Pope Joseph Ratzinger spoke off the cuff, with just a page of notes in front of him, in addition to the biblical text he had chosen.

The Pope's Two "No's"

To the Prophets of Disaster and to the False Optimists

by Sandro Magister

The "lectio divina" of Benedict XVI to the aspiring priests of Rome. "If here and there the Church is dying because of the sins of men, at the same time it is being born anew and bears within itself eternity. The future is ours"

As in other years at the feast of Our Lady of Confidence, this time as well Benedict XVI went to the major Roman seminary to hold for the aspiring priests a "lectio divina."

Pope Joseph Ratzinger spoke off the cuff, with just a page of notes in front of him, in addition to the biblical text he had chosen.

And when he speaks off the cuff, he unveils his thoughts in the most transparent and clear manner, as demonstrated by the literal transcription of his words, usually released one or two days later, revised and authorized by the author.

This time Benedict XVI decided to comment on the first letter of Peter - which he calls “almost a first encyclical, with which the first apostle, the vicar of Christ, speaks to the Church of all times” - and specifically on verses 3-5 of chapter 1:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by the power of God are safeguarded through faith, to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time. "

But first of all the pope dwelt upon the sender of the letter, upon its place of origin, and upon its recipients.

- The sender, meaning the apostle Peter, but not as an individual - he explained - but rather as one who speaks “ex persona Ecclesiae" and with the help of friends, not only his own, but also those of Paul:

"And so the worlds of Saint Peter and of Saint Paul go together: it is not an exclusively Petrine theology against a Pauline theology, but it is a theology of the Church, of the faith of the Church, in which there is diversity - of course - of temperament, of thought, of style in speaking between Paul and Peter. It is good that there should be this diversity, even today, of different charisms, of different temperaments, but nonetheless they are not conflicting and unite in the common faith.”

................

The complete transcription of Benedict XVI's "lectio divina" at the major Roman seminary, on the evening of Friday, February 8:

> "È per me ogni anno una grande gioia…"


Read more: chiesa.espresso.repubblica.it