Vatican
City, 26 October 2013 (VIS) – This morning in the Sala Clementina
of the Vatican Apostolic Palace Pope Francis awarded the Ratzinger
Prize, granted by the Vatican Foundation: Joseph Ratzinger - Benedict
XVI, to the Rev. Richard Burridge, Anglican minister and deacon of
King's College, London, and to the German theologian Christian
Schaller, layperson, lecturer in dogmatic theology and vice director
of the Benedict XVI Institute in Regensburg, Germany, which is
publishing critical editions of Joseph Ratzinger's full works.
The
symposium, always organised by the Foundation, took place at the
Lateran University in Rome from 24 to 26 October, and studied the
theme “The Gospel: history and Christology”, taking Joseph
Ratzinger's works as a starting point.
“I
thank you, and am happy to meet with you, especially as a sign of our
recognition and of our great affection for Pope emeritus Benedict
XVI. I would like to share with you a reflection, which comes to me
spontaneously when I think of the truly unique gift that he has given
the Church in his books on Jesus of Nazareth”.
“I
recall that when the first volume came out, some people said: what is
this? A Pope doesn't write books on theology, he writes encyclicals!
… Certainly, Pope Benedict had considered this problem, but also in
this case, as always, he followed the voice of the Lord in his
enlightened conscience. With these books, he did not offer teaching
in the strict sense of the word, and he did not produce an academic
study. He gave a gift to the Church, and to all humanity, of what was
most precious to him: his knowledge of Jesus, the fruit of years and
years of study, of prayer, of theological investigation, and he made
it available in the most accessible form”.
He
continued, “No one can measure the good he has done by means of
this gift; only the Lord knows! But we all have a certain perception
of this, having listened to so many people who, thanks to these books
on Jesus of Nazareth, have nurtured and deepened their faith, or have
indeed drawn close to Christ for the first time, as adults, bringing
the demands of reason alongside their search for the face of God”.
“At
the same time, the work of Benedict XVI has stimulated a new era of
study of the Gospels, between history and Christology, and our
Symposium, for which I congratulate the organisers and speakers,
forms a part of this”.
The
Holy Father concluded by congratulating the recipients of this years
prize, also in the name of his predecessor.
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