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Proclaim the truth about God and man
On Thursday, 4 January, the Holy Father met the
Legionaries of Christ who had come to Rome to celebrate their Jubilee and
the 60th anniversary of their foundation in Mexico City by Fr Marcial
Maciel. The Pope told them and the members
of
the
Regnum Christi Movement that in our
secularized world "there is a need today more than
ever for a confident proclamation of the Gospel which, casting aside all
crippling fears, announces with intellectual depth and with courage the
truth about God, about man and about the world".
Therefore, he said, "I repeat the words
of St Catherine of Siena which I
proposed to the young people at the World Youth Day: 'If you are what you
should be, you will set the whole world ablaze!'". Here is a translation
of the Holy Father's address, which was given in Italian, Spanish and
English.
Dear Legionaries of Christ!
Dear Members of the Regnum Christi
Movement!
1. I am deeply pleased to
extend my greeting to you on the occasion of your Jubilee pilgrimage to
Rome, during which you are celebrating the 60th anniversary of your
foundation. You come from various countries of the world: I greet each and
every one, hoping that this celebration will give solid and strong support
to your faith in the Lord Jesus and to your decision to bear witness to
him among your brethren.
With special affection I
greet your beloved founder, Fr Marcial Maciel, and extend to him my
heartfelt congratulations on this important event, cordially thanking him
for the words he addressed to me on everyone's behalf. I especially
appreciated his confirmation of your characteristic fidelity to the
Successor of Peter. Your full involvement in the mystery of the
Church's unity is evidenced by your communion with the Pope.
2. In these days you have
wanted to thank God for all the good he has lavished on your spiritual
family. In looking back to 3 January 1941, when this work began in Mexico
City, you have realized that the little seed which the divine sower
planted in the soil of a few young hearts is now a leafy tree (cf. Mt
13:32), which embraces many priests, consecrated persons and lay people
whose ideal is to devote their lives to spreading Christ's kingdom in the
world.
You have come to Rome in
the Jubilee Year to renew your faith in Jesus Christ. May the
Christocentric character of your spirituality help you to enter more
deeply into the spirit of this Jubilee, which has prompted us to meditate
on the mystery of the Incarnation and on the person of Jesus Christ, the
same yesterday, today and for ever (Heb 13:8). To proclaim Christ to
today's world in the various sectors of society is your apostolic ideal.
But to preach Christ, you must have, like St Paul, a profound experience
of his love, so that you can say with him: "the life I now live in the
flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for
me" (Gal 2:20). I urge you, as your motto says, "Thy kingdom come!", never
to slacken in your dream of tirelessly working to make the kingdom of
love, grace, justice and peace a reality in individuals and in society. I
hope that one of the chief fruits of this intense spiritual experience in
Rome will be the renewal in your souls of sincere love for Jesus Christ,
so that you can personally share with many other men and women the
happiness that flows from this unique friendship with him.
3. Faith in the person of Jesus Christ
spurs you fervently to love the Church, the universal
sacrament of salvation, which continues his work throughout history. You
therefore wish to nourish your spiritual and apostolic charism with the
great lifeblood that flows through his Body, by living a special spirit of
ecclesial communion with the Successor of Peter and with the other Pastors
of the particular Churches. As you have done thus far,
continue with renewed fervour to spread the Magisterium and teaching of
the Church, both through the many initiatives begun for this purpose over
the past 60 years and through many others that your apostolic zeal will
have the courage to inspire for the good of souls.
4. One of the important
spiritual traits of your service in the Church is your commitment to the
spirit of authentic evangelical
charity. At the
Last Supper the Lord stated clearly and for all time that
fraternal love would be the distinctive feature of his followers: "By this
all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another"
(Jn 13:35). It has been your desire to take up this evangelical challenge,
placing particular emphasis on the fraternal warmth of your interpersonal
relations, and furthering the spirit of charity in thought and word,
passing over in silence the errors of others and bringing up only those
deeds of theirs which are positive and helpful. May the Lord preserve you
in this spirit, helping you to bear witness in every way to that Christian charity which St
Paul so masterfully described in the famous hymn to love found in his
First Letter to the Corinthians (1 Cor 13:48).
Another trait which
distinguishes your charism is apostolic fervour. You show this in
all the many works you have undertaken, especially in education,
evangelization, social communications, the spreading of the Church's
social teaching, the cultural and human promotion of the disadvantaged,
and the training of diocesan priests. In all of this you strive to
follow the lead of the Holy Spirit, who constantly renews the face of
the Church with gifts and charisms which enrich and strengthen her. In a
secularized world such as our own, built in large part on neglect of
transcendent truths and values, the faith of many of our brothers and
sisters is sorely tried. Because of this, there is a need today more
than ever for a confident proclamation of
the Gospel which, casting aside all
crippling fears, announces with intellectual
depth and with courage the truth
about God, about man, about the world.
To you, Legionaries of Christ and
members of
Regnum Christi,
I repeat the words of St Catherine of Siena which
I proposed to the young people at the
World Youth Day: "If you are what you
should be, you will set the whole world
ablaze!".
5. Generously open the
doors of your spirits
to this invitation. I now speak in particular to those whom Christ is
calling to follow him with total
dedication in the priesthood and the
consecrated life. May the Blessed Virgin,
filled with the Holy Spirit and a pilgrim
in faith, help you to fulfil your goals.
As you return home to your
daily tasks, know that the Pope
is close to you and is praying for you,
so that you will be faithful to your
Christian vocation and your specific
charism. May the Holy Spirit open your
hearts, making you courageous messengers
of the Gospel and witnesses to the
risen Christ, Redeemer and Saviour of the
world.
I bless you all with
affection!
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