<\/a>Pope Benedict XVI greets Cardinal Velasio De Paolis, who has just turned age 75. The Pope accepted his resignation as head of the Vatican\u2019s economic affairs office but is keeping him on for the time being as papal delegate to the Legionaries of Christ. Next in line is Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, holding his red hat in his hand. He is highly regarded by many of the Italian cardinals for his great learning. He is a specialist in exegesis (CNS photo\/Claudio Peri, pool via Reuters)<\/p><\/div>\n
The Pope then reflected on two particular moments from the summer: the time of eucharistic adoration and the reception by thousands of the sacrament of confession during the week-long World Youth Day gathering in Spain. His remarks included a strikingly concise summary of the entire meaning of \u201ctheology,\u201d that is, the science of God, or the knowledge of God.<\/p>\n
God, he said, is in his essential nature a being to be adored, to be worshiped.<\/p>\n
\u201cAdoration is primarily an act of faith \u2014 the act of faith as such,\u201d the Pope said. \u201cGod is not just some possible or impossible hypothesis concerning the origin of all things. He is present. And if he is present, then I bow down before him. Then my intellect and will and heart open up towards him and from him.\u201d<\/p>\n
And Benedict went on, referring to confession, in a reflection on sin, repentance, and forgiveness. Notably, the Pope uses the word \u201cmy\u201d when he says \u201cmy soul is tarnished\u201d by the pull toward sin present in all men, known as original sin. Benedict is emphasizing his own participation in the human condition, in fallen human nature.<\/p>\n
\u201cOpenness to love is present in man, implanted in him by the Creator, together with the capacity to respond to God in faith,\u201d Benedict said. \u201cBut also present, in consequence of man\u2019s sinful history (Church teaching speaks of original sin) is the tendency that is opposed to love \u2014 the tendency towards selfishness, towards becoming closed in on oneself, in fact towards evil. Again and again my soul is tarnished by this downward gravitational pull that is present within me. Therefore we need the humility that constantly asks God for forgiveness, that seeks purification and awakens in us the counterforce, the positive force of the Creator, to draw us upwards.\u201d<\/p>\n
Toward the end of his address, the Pope spoke about the widespread joyfulness that he observed at World Youth Day, and reflected on the deep source of this joy. That source, he told the Curia, was faith: faith in God’s existence, faith in God’s love for us. And he cites the great German theologian, Joseph Pieper, whose works Benedict has recommended on numerous occasions.<\/p>\n
\u201cCertainly, there are many factors at work here,\u201d the Pope said. \u201cBut in my view, the crucial one is this certainty, based on faith: I am wanted; I have a task; I am accepted, I am loved. Joseph Pieper, in his book on love, has shown that man can only accept himself if he is accepted by another. He needs the other\u2019s presence, saying to him, with more than words: \u2018It is good that you exist.\u2019 Only from the You can the I come into itself. Only if it is accepted, can it accept itself.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose who are unloved cannot even love themselves,\u201d Benedict continued. \u201cThis sense of being accepted comes in the first instance from other human beings.\u201d<\/p>\n
And then Benedict added a passage which shows his particular depth, something characteristic of his thought: he compared the partial and changeable love of human beings with the total and unchangeable love of God.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut all human acceptance is fragile,\u201d he said. \u201cUltimately we need a sense of being accepted unconditionally. Only if God accepts me, and I become convinced of this, do I know definitively: it is good that I exist. It is good to be a human being.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf ever man\u2019s sense of being accepted and loved by God is lost, then there is no longer any answer to the question whether to be a human being is good at all,\u201d the Pope said. \u201cDoubt concerning human existence becomes more and more insurmountable. Where doubt over God becomes prevalent, then doubt over humanity follows inevitably.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe see today how widely this doubt is spreading,\u201d the Pope continued. \u201cWe see it in the joylessness, in the inner sadness, that can be read on so many human faces today. Only faith gives me the conviction: it is good that I exist. It is good to be a human being, even in hard times. Faith makes one happy from deep within.\u201d<\/p>\n
The last line bears repeating: \u201cFaith makes one happy from deep within.\u201d<\/p>\n
And so, in essence, the Pope\u2019s address to the Curia is a call for the renewal of faith, particularly in the West, where it has seemingly grown cold, or \u201cfatigued,\u201d so that, through this renewal, human life can be more authentic, more joyful, more filled with love, more filled with meaning, not meaningless, not empty, not sad.<\/p>\n
The Pope then quickly ended his talk. His last words were: \u201cI wish all of you the joy that God wanted to bestow upon us through the incarnation of his Son. A blessed Christmas to you all!\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/a>After the address, Benedict greets members of the Roman Curia. He is speaking to Cardinal Cordes, a German; Cardinal Comastri is next in line. Cardinal Burke can be seen toward the middle of the line. (CNS photo\/Claudio Peri, pool via Reuters)<\/p><\/div>\n
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In December 22 in Rome, Pope Benedict XVI delivered his annual Christmas address to the members of Roman Curia, his closest collaborators. Each year, he takes this occasion to reflect on the chief events of the past year. The most important line in the address (reprinted below) is this: \u201cThe essence of the crisis of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":334,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[151,152,76,94,153],"yoast_head":"\n
The Crisis of the Faith\u2014Roman Curia Christmas Message - Inside The Vatican<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n