VATICAN CITY, DEC 11, 2002 (VIS) - In this Wednesday's general audience celebrated in the Paul VI Hall, the Pope spoke about the Canticle of the prophet Jeramiah, "The people's cry in times of hunger and war", which is read in the Liturgy of Praise on Friday which is the day the Lord died.
"The context in which this lamentation occurs," said the Holy Father, "is represented by an affliction which frequently affects the land of the Near East: drought. To this natural disaster is added the "tragedy of war. ... Unfortunately the description is tragically true to life in so many regions of our planet."
John Paul II affirmed that the second part of the Canticle is a "collective supplication to God. ... In addition to the sword and hunger, there is in fact a greater tragedy, that of the silence of God who does not reveal himself anymore and seems to have locked Himself up in heaven, as if he were displeased by man's behavior." This makes humanity feel "alone, abandoned, deprived of peace, salvation, and hope. The people, left to themselves, feel lost and overcome by terror."
"Is it not perhaps this existential solitude that is the deep font of so much dissatisfaction which we observe in these days? So much insecurity and so many thoughtless reactions come from having abandoned God, the rock of salvation."
The Pope indicated that at a certain point in the Canticle, the people return to God and "recognize their own sin most of all, with a short but heartfelt confession of guilt." Therefore, it is revealed that "God's silence was provoked by man's rejection. If the people convert and return to the Lord, God will be willing to go meet and embrace them."
"Together with the Israelites," he concluded, "we also can be sure that the Lord does not abandon us forever but rather He makes His face shine on us after each purifying trial."
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