(02 July 08 - RV) Pope Benedict said on Wednesday that during the Pauline Year, he
will dedicate his weekly General Audiences to the Apostle of the Gentiles. We have
this report... Greeting
Pilgrims in the Paul VI Audience hall, Pope Benedict announced a new series of talks
for his Weekly General Audiences, in honour of the Pauline year.
“Last Sunday,
the Solemnity of the Apostles Peter and Paul, marked the beginning of a Year dedicated
to the figure and teaching of the Apostle Paul. Today’s audience begins a new series
of catecheses aimed at understanding more deeply the thought of Saint Paul and its
continuing relevance. Paul, as we know, was a Jew, and consequently a member of a
distinct cultural minority in the Roman Empire. At the same time, he spoke Greek,
the language of the wider Hellenistic culture, and was a Roman citizen”.
“Paul,
the Apostle of the Gentiles, was therefore uniquely situated for his mission of preaching
the gospel to all peoples, all over the world”.
“Paul’s proclamation of
the Risen Christ, while grounded in Judaism, was marked by a universalist vision and
it was facilitated by his familiarity with three cultures. He was thus able to draw
from the spiritual richness of contemporary philosophy, and Stoicism in particular,
in his preaching of the Gospel. The crisis of traditional Greco-Roman religion in
Paul’s time had also fostered a greater concern for a personal experience of God.
As we see from his sermon before the Areopagus in Athens (cf. Acts 17:22ff.), Paul
was able to appeal to these currents of thought in his presentation of the Good News.
Against this broad cultural background, Paul developed his teaching, which we will
explore in the catecheses of this Pauline Year”.
The Holy Father said this
we have much to learn from Saint Paul today, with his emphasis on distinguishing how
Christianity was different from the prevailing culture. Pope Benedict will be staying
in Castel Gandolfo after Wednesday, and his catechesis will continue when Weekly General
Audiences resume on August 13th.