Pope Benedict in English - Weekly General Audience -
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Our catechesis today is concerned with Saint Benedict,
the Father of Western monasticism. The most important source of information on his
life is the Second Book of the Dialogues of Pope Saint Gregory the Great. Writing
in a time of turmoil and moral decadence following the fall of the Roman Empire, Pope
Gregory believed that the life and Rule of Benedict could be a light leading the people
of Europe out of darkness. Benedict was born in 480 in the region of Nursia. He
came to Rome to study but soon left the city so as to live in silence and to please
God alone. He spent some time in a religious community before becoming a hermit in
a cave. After struggling victoriously against the fundamental human temptations of
pride, sensuality and anger, he decided to found a monastery at Subiaco. Years later
he established a new community on a mountain, Montecassino, to symbolize the public
role of a monastery called to be a light shining for the good of the Church and society.
Indeed, when he died in 547 Saint Benedict left behind a thriving spiritual family
and a Rule, which invites us to search for God in prayer, obedience and humility while
attending faithfully to daily duties and to those in need. In 1964 Pope Paul VI proclaimed
Saint Benedict Patron of Europe recognizing the role that his teaching and his disciples
had played in shaping Europe’s spiritual life and culture. Let us continue to pray
that Europe’s new unity may be enlightened and nourished by a religious and moral
renewal drawn from its Christian roots. ********* I am happy to greet the English-speaking
visitors present at today’s Audience, including the pilgrims from the Archdiocese
of Manila, and the many groups from England and the United States. May your lives,
after the example of Saint Benedict, be lived in humility, prayer, obedience to God
and faithful service to your neighbour. May the Lord bless you and your families!