Papa Benedetto: ".. Perché l’Apostolo eleva a Dio, dal profondo del suo cuore, questa benedizione? Perché guarda al suo agire nella storia della salvezza, culminato nell’incarnazione, morte e risurrezione di Gesù, e contempla come il Padre celeste ci abbia scelti prima ancora della creazione del mondo, per essere suoi figli adottivi, nel suo Figlio Unigenito, Gesù Cristo (cfr Rm 8,14s.; Gal 4,4s.). Noi esistiamo, fin dall’eternità nella mente di Dio, in un grande progetto che Dio ha custodito in se stesso e che ha deciso di attuare e di rivelare «nella pienezza dei tempi» (cfr Ef 1,10). San Paolo ci fa comprendere, quindi, come tutta la creazione e, in particolare, l’uomo e la donna non siano frutto del caso, ma rispondano ad un disegno di benevolenza della ragione eterna di Dio che con la potenza creatrice e redentrice della sua Parola dà origine al mondo. Questa prima affermazione ci ricorda che la nostra vocazione non è semplicemente esistere nel mondo, essere inseriti in una storia, e neppure soltanto essere creature di Dio; è qualcosa di più grande: è l’essere scelti da Dio, ancora prima della creazione del mondo, nel Figlio, Gesù Cristo. In Lui, quindi, noi esistiamo, per così dire, già da sempre. Dio ci contempla in Cristo, come figli adottivi. Il “disegno di benevolenza” di Dio, che viene qualificato dall’Apostolo anche come “disegno di amore” (Ef 1,5), è definito “il mistero” della volontà divina (v. 9), nascosto e ora manifestato nella Persona e nell’opera di Cristo. L’iniziativa divina precede ogni risposta umana: è un dono gratuito del suo amore che ci avvolge e ci trasforma." (Udienza Generale, Mercoledì 5 dicembre 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. For much more, visit Totus2us - dedicated to Our Lady, it is inspired by our holy fathers St John Paul II and Papa Benedict XVI. Totus Tuus was JPII's motto to Mary. Our Lady is also everything to us - Totus2us.

Pope Benedict XVI in the Year of Faith: "How to speak of God today? The first response is that we can speak of God, because He has spoken with us. The first condition for speaking of God is therefore to listen to what God himself has said. God has spoken with us! God is thus not a distant hypothesis about the origin of the world; He is not a mathematical intelligence very far away from us. God is interested in us, He loves us, He has entered personally into the reality of our history, He has communicated himself all the way to becoming incarnate. Thus, God is a reality of our lives, He is so great that He also has time for us, He cares for us. In Jesus of Nazareth we encounter the face of God, who came down from his Heaven so as to immerse Himself in the world of men, in our world, and teach the "art of living", the road of happiness; so as to liberate us from sin and render us children of God (cf Eph 1, 5; Rom 8, 14). Jesus came to save us and show us the good life of the Gospel." (General Audience, 28 November 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. Visit Totus2us.com for much more.

Pope Benedict XVI in the Year of Faith: "Catholic tradition has from the very beginning rejected what is called fideism, which is the will to believe against reason. Credo quia absurdum (I believe because it is absurd) is not a formula that interprets the Catholic faith. Indeed, God is not absurd, rather He is mystery. Mystery, in turn, is not irrational, but the superabundance of meaning, of significance, of truth. If, looking at the mystery, reason sees darkness, it is not because in the mystery there is no light, but rather because there is too much of it. Just as when a man's eyes are turned directly towards the sun to look at it, they see only shadows; but who would say that the sun is not bright, on the contrary it is the source of light! Faith allows us to look at the "sun", God, because it is the welcoming of his revelation in history and, so to speak, it truly receives all the brightness of the mystery of God, in recognizing the great miracle: God has approached man and has offered himself to man's knowledge, acceding to the creaturely limits of man's reason. At the same time, God, through his grace, illuminates reason, opens to it new, immeasurable and infinite horizons. This is why faith constitutes a stimulus always to seek, never to stop and never to slacken in the inexhaustible discovery of truth and reality. The prejudice of certain modern thinkers, according to whom human reason would be blocked by the dogmas of faith, is false. It is exactly the opposite which is true, as the great masters of Catholic tradition have demonstrated. St Augustine, before his conversion, sought the truth with so much restlessness, through all the available philosophies, finding them all unsatisfactory. His strenuous rational search was for him a significant pedagogy in view of the encounter with the Truth of Christ. When he says, "Understand so as to believe and believe so as to understand", it is as if he were recounting his own experience of life. In front of divine Revelation, the intellect and faith are not strangers or antagonists but are both conditions for understanding the meaning, for receiving the authentic message, for approaching the threshold of the mystery. St Augustine, together with so many other Christian thinkers, is witness to a faith which is exercised with reason, which thinks and invites one to think." (General Audience, 21 November 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. Visit Totus2us.com for much more.

Pope Benedict XVI in the Year of Faith: "Last Wednesday we reflected on the desire for God that the human being carries within the depths of himself. Today I would like to continue and deepen this aspect by briefly meditating with you upon some ways of arriving at the knowledge of God. I would like to remember, however, that the initiative of God always precedes every initiative of man and it is He first who illuminates us, orientates us and guides us also on the pathway towards Him, always respecting our freedom. And it is always He Himself who makes us enter into his intimacy, revealing to us and giving us the grace to be able to welcome this revelation in faith. Let us never forget the experience of St Augustine: it is not us who possess the Truth after having sought it, but it is the Truth that seeks us out and possesses us. However, there are ways that can open up man's heart to the knowledge of God, there are signs that lead to God. Of course, we often risk being dazzled by the glitters of worldliness, which makes us less capable of walking such ways or of reading such/these signs. God, however, never tires of looking for us, He is faithful to man whom He has created and redeemed, He remains close to our lives, because He loves us. This is a certainty that must accompany us every day, even if a certain widespread mentality makes it more difficult for the Church and for the Christian to communicate the joy of the Gospel to every creature and to lead all to an encounter with Jesus, the only Saviour of the world. This, however, is our mission, it is the mission of the Church and every believer must live it joyfully, feeling it as their own, through an existence truly animated by faith, marked by charity, by service to God and to others, and capable of radiating hope. This mission shines above all in the holiness to which we are all called." (General Audience, 14 November 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. Visit Totus2us.com for much more.

Pope Benedict XVI in the Year of Faith: "The pathway of reflection that we are making together in this Year of Faith leads us to meditate today on a fascinating aspect of human and Christian experience: man bears within himself a mysterious desire for God. In a very significant way, the Catechism of the Catholic Church opens precisely with this consideration: "The desire for God is written in the heart of man, because man is created by God and for God; and God does not cease to attract man towards Himself, and it is only in God that will man find the truth and happiness that he never ceases to seek" (n 27). Such an affirmation, which still today in many cultural contexts appears totally easy to share, almost obvious, may instead seem a provocation in secularized Western culture. Many of our contemporaries could in fact object that they do not feel any such a desire for God. For large sectors of society, He is no longer the awaited one, the desired one, but rather a reality that leaves them indifferent, in front of whom one does not even need to make the effort to comment. In reality, what we have defined as "desire for God" has not entirely disappeared and presents itself still today, in many ways, in the heart of man. Human desire tends always to determined concrete goods, often far from spiritual, and nevertheless finds itself facing the question about what is truly "the" good, and thus is confronted with something that is other than itself, that man cannot construct, but is called to recognize. What can truly satisfy the desire of man?" (General Audience, 7 November 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. Visit Totus2us.com for much more.

Papa Benedetto: "Il cammino di riflessione che stiamo facendo insieme in quest’Anno della fede ci conduce a meditare oggi su un aspetto affascinante dell’esperienza umana e cristiana: l’uomo porta in sé un misterioso desiderio di Dio. In modo molto significativo, il Catechismo della Chiesa Cattolica si apre proprio con la seguente considerazione: «Il desiderio di Dio è inscritto nel cuore dell'uomo, perché l'uomo è stato creato da Dio e per Dio; e Dio non cessa di attirare a sé l'uomo e soltanto in Dio l'uomo troverà la verità e la felicità che cerca senza posa» (n. 27). Una tale affermazione, che anche oggi in molti contesti culturali appare del tutto condivisibile, quasi ovvia, potrebbe invece sembrare una provocazione nell’ambito della cultura occidentale secolarizzata. Molti nostri contemporanei potrebbero infatti obiettare di non avvertire per nulla un tale desiderio di Dio. Per larghi settori della società Egli non è più l’atteso, il desiderato, quanto piuttosto una realtà che lascia indifferenti, davanti alla quale non si deve nemmeno fare lo sforzo di pronunciarsi. In realtà, quello che abbiamo definito come «desiderio di Dio» non è del tutto scomparso e si affaccia ancora oggi, in molti modi, al cuore dell’uomo. Il desiderio umano tende sempre a determinati beni concreti, spesso tutt’altro che spirituali, e tuttavia si trova di fronte all’interrogativo su che cosa sia davvero «il» bene, e quindi a confrontarsi con qualcosa che è altro da sé, che l’uomo non può costruire, ma è chiamato a riconoscere. Che cosa può davvero saziare il desiderio dell’uomo?" (Udienza Generale, Mercoledì 7 novembre 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. For much more, visit Totus2us - dedicated to Our Lady, it is inspired by our holy fathers St John Paul II and Papa Benedict XVI. Totus Tuus was JPII's motto to Mary. Our Lady is also everything to us - Totus2us.

Pope Benedict XVI in the Year of Faith: ".. Lastly, I would like to emphasize that it is in the ecclesial community that personal faith grows and matures. It is interesting to observe how in the New Testament the word “saints” refers to Christians as a whole, and certainly not everyone would have had the qualities to be declared saints by the Church. What, then, is this term meant to indicate? The fact that those who had and lived faith in the risen Christ were called to become a point of reference for everyone else, putting them in contact with the Person and the Message of Jesus, who reveals the face of the living God. And this also holds true for us: a Christian who lets himself be guided and shaped gradually by the faith of the Church, despite his weaknesses, his limitations and his difficulties, becomes like a window open to the light of the living God, who receives this light and transmits it to the world. Blessed John Paul II in his Encyclical Redemptoris Missio affirmed that “Mission renews the Church, revitalizes faith and Christian identity, gives new enthusiasm and new motivation. Faith is strengthened when it is given to others” (2). The widespread tendency today to relegate faith to the private sphere therefore contradicts its very nature. We need the Church so as to have our faith confirmed and so as to experience the gifts of God: his Word, the Sacraments, the support of grace and the witness of love. Thus our “I” in the “we” of the Church is able to perceive itself, at the same time, as the recipient and protagonist of an event that surpasses it: the experience of communion with God, which founds the communion among men. In a world in which individualism seems to regulate relationships between people, rendering them ever more fragile, faith calls us to be People of God, to be Church, bearers of the love and communion of God for all mankind (cf Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et Spes, 1)." (General Audience, 31 October 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. Visit Totus2us.com for much more.

Papa Benedetto: ".. Vorrei, infine, sottolineare che è nella comunità ecclesiale che la fede personale cresce e matura. E’ interessante osservare come nel Nuovo Testamento la parola «santi» designa i cristiani nel loro insieme, e certamente non tutti avevano le qualità per essere dichiarati santi dalla Chiesa. Che cosa si voleva indicare, allora, con questo termine? Il fatto che coloro che avevano e vivevano la fede in Cristo risorto erano chiamati a diventare un punto di riferimento per tutti gli altri, mettendoli così in contatto con la Persona e con il Messaggio di Gesù, che rivela il volto del Dio vivente. E questo vale anche per noi: un cristiano che si lascia guidare e plasmare man mano dalla fede della Chiesa, nonostante le sue debolezze, i suoi limiti e le sue difficoltà, diventa come una finestra aperta alla luce del Dio vivente, che riceve questa luce e la trasmette al mondo. Il Beato Giovanni Paolo II nell’Enciclica Redemptoris missio affermava che «la missione rinnova la Chiesa, rinvigorisce la fede e l’identità cristiana, dà nuovo entusiasmo e nuove motivazioni. La fede si rafforza donandola!» (n. 2). La tendenza, oggi diffusa, a relegare la fede nella sfera del privato contraddice quindi la sua stessa natura. Abbiamo bisogno della Chiesa per avere conferma della nostra fede e per fare esperienza dei doni di Dio: la sua Parola, i Sacramenti, il sostegno della grazia e la testimonianza dell’amore. Così il nostro «io» nel «noi» della Chiesa potrà percepirsi, ad un tempo, destinatario e protagonista di un evento che lo supera: l’esperienza della comunione con Dio, che fonda la comunione tra gli uomini. In un mondo in cui l’individualismo sembra regolare i rapporti fra le persone, rendendole sempre più fragili, la fede ci chiama ad essere Popolo di Dio, ad essere Chiesa, portatori dell’amore e della comunione di Dio per tutto il genere umano (cfr Gaudium et spes, 1). " (Udienza Generale, Mercoledì 31 ottobre 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. For much more, visit Totus2us - dedicated to Our Lady, it is inspired by our holy fathers St John Paul II and Papa Benedict XVI. Totus Tuus was JPII's motto to Mary. Our Lady is also everything to us - Totus2us.

Pope Benedict XVI in the Year of Faith: ".. Faith, then, is an assent with which our minds and our hearts say their “yes” to God, by confessing that Jesus is Lord. And this “yes” transforms life, opens the road towards a fullness of meaning, renders it thus new, rich in joy and trustworthy hope. Dear friends, our time requires Christians who have been grasped by Christ, who grow in faith thanks to familiarity with Sacred Scripture and the Sacraments. People who are like an open book that narrates the experience of new life in the Spirit, the presence of that God who sustains us on our path and opens us to life that will have no end. Thank you." (General Audience, 24 October 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. Visit Totus2us.com for much more.

Papa Benedetto: ".. La fede allora è un assenso con cui la nostra mente e il nostro cuore dicono il loro "sì" a Dio, confessando che Gesù è il Signore. E questo «sì» trasforma la vita, le apre la strada verso una pienezza di significato, la rende così nuova, ricca di gioia e di speranza affidabile. Cari amici, il nostro tempo richiede cristiani che siano stati afferrati da Cristo, che crescano nella fede grazie alla familiarità con la Sacra Scrittura e i Sacramenti. Persone che siano quasi un libro aperto che narra l’esperienza della vita nuova nello Spirito, la presenza di quel Dio che ci sorregge nel cammino e ci apre alla vita che non avrà mai fine. Grazie." (Udienza Generale, Mercoledì 24 ottobre 2012) Music by Ooberfuse: Credo. For much more, visit Totus2us - dedicated to Our Lady, it is inspired by our holy fathers St John Paul II and Papa Benedict XVI. Totus Tuus was JPII's motto to Mary. Our Lady is also everything to us - Totus2us.