Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land - 06/05/2001 info: custodia@netvision.net.il |
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Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land - 06/05/2001 info: custodia@netvision.net.il |
Pope in Syria
Homily during Mass at Damascus: 06.05.2001
ENGLISH
1. "‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute
me?’ And he said:
‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said: "I am
Jesus, whom you are
persecuting; but rise and enter the city, and you will be told what
you are to do" (Acts 9:4-6).
It is as a pilgrim that I have come today to Damascus, to
commemorate the event which took place here two thousand years ago:
the conversion of Saint Paul. On his way to Damascus to oppose and
imprison those who confessed the name of Jesus, Saul, approaching
the gates of the city, experiences an extraordinary
illumination. On
the road, the Risen Christ appears to him; the meeting deeply
affects him and a profound inner transformation takes place. From
being a persecutor he becomes an apostle, from an opponent of the
Gospel, he becomes its missionary. The Acts of the Apostles
recalls in detail the event which changed the course of history:
"He is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the
Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel: for I will show him how
much he must suffer for the sake of my name" (Acts
9:15-16).
Your Beatitude, I thank you for your kind words of
welcome at the
beginning of this celebration. Through you I greet with affection
the Bishops and the members of the Greek Melkite Church
of which you
are Patriarch. I warmly greet the Cardinals, Patriarchs, Bishops,
priests and faithful of all the Catholic communities of Syria and
the other countries of the region. I rejoice at the fraternal
presence of the Patriarchs, Bishops and faithful of the other
Churches and Ecclesial Communities. I extend heartfelt greetings to
them. I thank the members of the Muslim community who have joined
their Christian friends on this occasion.
2. The extraordinary event that took place not far from here was
decisive for the future of Paul and the Church. The Apostle’s
meeting with Christ radically changed his life, because it affected
him at the most intimate level of his being and made him fully
receptive to divine truth. Paul freely accepted this truth and
freely agreed to commit his life to the following of Christ. By
welcoming the divine light and receiving baptism, his deepest being
was conformed to Christ. His life was thus transformed and he
discovered happiness in placing his faith and trust in the One who
had called him from darkness into his own wonderful light (cf. 2
Tim 1:12; Eph 5:8; Rom 13:12). Meeting the Risen
One in faith is truly a light on man’s journey, a light which
calls one’s whole life into question. On the shining face of
Christ, God’s truth manifests itself in a
spectacular way. May we
too keep our gaze upon the Lord! O Christ, light of the
world, cause
to shine upon us and all men and women the heavenly light which
surrounded your Apostle! Enlighten and purify the eyes of
our heart,
so that we may learn to see all things in the light of your truth
and love of humanity!
The Church has no other light to pass on to the world than the
light which come to her from her Lord. We have been baptized into
the Death and Resurrection of Christ, we have received light from
God and we have been made children of the Light. Let us recall the
beautiful exclamation of Saint John Damascene which emphasises the
origin of our common ecclesial vocation: "You have
made me come
into the light by adopting me as your son, and you have counted me
among the members of your holy Church which is without
stain" (De
Fide Orthodoxa, 1)! On our journey, the word of God
is a shining
lamp; it enables us to know the truth that sets us free
and makes us
holy.
3. "I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no man
could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples ad
tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in
white robes, with palm branches in their hands" (Rev
7:9).
This reading in today’s Liturgy, taken from the Book of
Revelation, shows, in its own way, the work wrought by
Saint Paul’s
apostolic ministry. Saint Paul played an essential role in the
proclamation of the Gospel outside Israel. The Mediterranean lands
became the focus of Paul’s evangelizing efforts. And
we can say
that subsequently, in the centuries that followed down to our own
time, the immense progress of the proclamation of the
Gospel follows
in a sense logically from the ministry of the Apostle of
the Nations.
Down to our own time the Church continues to bear the fruits of his
apostolic activity and constantly refers to the missionary ministry
of Saint Paul, who became for whole generations of Christians the
pioneer and inspirer of all mission.
Following the example of Saint Paul, the Church is invited to
look to the ends of the earth in order to continue the mission
entrusted to her to transmit the light of the Risen One to all
peoples and cultures, while respecting the freedom of individuals
and communities, including spiritual communities. The immense
multitude of people of every origin is called to give glory to God.
For, as Saint Ephraem says, "You have no need to
communicate to
us the treasures which you give us. You need only one
thing: that we
open our hearts to carry your good things, by surrendering our will
and listening to you with our ears. All your works shine with the
wreaths which the wisdom of your mouth made for them when you said:
‘All this is very good’"
(Diathermane, 2, 5-7).
Like Paul, the disciples of Christ face a great challenge: they
are to transmit the Good News by expressing it in a
manner suited to
each culture, without losing its content or altering its
meaning. Do
not be afraid to bear witness to this joyful news among your
brothers and sisters, by your word and by your whole
life: God loves
everyone and calls them to be one family in love, for they are all
brothers and sisters!
4. This joyful news should inspire all Christ’s
disciples to
seek ardently the paths of unity. By making their own the
Lord’s
prayer "may they all be one", they will bear
witness in an
ever more genuine and credible way. I truly rejoice at
the fraternal
relations which already exist between the members of the Christian
Churches of your countries, and I encourage you to develop them in
truth and with care, in communion with your Patriarchs and Bishops.
At the dawn of the new millennium Christ is calling us all to come
closer to one another in the charity which forms our
unity. Be proud
of the great liturgical and spiritual traditions of your
Churches of
the East! They are part of the heritage of the one Church of Christ
and are bridges between people of different persuasions. Since the
beginnings of Christianity, your land experienced a flourishing
Christian life. In spiritual descent from Ignatius of Antioch,
Ephraem, Simeon and John Damascene, the names of many
Fathers, monks,
hermits and so many other saints who are the glory of your Church
are still in the living memory of the universal Church. By your
attachment to the land of your fathers, by living your faith here
with generosity, you too in turn today bear witness to the
fruitfulness of the Gospel message which has been handed down from
generation to generation.
With all your compatriots, without distinction of community,
continue tirelessly your efforts to build a society marked by
fraternity, justice and solidarity, where everyone’s
human dignity
and fundamental rights are recognized. In this holy land,
Christians,
Muslims and Jews are called to work together, with confidence and
boldness, and to work to bring about without delay the day when the
legitimate rights of all peoples are respected and they can live in
peace and mutual understanding. Among you, may the poor, the sick,
the handicapped and all those hurt by life be always brothers and
sisters who are respected and loved! The Gospel is a powerful
element in the transformation of the world. By your
witness of life,
may people today find the response to their deepest aspirations and
the foundations for social coexistence!
5. Christian families, the Church looks to you with
confidence to
pass on to your children the faith you have received over the
centuries since the time of the Apostle Paul. By remaining united
and open to all, by always defending the right to life from
conception, be homes of light, in full conformity to
God’s plan
and the true requirements of the human person! Give
significant time
to prayer, to listening to God’s word and to
Christian education;
in them you will find effective support to tackle the difficulties
of daily life and the great challenges of today’s world. Any
faithful and consistent Christian life requires regular
participation in the Sunday Eucharist. The Eucharist is a
privileged
gift where communion with God and others comes about and is
proclaimed.
Brothers and sisters, do not tire of seeking the face of Christ
who shows himself to you. In him you will find the secret of true
freedom and joy of heart! May your hearts be filled with the desire
for genuine fraternity with all! By placing yourselves
enthusiastically at the service of others, you will find meaning in
your life, because Christian identity is not defined by opposition
to others but by the ability to go out of oneself towards
one’s
brothers and sisters. Openness to the world, with clarity and
without fear, is part of the vocation of the Christian,
conscious of
his own identity and rooted in the religious heritage which the
richness of the Church’s witness expresses.
6. "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and
they follow
me; and I shall give them eternal life, and they shall
never perish,
and no one shall snatch them our of my hand. My Father, who has
given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch
them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are
one" (Jn
10:27-30).
These are the words of today’s Gospel, by which
Jesus Christ
himself shows us the admirable dynamism of evangelization. God, who
in many and various ways spoke to our fathers by the prophets,
finally spoke by his Son (cf. Heb 1:1-2). This Son, one in
substance with the Father, is the Word of life. It is he who gives
eternal life. He came so that we might have life and have it
abundantly (cf. Jn 10:10). At the gates of Damascus, when
he met the
Risen Christ, Saint Paul learned this truth and made it the content
of his preaching. The wonderful reality of the Cross of
Christ, upon
which the work of the world’s Redemption was wrought, became
present before him. Paul understood this reality and
consecrated his
whole life to it.
Brothers and sisters, let us lift our eyes to the
Cross of Christ
to find the source of our hope! In it we find a genuine
path of life
and happiness. Let us contemplate the loving face of God who gives
us his Son to make us all "of one heart and
soul" (Acts
4:32). Let us welcome him into our lives to inspire us and bring
about the mystery of communion which embodies and makes
manifest the
very essence of the Church.
Your belonging to the Church should be a sign of hope
for you and
your brothers and sisters, which reminds us that the Lord meets
everyone on their journey, often in a mysterious and
unexpected way,
just as he met Paul on the road to Damascus, surrounding him with
his brilliant light.
May the Risen One, whose Resurrection all Christians celebrated
together this year, grant us the gift of communion in
charity! Amen.
(Original text: French and Arabic)
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