Pope tells theologians they should adhere to truth

(Oct. 6, 2006) Pope Benedict XVI on Friday told theologians that they had the sacred duty to speak not for themselves but for God, who is truth, even if it is often difficult. Concelebrating Mass with members of the Vatican’s International Theological Commission at the end of their plenary assembly, the Pope said the beautiful vocation and mission of the theologian is to talk for God – to make the Word, the Word that comes from God, the Word that is God Himself, present through his words. This, he said, requires purification of thought through silence and the contemplation of the Word, who is Truth Himself. Speaking to earn applause, or to satisfy the taste and demands of public opinion is considered, what the Pope described as ‘a type of prostitution of the word and of the soul.” Purity, he said, does not give in to this standard and to applause but seeks obedience to the truth. Pope Benedict said this obedience to the truth is a fundamental virtue of the theologian, even though it is difficult. The Theological commission met from Oct 2-6 to discuss the draft of a document on the state of babies or children who die without Baptism.