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The
highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity,
choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over
popularity.
Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for THERE IS
NEVER A WRONG TIME TO DO THE RIGHT THING.
-
Bishop Soc Villegas
25 July 2007
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BECOME
HUMBLE IN ORDER TO RECOGNIZE THE GREATNESS OF GOD
VATICAN CITY, 6
JAN 2010 (VIS) - In the Vatican Basilica at 10 a.m. today, the Pope
presided at Mass for the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.
In his homily Benedict XVI commented on the readings from the
Book of Isaiah and from the Gospel of St. Matthew, explaining that the
Magi "were not the last but the first of the great procession of
people who, through all ages of history, were able to recognize the
message of the star, to follow the paths indicated by Sacred Scripture,
and thus to find Him Who is apparently weak and fragile but Who, in
fact, has the power to bring the greatest and most profound joy to the
human heart".
"In Him", the Pope continued, "is the expression
of the stupendous truth that God knows us and is close to us, that His
greatness and power are not expressed in the logic of the world, but in
the logic of a defenceless child Whose strength is only that of the love
He gives us. In the course of history there are always people who are
illuminated by the light of the star, who find the path and manage to
encounter Him. All of them live, each in their own way, the same
experience as the Magi".
"If, then, we read the promise of the prophet Isaiah and its
fulfillment in the Gospel of Matthew within the great context of all
history, it is evident that what we are told - and what we seek to
reproduce in the nativity scene - is not a dream or a vain interplay of
feelings and emotions devoid of strength or authenticity; rather, it is
the Truth that irradiates around the world".
"Only in that Child is the power of God made manifest, the
power which brings together men of all centuries so that, under His
lordship, they may follow the path of love which transfigures the world.
And yet, although the few of Bethlehem have become many, believers in
Jesus Christ always seem to be few. Many have seen the star but only a
few have understood its message".
"We can, then, ask ourselves", said the Holy Father,
"why is it that some seek and find, while others do not? What is it
that opens their eyes and hearts? What is lacking in those who remain
indifferent, in those who show the way but do not move themselves? And
we may answer that too much self-confidence, the belief they possess a
perfect knowledge of reality, and the presumption of having already
formulated a definitive judgement about things makes their hearts closed
and insensitive to the novelty of God. They are sure of the idea they
have of the world and do not allow themselves to be intimately moved by
the adventure of a God Who wants to meet them. They place their trust
more in themselves than in Him, and do not believe it possible that God
is so great that He can become small, that he can truly draw close to
us.
"In the end", he added, "what they lack is the
authentic humility capable of submitting itself to that which is
greater, but also the authentic courage which brings us to believe in
that which is truly great, even if it shows itself in a defenseless
Child. What they lack is the evangelical capacity to become children at
heart, to be amazed and to abandon the self so as to start down the path
indicated by the star, the path of God. Yet the Lord", the Pope
concluded, "has the power to make us see and to save
ourselves".
HML/EPIPHANY/...
VIS 100107 (620)
Pontiff: To See the Star,
One Needs Humility
Urges Faithful to Pray for
"Wise and Innocent Heart"
VATICAN CITY,
JAN. 7, 2010 (Zenit.org).-
Why is it that some are moved by faith, and others are not? According to
Benedict XVI, it's a matter of genuine humility, and the ability to be a
child at heart.
The Pope reflected on genuine humility Wednesday, which he defined as
the ability "to submit to what is greater."
In his homily for the solemnity of the Epiphany, which is celebrated in
the Vatican on Jan. 6, the Pontiff noted that one also needs
"genuine courage" to believe in God, especially when God is
manifested as a "defenseless child."
Lamenting that "believers in Jesus Christ always seem to be
few," the Holy Father noted that what is lacking is "the
capacity to be children at heart, to be amazed, and to come out of
oneself to undertake the way indicated by the star, the way of
God."
He urged the faithful to ask God for "a wise and innocent heart,
which will allow us to see the star of his mercy, which will lead us on
his way, to meet him and be inundated by the great light and the true
joy that he has brought to this world."
Prophecy fulfilled
Benedict XVI reflected on two passages of Scripture highlighted on the
feast day, which bring together a prophecy and its fulfillment regarding
the birth of the Messiah.
The first reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah relates a
"splendid vision" for Israel, the Pope said. "After the
humiliations suffered by the people of Israel on the part of the powers
of this world, [Isaiah] sees the moment in which the great light of God,
seemingly powerless and incapable of protecting his people, rises over
the whole earth, so that the kings of the nations bow before him.
"They come from all the ends of the earth and deposit at his feet
their most precious treasures. And the heart of the people vibrates with
joy."
The Holy Father said the second passage, from the Gospel of Matthew,
seems "poor and ragged" compared to the vision of Isaiah:
"It seems impossible to us to recognize there the fulfillment of
the words of the prophet Isaiah."
The Pontiff pointed out that the Magi who came from the East weren't the
powerful kings of the earth, but rather unknown figures "unworthy
of special attention."
"The inhabitants of Jerusalem are informed about what happened, but
do not consider it necessary to be bothered," the Holy Father
explained. "Not even in Bethlehem does it seem that there is
someone who is concerned about the birth of this Child, called King of
the Jews by the Magi, or about these men who came from the East to visit
him."
But rather than interpreting the visit of the Magi as "a brief
dispensable episode, which ends with the hasty return of the Magi to
their country," Benedict XVI calls it "a beginning."
The first of many
The Pope noted that with the Magi, "something new has begun."
The Wise Men from the East were the first, but not the last, "of
the great procession of those who, through all the periods of history,
know how to recognize the message of the star."
Those who follow the star, the Holy Father continued, "are able to
encounter him who is apparently weak and fragile, but who is able to
give the greatest and most profound joy to man's heart."
The Pontiff explained that the God's "greatness and power are not
expressed in the logic of the world, but in the logic of a defenseless
child, whose strength is only that of love entrusted to us."
"In the course of history," he said, "there have always
been persons illuminated by the light of the star, who find the way and
reach him. All of them live, in their own way, the same experience of
the Magi."
What's missing?
But what about those who have seen the star, but have not understood its
message? Benedict XVI asked: "What is the reason that some see and
others do not? What is it that opens the eyes and heart? What is missing
in those who remain indifferent, from those who indicate the way but do
not move?"
The Pope noted some reasons as being "excessive certainty in
themselves, the pretension of knowing reality perfectly, the presumption
of already having formulated a definitive judgment on things, thus
making their hearts closed and insensitive to the novelty of God."
He also noted that some are "certain of the idea they have of the
world and do not let themselves be moved in their deepest being by the
adventure of a God who wants to meet them."
"They place more confidence in themselves than in him," the
Holy Father said, "and they do not consider it possible that God,
being so great, can make himself small, that he can really come close to
us."
--- --- ---
On ZENIT's Web page:
Full text: http://www.zenit.org/article-27979?l=english
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