VATICAN CITY, FEB 6, 2002 (VIS) - In the general audience which was held today in the Paul VI Hall, the Holy Father spoke on Psalm 42: "Longing for God's holy Temple."
The Pope stated that in this Psalm "the Psalmist addresses God and begs Him for defence against the foe. ... He feels that the dark interlude of absence is about to end and expresses the certainty of a return to Zion in order to rediscover the divine dwelling place. The holy city is no longer the lost motherland, as was the case in the lament of the preceding Psalm, but the joyful destination towards which he is directed."
He continued: "'Truth,' in other words, the Lord's loving faithfulness, and 'light,' that is, the revelation of His benevolence, are described as messengers that God Himself will send from heaven to lead the faithful by the hand and conduct him towards the longed-for destination."
John Paul II indicated that "the initial lament of the antiphon of Psalms 41-42 resounds for the last time at the end of the Psalm. The Psalmist has still not reached God's Temple, he is still entangled in the darkness of tribulation; yet already the light of the future meeting shines in his eyes, and his lips know the tonality of the song of joy."
"The Psalm, then, becomes a prayer for the pilgrim on earth, who is still in contact with evil and suffering but who has the certainty that the goal of history is not the abyss of death but the salvific encounter with God."
AG;PSALM 42;...;...;VIS;20020206;Word: 270;
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