VATICAN CITY, 30 NOV 2008 (VIS) - Today, the First Sunday of Advent, the Pope celebrated morning Mass at the Roman Basilica of San Lorenzo, in order to commemorate the 1,750th anniversary of the martyrdom of the deacon St. Lawrence.
In his homily the Holy Father spoke of the significance of Advent, explaining that "it means remembering the first coming of the Lord in the flesh, with our minds on His definitive return; at the same time, it means recognising that Christ is present among us and is our travelling companion in the life of the Church which celebrates His mystery".
"In this perspective Advent becomes for all Christians a time of expectation and hope, a privileged time in which to listen and reflect, allowing ourselves to be guided by the liturgy which invites us to go out towards the Lord Who comes".
"'Come Lord Jesus', this ardent invocation of the early Christian community must also become our constant aspiration, the aspiration of the Church in all ages which longs and prepares for the meeting with her Lord: 'Come today, Lord, help us, enlighten us, give us peace, help us to overcome violence, come Lord, we pray in these weeks, Lord bring Your face to shine and we will be saved'".
The Pope went on to focus on St. Lawrence, highlighting how "his solicitude for the poor, his generous service to the Church of Rome in the field of charity work, and his faithfulness to the Pope to the point of following him in the supreme trial of martyrdom ... are known to everyone".
Benedict XVI then reminded the faithful of "a particularly dramatic event in the centuries-long history of your basilica, an event which took place during World War II, on 19 July 1943, when a violent bombardment inflicted grave damage to the building and to the entire neighbourhood, spreading death and destruction. History will never forget the indelible memory of the generous act undertaken on that occasion by my venerated predecessor, Pius XII, who immediately set out to save and console the hard-hit people among the smouldering ruins.
"Nor do I forget", he added, "that this basilica houses the tombs of two other great figures", Blessed Pope Pius IX and Alcide De Gasperi "who was the wise and provident guide of Italy during the difficult post-war years of reconstruction and, at the same time, an outstanding statesman with a broad-ranging Christian vision of Europe".
After mentioning the invitation in today's Gospel 'to remain vigilant', the Holy Father explained how this means "to follow the Lord, to chose what He chose, to Love what He loved, to conform our lives to His. Vigilance means spending every instant of our time within the horizon of His love without allowing ourselves to be cast down by the inevitable difficulties and daily problems. This is what St. Lawrence did, this is what we must do, and we ask the Lord to give us His grace, that Advent may become a stimulus for everyone to advance in this direction".
HML/ADVENT/SAN LORENZO VIS 20081201 (520)
In his homily the Holy Father spoke of the significance of Advent, explaining that "it means remembering the first coming of the Lord in the flesh, with our minds on His definitive return; at the same time, it means recognising that Christ is present among us and is our travelling companion in the life of the Church which celebrates His mystery".
"In this perspective Advent becomes for all Christians a time of expectation and hope, a privileged time in which to listen and reflect, allowing ourselves to be guided by the liturgy which invites us to go out towards the Lord Who comes".
"'Come Lord Jesus', this ardent invocation of the early Christian community must also become our constant aspiration, the aspiration of the Church in all ages which longs and prepares for the meeting with her Lord: 'Come today, Lord, help us, enlighten us, give us peace, help us to overcome violence, come Lord, we pray in these weeks, Lord bring Your face to shine and we will be saved'".
The Pope went on to focus on St. Lawrence, highlighting how "his solicitude for the poor, his generous service to the Church of Rome in the field of charity work, and his faithfulness to the Pope to the point of following him in the supreme trial of martyrdom ... are known to everyone".
Benedict XVI then reminded the faithful of "a particularly dramatic event in the centuries-long history of your basilica, an event which took place during World War II, on 19 July 1943, when a violent bombardment inflicted grave damage to the building and to the entire neighbourhood, spreading death and destruction. History will never forget the indelible memory of the generous act undertaken on that occasion by my venerated predecessor, Pius XII, who immediately set out to save and console the hard-hit people among the smouldering ruins.
"Nor do I forget", he added, "that this basilica houses the tombs of two other great figures", Blessed Pope Pius IX and Alcide De Gasperi "who was the wise and provident guide of Italy during the difficult post-war years of reconstruction and, at the same time, an outstanding statesman with a broad-ranging Christian vision of Europe".
After mentioning the invitation in today's Gospel 'to remain vigilant', the Holy Father explained how this means "to follow the Lord, to chose what He chose, to Love what He loved, to conform our lives to His. Vigilance means spending every instant of our time within the horizon of His love without allowing ourselves to be cast down by the inevitable difficulties and daily problems. This is what St. Lawrence did, this is what we must do, and we ask the Lord to give us His grace, that Advent may become a stimulus for everyone to advance in this direction".
HML/ADVENT/SAN LORENZO VIS 20081201 (520)
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