VATICAN CITY, APR 8, 2007 (VIS) - Benedict XVI celebrated the Easter Mass of the Resurrection of the Lord at 10.30 this morning in St. Peter's Square, which was decorated, as is traditional, with flowers, shrubs and flowering plants from Holland. At midday, from the central loggia of the basilica, he pronounced his Easter Message, delivered Easter greetings in various languages and imparted his "Urbi et Orbi" blessing.
In his Message, the Holy Father spoke of the feelings of the women who on the morning of the Resurrection found Christ's tomb open and empty: "feelings of sadness and dismay at the death of their Lord, feelings of disbelief and amazement before a fact too astonishing to be true." He also pointed out how "the faith of the Apostles in Jesus, the expected Messiah, had been submitted to a severe trial by the scandal of the cross" until "the Risen One Himself [came] in response to their thirst for greater certainty ... and said to them, 'peace be with you.'
"At these words," the Pope added, "their faith, which was almost spent within them, was re-kindled. The Apostles told Thomas who had been absent from that first extraordinary encounter. ... Thomas however remained doubtful and perplexed. When Jesus came for a second time, eight days later in the Upper Room, He said to him: 'put your finger here and see my hands; and put out your hand and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing!' The Apostle's response is a moving profession of faith: 'My Lord and my God!'
"'My Lord and my God!' We too renew that profession of faith of Thomas. I have chosen these words for my Easter greetings this year, because humanity today expects from Christians a renewed witness to the resurrection of Christ; it needs to encounter Him and to know Him as true God and true man. If we can recognize in this Apostle the doubts and uncertainties of so many Christians today, the fears and disappointments of many of our contemporaries, with him we can also rediscover with renewed conviction, faith in Christ dead and risen for us."
"We may all be tempted by the disbelief of Thomas. Suffering, evil, injustice, death, especially when it strikes the innocent such as children who are victims of war and terrorism, of sickness and hunger, does not all of this put our faith to the test? Paradoxically the disbelief of Thomas is most valuable to us in these cases because it helps to purify all false concepts of God and leads us to discover His true face: the face of a God who, in Christ, has taken upon Himself the wounds of injured humanity. Thomas has received from the Lord, and has in turn transmitted to the Church, the gift of a faith put to the test by the passion and death of Jesus and confirmed by meeting Him risen. His faith was almost dead but was born again thanks to his touching the wounds of Christ, those wounds that the Risen One did not hide but showed, and continues to point out to us in the trials and sufferings of every human being."
"Only a God who loves us to the extent of taking upon himself our wounds and our pain, especially innocent suffering, is worthy of faith. How many wounds, how much suffering there is in the world! Natural calamities and human tragedies that cause innumerable victims and enormous material destruction are not lacking. My thoughts go to recent events in Madagascar, in the Solomon Islands, in Latin America and in other regions of the world.
"I am thinking of the scourge of hunger, of incurable diseases, of terrorism and kidnapping of people, of the thousand faces of violence which some people attempt to justify in the name of religion, of contempt for life, of the violation of human rights and the exploitation of persons," said the Holy Father.
"I look with apprehension at the conditions prevailing in several regions of Africa. In Darfur and in the neighboring countries there is a catastrophic, and sad to say underestimated, humanitarian situation. In Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo the violence and looting of the past weeks raises fears for the future of the Congolese democratic process and the reconstruction of the country. In Somalia the renewed fighting has driven away the prospect of peace and worsened a regional crisis, especially with regard to the displacement of populations and the traffic of arms. Zimbabwe is in the grip of a grievous crisis and for this reason the bishops of that country in a recent document indicated prayer and a shared commitment for the common good as the only way forward.
"Likewise the population of East Timor stands in need of reconciliation and peace as it prepares to hold important elections. Elsewhere too, peace is sorely needed: in Sri Lanka only a negotiated solution can put an end to the conflict that causes so much bloodshed; Afghanistan is marked by growing unrest and instability.
"In the Middle East, besides some signs of hope in the dialogue between Israel and the Palestinian authority, nothing positive comes from Iraq, torn apart by continual slaughter as the civil population flees. In Lebanon the paralysis of the country's political institutions threatens the role that the country is called to play in the Middle East and puts its future seriously in jeopardy. Finally, I cannot forget the difficulties faced daily by the Christian communities and the exodus of Christians from that blessed Land which is the cradle of our faith. I affectionately renew to these populations the expression of my spiritual closeness."
"Through the wounds of the Risen Christ we can see the evils which afflict humanity with the eyes of hope," the Holy Father concluded. "In fact, by His rising the Lord has not taken away suffering and evil from the world but has vanquished them at their roots by the superabundance of His grace. He has countered the arrogance of evil with the supremacy of His love. He has left us the love that does not fear death, as the way to peace and joy."
BXVI-HOLY WEEK/EASTER SUNDAY/... VIS 20070411 (1050)
In his Message, the Holy Father spoke of the feelings of the women who on the morning of the Resurrection found Christ's tomb open and empty: "feelings of sadness and dismay at the death of their Lord, feelings of disbelief and amazement before a fact too astonishing to be true." He also pointed out how "the faith of the Apostles in Jesus, the expected Messiah, had been submitted to a severe trial by the scandal of the cross" until "the Risen One Himself [came] in response to their thirst for greater certainty ... and said to them, 'peace be with you.'
"At these words," the Pope added, "their faith, which was almost spent within them, was re-kindled. The Apostles told Thomas who had been absent from that first extraordinary encounter. ... Thomas however remained doubtful and perplexed. When Jesus came for a second time, eight days later in the Upper Room, He said to him: 'put your finger here and see my hands; and put out your hand and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing!' The Apostle's response is a moving profession of faith: 'My Lord and my God!'
"'My Lord and my God!' We too renew that profession of faith of Thomas. I have chosen these words for my Easter greetings this year, because humanity today expects from Christians a renewed witness to the resurrection of Christ; it needs to encounter Him and to know Him as true God and true man. If we can recognize in this Apostle the doubts and uncertainties of so many Christians today, the fears and disappointments of many of our contemporaries, with him we can also rediscover with renewed conviction, faith in Christ dead and risen for us."
"We may all be tempted by the disbelief of Thomas. Suffering, evil, injustice, death, especially when it strikes the innocent such as children who are victims of war and terrorism, of sickness and hunger, does not all of this put our faith to the test? Paradoxically the disbelief of Thomas is most valuable to us in these cases because it helps to purify all false concepts of God and leads us to discover His true face: the face of a God who, in Christ, has taken upon Himself the wounds of injured humanity. Thomas has received from the Lord, and has in turn transmitted to the Church, the gift of a faith put to the test by the passion and death of Jesus and confirmed by meeting Him risen. His faith was almost dead but was born again thanks to his touching the wounds of Christ, those wounds that the Risen One did not hide but showed, and continues to point out to us in the trials and sufferings of every human being."
"Only a God who loves us to the extent of taking upon himself our wounds and our pain, especially innocent suffering, is worthy of faith. How many wounds, how much suffering there is in the world! Natural calamities and human tragedies that cause innumerable victims and enormous material destruction are not lacking. My thoughts go to recent events in Madagascar, in the Solomon Islands, in Latin America and in other regions of the world.
"I am thinking of the scourge of hunger, of incurable diseases, of terrorism and kidnapping of people, of the thousand faces of violence which some people attempt to justify in the name of religion, of contempt for life, of the violation of human rights and the exploitation of persons," said the Holy Father.
"I look with apprehension at the conditions prevailing in several regions of Africa. In Darfur and in the neighboring countries there is a catastrophic, and sad to say underestimated, humanitarian situation. In Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo the violence and looting of the past weeks raises fears for the future of the Congolese democratic process and the reconstruction of the country. In Somalia the renewed fighting has driven away the prospect of peace and worsened a regional crisis, especially with regard to the displacement of populations and the traffic of arms. Zimbabwe is in the grip of a grievous crisis and for this reason the bishops of that country in a recent document indicated prayer and a shared commitment for the common good as the only way forward.
"Likewise the population of East Timor stands in need of reconciliation and peace as it prepares to hold important elections. Elsewhere too, peace is sorely needed: in Sri Lanka only a negotiated solution can put an end to the conflict that causes so much bloodshed; Afghanistan is marked by growing unrest and instability.
"In the Middle East, besides some signs of hope in the dialogue between Israel and the Palestinian authority, nothing positive comes from Iraq, torn apart by continual slaughter as the civil population flees. In Lebanon the paralysis of the country's political institutions threatens the role that the country is called to play in the Middle East and puts its future seriously in jeopardy. Finally, I cannot forget the difficulties faced daily by the Christian communities and the exodus of Christians from that blessed Land which is the cradle of our faith. I affectionately renew to these populations the expression of my spiritual closeness."
"Through the wounds of the Risen Christ we can see the evils which afflict humanity with the eyes of hope," the Holy Father concluded. "In fact, by His rising the Lord has not taken away suffering and evil from the world but has vanquished them at their roots by the superabundance of His grace. He has countered the arrogance of evil with the supremacy of His love. He has left us the love that does not fear death, as the way to peace and joy."
BXVI-HOLY WEEK/EASTER SUNDAY/... VIS 20070411 (1050)
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