Pope Benedict in English - Weekly General Audience
Dear Brothers and Sisters, In today’s catechesis we turn to the teaching of a sixth-century
author whose writings have been attributed to the first-century disciple of Saint
Paul, Dionysius the Areopagite. His two principal works, The Divine Names
and Mystical Theology, strive to present a knowledge of God which surpasses
rational understanding and culminates in spiritual perfection and transforming contemplation.
Pseudo-Dionysius stresses the apophatic or “negative” understanding born of pondering
God’s infinite transcendence and otherness. By contemplating what God is not, and
by entering more deeply into the rich symbolic language of Scripture, we grow in our
relationship with the One who reveals himself in hiddenness. Contemplation is thus
an ascent leading from purification to illumination, perfection and union with God.
In the West, Dionysius’ writings influenced the early scholastics and Saint Thomas,
as well as Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint John of the Cross. His vision of a great
cosmic harmony reflecting the beauty of the Creator and the love freely bestowed on
us in Christ, can also inspire our efforts to work for unity, reconciliation and peace
in our world. * * *
I welcome all the English-speaking visitors present
today, including the groups from England, Ireland, Japan, The Philippines, Trinidad
and Tobago, and the United States of America. May your visit to Rome be a time of
deep spiritual renewal. Upon all of you I invoke God’s abundant blessings of joy
and peace.