2010-12-15 15:40:03

Pope's Dec. 15 general audience


(December 15, 2010) Every week on Wednesday, the Pope holds a public meeting, called the general audience, during which pilgrims and tourists who come to Rome have a chance of seeing and hearing him speak in several languages. The general audience of Dec. 15 was held in the Vatican’s Paul VI Audience Hall. It began with a scripture passage read in several languages. An aide greeted the Pope on behalf of the English-speaking pilgrims, and presented the various groups to him. Pope Benedict then delivered a discourse in English.

Listen:RealAudioMP3
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Our catechesis today deals with Saint Veronica Giuliani, a Capuchin Poor Clare and mystic who was born three hundred and fifty years ago this month. Saint Veronica, true to the name she took in religion, became a “true image” of Christ crucified; her configuration to the Lord was accompanied by profound mystical experiences such as her crowning with thorns and the stigmata. Veronica’s spirituality, as revealed above all in her Diary, is Christ-centred and spousal: she saw all things in the light of Christ’s love, manifested in his Passion, and she united herself to his self-oblation to the Father for the salvation of souls. Her love of the Scriptures was deeply linked to her love of the Church and her strong sense of the communion of the saints. Veronica’s passionate mystical experience can be summed up in the words she spoke on her deathbed: “I have found Love”. May the life and teaching of Saint Veronica Giuliani inspire us to grow in union with the Lord and his Church, and to share in Christ’s loving concern for the salvation of sinners.
I extend a warm welcome and prayerful good wishes to the priest alumni of the Pontifical North American College celebrating their fortieth anniversary of priestly ordination. Upon all the English-speaking visitors present at today’s Audience, especially those from Ireland and the United States of America, I cordially invoke God’s abundant blessings.








All the contents on this site are copyrighted ©.