Full Text of Pope Benedict's Visit to the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem
(May 15, 2009) Dear Friends in Christ, The hymn of praise which we have just
sung unites us with the angelic hosts and the Church of every time and place – “the
glorious company of the apostles, the noble fellowship of the prophets and the white-robed
army of martyrs” – as we give glory to God for the work of our redemption, accomplished
in the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Before this Holy Sepulchre,
where the Lord “overcame the sting of death and opened the kingdom of heaven to all
believers”, I greet all of you in the joy of the Easter season. I thank Patriarch
Fouad Twal and the Custos, Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa, for their kind greeting.
I likewise express my appreciation for the reception accorded me by the Hierarchs
of the Greek Orthodox Church and the Armenian Apostolic Church. I gratefully acknowledge
the presence of representatives of the other Christian communities in the Holy Land.
I greet Cardinal John Foley, Grand Master of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre
of Jerusalem and the Knights and Ladies of the Order here present, with gratitude
for their Order’s unfailing commitment to the support of the Church’s mission in these
lands made holy by the Lord’s earthly presence. Saint John’s Gospel has left us
an evocative account of the visit of Peter and the Beloved Disciple to the empty tomb
on Easter morning. Today, at a distance of some twenty centuries, Peter’s Successor,
the Bishop of Rome, stands before that same empty tomb and contemplates the mystery
of the Resurrection. Following in the footsteps of the Apostle, I wish to proclaim
anew, to the men and women of our time, the Church’s firm faith that Jesus Christ
“was crucified, died and was buried”, and that “on the third day he rose from the
dead”. Exalted at the right hand of the Father, he has sent us his Spirit for the
forgiveness of sins. Apart from him, whom God has made Lord and Christ, “there is
no other name under heaven given to men by which we are to be saved” (Acts 4:12). Standing
in this holy place, and pondering that wondrous event, how can we not be “cut to the
heart” (Acts 2:37), like those who first heard Peter’s preaching on the day of Pentecost?
Here Christ died and rose, never to die again. Here the history of humanity was decisively
changed. The long reign of sin and death was shattered by the triumph of obedience
and life; the wood of the Cross lay bare the truth about good and evil; God’s judgement
was passed on this world and the grace of the Holy Spirit was poured out upon humanity.
Here Christ, the new Adam, taught us that evil never has the last word, that love
is stronger than death, that our future, and the future of all humanity, lies in the
hands of a faithful and provident God. The empty tomb speaks to us of hope, the
hope that does not disappoint because it is the gift of the Spirit of life (cf. Rom
5:5). This is the message that I wish to leave with you today, at the conclusion of
my pilgrimage to the Holy Land. May hope rise up ever anew, by God’s grace, in the
hearts of all the people dwelling in these lands! May it take root in your hearts,
abide in your families and communities, and inspire in each of you an ever more faithful
witness to the Prince of Peace! The Church in the Holy Land, which has so often experienced
the dark mystery of Golgotha, must never cease to be an intrepid herald of the luminous
message of hope which this empty tomb proclaims. The Gospel reassures us that God
can make all things new, that history need not be repeated, that memories can be healed,
that the bitter fruits of recrimination and hostility can be overcome, and that a
future of justice, peace, prosperity and cooperation can arise for every man and woman,
for the whole human family, and in a special way for the people who dwell in this
land so dear to the heart of the Saviour. This ancient Memorial of the Anástasis
bears mute witness both to the burden of our past, with its failings, misunderstandings
and conflicts, and to the glorious promise which continues to radiate from Christ’s
empty tomb. This holy place, where God’s power was revealed in weakness, and human
sufferings were transfigured by divine glory, invites us to look once again with the
eyes of faith upon the face of the crucified and risen Lord. Contemplating his glorified
flesh, completely transfigured by the Spirit, may we come to realize more fully that
even now, through Baptism, “we bear in our bodies the death of Jesus, that the life
of Jesus may be manifested in our own mortal flesh” (2 Cor 4:10-11). Even now, the
grace of the resurrection is at work within us! May our contemplation of this mystery
spur our efforts, both as individuals and as members of the ecclesial community, to
grow in the life of the Spirit through conversion, penance and prayer. May it help
us to overcome, by the power of that same Spirit, every conflict and tension born
of the flesh, and to remove every obstacle, both within and without, standing in the
way of our common witness to Christ and the reconciling power of his love. With
these words of encouragement, dear friends, I conclude my pilgrimage to the holy places
of our redemption and rebirth in Christ. I pray that the Church in the Holy Land will
always draw new strength from its contemplation of the empty tomb of the Savior. In
that tomb it is called to bury all its anxieties and fears, in order to rise again
each day and continue its journey through the streets of Jerusalem, Galilee and beyond,
proclaiming the triumph of Christ’s forgiveness and the promise of new life. As Christians,
we know that the peace for which this strife-torn land yearns has a name: Jesus Christ.
“He is our peace”, who reconciled us to God in one body through the Cross, bringing
an end to hostility (cf. Eph 2:14). Into his hands, then, let us entrust all our hope
for the future, just as in the hour of darkness he entrusted his spirit into the Father’s
hands. Allow me to conclude with a special word of fraternal encouragement to my
brother Bishops and priests, and to the men and women religious who serve the beloved
Church in the Holy Land. Here, before the empty tomb, at the very heart of the Church,
I invite you to rekindle the enthusiasm of your consecration to Christ and your commitment
to loving service of his mystical Body. Yours is the immense privilege of bearing
witness to Christ in this, the land which he sanctified by his earthly presence and
ministry. In pastoral charity enable your brothers and sisters, and all the inhabitants
of this land, to feel the healing presence and the reconciling love of the Risen One.
Jesus asks each of us to be a witness of unity and peace to all those who live in
this City of Peace. As the new Adam, Christ is the source of the unity to which the
whole human family is called, that unity of which the Church is the sign and sacrament.
As the Lamb of God, he is the source of that reconciliation which is both God’s gift
and a sacred task enjoined upon us. As the Prince of Peace, he is the source of that
peace which transcends all understanding, the peace of the new Jerusalem. May he sustain
you in your trials, comfort you in your afflictions, and confirm you in your efforts
to proclaim and extend his Kingdom. To all of you, and to those whom you serve, I
cordially impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of Easter joy and peace.