VATICAN CITY, JAN 28, 2007 (VIS) - Before praying the Angelus this morning, Benedict XVI dedicated some remarks to the figure of St. Thomas Aquinas, whose feast day falls today.
Addressing the thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope recalled that the saint presents a "valid model for harmony between reason and faith, dimensions of the human spirit that that are fully realized in the meeting and dialogue between them."
For St. Thomas, human reason "moves on a broad open horizon where it can express the best of itself. When, however, man limits his thought only to material objects that can be subject to experimentation ... he becomes impoverished. The relationship between faith and reason is a serious challenge for the culture that currently dominates in the Western world."
The Holy Father recognized the "innumerable positive effects" of modern science, but he also warned that "the tendency to consider as true only that which can be subject to experimentation represents a limitation to human reason." For this reason, "it is vital to rediscover ... a human reason open to the light of the divine 'Logos.' ... When Christian faith is authentic," he went on, "it does not degrade freedom and human reason. ... Faith implies reason and perfects it. And reason, illuminated by faith, finds the strength to raise itself to a knowledge of God and of spiritual truths."
The Holy Father continued: "St. Thomas Aquinas managed to establish a fruitful confrontation with the Arab and Jewish thought of his time, such that he is still considered as a valid master of dialogue with other cultures and religions. He created that magnificent Christian synthesis between reason and faith, which is a precious heritage for Western civilization and from which, even today, we can draw in order to maintain an effective dialogue with the great cultural and religious traditions of the East and South of the world."
After praying the Angelus, the Pope referred to the World Day of Leprosy which is also being celebrated today. He gave assurances of recollection in his prayers "for all the people suffering from this disease, ... which is not only an illness but a social scourge." Pope Benedict also recalled the people who, "in Christ's name, have dedicated themselves to this cause," such as, "Raoul Follereau and Blessed Damian de Veuster, apostle of the lepers of Molokai."
Finally, Benedict XVI dedicated some words to young people from Catholic Action in Rome who had come to St. Peter's Square to celebrate the closure of their annual "month of peace." As is traditional, a boy and a girl from Catholic Action freed two white doves, symbols of peace, from the window of the papal apartments: "may they be a harbinger of peace for the whole world," the Pope concluded.
ANG/THOMAS AQUINAS:LEPROSY:PEACE/... VIS 20070129 (480)
Addressing the thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square, the Pope recalled that the saint presents a "valid model for harmony between reason and faith, dimensions of the human spirit that that are fully realized in the meeting and dialogue between them."
For St. Thomas, human reason "moves on a broad open horizon where it can express the best of itself. When, however, man limits his thought only to material objects that can be subject to experimentation ... he becomes impoverished. The relationship between faith and reason is a serious challenge for the culture that currently dominates in the Western world."
The Holy Father recognized the "innumerable positive effects" of modern science, but he also warned that "the tendency to consider as true only that which can be subject to experimentation represents a limitation to human reason." For this reason, "it is vital to rediscover ... a human reason open to the light of the divine 'Logos.' ... When Christian faith is authentic," he went on, "it does not degrade freedom and human reason. ... Faith implies reason and perfects it. And reason, illuminated by faith, finds the strength to raise itself to a knowledge of God and of spiritual truths."
The Holy Father continued: "St. Thomas Aquinas managed to establish a fruitful confrontation with the Arab and Jewish thought of his time, such that he is still considered as a valid master of dialogue with other cultures and religions. He created that magnificent Christian synthesis between reason and faith, which is a precious heritage for Western civilization and from which, even today, we can draw in order to maintain an effective dialogue with the great cultural and religious traditions of the East and South of the world."
After praying the Angelus, the Pope referred to the World Day of Leprosy which is also being celebrated today. He gave assurances of recollection in his prayers "for all the people suffering from this disease, ... which is not only an illness but a social scourge." Pope Benedict also recalled the people who, "in Christ's name, have dedicated themselves to this cause," such as, "Raoul Follereau and Blessed Damian de Veuster, apostle of the lepers of Molokai."
Finally, Benedict XVI dedicated some words to young people from Catholic Action in Rome who had come to St. Peter's Square to celebrate the closure of their annual "month of peace." As is traditional, a boy and a girl from Catholic Action freed two white doves, symbols of peace, from the window of the papal apartments: "may they be a harbinger of peace for the whole world," the Pope concluded.
ANG/THOMAS AQUINAS:LEPROSY:PEACE/... VIS 20070129 (480)
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