MARY, OUR MOTHER

HOLY FATHER CONCLUDES SPIRITUAL EXERCISES

VATICAN - The Pope and the Curia conclude Spiritual Exercises: “behind many phenomena today, apparently very distant from religion and from Christ, there exists a quest, a longing, a desire…and the only true answer to this longing, omnipresent precisely in our day, is Christ” says Pope Benedict

Vatican City (Fides Service) - With Morning Prayer and the last Conference, this morning Pope Benedict XVI and his closest collaborators of the Roman Curia concluded a week of spiritual exercises with meditations given by Cardinal Giacomo Biffi emeritus Archbishop of Bologna to whom the Holy Father expressed his gratitude.
“Every day during Mass before the Eucharistic Prayer we hear the call «lift up your hearts» and we answer: «they are lifted up to the Lord» and I fear that this response may often be more ritual than existential. But in this week you have taught us to lift up our hearts and to move upwards towards the invisible, the real reality. And you also have also given us the key to respond every day to the challenges of this reality … You really have helped us to move out of this gravitation of the things of every day and to enter this other gravitation of the Risen Lord and in this way rise upwards.”
I would also like to thank you for offering us a detailed and clear diagnosis of our situation today, above all you showed us that behind many phenomena today, apparently very distant from religion and from Christ, there exists a quest, a longing, a desire; and that the only true answer to this longing, omnipresent precisely in our day, is Christ. You have encouraged us to follow Christ ever more boldly and to love ever more deeply the Church «Immaculata ex maculatis» as you taught us with Saint Ambrose.” The Pope concluded thanking Cardinal Biffi for his “realism, sense of humour and sense of practicality”. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 3/3/2007; righe 19, parole 301)