"How
do we speak to God in our times? How can we communicate the Gospel to open the
way to its salvific truth?" His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI offered an
answer to these questions in his catechesis during the 28 November 2012 general audience, held
in the Vatican's Paul VI Hall.
"In
Jesus of Nazareth", the Pope said, "we encounter the face of God,
descended from Heaven to immerse Himself in the world of mankind and to teach
'the art of living', the road to happiness; to free us from sin and to make us
true children of God".
He
continued, "speaking about God means, first and foremost, being clear
about what we must bring to the men and women of our time. God has spoken to
us, … not an abstract or hypothetical God, but a real God, a God Who exists, Who
entered history and remains present in history: the God of Jesus Christ ... as
a response to the fundamental question of why and how to live. Therefore,
speaking about God requires a continual growth in faith, familiarity with Jesus
and His Gospel, a profound knowledge of God and strong passion for His plan for
salvation, without giving in to the temptations of success. … We must not fear
the humility of taking small steps, trusting in the leaven that makes the dough
rise slowly and mysteriously. In speaking about God, in the work of
evangelisation under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we must return to the
simplicity and essential nature of proclamation: the concrete Good News of God
Who cares about us, the love of God which Jesus Christ brought close to us,
even unto the Cross, and which in the Resurrection opens us to life without
end, to eternal life".
"Speaking
about God means communicating, with power and simplicity, through words and the
life we lead, that which is essential: the God of Jesus Christ, the God Who
showed us a love so great that He took on human flesh, died and rose again for
us; the God Who asks us to follow Him and to allow ourselves to be transformed
by His immense love in order to renew our lives and our relationships; the God
Who gave us the Church, to allow us to journey together and, through the Word
and the Sacraments, to renew the entire City of Man so that it might become the
City of God", concluded the Pope.
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