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Português«From the communion between Bishops and Movements we can expect the emergence of a valid impulse toward the renewed committment of the Church to the proclamation and testimony of the Gospel, of hope and charity, in all corners of the world».
This is one of the salient points of Pope Benedict’s discourse addressed to almost 200 Bishops, received in private audience, on Thursday morning, 8th February: Bishops friends of the Focolare Movement gathered in those days in Castelgandolfo and Bishops friends of the Community of Saint Egidio meeting in Rome for the anniversary of its foundation.
Here below the whole discourse of the Holy Father:
«Venerable Brothers in the Episcopate!
I am delighted to welcome you to this special Audience and I cordially greet all of you, coming from various parts of the world. I address a special thought to those who belong to other Christian Churches that are here with us. Some of you are taking part in the annual appointment of Bishops friends of the Focolare Movement, which has for its theme, “The Crucified and abandoned Christ, light in the cultural night”. I take this opportunity to send Chiara Lubich my best wishes and blessing, which I extend to all the members of the movement that she founded. Others are taking part in the IX Meeting of Bishops Friends of the Community of Saint Egidio, which is exploring a very pressing topic, “The globalisation of love”. I greet Mons. Vincenzo Paglia, and with him Professor Andrea Riccardi and the whole Community, who on the anniversary of its foundation, will meet tonight at the Basilica of St John Lateran for a solemn Eucharistic celebration.
Dear Brothers in the Episcopate, I would like to tell you first of all that your closeness to these two movements, highlights the vitality of new groupings of the faithful, and expresses the communion between charisms that constitutes a typical ‘sign of the times’. The post-synodal exhortation “Pastoris gregis” recalls that “the relationships of exchange between Bishops go well beyond their institutional meetings”. (n.59) That is what happens in meeting like yours, in which you experience an Episcopal fraternity that from the sharing of ideals promoted by the movements, stimulates you to have a more intense communion of hearts, give one another stronger mutual support, and have a greater shared commitment to showing that the church is a place of prayer and charity, a house of mercy and peace. My venerated predecessor, Pope John Paul II, presented these movements and new communities, which have emerged in recent years, as a providential gift of the Holy Spirit to the Church in order to respond in an effective way to the challenges of our time. And you know too that I have often underlined the value of their charismatic dimension.
How can we forget, for example, last year’s extraordinary Pentecost Vigil, which saw the harmonious participation of many movements and ecclesial associations? The emotion I experienced on participating in St. Peter’s Square in that intense spiritual experience is still alive in me. I repeat to you what I said on that occasion to the faithful who had come from all over the world. The Holy Spirit wants the manifold nature of the movements to be at the service of the one Body of Christ, that is precisely the Church. And he accomplishes this through the ministry of those he has placed to govern the Church of God, namely, the bishops in communion with the successor of Peter. The unity and multiplicity that is in the People of God, is manifest here today, too, by the meeting here with the Pope of many Bishops who are close to two different Ecclesial Movements, marked with a strong missionary dimension. In the wealthy Western world where, although cultural relativism does exist, there is no lack of a widespread desire for spirituality, your movements testify to the joy of the faith and the beauty of being Christian. In the vast deprived areas of the earth, they communicate the message of solidarity and stand alongside the poor and weak with that love, human and divine, that I sought to bring to everyone’s attention with my Encyclical ‘Deus caritas est’.
From the communion between Bishops and Movements we can expect the emergence of a valid impulse toward the renewed commitment of the Church to the proclamation and testimony of the Gospel, of hope and charity, in all corners of the world.
The Focolare movement, drawing on the heart of its spirituality, that is Jesus Crucified and Abandoned, highlights the charism and service of unity, which it puts into effect in various social and cultural fields, for example the world of economics with “the economy of communion”, and through ecumenism and inter-religious dialogue. The Saint Egidio Community, placing prayer and liturgy at the core of its own existence, wishes to be close to those suffering distress and social marginalisation. For a Christian, a person, thought distant, is never a stranger. Together we can face with greater fortitude the challenges we are presented with in such a pressing way at the start of the third millennium: I am thinking primarily of the search for justice and peace, and the urgent need to construct a more fraternal and united world, starting with the countries from which a number of you come, wracked by bloody conflicts. I make a special mention of Africa, a continent that I carry in my heart and that I hope may finally see a period of stable peace and real development. The forthcoming synod of African bishops will surely be an appropriate moment to show the great love that God reserves for the beloved people of Africa.
Dear friends, the innovative fraternity that exists between you and the movements with whom you are friends, urges you to carry together “the burdens of one another” (Gal 6:2), as the Apostle recommends, above all in everything that concerns evangelisation, love for the poor, and the cause of peace. May the Lord make your spiritual and apostolic endeavours ever more fruitful. I am with you in prayer and willingly impart an Apostolic Blessing to you here present, to the Focolare Movement and to the Community of St Egidio, and to all the faithful entrusted to your pastoral care».
