PSALM 47, A HYMN TO MOUNT ZION, A SONG OF PRAISE TO GOD

VATICAN CITY, OCT 17, 2001 (VIS) - At today's general audience, held in St. Peter's Square in the presence of 22,000 pilgrims from around the world, Pope John Paul's catechesis focused on Psalm 47, "a hymn in honor of Mount Zion, where the Lord's temple is set in the midst of His people."

Psalm 47, continued the Pope, "is a song of praise to God Who in His mercy and love delivers Zion from her enemies. God's faithful people give thanks to the Lord Who protects them; they recognize that it is He Who strengthens them and leads them."

"This," he remarked, "brings to mind the image of the Good Shepherd, and our thoughts turn to Christ Who is the new and living temple of God. We think of the 'heavenly Jerusalem', our true home, of which Christ is the sole foundation and also the door through which we gain entrance to the holy city of our God. It is Jesus Christ Who ever guides us, leading us to rich green pastures where we shall know the fullness of joy forever."

John Paul II affirmed that "God, shepherd of His people, guides them from age to age, never ceasing to keep alive in them the hope of His liberating intercession. It is in Christ that this hope is definitively achieved."

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