Pope opens Synod's working session

Pope Benedict XVI on Monday opened the working session of the 12^th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Bible underscoring the perennial values of the Word of God as against the passing worldly realities based on money and ambition. In an improvised address to the 253 synod fathers gathered in the Vatican’s Synod hall for the morning session, the Pope said that a person, who builds his life only on things visible and tangible, such as success, career and money, builds it on sand. Apparently true realities that they are, the Pope observed, success, career and money will sooner or later pass away. “Now with the collapse of big banks we see that money disappears; they are nothing and all these things that appear real are in fact of secondary importance,” the Pope said. He was referring to the current global financial turmoil, the worst since the Great Depression, that has wiped away hundreds of billions of dollars in shareholder wealth and felled banking institutions that just months ago seemed untouchable. The crisis was triggered by the collapse of the U.S. housing market. Using a biblical metaphor the Pope said that those who ignored the word of God to pursue wealth, effectively built their homes on sand instead of on a solid foundation of faith. The Word of God is the only basis of reality which changes our concept of realism, the Pope said adding, “one who recognizes the reality of the Word of God is a realist.”
Following the Pope’s introductory words Cardinal William Levada, thanked the pontiff for the choice of the theme of the Word of God for the current synod. Cardinal Levada, the prefect of the the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is one of the 3 presidents delegated by the Pope to preside over the synod sessions. “No one can deny the importance of such an issue and its centrality in the life of the Church and in the very Christian identity,” the cardinal said underscoring the inseparable bond between scripture and tradition as both have the same divine source. “Only a truly church tradition allows the sacred scripture to be understood as the authentic Word of God that is the guide, norm and life of the Church and of the spiritual growth of believers. In this lies the need and responsibility of the Church’s teaching ministry to be the authentic interpreter of the Word of God in the service of the entire Christian people and for the salvation of the entire world.
Archbishop Nikola Eterovic, the secretary general of the synod presented the synod with a brief history of the activities that preceded the current synod. He also outlined new features introduced in the synod especially with regard to limits to speech time to allow more time for discussions in the assembly and in groups.