Pope hands over the Post Synodal Apostolic Exhortation
September 16, 2012: Pope Benedict XVI celebrated an open-air Sunday Mass at Beirut’s
waterfront beneath the outstretched arms of Our Lady of Lebanon. At the conclusion
of the Mass, the General Secretary of the Synod of Bishops, Archbishop Nikola Eterovic
thanked the Pontiff and invited him to hand over the Post Synodal Apostolic Exhortation
to the Catholic Patriarchs of the Middle East; and to the presidents of the Episcopal
Conferences of Turkey and Iran. Before handing it over the Pope gave a brief discourse. Here
is the total text of his discourse: Your Beatitudes, Your Eminences, Dear Brother
Bishops and Priests, Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, The liturgical celebration
in which we have just taken part was an opportunity to thank the Lord for the gift
of the Special Assembly for the Middle East of the Synod of Bishops, held in October
2010 on the theme: The Catholic Church in the Middle East: Communion and Witness.
“Now the company of those who believed were of one heart and soul” (Acts 4:32). I
would like to thank all the Synod Fathers for their contribution. My gratitude also
goes to the Secretary-General of the Synod of Bishops, Archbishop Eterović, for the
work achieved and for his words on your behalf. Having signed the post-Synodal
Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Medio Oriente, I am pleased now to present it to
all the local churches through you, the Patriarchs and Bishops, both Eastern and Latin,
of the Middle East. With the consigning of this document there now begins its study
and appropriation by all the members of the Church, pastors, consecrated persons and
lay people, so that everyone will find new joy in the pursuit of his or her mission,
encouraged and fortified to put into action the message of communion and witness understood
in the various human, doctrinal, ecclesiological, spiritual and pastoral aspects of
this Exhortation. Dear brothers and sisters of Lebanon and the Middle East, I hope
that this Exhortation will be a guide to follow the various and complex paths where
Christ goes before you. May communion in faith, hope and charity be strengthened in
your countries and in every community so as to make credible your witness to the Triune
God, who has drawn close to each one of us. Dear Church in the Middle East,
draw from the source of salvation which became a reality in this unique and beloved
land! Follow in the footsteps of your fathers in faith, who by tenacity and fidelity
opened up the way for humanity to respond to the revelation of God! Among the wonderful
diversity of saints who flourished in your land, look for examples and intercessors
who will inspire your response to the Lord's call to walk towards the heavenly Jerusalem,
where God will wipe away every one of our tears (cf. Rev 21:4)! May fraternal communion
be a support for you in your daily life and the sign of the universal brotherhood
which Jesus, the firstborn of many, came to bring! Thus, in this region which saw
his actions and heard his words, may the Gospel continue to resonate as it did 2,000
years ago, and may it be lived today and for ever!