A united humanity will be able to confront the many troubling problems of the present time: from the menace of terrorism to the humiliating poverty in which millions of human beings live, from the proliferation of weapons to the pandemics and the environmental destruction which threatens the future of our planet. |
And his presence in the community, in which he himself always gives himself, is the reason for our joy. Yes, Christ is with us, the Kingdom of God is coming. |
But its ultimate roots can be seen as moral and spiritual; they are linked to a disturbing deficit of faith, hope and, indeed, love. |
By valuing its Christian roots, Europe will be able to give a secure direction to the choices of its citizens and peoples, it will strengthen their awareness of belonging to a common civilization and it will nourish the commitment of all to address the challenges of the present for the sake of a better future. |
Christianity is always called to seek justice, but it bears within the impulse of love, that goes beyond justice itself. |
He continues to be present in our minds and our hearts; he continues to communicate his love for God and his love for man, he continues to arouse in everyone, especially the young, enthusiasm for goodness and the courage to follow Jesus and his teachings. |
His illness, which he faced with courage, made us all aware of human pain, of every physical and spiritual pain; he gave suffering dignity and value, showing that man isn't just worthy because of his efficiency and how he appears, but because of himself, because he is created and loved by God. |
I am certain that I echo your own thoughts when I bring up as one of our concerns the spread of terrorism. |
I grew up in a very different world than today's, though things are similar. On one hand, it was something normal to go to Church. [Yet,] the Nazi regime was there, which prophesied a world without priests. In face of this anti-human culture, I understood that the Gospel and the faith point out the correct path to us. |
I share your concern and therefore invite the faithful to place the sacrament of matrimony at the center of their family life. |
Just as the life of Jesus, in his obedience and dedication to the Father, is a living parable of the 'God with us,' in the same way the concrete commitment of consecrated persons to God and brothers becomes an eloquent sign of the presence of the Kingdom of God for the world of today. |
Lent stimulates us to let the Word of God penetrate our life and in this way to know the fundamental truth: who we are, where we come from, where we must go, what path we must take in life. |
Precisely for this reason, St. Ignatius wanted young Jesuits to be formed for long years in the spiritual life and in studies. |
The service that may be offered to the faithful and non-Christian spouses who are going through difficulties would be misleading if one encouraged in them, even if only implicitly, the tendency to forget the indissolubility of the union itself. In this way, the possible intervention of the ecclesiastical institution in the causes of annulment would run the risk of becoming a simple proof of a failure. |
These children have suffered a most violent trauma. We must help them to be able to forget the tragedy so that they will be witnesses of peace for the future of humanity. |