Vatican City (AsiaNews) - "Faith in Jesus means following him every day, in simple actions that make up our daily lives", because "only by believing in Christ, abiding in Him, can his disciples, which include us too, continue his permanent action in history. " These were the words of advise given today by Benedict XVI to the 30 thousand faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square for the Regina Caeli.
The weekly appointment also gave the Pope the opportunity to pray that g provided the occasion to invite the Pope to pray that "every act of violence is eliminated." In fact, in his greeting in English after the Marian prayer he recalled the International Ecumenical Peace Convocation organized by the World Council of Churches, which is taking place in Kingston, Jamaica on this very issue. " Let us join in prayer - he said - for this noble intention, and recommit ourselves to eliminating violence in families, in society and in the international community."
Before the Regina Caeli, commenting on today's Gospel, Benedict XVI reflected on the "dual commandment" it proposes to us; that we believe in God and believe in Jesus. These "are not two separate acts, but a single act of faith, full adherence to the salvation enacted by God the Father through His only Son. The New Testament put an end to the invisibility of the Father. God showed his face, as confirmed by the response of Jesus to the Apostle Philip, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father" (Jn 14:9). The Son of God, by his incarnation, death and resurrection, has freed us from the slavery of sin to give us the freedom of the children of God and made known to us the face of God who is love: we can see God, He is visible in Christ ".
The Pope also said that "only very slowly does He build within in the great history of mankind his own story. He becomes a man, but in a such as way that He is ignored by his contemporaries, and influential forces in history. He suffers and dies and, as the Risen One, He wants to come to humanity only through the faith of those who are His and to whom He reveals Himself. He continually knocks softly on the doors of our hearts, and if we open them, then slowly He makes us able to "see '" (Jesus of Nazareth II, 2011, 306).
"The commitment to proclaim Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth and the Life - he concluded - is the main task of the Church. We invoke the Virgin Mary to always help the pastors and those in the various ministries to announce the good news of salvation, so that the Word of God will spread and multiply the number of disciples. "
