My Soul, Be At Rest In God

“… Jesus invites all of us to come to him, whatever burdens we may be carrying, whatever labors we may be engaged in, because in him we will find rest. At this time of year when so many of you are taking your annual holiday, I pray that you will truly find refreshment for body and spirit and an opportunity to rest in the Lord. May God bestow his blessings of joy and peace upon all of you….”

His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI

Angelus, July 3, 2011

Pope Benedict XVI’s summer vacation began on July 7 at the Papal summer palace in Castel Gandolfo. The tiny hill top village that overlooks Lake Albano, just 9 miles south east of Rome, has welcomed Popes since the 15th century and it is there that Pope Benedict XVI will spend his summer doing what he loves most:  reading, writing, and praying.

Over the summer months private and special audiences will be suspended, as will the Wednesday general audiences of July 13, 20 and 27. On Sundays and Solemnities during this period, the Pope will pray the Angelus from the Apostolic Palace of Castel Gandolfo. General audiences will resume again from Wednesday, August 3.

For more information, please visit these sites:

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/angelus/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20110703_it.html

http://visnews-en.blogspot.com/2011/07/pope-to-travel-to-castelgandolfo-this.html

http://www.news.va/en/news/popes-summer-break-of-study-writing-and-prayer

http://www.vaticanstate.va/EN/Monuments/webcam/index?cam=webcam6&testo=Castel%20Gandolfo

My first visit to Castel Gandolfo was in 1996 thanks to an invitation to Mass celebrated by His Holiness Pope John Paul II.   The guest master of the Christian Brothers’ House, where the WUCWO Board Meeting was held, rose before dawn to call a taxi for me and explain to the driver where he was to take me.  (My Italian language skills have improved slightly since that first visit to Rome.)  The car was hurtling through the dark of night, crisscrossing lanes on the highway out of the city and then up the narrow, winding road to the village perched on top of the mountain. A bit breathless upon arrival, I waited under a street lamp in the piazza until the appointed time when the Swiss Guard allowed the few invitees to go into the Apostolic Palace.  As we entered the small chapel, Pope John Paul II was kneeling in prayer before the tabernacle.  His head was bowed, and his hands were over his ears almost as if he were blocking out all sound:  the birds singing, the cows lowing, the roosters crowing beyond the open window, as well as our quiet, reverent approach to our places in the pews. Most of all, it seemed that His Holiness had left behind the worldly demands on his attention so that he could listen carefully to our Heavenly Father.  You could feel the intensity of his communion with the Lord in prayer before, during and after Mass.  It was a time of refreshment for the soul and “peace which the world cannot give.”   

In every season may we answer the Lord’s invitation to come and find rest in Him.

My soul, be at rest in God alone,

from whom comes my hope.

God alone is my rock and my salvation,

my secure height; I shall not fall.

My safety and glory are with God,

my strong rock and refuge.

Trust God at all times, my people!

Pour out your hearts to God our refuge!

Psalm 62: 6-9