Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lorenzago (Agenzia Fides) - In view of the 23rd World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia from 15 - 20 July 2008 on the theme: “ You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses” (Acts 1,8), the Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI addressed a message to the young people of the world. The Pope starts by recalling that the “ underlying theme of the spiritual preparation for our meeting in Sydney is the Holy Spirit and mission ”.
In his Message signed in the northern Italian mountain town of Lorenzago on 20 July 2007, the Pope says preparation for the Day must be spiritual and he encourage the young people to reflect in the next twelve months on the “the Spirit of Fortitude and Witness that gives us the courage to live according to the Gospel and to proclaim it boldly”… he spurs on young people “never forget that the Church, in fact humanity itself, all the people around you now and those who await you in the future, expect much from you young people, because you have within you the supreme gift of the Father, the Spirit of Jesus.”.
The Pope then summaries the salient points of the “promise of the Holy Spirit in the Bible”: “The outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the nascent Church was the fulfilment of a promise made much earlier by God, announced and prepared throughout the Old Testament.”. Pentecost represents “the point of departure for the Church’s mission”: it renewed the Apostles from within “these frightened fishermen had become courageous heralds of the Gospel…Nothing could stop them. To those who tried to silence them they replied: “We cannot keep from speaking about what we have seen and heard” (Acts 4:20). This is how the Church was born, and from the day of Pentecost she has not ceased to spread the Good News “to the ends of the earth’.”
To understand the Church’s mission the Holy Father returns to the Upper Room where the disciples persevered in prayer with Mary the “Mother”, of Jesus awaiting the promised Spirit. “ This icon of the nascent Church should be a constant source of inspiration for every Christian community.-Benedict XVI states -. Apostolic and missionary fruitfulness is not principally due to programmes and pastoral methods that are cleverly drawn up and “efficient”, but is the result of the community’s constant prayer (cf. Evangelii Nuntiandi, 75). Moreover, for the mission to be effective, communities must be united, that is, they must be “of one heart and soul” (cf. Acts 4:32), and they must be ready to witness to the love and joy that the Holy Spirit instils in the hearts of the faithful”. The Pope underlines that “the Holy Spirit is the highest gift of God to humankind, and therefore the supreme testimony of his love for us, a love that is specifically expressed as the “yes to life” that God wills for each of his creatures. This “yes to life” finds its fullness in Jesus of Nazareth and in his victory over evil by means of the redemption”. precisely because of the Spirit, cannot be reduced to a mere statement of fact, for it is intended to be “good news for the poor, release for captives, sight for the blind.... With what great vitality this was seen on the day of Pentecost, as it became the grace and the task of the Church towards the world, her primary mission!” The Pope continues: “ We carry within us the seal of the Father’s love in Jesus Christ which is the Holy Spirit. Let us never forget this, because the Spirit of the Lord always remembers every individual, and wishes, particularly through you young people, to stir up the wind and fire of a new Pentecost in the world.”.
In the paragraph on the Holy Spirit the “Teacher of the interior life”, Pope Benedict XVI recalls that the Holy Spirit continues to work in the Church…“ the fruits of the Spirit are abundant in the measure in which we are ready to open up to this power that makes all things new. However, at this point a question naturally arises: who is the Holy Spirit for me? It is a fact that for many Christians He is still the “great unknown”. This is why, as we prepare for the next World Youth Day, I wanted to invite you to come to know the Holy Spirit more deeply at a personal level. … Nevertheless, it is not enough to know the Spirit; we must welcome Him as the guide of our souls, as the “Teacher of the interior life” who introduces us to the Mystery of the Trinity, because He alone can open us up to faith and allow us to live it each day to the full. The Spirit impels us forward towards others, enkindles in us the fire of love, makes us missionaries of God’s charity.”.
The Pope then recalls that the Sacraments are channels of renewal from within particularly the Sacraments of Christian Initiation: Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist through which the “the Holy Spirit makes us children of the Father, brothers and sisters of Jesus, members of his Church, capable of a true witness to the Gospel, and able to savour the joy of faith.” Pope Benedict XVI urges young people to “rediscover the sacrament of Confirmation and its important place in our spiritual growth”. This sacrament of Confirmation “gives us special strength to witness to and glorify God with our whole lives (cf. Rom 12:1). It makes us intimately aware of our belonging to the Church, the “Body of Christ”, of which we are all living members, in solidarity with one another”. To in the Christian life it is necessary to be nourish one’s self with the Body and Blood of Christ. “Source and Summit” of the life of the Church, the Eucharist is a “perpetual Pentecost “, since “ every time we celebrate Mass we receive the Holy Spirit who unites us more deeply with Christ and transforms us into Him… whenever our strength is not enough, it is the Holy Spirit who transforms us, filling us with his strength and making us witnesses suffused by the missionary fervour of the risen Christ”.
In the 7th paragraph of his Message the Pope dwells on the “necessity and urgency of mission”. Aware that young people today are filled with apprehension and raise many questions about their future Benedict XVI recalls that “ only Christ can fulfil the most intimate aspirations that are in the heart of each person…Through the power of his Spirit he instils divine charity within us, and this makes us capable of loving our neighbour and ready to be of service. The Holy Spirit enlightens us, revealing Christ crucified and risen, and shows us how to become more like Him so that we can be “the image and instrument of the love which flows from Christ” (Deus Caritas Est, 33). Those who allow themselves to be led by the Spirit understand that placing oneself at the service of the Gospel is not an optional extra, because they are aware of the urgency of transmitting this Good News to others”. Like his immediate Predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI affirms “to proclaim the Gospel and bear witness to the faith is more necessary than ever today (cf. Redemptoris Missio, 1). There are those who think that to present the precious treasure of faith to people who do not share it means being intolerant towards them, but this is not the case, because to present Christ is not to impose Him (cf. Evangelii Nuntiandi, 80). Moreover, two thousand years ago twelve Apostles gave their lives to make Christ known and loved. Throughout the centuries since then, the Gospel has continued to spread by means of men and women inspired by that same missionary fervour. Today too there is a need for disciples of Christ who give unstintingly of their time and energy to serve the Gospel. There is a need for young people who will allow God’s love to burn within them and who will respond generously to his urgent call, just as many young blessed and saints did in the past and also in more recent times. In particular, I assure you that the Spirit of Jesus today is inviting you young people to be bearers of the good news of Jesus to your contemporaries. The difficulty that adults undoubtedly find in approaching the sphere of youth in a comprehensible and convincing way could be a sign with which the Spirit is urging you young people to take this task upon yourselves. You know the ideals, the language, and also the wounds, the expectations, and at the same time the desire for goodness felt by your contemporaries. This opens up the vast world of young people’s emotions, work, education, expectations, and suffering ... Each one of you must have the courage to promise the Holy Spirit that you will bring one young person to Jesus Christ in the way you consider best, knowing how to “give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but [to] do it with gentleness and reverence” (cf. 1 Pet 3:15)… In order to achieve this goal, my dear friends, you must be holy and you must be missionaries since we can never separate holiness from mission (cf. Redemptoris Missio, 90). Do not be afraid to become holy missionaries like Saint Francis Xavier who travelled through the Far East proclaiming the Good News until every ounce of his strength was used up, or like Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus who was a missionary even though she never left the Carmelite convent. Both of these are “Patrons of the Missions”. Be prepared to put your life on the line in order to enlighten the world with the truth of Christ; to respond with love to hatred and disregard for life; to proclaim the hope of the risen Christ in every corner of the earth.”
Pope Benedict XVI concludes his Message urging young people to come in great numbers to the 23rd World Youth Day in Sydney in July, which, he says “will be a providential opportunity to experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s power… I invite you to give time to prayer and to your spiritual formation during this last stage of the journey leading to the XXIII World Youth Day, so that in Sydney you will be able to renew the promises made at your Baptism and Confirmation. Together we shall invoke the Holy Spirit, confidently asking God for the gift of a new Pentecost for the Church and for humanity in the third millennium.”. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 26/7/2007; righe 90, parole 1.322)
