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| Pauline Year; Benedict XVI has declared June 2008-June | |
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| Topic Started: Sunday, 1. July 2007, 20:20 (839 Views) | |
| Deleted User | Thursday, 9. October 2008, 00:04 Post #31 |
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Dear Brothers and Sisters, In the previous catecheses on St. Paul, I spoke of his encounter with the Risen Christ, which fundamentally changed his life, and then of his relationship with the Twelve Apostles called by Jesus, particularly with Sts. James, Peter and John, and of his relationship with the Church of Jerusalem. The question that now remains is what St. Paul knew of the earthly Jesus: of his life, his teachings, his passion. Before entering into this question it could be useful to have in mind that Paul himself distinguished two ways of knowing Jesus and, in general, two ways of knowing a person. He writes in the Second Letter to the Corinthians: "Consequently, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh; even if we once knew Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know him so no longer” (5:16). To know "according to the flesh," in a corporeal way, means to know only from the outside, with external criteria: one can see a person many times, recognize the individual's facial characteristics and the many details of how he acts: how he talks, moves, etc. Yet, even knowing someone in this way, one does not really know the person, one doesn't know the nucleus of the person. Only with the heart is one able to truly know a person. In fact the Pharisees, the Sadducees, knew Christ from the outside, they heard his teachings, and knew many details of him, but they did not know him in his truth. There is an analogous distinction in the words of Jesus. After the Transfiguration, he asked the apostles: "Who do people say I am?" And, "Who do you say that I am?" The people know him, but superficially; they know many things about him, but they do not really know him. On the other hand, thanks to their friendship, and the role of their hearts, the Twelve at least substantially understood and began to learn more of who Christ really was. This distinctive manner of knowing also exists today: There are learned individuals who know many details of Christ, and simple people who don't know these details, but they know Christ in his truth: "The heart speaks to the heart." And Paul essentially says that he knows Jesus in this way, with the heart, and that he knows essentially the person in his truth; and then afterward, he knows the details. Having said this, the question remains: What did Paul know about the life, words, passion and miracles of Jesus? It seems he never met Christ during his early life. Surely he learned the details of Christ's earthly life from the apostles and the nascent Church. In his letters we find three forms of reference to the pre-Easter Jesus. First, there are explicit and direct references. Paul spoke of the Davidic lineage of Jesus (cf. Romans 1:3), he knew of the existence of his "brothers" or blood relatives (1 Corinthians 9:5; Galatians 1:19), he knew of the development of the Last Supper (cf 1 Corinthians 11:23). He know other phrases of Jesus, for example on the indissolubility of marriage (cf 1 Corinthians 7:10 with Mark 10:11-12), on the need that those who announce the Gospel be sustained by the community as the worker deserves his wage (cf 1 Corinthians 9:14 with Luke 10:7). Paul knew the words Jesus spoke at the Last Supper (cf 1 Corinthians 11:24-25 with Luke 22:19-20), and he also knew the cross of Jesus. These are direct references to the words and facts of the life of Jesus. Second, we can see in some phrases of the Pauline letters various allusions to the confirmed tradition in the synoptic Gospels. For example, the words we read in 1 Thessalonians, according to which "the day of the Lord will come like a thief at night” (5:2), cannot be explained by referring to the Old Testament prophecies, because the metaphor of the thief at night is only found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, hence taken from the synoptic tradition. And when one reads that God "chose the foolish of the world" (1 Corinthians 1:27-28), one notes the faithful echo of the teachings of Jesus on the simple and the poor (cf Matthew 5:3; 11:25; 19:30). There are also the words of Jesus in the messianic Jubilee: “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.” Paul knows -- from his missionary experience -- that these words are true, those who are childlike are the ones who have their hearts open to knowledge of Christ. Also, the mention of the obedience of Jesus "to death" that is found in Philippians 2:8 can't but point to the total willingness of the earthly Christ to fulfill the will of the Father (cf Mark 3:35; Jn 4:34). Paul therefore knew the passion of Christ, his cross, and the way in which he lived the last moments of his life. The cross of Jesus and the tradition regarding the fact of the cross is at the center of the Pauline Kerygma. Another pillar of the life of Jesus that Paul knew was the Sermon on the Mount, some elements of which he cites almost literally when he writes to the Romans: "Love one another. ... Blessed are the persecuted. ... Live in peace with all. ... Overcome evil with good." In his letters there is a faithful expression of the Sermon on the Mount (cf Matthew 5-7). Finally, it is possible to find a third way that the words of Jesus are in the letters of Paul: It is when he transposed the pre-Easter tradition to the post-Easter period. A typical example is the theme of the Kingdom of God. This is certainly at the center of the preaching of the historical Christ (cf Matthew 3:2; Mark 1:15; Luke 4:43). In Paul the transposition of this theme is revealed, for after the resurrection it is evident that Jesus, the Resurrected One, is the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom, then, is where Jesus is. And then necessarily the theme of the Kingdom of God, in which the mystery of Christ had been anticipated, is transformed into Christology. Jesus' own instructions for entering the Kingdom of God are valid for Paul in regard to the justification by faith: Both require an attitude of great humility and availability, free of presumptions, to receive the grace of God. For example, the parable of the Pharisee and the publican (cf Luke 18:9-14) teaches exactly what St. Paul discusses when he insists that nobody should glorify themselves in the presence of God. Also, the teaching of Jesus on the publicans and the prostitutes, who are more willing than the Pharisees to receive the Gospel (cf Matthew 21:31; Luke 7:36-50), and his decisions to share a table with them (cf Matthew 9:10-13; Luke 15:1-2), are found in the doctrine of Paul on the mysterious love of God toward sinners (cf Romans 5:8-10 and Ephesians 2:3-5). In this way the theme of the Kingdom of God is proposed in a new manner, but always faithful to the tradition of the historic Jesus. Another example of the faithful transposition of the doctrinal nucleus of Jesus is found in the "titles" that refer to him. Before Easter, Christ called himself "Son of Man"; after Easter it is evident that the Son of Man is also the Son of God. Therefore, the preferred title of Paul for Jesus is "Kyrios" -- Lord (cf Phillipians 9:11) -- that indicates the divinity of Jesus. With this title the Lord Jesus appears in the full light of his resurrection. On the Mount of Olives, in the moment of Jesus' extreme anguish (cf Mark 14:36), the disciples, before going to sleep, heard how Jesus spoke with the Father and called him "Abba -- Father.” This is a very informal word, equal to "daddy," used only by children for their father. Until that moment it was unthinkable that a Hebrew use a word such as that to address God; but Jesus, being truly a son, talked in this way during this hour of intimacy and said "Abba, Father." In the letters of St. Paul to the Romans and Galatians, surprisingly, this word "Abba," which expresses the exclusivity of the sonship of Jesus, appears in the mouths of the baptized (cf Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6). They have received the "Spirit of the Son" and now carry in themselves this Spirit, and they can talk as Jesus and with Jesus as true sons of the Father. They can say "Abba" because they have been converted into sons and daughters in the Son. And finally, I would like to point out the salvific dimension of the death of Jesus, as we find in the Gospel in which "the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45; Matthew 20:28). The faithful expression of this phrase of Jesus appears in the Pauline doctrine on the death of Jesus as a rescue (cf 1 Corinthians 6:20), as redemption (cf Romans 3:24), as liberation (cf Galatians 5:1) and as reconciliation (cf Romans 5:10; 2 Corinthians 5:18-20). Here is the center of Pauline theology, which is based in this phrase of Jesus. In conclusion, St. Paul did not think Jesus was something historical, as a person from the past. He certainly knew the great tradition regarding his life, his words, his death and his resurrection, but he did not treat them as something from the past; he proposed them as the reality of the living Jesus. The words and actions of Jesus for Paul do not pertain to a historic time, to the past. Jesus lives now and speaks with us now, and lives for us. This is the true manner to get to know Jesus, and to learn the tradition of him. We should also learn to know Jesus, not physically, as a person of the past, but as our Lord and brother, that today is with us and shows us how to live and how to die. Zenit |
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| Deleted User | Thursday, 16. October 2008, 19:19 Post #32 |
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The Pope spoke of the mystery of the Church today at the general audience held in St. Peter's Square. He continued with his series of catechesis on St. Paul, as the Church is marking the Pauline Jubilee in celebration of the 2,000th anniversary of the Apostle's birth. The Holy Father explained that "this word 'Church' has a multifaceted meaning: It indicates on one hand the assemblies of God in particular places -- a city, a country, a house -- but it also means all of the Church taken together. And thus we see that 'the Church of God' is not just the sum of the particular local Churches, but that these are at the same time the actualization of the one Church of God. All together they are the 'Church of God,' which precedes each local Church and which is expressed and actualized in them." The Pontiff said it is important to note how St. Paul nearly always puts the word "Church" with the "added descriptor 'of God': It is not a human association, born from ideas or common interests, but a gathering of God. He has gathered it together and because of this it is one in all of its actualizations. The unity of God creates the unity of the Church in all of the places where it is found." Later, Benedict XVI continued, "Paul presents the only Church of God as 'spouse of Christ' in love, one spirit with Christ himself." Though Paul originally persecuted this Church of God, the Pope added, "After his encounter with the risen Christ, Paul understood that the Christians weren't traitors; on the contrary, in the new situation, the God of Israel, through Christ, had extended his call to all people, becoming the God of all peoples. The Holy Father went on to explain the Pauline concept of the Church as "Body of Christ." "In this respect, it is fitting to keep in mind the two dimension of this concept," he said. "One is of a sociological character, according to which the body is formed by its components and wouldn't exist without them. […] He says that a people is like a body with distinct members, each one of which has its function, but all, even the smallest and apparently insignificant, are necessary so the body can live and perform its functions. […] "The other interpretation makes reference to the very Body of Christ. Paul sustains that the Church is not just an organism, but rather becomes truly the Body of Christ in the sacrament of the Eucharist, where all receive his Body and truly become his Body. Thus is fulfilled the spousal mystery, that all are one body and one spirit in Christ." Thus, Paul shows that he well knows, the Pope affirmed "that the Church is not his and is not ours: The Church is the body of Christ, it is 'Church of God' […] temple of God." "This last designation is particularly interesting," the Holy Father said, "because it attributes to an interweaving of interpersonal relationships a term that was commonly used to indicate a physical place, considered sacred. The relationship between Church and temple assumes therefore two complementary dimensions: On one hand, the characteristic of separation and purity, which the sacred building had, is applied to the ecclesial community; on the other hand, the concept of a material space is surpassed, to transfer this value to the reality of a living community of faith. "If before, temples were considered places of the presence of God, now it is known and seen that God does not dwell in buildings made of stone, but that the place of the presence of God is in the world of the living community of the believers." "This is the greatness of the Church and the greatness of our call," the Pontiff concluded. "We are the temple of God in the world, the place where God truly dwells, and we are, at the same time, community, family of God, who is love. As family and house of God we should carry out in the world the charity of God and thus be, with the strength that comes from faith, the place and sign of his presence." zenit |
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| Deleted User | Wednesday, 29. October 2008, 21:21 Post #33 |
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Angelus address 29 October "St Paul and the Cross" Dear brothers and sisters: In the personal experience of St. Paul, there is an indisputable fact: While at the beginning he had been a persecutor of the Christians and had used violence against them, from the moment of his conversion on the road to Damascus, he changed to the side of Christ crucified, making him the reason for his life and the motive for his preaching. His was an existence entirely consumed by souls (cf. 2 Corinthians 12:15), not in the least serene and protected from snares and difficulties. In the encounter with Jesus, he had understood the central significance of the cross: He had understood that Jesus had died and risen for all and also for [Paul], himself. Both elements were important -- the universality: Jesus had truly died for everyone; and the subjectivity: He had died also for me. On the cross, therefore, the gratuitous and merciful love of God had been manifested. Paul experienced this love above all in himself (cf. Galatians 2:20) and from being a sinner, he converted to being a believer, from persecutor to apostle. Day after day, in his new life, he experiences that salvation is "grace," that everything descended from the love of Christ and not from his merits, which in any case, didn't exist. The "gospel of grace" thus became the only way to understand the cross, the criteria not only for his new existence, but also the answer for those who questioned him. Among these were, above all, the Jews who placed their hope in works and hoped to gain salvation from these; the Greeks as well, who opposed their human wisdom to the cross; finally, there were certain heretical groups, who had formed their own idea of Christianity according to their own model of life. For St. Paul, the cross has a fundamental priority in the history of humanity; it represents the principal point of his theology, because to say cross means to say salvation as grace given to every creature. The theme of the cross of Christ becomes an essential and primary element in the preaching of the Apostle: The clearest example of this is regarding the community of Corinth. Before a Church where disorders and scandals were present in a worrying way, where communion was threatened by groups and internal divisions that compromised the unity of the Body of Christ, Paul presents himself not with sublime words or wisdom, but with the announcement of Christ, of Christ crucified. His strength is not persuasive language, but rather, paradoxically, the weakness and the tremor of one who trusts only in the "power of God" (cf. 1 Corinthians 2:1-4). The cross, for everything that it represents and also for the theological message it contains, is scandal and foolishness. The Apostle affirms this with impressive strength, which is better to hear with his own words: "The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. … It was the will of God through the foolishness of the proclamation to save those who have faith. For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles." The first Christian communities, whom Paul addressed, knew very well that Jesus is now risen and alive; the Apostle wants to remind not just the Corinthians and the Galatians, but all of us, that the Risen One is always the One who has been crucified. The "scandal" and the "foolishness" of the cross are precisely in the fact that there, where there seems to be only failure, sorrow and defeat, precisely there, is all the power of the limitless love of God, because the cross is the expression of love and love is the true power that is revealed precisely in this apparent weakness. For the Jews, the cross is "skandalon," that is, a trap or stumbling block: It seems to be an obstacle to the faith of the pious Israelite, who doesn't manage to find anything similar in sacred Scripture. Paul, with no small amount of courage, seems to say here that the stakes are very high: For the Jews, the cross contradicts the very essence of God, who has manifested himself with prodigious signs. Therefore, to accept the cross of Christ means to undergo a profound conversion in the way of relating with God. If for the Jews the reason to reject the cross is found in revelation, that is, in fidelity to the God of their fathers, for the Greeks, that is, the pagans, the criteria for judgment in opposing the cross is reason. For this latter group, in fact, the cross is blight, foolishness, literally insipience, that is, food lacking salt; therefore, more than an error, it is an insult to good sense. Paul himself on more than one occasion had the bitter experience of the rejection of the Christian pronouncement judged "insipid," irrelevant, not even worthy of being taken into consideration on the level of rational logic. For those who, like the Greeks, sought perfection in the spirit, in pure thought, it was already unacceptable that God became man, submerging himself in all the limits of space and time. Therefore it was decidedly inconceivable to believe that a God could end up on the cross! And we see how this Greek logic is also the common logic of our time. The concept of "apátheia," indifference, as absence of passions in God: How could it have understood a God made man and defeated, who later on even had taken up again his body so as to live resurrected? "We should like to hear you on this some other time" (Acts 17:32), the Athenians scornfully told Paul, when they heard him speak of the resurrection of the dead. They believed that perfection was in liberating oneself from the body, conceived as a prison: How could it not be considered an aberration to take up again the body? In the ancient culture, there did not seem to be space for the message of God incarnate. The whole of the "Jesus of Nazareth" event seemed to be marked by the most total insipience, and certainly the cross was the most emblematic point of this. But, why has St. Paul made precisely of this, of the word of the cross, the fundamental point of his preaching? The answer is not difficult: The cross reveals "the power of God" (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:24), which is different than human power. It reveals in fact his love: "For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength" (ibid., 1:25). Centuries after Paul, we see that the cross, and not the wisdom that opposes the cross, has triumphed. The Crucified is wisdom, because he manifests in truth who God is, that is, the power of love that goes to the point of the cross to save man. God avails of ways and instruments that to us appear at first glance as only weakness. The Crucified reveals, on one hand, the weakness of man, and on the other, the true power of God, that is, the gratuitousness of love: Precisely this gratuitousness of love is true wisdom. St. Paul has experienced this even in his flesh, and he gives us testimony of this in various passages of his spiritual journey, which have become essential reference points for every disciple of Jesus: "He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness'" (2 Corinthians 12:9); and even "God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something" (1 Corinthians 1:28). The Apostle identifies himself to such a degree with Christ that he also, even in the midst of so many trials, lives in the faith of the Son of God who loved him and gave himself up for his sins and those of everyone (cf. Galatians 1:4; 2:20). This autobiographical detail of the Apostle is paradigmatic for all of us. St. Paul offered an admirable synthesis of the theology of the cross in the Second Letter to the Corinthians (5:4-21), where everything is contained in two fundamental affirmations: On one hand, Christ, whom God has treated as sin on our behalf (verse 21), has died for us (verse 14); on the other hand, God has reconciled us with himself, not attributing to us our sins (verses 18-20). By this "ministry of reconciliation" all slavery has been purchased (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23). Here it is seen how all of this is relevant for our lives. We also should enter into this "ministry of reconciliation," which always implies renouncing one's own superiority and choosing the foolishness of love. St. Paul has renounced his own life, giving himself totally for the ministry of reconciliation, of the cross that is salvation for all of us. And this is what we should also know how to do: We can find our strength precisely in the humility of love and our wisdom in the weakness of renunciation to thus enter into the strength of God. We should build our lives on this true wisdom: To not live for ourselves, but to live in the faith in this God, about whom all of us can say: "He loved me and gave himself up for me." http://zenit.org/article-24102?l=english |
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| Deleted User | Thursday, 6. November 2008, 14:06 Post #34 |
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Wednesday 5 November Dear brothers and sisters: "And if Christ has not been raised, then empty is our preaching; empty, too, your faith. … You are still in your sins" (1 Corinthians 15:14,17). With these heavy words of the First Letter to the Corinthians, St. Paul makes clear how decisive is the importance that he attributes to the resurrection of Jesus. In this event, in fact, is the solution to the problem that the drama of the cross implies. On its own, the cross could not explain Christian faith; on the contrary, it would be a tragedy, a sign of the absurdity of being. The Paschal mystery consists in the fact that this Crucified One "was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures" (1 Corinthians 15:4) -- thus testifies the proto-Christian witness. Here is the central key to Pauline Christology: Everything revolves around this gravitational center point. The whole teaching of the Apostle Paul departs from and always arrives at the mystery of the One whom the Father has risen from the dead. The Resurrection is a fundamental fact, almost a previous basic assumption (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:12), in base of which Paul can formulate his synthetic proclamation ("kerygma"): He who has been crucified, and who has thus manifested the immense love of God for man, has risen and is alive among us. It is important to note the link between the proclamation and the Resurrection, just as Paul formulates it, and that which was used in the first pre-Pauline Christian communities. Here one can truly see the importance of the tradition that preceded the Apostle and that he, with great respect and attention, wanted in turn to convey. The text on the Resurrection, contained in Chapter 15:1-11 of the First Letter to the Corinthians, emphasizes well the nexus between "receive" and "transmit." St. Paul attributes great importance to the literal formulation of tradition; the end of the fragment we are examining highlights: "Whether it be I or they, so we preach and so you believed" (1 Corinthians 15:11), thus spotlighting the unity of the kerygma, of the proclamation for all believers and for all those who would announce the resurrection of Christ. The tradition to which he unites is the fount from which to draw. The originality of his Christology is never in detriment to fidelity to tradition. The kerygma of the apostles always prevails over the personal re-elaboration of Paul; each one of his arguments flows from the common tradition, in which the faith shared by all the Churches, which are just one Church, is expressed. And in this way, Paul offers a model for all times of how to do theology and how to preach. The theologian and the preacher do not create new visions of the world and of life, but rather are at the service of the truth transmitted, at the service of the real fact of Christ, of the cross, of the resurrection. Their duty is to help to understand today, behind the ancient words, the reality of "God with us," and therefore, the reality of true life. Here it is opportune to say precisely: St. Paul, in announcing the Resurrection, does not concern himself with presenting an organic doctrinal exposition -- he does not want to practically write a theology manual -- but rather to take up the theme, responding to uncertainties and concrete questions that are posed him by the faithful. An episodic discourse, therefore, but full of faith and a lived theology. A concentration of the essential is found in him: We have been "justified," that is, made just, saved, by Christ, dead and risen, for us. The fact of the Resurrection emerges above all else, without which Christian life would simply be absurd. On that Easter morning something extraordinary and new happened, but at the same time, something very concrete, verified by very precise signs, attested by numerous witnesses. Also for Paul, as for the other authors of the New Testament, the Resurrection is united to the testimony of those who have had a direct experience of the Risen One. It is about seeing and hearing not just with the eyes and the ears, but also with an interior light that motivates recognizing what the external senses verify as an objective datum. Paul therefore gives -- as do the four Evangelists -- fundamental relevance to the theme of the apparitions, which are a fundamental condition for faith in the Risen One who has left the tomb empty. These two facts are important: The tomb is empty and Jesus really appeared. Thus is built this chain of tradition that, by way of the testimony of the apostles and the first disciples, would reach successive generations, up to us. The first consequence, or the first way to express this testimony, is preaching the resurrection of Christ as a synthesis of the Gospel message and as the culminating point of the salvific itinerary. All of this, Paul does on various occasions: One can consult the Letters and the Acts of the Apostles, where it can always be seen that the fundamental point for him is being a witness of the Resurrection. I would like to cite just one text: Paul, under arrest in Jerusalem, is before the Sanhedrin as one accused. In this circumstance in which life and death are at stake, he indicates the meaning and the content of all his concern: "I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead" (Acts 23:6). Paul repeats this same refrain often in his Letters (cf. 1 Thessalonians 1:9ff, 4:13-18; 5:10), in which he invokes his personal experience, his personal encounter with the resurrected Christ (cf. Galatians 1:15-16; 1 Corinthians 9:1). But we can ask ourselves: What is, for St. Paul, the deep meaning of the event of the resurrection of Jesus? What does he say to us 2,000 years later? Is the affirmation "Christ has risen" also current for us? Why is the Resurrection for him and for us today a theme that is so determinant? Paul solemnly responds to this question at the beginning of the Letter to the Romans, where he makes an exhortation referring to the "gospel of God … about his Son, descended from David according to the flesh, but established as Son of God in power according to the spirit of holiness through resurrection from the dead" (Romans 1:3-4). Paul knows well and he says many times that Jesus was the Son of God always, from the moment of his incarnation. The novelty of the resurrection consists in the fact that Jesus, elevated from the humility of his earthly existence, has been constituted Son of God "with power." The Jesus humiliated till death on the cross can now say to the Eleven: "All power on heaven and on earth has been given to me" (Matthew 28:18). What Psalm 2:8 says has been fulfilled: "Only ask it of me, and I will make your inheritance the nations, your possession the ends of the earth." That's why with the resurrection begins the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ to all peoples -- the Kingdom of Christ begins; this new Kingdom that does not know another power other than that of truth and love. The Resurrection therefore definitively reveals the authentic identity and the extraordinary stature of the Crucified: An incomparable and most high dignity -- Jesus is God! For St. Paul, the secret identity of Jesus, even more than in the incarnation, is revealed in the mystery of the resurrection. While the title "Christ," that is, "Messiah," "Anointed," in St. Paul tends to become the proper name of Jesus and that of Lord specifies his personal relationship with the believers, now the title Son of God comes to illustrate the intimate relationship of Jesus with God, a relationship that is fully revealed in the Paschal event. It can be said, therefore, that Jesus has risen to be the Lord of the living and the dead (cf. Romans 14:9 and 2 Corinthians 5:15) or, in other words, our Savior (cf. Romans 4:25). All of this carries with it important consequences for our life of faith: We are called to participate from the depths of our being in the whole of the event of the death and resurrection of Christ. The Apostle says: We "have died with Christ" and we believe "that we shall also live with him. We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him" (Romans 6:8-9). This translates into sharing the sufferings of Christ, as a prelude to this full configuration with him through the resurrection, which we gaze upon with hope. This is also what has happened to Paul, whose experience is described in the Letters with a tone that is as much precise as realistic: "to know him and the power of his resurrection and (the) sharing of his sufferings by being conformed to his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead" (Philippians 3:10-11; cf. 2 Timothy 2:8-12). The theology of the cross is not a theory -- it is a reality of Christian life. To live in faith in Jesus Christ, to live truth and love implies renunciations every day; it implies sufferings. Christianity is not a path of comfort; it is rather a demanding ascent, but enlightened with the light of Christ and with the great hope that is born from him. St. Augustine says: Christians are not spared suffering; on the contrary, they get a little extra, because to live the faith expresses the courage to face life and history more deeply. And with everything, only in this way, experiencing suffering, we experience life in its depth, in its beauty, in the great hope elicited by Christ, crucified and risen. The believer finds himself between two poles: on one side, the Resurrection, which in some way is already present and operative in us (cf. Colossians 3:1-4; Ephesians 2:6), and on the other, the urgency of fitting oneself into this process that leads everyone and everything to plenitude, as described in the Letter to the Romans with audacious imagination: As all of creation groans and suffers near labor pains, in this way we too groan in the hope of the redemption of our body, of our redemption and resurrection (cf. Romans 8:18-23). In sum, we can say with Paul that the true believer obtains salvation professing with his lips that Jesus is Lord and believing in his heart that God has raised him from the dead (cf. Romans 10:9). Important above all is the heart that believes in Christ and in faith "touches" the Risen One. But it is not enough to carry faith in the heart; we should confess it and give testimony with the lips, with our lives, thus making present the truth of the cross and the resurrection in our history. In this way, the Christian fits himself in this process thanks to which the first Adam, earthly and subject to corruption and death, goes transforming into the last Adam, heavenly and incorruptible (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:20 - 22:42-49). This process has been set in motion with the resurrection of Christ, in which is founded the hope of being able to also enter with Christ into our true homeland, which is heaven. Sustained with this hope, let us continue with courage and joy. Zenit |
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| Deleted User | Thursday, 13. November 2008, 01:20 Post #35 |
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12 November Dear brothers and sisters: The theme of the Resurrection, which we considered last week, opens a new perspective -- that of awaiting the return of the Lord. And therefore it brings us to reflect on the relationship between the present time, the time of the Church and the Kingdom of Christ, and the future (éschaton) that awaits us, when Christ will hand over the Kingdom to the Father (cf. 1 Corinthians 15:24). Every Christian discourse on the last things, called eschatology, always starts from the event of the Resurrection: In this event the last things have already begun, and in a certain sense, are already present. St. Paul probably wrote his first letter in the year 52, the First Letter to the Thessalonians, where he speaks of this return of Jesus, called the parousía, the advent, the new and definitive and manifest presence (cf. 4:13-18). To the Thessalonians, who have their doubts and problems, the Apostle writes thus: "If we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus, bring with him those who have fallen asleep" (4:14). And he continues: "The dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (4:16-17). Paul describes the parousía of Christ with very living tones and symbolic images, but transmitting a simple and profound message: At the end, we will be always with the Lord. That is, beyond the images, the essential message: Our future is "to be with the Lord." As believers, in our lives we already are with the Lord -- our future, eternal life, has already begun. In the Second Letter to the Thessalonians, Paul changes the perspective: He speaks of negative events that must precede that conclusive end. Do not let yourselves be deceived, he says, as if the day of the Lord were truly imminent, according to a chronological calculation. "We ask you, brothers, with regard to the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our assembling with him, not to be shaken out of your minds suddenly, or to be alarmed either by a 'spirit,' or by an oral statement, or by a letter allegedly from us to the effect that the day of the Lord is at hand. Let no one deceive you in any way" (2:1-3). The rest of this text announces that before the arrival of the Lord, there will be the apostasy and the revelation of the no better defined "wicked one," the "son of perdition" (2:3), which tradition will later call the Antichrist. But the intention of this letter of St. Paul is above all practical. He writes: "In fact, when we were with you, we instructed you that if anyone was unwilling to work, neither should that one eat. We hear that some are conducting themselves among you in a disorderly way, by not keeping busy but minding the business of others. Such people we instruct and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to work quietly and to eat their own food" (3:10-12). In other words, the awaiting of the parousía of Jesus does not dispense with the work of this world, but on the contrary, brings responsibilities before the divine Judge regarding our way of acting in this world. Precisely thus, our responsibility to work in and for this world arises. We will see the same thing next Sunday in the Gospel of the talents, where the Lord tells us that he has entrusted talents to everyone and the Judge will ask us to account for them, saying: Have you given fruits? Therefore, the awaiting of his coming implies a responsibility toward this world. The same thing and the same nexus between parousía -- the return of the Judge-Savior -- and our commitment in life appears in another context and with new aspects in the Letter to the Philippians. Paul is in jail and awaiting his sentence, which might be death. In this situation, he thinks of his future being with the Lord, but he also thinks of the community of Philippi, which needs its father, Paul, and he writes: "For to me life is Christ, and death is gain. If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose. I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, (for) that is far better. Yet that I remain (in) the flesh is more necessary for your benefit. And this I know with confidence, that I shall remain and continue in the service of all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that your boasting in Christ Jesus may abound on account of me when I come to you again" (1:21-26). Paul is not afraid of death, on the contrary, it means in fact the complete being with Christ. But Paul also participates in the sentiments of Christ, who has not lived for himself, but for us. Living for others becomes the program of his life and because of that, he shows his perfect readiness to do the will of God, [readiness] for what God decides. He is ready above all, also in the future, to live on earth for the others, to live for Christ, to live for his living presence and thus for the renewal of the world. We see that this being yours with Christ creates a great interior freedom: freedom before the threat of death, but freedom also before all the tasks and sufferings of life. He was simply available to God and truly free. And we turn now, after having examined the various aspects of the waiting for the parousía of Christ, to ask ourselves: What are the fundamental attitudes of a Christian toward the last things -- death and the end of the world? The first attitude is the certainty that Jesus has risen, is with the Father, and because of that, is with us forever. And no one is stronger that Christ, because he is with the Father, is with us. Because of this, we are secure and free of fear. This was an essential effect of Christian preaching. Fear of spirits and gods was spread throughout the entire ancient world. And today as well, missionaries find -- together with so many good elements in natural religions -- the fear of spirits and the ill-fated powers that threaten us. Christ is alive; he has overcome death and has overcome all these powers. With this certainty, with this freedom, with this joy, we live. This is the first element of our living directed to the future. In second place, the certainty that Christ is with me. And that in Christ the future world has already begun -- this also gives the certainty of hope. The future is not a darkness in which no one gets one's bearings. It is not like that. Without Christ, also for the world today, the future is dark; there is fear of the future -- a lot of fear of the future. The Christian knows that the light of Christ is stronger and because of this, lives in a hope that is not vague, in a hope that gives certainty and courage to face the future. Finally, the third attitude: The Judge who returns -- who is Judge and Savior at the same time -- has left us the task of living in this world according to his way of living. He has given us his talents. Because of this, our third attitude is responsibility toward the world, toward our brothers before Christ, and at the same time, also certainty of his mercy. Both things are important. We don't live as if good and evil were the same, because God only can be merciful. This would be a deceit. In truth, we live with a great responsibility. We have talents, we have to work so this world opens itself to Christ, so that it is renewed. But even working and knowing in our responsibility that God is a true judge, we are also sure that he is a good judge. We know his face -- the face of the risen Christ, of Christ crucified for us. Therefore we can we sure of his goodness and continue forward with great courage. Following the Pauline teaching on eschatology is the fact of the universality of the call to faith, which unites Jews and Gentiles, that is, the pagans, as a sign and anticipation of the future reality, by which we can say that we are already seated in heaven with Christ, but to show to future centuries the richness of grace (cf. Ephesians 2:6ff): The "after" becomes a "before" to make evident the state of incipient fulfillment in which we live. This makes tolerable the sufferings of the present moment, which are not comparable to future glory (cf. Romans 8:18). We walk by faith and not by sight, and though it would be preferable to leave the body and live with the Lord, what matters definitively, whether dwelling in the body or leaving it, is being pleasing to God (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:7-9). Finally, a last point that perhaps seems a little difficult for us. St. Paul in the conclusion of his Second Letter to the Corinthians repeats and also puts on the lips of the Corinthians, a prayer originating in the first Christian communities of the area of Palestine: Maranà, thà!, which literally means, "Our Lord, come!" (16:22). It was the prayer of the first Christian community and the last book of the New Testament, Revelation, also closes with this prayer: "Come Lord!" Can we also pray like this? It seems to me that for us today, in our lives, in our world, it is difficult to sincerely pray so that this world perishes, so that the new Jerusalem comes, so that the final judgment and Christ the judge come. I think that if we don't dare to sincerely pray like this for many reasons, nevertheless in a just and correct way we can also say with the first Christians: "Come, Lord Jesus." Certainly, we don't want the end of the world to come now. But, on the other hand, we want this unjust world to end. We also want the world to be deeply changed, the civilization of love to begin, [we want] a world of justice and peace, without violence, without hunger, to arrive. We all want this -- and how can it happen without the presence of Christ? Without the presence of Christ, a just and renewed world will never really arrive. And though in another way, totally and deeply, we too can and should say, with great urgency and in the circumstances of our time, Come, Lord! Come to your world, in the way that you know. Come where there is injustice and violence. Come to the refugee camps, in Darfur and in North Kivu, in so many places in the world. Come where drugs dominate. Come, too, among those rich people who have forgotten you and who live only for themselves. Come where you are not known. Come to your world and renew the world of today. Come also to our hearts. Come and renew our lives. Come to our hearts so that we ourselves can be light of God, your presence. In this sense, we pray with St. Paul: Maranà, thà! Come, Lord Jesus! And we pray so that Christ is really present today in our world, and that he renews it. ZENIT |
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| Derekap | Thursday, 13. November 2008, 17:29 Post #36 |
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Katy A. Do I presume correctly the long quotation from Zenit is a sermon of the Pope? Can you or anyone tell me the meaning of 'Parousia'. An on-line dictionary gave four meanings. One was the Nativity and another was The Second Coming of Jesus Christ. The other two were similar. I also had to look-up eschatology. (Being a Tyke ahs used to callin a spade a spade) (Ah fear tdisease of hermeneutics is spreadin) |
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| Gerard | Thursday, 13. November 2008, 17:31 Post #37 |
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superb Derek ! |
| "The institutional and charismatic aspects are quasi coessential to the Church's constitution" (Pope John Paul II, 1998). | |
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| Deleted User | Thursday, 13. November 2008, 17:51 Post #38 |
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Yes it is Derek. It's from Wednesday's Angelus address. The Pope has been using these addresses to preach on St Paul, and since his words are meant for everyone I've been trying to keep us all up to date I found Eschatology in the Catholic Encyclopaedia : Eschatology - A survey of the subject in various pre-Christian religions and cultures, an examination of the development of eschatology in the Old Testament, brief overview of Christian teaching. The Pope, like all good teachers, defined it in the speech
I didn't find Parousia in the encyclopaedia, although I understand it to mean the second coming and the Pope defined it in his speech
It sounds more like a disease than hermeneutics |
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| Deleted User | Wednesday, 19. November 2008, 20:43 Post #39 |
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VATICAN CITY, 19 NOV 2008 (VIS) - Continuing his series of lessons on St. Paul, Benedict XVI dedicated his general audience, held in St. Peter's Square this morning, to the "question of justification. How do human beings make themselves just in the eyes of God?" This question that occupies a central place in the Apostle's Letters. When Paul met the Risen One on the road to Damascus, said the Pope, "he was a successful man: blameless as to righteousness under the Law". Yet "the conversion of Damascus radically changed his life, and he began to consider all the gains of his irreprehensible religious career as 'rubbish' in the face of the sublimity of his knowledge of Jesus Christ. "The Letter to the Philippians", he added, "provides moving testimony of Paul's shift from a justice founded on the Law and achieved by observing certain prescribed actions, to a justice based upon faith in Jesus Christ. ... It is because of this personal experience of the relationship with Jesus Christ that Paul focuses his Gospel on a steadfast contrast between two alternative paths to justice: one based on the works of the Law, the other founded on the grace of faith in Christ". Thus St. Paul "reaffirms to the Christians of Rome that 'all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by His grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus', and the Apostle adds that 'we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the Law'". "Luther", said the Pope, "translated this as 'justified by faith alone', ... yet before returning to this point it is necessary to clarify which is the 'Law' from which we have been freed and what are the works that do not justify us. In the community of Corinth there already existed an opinion, that crops up again throughout history, to the effect that it is the moral law, and that hence Christian freedom means freedom from ethics. ... Obviously this is an incorrect interpretation. Christian freedom is not debauchery, ... it is not freedom from doing good". "For St. Paul, as for his contemporaries, the word Law meant the Torah in its entirety, ... which imposed ... a series of actions ranging from an ethical core to ritual observances ... and substantially defined the identity of the just man, ... such as circumcision, dietary laws, etc. ... All these precepts - expressive of a social, cultural and religious identity - were very important" in the Hellenistic age when polytheism was rife and Israel felt threatened in its identity and feared "the loss of faith in the One God and in His promises". For this reason it was necessary counteract Greek pressure with "a wall that protected the precious heritage of the faith. This wall was represented by the Jewish precepts". Yet Paul, after his encounter with Christ, understood that "the God of Israel, the only true God, has become the God of all peoples and the wall ... between Israel and the pagans is no longer necessary. Christ protects us from polytheism and its deviations. Christ guarantees our identity within the diversity of cultures, ... it is He Who makes us just". "Being just simply means being with Christ, being in Christ, that is all. The other precepts are no longer necessary. ... For this reason Luther's 'sola fide' is true if it is not placed in opposition to charity, to love. Faith is looking at Christ, trusting in Christ ... conforming to Christ. And the form of Christ's life was love. ... We become just in communion with Christ Who is love. ... Justice is defined in charity". "We can only pray to the Lord to help us believe", Benedict XVI concluded. "Thus belief becomes life, unity with Christ, transformation. ... And transformed by His love, by love for God and mankind, we will truly be just in the eyes of God". VIS Press Release Full text of speech |
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| Deleted User | Wednesday, 26. November 2008, 21:21 Post #40 |
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Continuing his series of catecheses on St. Paul, in this morning's general audience, held in the Paul VI Hall, the Pope spoke of the consequences deriving from justification by the faith and by the action of the Spirit in Christian life. In his Letter to the Galatians, the Apostle of the Gentiles "gives radical emphasis to the gratuitousness of justification" and "highlights the relationship between faith and works", said the Pope. In the same Letter, St, Paul says that "by bearing one another's burdens, believers fulfil the commandment of love. Justified by the gift of faith in Christ, we are called to live in Christ's love for others, because it is on this criterion that we will be judged at the end of our lives". "Christ's love for us ... claims us, welcomes us, embraces us, sustains us; it even torments us because it forces us not to live for ourselves alone, closed in our own selfishness, by for 'Him Who died and has risen for us'. The love of Christ makes us become, in Him, the 'new creation' that is part of his mystical Body which is the Church. "Seen in this light", the Holy Father added, "the central importance of justification without works, the main object of Paul's preaching, presents no contradiction to faith working through love, on the contrary it requires that our own faith be expressed in a life in accordance with the Spirit". Going on then to refer to "the unfounded conflict" some people have seen "between the theology of St. Paul and that of St. James", the Pope pointed out that while the former "is primarily concerned with showing that faith in Christ is necessary and sufficient, James stresses the consequent relationship between faith and works. Hence, for both Paul and James, faith working through love bears witness to the free gift of justification in Christ". The Pope noted how "we often fall into the same misunderstandings that characterised the community of Corinth. Those Christians thought that having been gratuitously justified in Christ by faith, 'all things are lawful for them'. Often, we too think it is lawful to create divisions within the Church, Body of Christ, celebrating the Eucharist without caring for our brethren in need, or aspiring to the most exalted charisms unaware that we are limbs of one another, etc. The consequences of a faith not incarnated in love are disastrous because it is reduced to the arbitrariness of subjectivism, harmful to us and to our fellow men and women". "What we must do", he went on, "is gain a renewed awareness that, precisely because we have been justified in Christ, we are no longer our own but have become temples of the Spirit and hence are called to glorify God in our bodies. We would undervalue the priceless value of justification if, bought at a high price by the blood of Christ, we did not glorify it with our body, with all our lives". "If the ethics which St. Paul proposes to believers do not deteriorate into forms of moralism but retain their importance for us today, this is because ... they are rooted in the individual and community relationship with Christ, to then take concrete form in a life lived according to the Spirit. The essential point is that Christian ethics do not arise from a system of commandments", the Pope concluded, "they are a consequence of our friendship with Christ. This friendship influences our lives, if it is real it is incarnated and fulfilled in love for others. That is why any form of ethical decline is not limited to the individual sphere but is, at the same time, a devaluation of individual and community faith, from which it derives and upon which it has an incisive effect". Having concluded his catechises, the Pope greeted Spanish-speaking pilgrims, mentioning the forthcoming "march to demand the release of hostages, which will take place this Friday in Colombia. I raise fervent prayers to God that this scourge may come to an end and that harmony and peace may soon be achieved in that beloved nation", he said. VIS Press Release |
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| Deleted User | Thursday, 4. December 2008, 13:47 Post #41 |
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VATICAN CITY, 3 DEC 2008 (VIS) - In his general audience this morning, Benedict XVI continued his series of catecheses on the teachings of St. Paul. Addressing the 7,000 people gathered in the Paul VI Hall, he explained how the Apostle of the Gentiles, comparing the figures of Adam and Christ in his Letter to the Romans, "traces the basic outlines of the doctrine of original sin". "The centre of the scene is occupied not so much by Adam and the consequences of sin on humanity, but by Jesus Christ and the grace which, through Him, was abundantly poured upon humanity". "If, in the faith of the Church, an awareness arose of the dogma of original sin, this is because it is inseparably connected to another dogma, that of salvation and freedom in Christ. This means that we should never consider the sin of Adam and of humankind separately, without understanding them within the horizon of justification in Christ". "As men and women of today we have to ask ourselves whether such a doctrine is still sustainable", said the Holy Father. "Many people think that, in the light of the history of evolution, there is no place for ... an original sin which extends through the history of humankind and that, consequently, the redemption and the Redeemer lose their foundation. Does, then, original sin exist or not?" The Pope explained the importance of distinguishing between two aspects of the theory of original sin, one "an empirical, tangible reality, the other relating to the mystery, the ontological foundation of the event. In effect, there is a contradiction in our being. On the one hand we know we must do good, and in our inner selves this is what we desire, yet at the same time we feel an impulse to do the opposite, to follow the path of egoism, of violence, ... though we know that this means working against good, against God and against our fellow man". "This inner contradiction of our being is not a theory. We all experience it every day as around us we see the second of these two wills prevail ", he said. "Suffice to think of daily news of injustices, violence, dissipation. This is a fact. From the power evil has over our souls, a foul river of evil has arisen over history, poisoning the human landscape. ... Yet at the same time this contradiction ... in our history arouses the desire for redemption. The truth is that the desire for the world to change, ... for the creation of a world of justice peace and goodness, is present everywhere". "The power of evil in the heart and history of humankind is undeniable, yet how do we explain it? In the history of thought, discounting Christian faith, there exits one main explanatory model with a number of variants. This model holds that human beings are inherently contradictory: they carry good and evil in themselves. ... Such dualism is insuperable ... and will always be the same". "In the evolutionist and atheistic view of the world ... it is held that human beings as such have, from the beginning, borne evil and good within themselves. ... Humans are not simply good, but open to good and to evil ... both of them original. Human history then, according to this view, does nothing more than follow the model present in all evolution. What Christians call original sin is only this blend of good and evil". "This, in the final analysis, is a vision of despair. If it is true, evil is invincible, ... all that counts is individual interest, any form of progress would necessarily be paid for with a river of evil, ... and anyone who wishes to progress would have to pay this price. ... This modern idea, in the end, can create only sadness and cynicism". "Again we ask ourselves: what does the faith say? ... St. Paul ... confirms the contradiction between the two natures, ... the reality of the darkness of evil weighing upon the whole of creation. Yet, in contrast to the desolation ... of dualism ... and monism, ... the faith speaks to us of two mysteries of light and one of darkness", and the mystery of darkness is "enclosed within in the mysteries of light". "The faith tells us that there are no two principles, one good and one evil. There is only one principle which is God the Creator and He is solely good, without shadow of evil. Hence, neither are human beings a mix of good and evil. The human being as such is good. ... This is the joyful announcement of the faith: there is but one source, a source of good, the Creator, and for this reason ... life too is good". "There is also a mystery of darkness, ... which does not arise from the source of being, it is not original. Evil arises from created freedom, a freedom that has been abused. How has this happened? This remains unclear. Evil is not logical. Only God and goodness are logical, only they are light. Evil remains a mystery, ... of itself illogical". "Evil arises from a subordinate source; God with His light is stronger. For this reason evil can be overcome, for this reason the creature ... is not only curable but is in fact cured. God introduced the cure. He personally entered history and, to counteract the permanent source of evil, placed a source of pure good: Christ crucified and risen, the New Adam Who opposes the foul river of evil with a river of light ... that remains present in history". VIS Full text |
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| SeanJ | Thursday, 4. December 2008, 18:24 Post #42 |
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The word parousia is derived from a Greek word which means 'coming' or 'presence.' It is used in several places in the New Testament to refer to 'The second coming of Jesus at the end of history when His divine glory will be fully revealed.' Apparently the word is not used in the Gospel of Mark, but see Mark 8: 38, 13: 26, and 14: 62. Sean Edited by SeanJ, Thursday, 4. December 2008, 20:06.
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| Timothy | Saturday, 6. December 2008, 00:17 Post #43 |
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I will be going to Rome next week and the Saint Pauls Outside the Walls website was very useful in being able to organise a tour etc. though they seem to have only had a few events during the year marking the Pauline year, sadly none while I will be there.... |
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"An adult faith does not follow the waves of fashion and the latest novelty." "Having a clear faith, according to the credo of the church, is often labelled as fundamentalism." Pope Benedict XVI | |
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| OsullivanB | Sunday, 7. December 2008, 12:24 Post #44 |
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The Ignatius Commentary says this: "Parousia literally means "presence" but can denote "appearing" or "visitation"...It is sometimes used in Greek literature to describe the visitation of a king or high official to a city he has previously conquered. In this sense, it presumes a period of absence before the king's return...The word can refer both to Christ's "visitation" of destruction upon Jerusalem in A.D. 70 as well as to his Second Advent at the end of time as judge of the living and the dead." On 29th November 2008 the Pope began his Homily at First Vespers: "With this evening liturgy, we begin the itinerary of a new liturgical year, entering into the first of its seasons: Advent. In the biblical reading that we have just heard, taken from the First Letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul uses precisely this word: "coming", which in Greek is parousia and adventus in Latin (1 Thes 5:23)." The following day during his Homily at Mass he said this: "Adventus is the Latin word that could be translated by " arrival", "coming" or "presence". In the language of the ancient world it was a technical term that indicated the arrival of an official, and especially the visit of kings or emperors to the provinces, but it could also be used for the appearance of a divinity, which emerged from its hidden dwelling-place and thus manifested its divine power; its presence was solemnly celebrated with worship." The dictionary is therefore correct in both meanings cited. In another commentary I have read that the incarnation, birth and earthly ministry of Christ is referred to in ecclesiastical writings as the First Coming (prote parousia), the return at the end of time being the Second Coming (deutera parousia). "Parousia" is related to the verb "pareimi". The verb used by Mark in the citations given by SeanJ is "erchomai" which simply means "to come" or "to be coming" without overtones of power or divinity. Edited by OsullivanB, Sunday, 7. December 2008, 12:53.
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| "There is a principle which is a bar against all information, which is proof against all arguments and which cannot fail to keep a man in everlasting ignorance - that principle is contempt prior to investigation." Herbert Spencer | |
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| SeanJ | Sunday, 7. December 2008, 15:07 Post #45 |
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Thank you OSullivan. A visitation (by The King) after a period of absence. That helps me to understand the full meaning of the word. |
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