During the general audience on 31 October 2012 His Holiness Pope Benedict
XVI, continuing his catecheses on the subject of Catholic faith, began by
posing certain important questions: "Is the nature of faith merely
personal and individual? ... Do I live my faith alone?”
"Certainly, the act of faith is an eminently personal
act", he told the faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square. "It is
something which happens in the most intimate depths of my being and causes a
change of direction, a personal conversion.... But the fact that I believe is not
the result of solitary reflection ... it is the fruit of a relationship, a
dialogue ... with Jesus which causes me to emerge from my 'I' ... and to open
myself to the love of God the Father. It is like a rebirth in which I discover
that I am united not only to Jesus but also to all those who have walked and
continue to walk along His path. And this new birth, which begins with Baptism,
continues throughout the course of a person's life.”
"I cannot construct my personal faith in a private dialogue
with Jesus", the Pope added, "because faith is given to me by God
through a believing community which is the Church. And faith makes me part of a
multitude of believers bound by a communion which is not merely sociological,
but rooted in the eternal love of God.... The Catechism of the Catholic
Church states this very clearly: 'Believing is an ecclesial act. The
Church's faith precedes, engenders, supports and nourishes our faith. The
Church is the mother of all believers'".
"The tendency, so widespread today, to relegate the faith to
the private sphere contradicts its very nature.... We need the Church in order
for our faith to be confirmed and to experience the gifts of God together....
In a world in which individualism seems to regulate dealings between people,
making them ever more fragile, the faith calls us to be People of God, to be
Church, bearers of the love and communion of God for the entire human
race", the Holy Father concluded.
For more information, please visit:
http://www.news.va/en/news/the-church-is-the-place-where-faith-is-transmitted
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"Conscious of the devastation caused by the hurricane which
recently struck the East Coast of the United States of America, I offer my
prayers for the victims and express my solidarity with all those engaged in the
work of rebuilding", said the Holy Father at the end of his catechesis
during today's general audience.
For more information, please visit:
http://www.news.va/en/news/pope-prayers-and-support-for-hurricane-sandy-victi
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