowledged that the Pope’s resignation showed “the great affection that you have always had for God's Holy Church,” and assured him that the cardinals “are closer than ever to you.” Cardinal Sodano told the Pontiff that “the stars always continue to shine and so will the star of your pontificate always shine among us.”
