AUDIENCE: IT IS NECESSARY TO LIVE ACCORDING TO THE DIVINE WILL

VATICAN CITY, JUL 2, 2003 (VIS) - In today's general audience in the Paul VI Hall, the Holy Father spoke about Psalm 145, "Blessed are they who hope in the Lord," in which "God's sovereignty over human history" is proclaimed.

"We are not abandoned to ourselves," said the Pope, "daily events are not dominated by chaos and chance, they do not represent a mere succession of acts without any sense or purpose. From this conviction, a true and genuine profession of faith in God is developed."

"God is the creator of the heaven and earth," said the Pope, "He is the faithful guardian of the pact that unites Him to His people. ... The Lord is not a distant sovereign of creatures but is involved in their history, like the one who supports justice, and remains alongside the needy, those who are victims, the oppressed and those who are unhappy."

"Man finds himself, therefore, before a radical choice between two contrasting possibilities: on the one hand there is the temptation to 'trust the powerful', adopting their criteria inspired by evil, selfishness and pride." The other possibility that exists, he said, is "the way of faith in God, eternal and faithful."

John Paul II emphasized that "it is necessary to live according to the divine will, to offer bread to the hungry, visit those in prison, take care of and comfort the sick, defend and welcome foreigners, dedicate oneself to the poor and miserable. It is, in essence, the same spirit of the Beatitudes; that is, to dedicate oneself to that proposal of love that saves us, starting with this life, and that will be the object of our examination at the final judgement which will seal history."

AG;PSALM 145;...;...;VIS;20030702;Word: 290;