VATICAN CITY, MAR 12, 2006 (VIS) - At midday today, following a week dedicated to the spiritual exercises of the Roman Curia, Benedict XVI appeared at the window of his study to pray the Angelus with thousands of faithful gathered below in St. Peter's Square.
Commenting on the recently-concluded spiritual retreat, the Pope said: "They were days completely dedicated to listening to the Lord, Who always speaks to us, and who expects us to pay the greatest attention, especially in this period of Lent."
The Holy Father then went on to refer to today's Gospel text on the Transfiguration of Christ on Mount Tabor, explaining that "when we have the grace of undergoing a profound experience of God, it as if we experienced something similar to what happened to the disciples during the Transfiguration: for a moment we enjoy a foretaste of what will be the joy of heaven.
"These," he continued, "are usually brief experiences that God sometimes grants, especially prior to severe trials. However, it is given to no one to live 'upon Tabor' while they are on this earth. Human life is, in fact, a journey of faith and, as such, progresses more in the shadows than in full light, and is not without moments of obscurity or even of complete blackness. As long as we live in the world, our relationship with God consists more in listening than in seeing; and even contemplation comes about, so to say, with eyes closed and thanks to the inner light lit within us by the Word of God."
Benedict XVI recalled that the Virgin Mary "advanced in her own pilgrimage of faith day after day," meditating upon the Word of God, both through the Scriptures and through the events in the life of her Son "in which she recognized and accepted the mysterious voice of the Lord.
"This, then," the Pope concluded "is the commitment of each of us during Lent: to listen to Christ as Mary did. To listen to Him in His Word, conserved in Holy Scripture. To listen to it in the events of our own lives, seeking to read therein the messages of Providence. Finally, to listen to it in our brothers and sisters, especially in the smallest and the poorest, towards whom Jesus Himself calls for a concrete display of our love. Listening to Christ and obeying His voice: this is the Way, the one Way that leads to the fullness of joy and of love."
ANG/LENT/... VIS 20060313 (430)
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