02/13/2011, 00.00
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Pope says all Christ’s precepts are summarized in the commandment of love

A more Christian society could have avoided painful episodes like the one last week that cost, in Rome, the lives of four Roma children. Bringing the new law Jesus did not abolish the law, "our Jewish brothers," but "'fills' the commandments with love of God, the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in Him. And we, through faith in Christ, open ourselves to the Holy Spirit, which enables us to live God's love. "

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Every precept given to us by Jesus “becomes real as a need for love, and all are reunited in a single commandment: love God with all your heart and love your neighbour as yourself”.  This the Benedict XVI’s message at today's Angelus, speaking to 30 thousand people present in St Peter's Square once again of the Sermon on the Mount and in particular the fact that "after the' Beatitudes', which are a way of life, Jesus proclaimed the new law, his Torah, as it is called by our Jewish brothers. "

It is a law, said the Pope, of which St. Paul writes, "The fullness of the Law is love" (Romans 13:10). "Faced with this requirement, for example, the pitiful case of the four Roma children who died last week on the outskirts of this city, burned in the huts were they live, forces us to ask ourselves whether a society more united and fraternal, more consistent in love, that is more Christian, could not have avoided such a tragic event. And this question applies to many other painful situations, more or less known, that occur every day in our cities and our countries”.

It is a new law that Jesus "explains through a series of contrasts between the old commandment and his re-interpretation of them. Every time he begins: You have heard that it was said to your ancestors...' and then says: 'But I tell you ...'. For example: You have heard that it was said to your ancestors, You shall not kill; and whoever kills will be liable to judgment. But I say to you, whoever is angry with brother will be liable to judgment (Matthew 5:21-22). And this is repeated six times. This way of talking made a greatly scared people, because that “I tell you “ is tantamount to claiming for himself the same authority of God, the source of law. The novilty of Jesus is, essentially, that he himself 'fills' the commandments with love of God, the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in Him. And we, through faith in Christ, open ourselves to the action of the Holy Spirit, which enables us to live God's love. Therefore, every precept becomes true as a requirement of love, and all are reunited in a single commandment: love God with all your heart and love your neighbour as yourself. "

"Maybe - said the Pope - it is no coincidence that the first great preaching of Jesus is called 'Sermon on the Mount'! Moses went up Mount Sinai to receive God's Law and take it to the Chosen People. Jesus is the Son of God who came down from heaven to take us to heaven, to God's height on the path of love. Indeed, he himself is this way: we can not help but follow him, to implement the will of God and enter into his kingdom, eternal life. One creature has already reached the mountain top: the Virgin Mary. Because of her union with Jesus, her righteousness was perfect: this is why we call her Speculum iustitiae. Let us entrust ourselves to Her, so she may also guide our steps in fidelity to the law of Christ. "

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