VATICAN CITY, APR 15, 2007 (VIS) - Today, the second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday, the Pope presided at a Eucharistic concelebration in St. Peter's Square to mark his own 80th birthday which falls tomorrow, April 16. The event was attended by 50,000 people.
Concelebrating with the Pope were 60 cardinals, archbishops and bishops of the Roman Curia, as well as auxiliary bishops and a representative of the priests of the diocese of Rome. Also present at the Mass was Metropolitan Ioannis (Zizioulas) of Pergamo, the envoy of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople.
Opening his homily, Benedict XVI recalled how Servant of God John Paul II had wished this Sunday to be dedicated to Divine Mercy. In the word "mercy" said Pope Benedict, John Paul II "saw the entire mystery of the Redemption summarized and newly interpreted for our times. ... He had a profound experience of the shadows that threaten the world even in our own time. But he also experienced, and no less strongly, the presence of God Who opposes all these forces with His power that is completely different and divine: with the power of mercy."
"It is mercy that places a limit to evil. In mercy, all God's utterly unique power is expressed: His sanctity, the power of truth and of love."
At his death John Paul II "entered into the light of Divine Mercy, from where ... he new speaks to us in a completely new way. 'Have faith,' he tells us, 'in divine Mercy! Day after day, become men and women of God's mercy!'."
Pope Benedict then recalled how "precisely during these days particularly illuminated by Divine Mercy," he was celebrating his own 80th birthday.
"I have always considered it a great gift that birth and rebirth were granted me, so to say, together, on the same day," said the Holy Father referring to the fact that he had been baptized on the day he was born. "Thus, in the course of one single day, I was born as a member of my own family and of the great family of God."
The Pope gave thanks to God for having had the chance to experience "the meaning of 'family,' ... the meaning of paternity, ... and for having been able to enjoy a profound experience of the significance of maternal goodness."
And the Holy Father expressed particular thanks "because, from my first day, I was able to enter and grow in the great community of believers."
"Birth and rebirth; earthly family and the great family of God," he said, "this is the great gift of God's multiple mercies, the foundation upon which we rest."
Ordained a priest on the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul in 1951, Benedict XVI recalled his vocation as "a new and demanding gift," that gave him the opportunity to experience how "the Lord is not only the Lord, but also a friend. He has placed His hand over me and will not abandon me."
Having become Pope, "with the increased burden of responsibility the Lord has also brought new help to my life. I often note with joy how many are the people who support me with their prayer; who with their faith and love help me to undertake my ministry; who are indulgent with my weakness."
The Pope concluded by noting how "God's mercies accompany us each day. All we must do is remain alert to perceive them. We are too inclined to note only the daily struggle, ... but if we open our hearts, then we can, though immersed in that struggle, continually note how good God is to us; how He thinks of us in small things thus helping us to achieve great ones."
HML/DIVINE MERCY:BIRTHDAY/... VIS 20070417 (640)
Concelebrating with the Pope were 60 cardinals, archbishops and bishops of the Roman Curia, as well as auxiliary bishops and a representative of the priests of the diocese of Rome. Also present at the Mass was Metropolitan Ioannis (Zizioulas) of Pergamo, the envoy of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople.
Opening his homily, Benedict XVI recalled how Servant of God John Paul II had wished this Sunday to be dedicated to Divine Mercy. In the word "mercy" said Pope Benedict, John Paul II "saw the entire mystery of the Redemption summarized and newly interpreted for our times. ... He had a profound experience of the shadows that threaten the world even in our own time. But he also experienced, and no less strongly, the presence of God Who opposes all these forces with His power that is completely different and divine: with the power of mercy."
"It is mercy that places a limit to evil. In mercy, all God's utterly unique power is expressed: His sanctity, the power of truth and of love."
At his death John Paul II "entered into the light of Divine Mercy, from where ... he new speaks to us in a completely new way. 'Have faith,' he tells us, 'in divine Mercy! Day after day, become men and women of God's mercy!'."
Pope Benedict then recalled how "precisely during these days particularly illuminated by Divine Mercy," he was celebrating his own 80th birthday.
"I have always considered it a great gift that birth and rebirth were granted me, so to say, together, on the same day," said the Holy Father referring to the fact that he had been baptized on the day he was born. "Thus, in the course of one single day, I was born as a member of my own family and of the great family of God."
The Pope gave thanks to God for having had the chance to experience "the meaning of 'family,' ... the meaning of paternity, ... and for having been able to enjoy a profound experience of the significance of maternal goodness."
And the Holy Father expressed particular thanks "because, from my first day, I was able to enter and grow in the great community of believers."
"Birth and rebirth; earthly family and the great family of God," he said, "this is the great gift of God's multiple mercies, the foundation upon which we rest."
Ordained a priest on the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul in 1951, Benedict XVI recalled his vocation as "a new and demanding gift," that gave him the opportunity to experience how "the Lord is not only the Lord, but also a friend. He has placed His hand over me and will not abandon me."
Having become Pope, "with the increased burden of responsibility the Lord has also brought new help to my life. I often note with joy how many are the people who support me with their prayer; who with their faith and love help me to undertake my ministry; who are indulgent with my weakness."
The Pope concluded by noting how "God's mercies accompany us each day. All we must do is remain alert to perceive them. We are too inclined to note only the daily struggle, ... but if we open our hearts, then we can, though immersed in that struggle, continually note how good God is to us; how He thinks of us in small things thus helping us to achieve great ones."
HML/DIVINE MERCY:BIRTHDAY/... VIS 20070417 (640)
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