ROME - 6 February 2007 - 1,200 words
Message
for 22nd World Youth Day
Made public today was the Message of the Holy Father for the
22nd World Youth Day, which will be celebrated in all dioceses
on Palm Sunday, April 1, and has as its theme this year Jesus'
words from the Gospel of John: "Just as I have loved you,
you also should love one another." The Message is dated January
27, 2007. Extracts are given below:
"Love is possible, and the purpose of my message is to help
reawaken in each one of you - you who are the future and hope
of humanity-, trust in a love that is true, faithful and strong;
a love that generates peace and joy; a love that binds people
together and allows them to feel free in respect for one another."
"How is God-Love revealed to us? ... In Christ, true God
and true Man, we have come to know love in all its magnitude.
... The manifestation of divine love is total and perfect in the
Cross. ... Redeemed by His blood, no human life is useless or
of little value, because each of us is loved personally by Him
with a passionate and faithful love, a love without limits."
"Moreover, the Crucifix, which after the Resurrection would
carry forever the marks of His passion, exposes the 'distortions'
and lies about God that underlie violence, vengeance and exclusion.
Christ is the Lamb of God Who takes upon Himself the sins of the
world and eradicates hatred from the heart of humankind. This
is the true 'revolution' that He brings about: love."
"Christ cried out from the Cross: 'I am thirsty.' This shows
us His burning thirst to love and to be loved by each one of us.
It is only by coming to perceive the depth and intensity of such
a mystery that we can realize the need and urgency to love Him
as He has loved us. ... To love as He loves us means loving everyone
without distinction, even our enemies, 'to the end'."
"I would like to linger for a moment on three areas of daily
life where you, my dear young friends, are particularly called
to demonstrate the love of God. The first area is the Church,
our spiritual family. ... You should stimulate, with your enthusiasm
and charity, the activities of the parishes, the communities,
the ecclesial movements and the youth groups to which you belong.
Be attentive in your concern for the welfare of others, faithful
to the commitments you have made. Do not hesitate to joyfully
abstain from some of your entertainments; cheerfully accept the
necessary sacrifices; testify to your faithful love for Jesus
by proclaiming His Gospel, especially among young people of your
age."
"The second area ... is your preparation for the future that
awaits you. If you are engaged to be married, God has a project
of love for your future as a couple and as a family. Therefore,
it is essential that you discover it with the help of the Church,
free from the common prejudice that says that Christianity with
its commandments and prohibitions places obstacles to the joy
of love and impedes you from fully enjoying the happiness that
a man and woman seek in their reciprocal love."
"The period of engagement, very necessary in order to form
a couple, is a time of expectation and preparation that needs
to be lived in purity of gesture and words. It allows you to mature
in love, in concern and in attention for each other; it helps
you to practise self-control and to develop your respect for each
other. These are the characteristics of true love that does not
place emphasis on seeking its own satisfaction or its own welfare.
In your prayer together, ask the Lord to watch over and increase
your love and to purify it of all selfishness.
"Do not hesitate to respond generously to the Lord's call,
for Christian matrimony is truly and wholly a vocation in the
Church. Likewise, dear young men and women, be ready to say 'yes'
if God should call you to follow the path of ministerial priesthood
or the consecrated life. Your example will be one of encouragement
for many of your peers who are seeking true happiness."
"The third area of commitment that comes with love is that
of daily life with its multiple relationships. I am particularly
referring to family, studies, work and free time. ... Develop
your capacities, not only in order to become more 'competitive'
and 'productive,' but to be 'witnesses of charity.' In addition
to your professional training, also make an effort to acquire
religious knowledge that will help you to carry out your mission
in a responsible way. In particular, I invite you to carefully
study the social doctrine of the Church so that its principles
may inspire and guide your action in the world."
"My dear young friends, I want to invite you to 'dare to
love.' Do not desire anything less for your life than a love that
is strong and beautiful and that is capable of making the whole
of your existence a joyful undertaking of giving yourselves as
a gift to God and your brothers and sisters. ... Love is the only
force capable of changing the heart of the human person and of
all humanity, by making fruitful the relations between men and
women, between rich and poor, between cultures and civilizations.
This is shown to us in the lives of the saints. ... Try to know
them better, entrust yourselves to their intercession, and strive
to live as they did. I shall just mention Mother Teresa. ... The
only desire of her life was to quench the thirst of love felt
by Jesus, not with words, but with concrete action by recognizing
His disfigured countenance thirsting for love in the faces of
the poorest of the poor."
"Only the Lord's help will allow us to keep away from resignation
when faced with the enormity of the task to be undertaken. It
instils in us the courage to accomplish that which is humanly
inconceivable. Contact with the Lord in prayer grounds us in humility."
"Above all, the Eucharist is the great school of love. When
we participate regularly and with devotion in Holy Mass, when
we spend a sustained time of adoration in the presence of Jesus
in the Eucharist, it is easier to understand the length, breadth,
height and depth of His love that goes beyond all knowledge. By
sharing the Eucharistic Bread with our brothers and sisters of
the Church community, we feel compelled, like Our Lady with Elizabeth,
to render 'in haste' the love of Christ into generous service
towards our brothers and sisters."
"The next World Youth Day ... will be an important stage
on the way to the meeting in Sydney where the theme will be: 'You
will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and
you will be my witnesses.' May Mary, the Mother of Christ and
of the Church, help you to let that cry ring out everywhere, the
cry that has changed the world: 'God is love!' I am together with
you all in prayer and extend to you my heartfelt blessing."
Source: VIS
© Independent Catholic
News 2007
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