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Amman (Agenzia Fides) - “I prayed that the Church in these lands would be confirmed in hope and strengthened in her witness to the Risen Christ, the Savior of mankind.” These are the words with which the Holy Father Benedict XVI began his homily in the Mass he presided on May 10 in International Stadium in Amman. “As the Successor of Saint Peter, to whom the Lord entrusted the care of his flock, I have long awaited this opportunity to stand before you as a witness to the Risen Savior, and to encourage you to persevere in faith, hope and love, in fidelity to the ancient traditions and the distinguished history of Christian witness which you trace back to the age of the Apostles. The Catholic community here is deeply touched by the difficulties and uncertainties which affect all the people of the Middle East. May you never forget the great dignity which derives from your Christian heritage, or fail to sense the loving solidarity of all your brothers and sisters in the Church throughout the world!”
Meditating on the Gospel passage of the Good Shepherd, as Jordan celebrated the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, the Pope exhorted the many youth present to consider the Lord's calling: “consider how the Lord is calling you to follow him and to build up his Church. Whether it be in the priestly ministry, in consecrated life or in the sacrament of marriage, Jesus needs you to make his voice heard and to work for the growth of his Kingdom.”
The Holy Father then recalled that during this Year of the Family, “the Church throughout the Holy Land has reflected on the family as a mystery of life-giving love, endowed in God’s plan with its own proper calling and mission: to radiate the divine Love which is the source and the ultimate fulfilment of all the other loves of our lives.” Expressing his hope that every Christian family “grow in fidelity to its lofty vocation to be a true school of prayer,” the Pope recalled that “the strong Christian families of these lands are a great legacy handed down from earlier generations. May today’s families be faithful to that impressive heritage, and never lack the material and moral assistance they need to carry out their irreplaceable role in service to society.”
Benedict XVI especially reflected on the dignity, vocation, and mission of women in God's plan: “How much the Church in these lands owes to the patient, loving and faithful witness of countless Christian mothers, religious Sisters, teachers, doctors and nurses! How much your society owes to all those women who in different and at times courageous ways have devoted their lives to building peace and fostering love!” He then highlighted how the dignity and mission given by God to women “has not always been sufficiently understood and esteemed,” and how the Church and society as a whole are urgently in need of the “prophetic charism” of women “as bearers of love, teachers of mercy and artisans of peace, bringing warmth and humanity to a world that all too often judges the value of a person by the cold criteria of usefulness and profit.”
At the close of his homily, returning to the image of the Good Shepherd, who “lays down his life for his sheep,” the Holy Father made the following exhortation: “May the courage of Christ our shepherd inspire and sustain you daily in your efforts to bear witness to the Christian faith and to maintain the Church’s presence in the changing social fabric of these ancient lands. Fidelity to your Christian roots, fidelity to the Church’s mission in the Holy Land, demands of each of you a particular kind of courage: the courage of conviction, born of personal faith, not mere social convention or family tradition; the courage to engage in dialogue and to work side by side with other Christians in the service of the Gospel and solidarity with the poor, the displaced, and the victims of profound human tragedies; the courage to build new bridges to enable a fruitful encounter of people of different religions and cultures, and thus to enrich the fabric of society.”
After the Mass, prior to the recitation of the Regina Caeli, the Pope encouraged the faithful to turn towards the Blessed Virgin Mary, invoking her maternal intercession “for all the families of these lands, that they may truly be schools of prayer and schools of love.” “Let us ask the Mother of the Church to look down in mercy upon all the Christians of these lands, and with the help of her prayers, may they be truly one in the faith they profess and the witness they bear.” (SL) (Agenzia Fides 12/5/2009)
