VATICAN CITY, APR 13, 2006 (VIS) - In the Vatican Basilica at 9.30 a.m. today, Holy Thursday, the Holy Father presided at the Chrism Mass, which is celebrated on this day in churches and cathedrals throughout the world. Cardinals, bishops and priests present in Rome concelebrated with the Pope. Following the homily, there was the renewal of priestly vows and the blessing of the oil used for catechumens, the sick and those being confirmed.
In his homily, the Pope described "the profound significance of being a priest," as "becoming a friend of Jesus. ... This means that we must know Jesus in an ever more personal way, listening to Him, living with Him, remaining at His side."
Benedict XVI then went on to highlight how a priest "must be above all a man of prayer. ... The world has need of God, not of any god, but of the God of Jesus Christ, the God Who became flesh and blood, Who loved us enough to die for us, Who rose and created a space for mankind within Himself. This God must live within us, and we in Him. This is our call as priests; only in this way can our priestly activity prove fruitful."
The Holy Father recalled the words of Fr. Andrea Santoro, a priest of the diocese of Rome who was murdered in Turkey on February 5 this year while at prayer: "I am here to live among these people and to allow Jesus to do so by lending Him my flesh. Only by offering our own flesh do we become capable of salvation. The evil of the world must be borne and the pain must be shared, absorbing it in our own flesh right to the end, just as Jesus did."
Later, at 5.30 p.m. in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, Benedict XVI presided at the Mass of the Lord's Supper. During the celebration, imitating the gesture of the Lord towards His Apostles, the Pope washed the feet of 12 people, all of them lay men. At the presentation of the gifts, he was given the alms collected for rebuilding the homes of victims of recent landslides in Maasin, Philippines.
In his homily, the Pope pointed out how "God comes down and becomes a slave, He washes our feet that we may sit at His table. This expresses all the mystery of Jesus Christ. This makes the meaning of redemption visible."
After emphasizing how the Lord's love "knows no limits, but man can put a limit to it," the Pope asked "what makes mankind unclean?" It is, he said, "rejection of love, not wishing to be loved, not loving. It is pride, that believes it needs no purification and closes itself off from the salvific goodness of God. It is pride, that does not wish to confess and recognize that we have need of purification."
The Lord today "invites us to imitate His humility, to entrust ourselves to it, to allow ourselves to be 'infected' by it. He invites us - however lost we may feel - to return home and allow His purifying humility to raise us up and enable us to enter into communion with Him, with God Himself."
"Washing one another's feet means above all tirelessly forgiving one another, always starting out anew however useless it may seem. It means purifying one another by supporting one another and accepting support from others, purifying one another by giving each another the sanctifying power of the Word of God and introducing each other to the Sacrament of divine love."
BXVI-HOLY WEEK/HOLY THURSDAY/... VIS 20060420 (610)
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