June 3, 2009) Every week on Wednesday, the Pope holds a public meeting, called the
general audience, during which pilgrims and tourists who come to Rome have a chance
of seeing and hearing him speak. The General Audience of June 3rd was
held in the open in St. Peter’s Square. An aide greeted the Pope on behalf of the
English-speaking pilgrims, presenting the various groups to him. Pope Benedict XVI
then delivered a reflection in English: Listen: Dear Brothers
and Sisters, our catechesis today deals with another great monastic figure of the
High Middle Ages, Rabanus Maurus. Rabanus entered monastic life at a young age as
an oblate, was trained in the liberal arts and received a broad formation in the Christian
tradition. As the Abbot of Fulda and then as Archbishop of Mainz, he contributed
through his vast learning and pastoral zeal to the unity of the Empire and the transmission
of a Christian culture deeply nourished by the Scriptures and the Fathers of the Church.
From his youth he wrote poetry, and he is probably the author of the famous hymn Veni
Creator Spiritus. Indeed, his first theological work was a poem on the Holy Cross,
in which the poetry was accompanied by an illuminated representation of the Crucified
Christ. This medieval method of joining poetry to pictoral art sought to lift the
whole person – mind, heart and senses – to the contemplation of the truth contained
in God’s word. In the same spirit Rabanus sought to transmit the richness of the
Christian cultural tradition through his prolific commentaries on the Scriptures,
his explanations of the liturgy and his pastoral writings. This great man of the
Church continues to inspire us by his example of an active ministry nourshed by study,
profound contemplation and constant prayer. I offer a warm welcome to the
English-speaking visitors present at today’s Audience, especially those from England,
Ireland, the Philippines and the United States. My particular greeting goes to the
Sisters of the Society Devoted to the Sacred Heart. I also greet the many student
groups present. Upon all of you I invoke God’s blessings of joy and peace!