VATICAN - The Pope’s teaching at the general audience: “With his divine "fullness", but also through shedding his blood on the Cross, Christ "reconciles" and "restores" all things in heaven and on earth…recreating the original harmony, willed by God in accordance with his loving plan of life.”

Vatican City (Fides Service) - The great Christological hymn from the Letter to the Colossians (cfr Col 1,3.12-20), which extols “the glorious figure of Christ, heart of the liturgy and centre of the entire life of the Church” was the subject of the teaching which Pope John Paul II gave this morning at the general Audience in two stages, due to the large number of visitors, in St Peter’s Basilica and in the Paul VI Audience Hall.
. “The hymn extends its horizon to creation and redemption involving every creature and the whole of history” the Pope said, and he added “in this Canticle we recognize the living faith and prayer of the ancient Christian community”.
After an introduction of thanksgiving to the Father for redemption, the canticle is formed of two verses: “the first celebrates Christ the ‘firstborn of all creatures’, that is, he was generated before any other being, his eternity transcends time and space”; “praise in honour of Christ moves, in the second verse, towards another horizon: that of salvation, redemption, re-generation of humanity created by Him but which through sin had fallen to death.”
“With his divine "fullness", but also through shedding his blood on the Cross, Christ "reconciles" and "restores" all things in heaven and on earth. He thereby brings them back to their original condition, willed by God in accordance with his loving plan of life. Creation and redemption are therefore connected as stages of the same history of salvation.” (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 24/11/2004 - Righe 20; Parole 273)