Veritas PH

The WORD. The TRUTH.

UNBURDENING +JOSEPH RATZINGER/ POPE BENEDICT XVI

SHARE THE TRUTH

 465 total views

Homily for the Requiem Mass for the Departed Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, 04 Jan 2023, Mt 11:25-30

Former pope Benedict XVI reported to be seriously ill | Photo courtesy of The Guardian

I imagine what it must have been like for Joseph Ratzinger when he was elected to the papacy in 2005, at the age of 78. He had spent the first 26 years of his priestly life as a teacher, an intellectual, a professor of theology. With hardly any pastoral background, he was immediately appointed to head his home diocese in Freising Munich at the age of 50. After just 5 years of pastoral leadership as archbishop, he was appointed to lead the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith for almost 23 years, acting as Pope John Paul II’s watchdog of orthodoxy. All he wanted to do after 49 years of academic life and 5 years of pastoral leadership was to retire and work quietly in the Vatican Archives.

And so you can imagine what it must have been like, after the death of Pope John Paul II, when he was elected to serve as Universal Pastor for the Roman Catholic Church at the age of 78! He must have really felt burdened by the responsibility. I remember feeling what he felt when he gave a brief speech after he was elected Pope in 2005:

He said, “Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II, the Cardinals have elected me, a simple, humble labourer in the vineyard of the Lord. The fact that the Lord knows how to work and to act even with insufficient instruments comforts me, and above all I entrust myself to your prayers. In the joy of the Risen Lord, confident of his unfailing help, let us move forward. The Lord will help us, and Mary, His Most Holy Mother, will be on our side. Thank you.”

I had the chance of visiting him in 2007, as a young bishop appointed by him the year before that, 2006. I was struck that just after two years of papacy, he seemed to have aged very fast; he looked so stooped like he was carrying the whole world on his shoulders. And yet he smiled warmly at us and looked into our eyes with his piercing eyes and spoke to us with a soft and gentle voice in English with a thick German accent.

For many centuries before him, all the other Popes had served for life (meaning, until death). And so his resignation in 2013 came as a shock to us. But somehow, it did not really surprise me. The fact that he had still managed to carry the burden of the papal office for 8 years was already in itself amazing. Imagine, the last Pope to resign voluntarily before him was Pope Celestine V (1294)!

I could not have found a Gospel reading more appropriate for this Requiem Mass in honor of Pope Benedict XVI than the text from Matthew 11, where the Lord says,

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,

for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

I am inclined to believe that Joseph Ratzinger drew a great comfort and inspiration from this text. He could have refused the burden of the papacy when it was offered to him in 2005. It could have been kept secret and the cardinals would have simply come up with a new round of ballotting. But he took it, and still carried it for eight years. During those years of his papacy, from a fierce-looking guardian of orthodoxy, Benedict metamorphosed into a gentle, childlike soul. The gift of office taught him to smile and to relearn the role of a universal pastor from being an intellectual for almost 49 years. I think it was the first few lines of Matthew 11 that kept him going. The verse that says,

“No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son

and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.”

That became obvious to me when, in the first years of his papacy, his favorite topic in his papal audiences was “Friendship with Jesus Christ.” Suddenly, he was no longer speaking like an academic. Among the most memorable lines spoken by him in an audience, the most frequently quoted ones were those that he said at the inauguration of his pontificate. Citing John Paul II’s well-known words, “Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ!”, Benedict XVI said,

“Are we not perhaps all afraid in some way? If we let Christ enter fully into our lives, if we open ourselves totally to Him, are we not afraid that He might take something away from us? … And once again the Pope said: No! If we let Christ into our lives, we lose nothing, nothing, absolutely nothing of what makes life free, beautiful, and great. No! Only in this friendship do we experience beauty and liberation. … When we give ourselves to Him, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ – and you will find true life.”

From then on, “Friendship with Jesus Christ” became a frequent theme of his preaching. He insisted that everything depended on this intimate friendship.

He also said: “We are all called to open ourselves to this friendship with God … speaking to Him as to a friend, the only One who can make the world both good and happy … That all we have to do is put ourselves at His disposal … is an extremely important message. It is a message that helps to overcome what can be considered the great temptation of our time: the claim, that after the Big Bang, God withdrew from history.”

The last years of the life of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI can be accurately described by the words the resurrected Jesus had said to St. Peter in John 21:

“…when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” He gave his hand with full trust in Jesus, his friend. Like Peter whose office he had succeeded, he had remained firm in his answer to the question “Do you love me?”

“Yes Lord, you know that I love you.”

Those were also the last words Pope Benedict uttered on his bed before he breathed his last: “Jesus, ich liebe dich.” (Jesus, I love you.)

We commend Joseph Ratzinger/ Pope Benedict XVI to the Lord who has taken him by the hand and led him to where he had actually always desired to go. May he rest in peace. Amen.

ads
ads
2
3
4
previous arrow
next arrow

Veritas Editorial

Rev. Fr. Anton CT Pascual

Rev. Fr. Anton CT Pascual

President of Radio Veritas

Disinformation At Polarization

 11,244 total views

 11,244 total views The dangers of new communication technologies. Sa paggunita ng ika-59 World Communications day, pinuna ni Pope Francis ang “era of disinformation and polarization”. Pinuna ng Santo Papa ang mga makapangyarihang social networks na nagdudulot lamang ng “fanaticism at hatred”. Bilang pagkilala sa mga mamamahayag, nauunawaan ng Santo Papa ang hirap, sakripisyo at responsibilidad

Read More »

Pagkamamamayang for sale?

 18,301 total views

 18,301 total views Mga Kapanalig, ano nga ba ang kahulugan ng pagiging isang Pilipino? Sa isang bill na inihain ni Congressman Joey Salceda para bigyan ng Filipino citizenship ang negosyanteng Tsino na nagngangalang Li Duan Wang, sinabi niyang taglay ng dayuhan ang mga katangian ng isang tunay na Pilipino: mapagmahal, mapagbigay, magalang, mabuti, matapat, nagsusumikap, at

Read More »

Kampanya na!

 26,840 total views

 26,840 total views Mga Kapanalig, nagsisimula ngayong araw, ika-11 ng Pebrero, ang campaign period para sa mga kandidatong tumatakbo para mga pambansang posisyon. Sinong mag-aakalang may opisyal na campaign period pala? Malayung-malayo pa ang eleksyon, kaliwa’t kanan na ang mga patalastas sa TV, radyo, diyaryo, at maging sa social media ng mga pulitiko. Tadtad ng mga

Read More »

Simbahang nakikilahok

 32,395 total views

 32,395 total views Mga Kapanalig, noong huling araw ng Enero, iba’t ibang grupo ang nagkasá ng kilos-protesta para protektahan ang pondo ng bayan. Pangunahing panawagan nila ang pagbibigay-linaw ng administrasyon sa ipinasá nitong budget para ngayong taon. Ikinababahala kasi ng mga grupong ito na baka magamit ang pera ng bayan para sa mga proyektong gagatasan ng

Read More »

Bible Mahalaga Sa Pagbuo Ng Isang Batas

 43,291 total views

 43,291 total views KAPANALIG, nalalapit na naman ang 2025 Midterm national at local elections… Lumabas sa pag-aaral ng PEW Research Center na mayorya sa mga Filipino ang nagpahayag na malaki ang papel ng bibliya(bible) sa pagbuo ng national law sa PIlipinas. Sa survey ng PEW, 51-porsiyento ng mga Filipino ang naniniwalang malaki ang impluwensiya ng “Bible”

Read More »
catholink
Shadow
truthshop
Shadow

Related Story

Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

POWER

 3,018 total views

 3,018 total views Homily for Tues of the 4th Wk in OT, 4 Feb 2025, Mk 5:21-43 The Gospel tells us Jesus felt power come out of him as soon as the woman with hemorrhage touched him and got healed. Let’s reflect today on POWER and what Mark is telling us about it in this double

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

SLOWLY BUT SURELY

 1,424 total views

 1,424 total views Homily for Friday of the 3rd Week in OT, 31 January 2025, Mk 4:26-34 There is a scene in the old movie on the life of St Francis entitled “Brother Sun, Sister Moon” where Francis starts rebuilding the ruined Church of San Damiano. The movie is a musical, so he is singing a

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

LIKAS NA TALINO

 4,643 total views

 4,643 total views Linggo ng Santo Niño, 18 Enero 2025, Lk 2:41-52 Para sa episode na ito ng Santo Niño Sunday, susubukan nating maintindihan ang natural na proseso ng pag-alam ng likas na talino ng tao at pagsusumikap natin na matuto upang humantong sa pag-unawa. Tingnan ninyo, kahit ang Anak ng Diyos ay nagbigay-daan upang matuto

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

HARD TO ENTER INTO HEAVEN?

 6,780 total views

 6,780 total views Homily for Friday of the 1st Week in Ordinary Time, 17 January 2025, Mt 19:16-26 I used to react to this saying about it being so hard to enter the kingdom of heaven. Until I realized that it would be easier to get the sense of what Jesus is saying by inverting the

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

PAGKAMULAT

 4,306 total views

 4,306 total views Homiliya para sa Kapistahan ng Pagkakabinyag ng Panginoon, 12 Enero 2025, Lk. 3:15-16,21-22 Hindi si Juan Bautista ang nagbinyag kay Hesus kundi ang Espiritu Santo. Naging okasyon lang ang paglulublob na ginawa ni Juan sa kanya para sa pagbaba ng Espiritu Santo. Ang Espiritu ang pumukaw sa kalooban niya at nagbigay sa kanya

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

PRAYER AND SOLITUDE

 4,307 total views

 4,307 total views Homily for Friday after Epiphany, 10 Jan 2025, Lk 5:12-16 On two counts, the leper in the Gospel violated the Law of Moses. Firstly, he was not supposed to stay inside a town if he was afflicted by the disease of leprosy. He was supposed to isolate himself by staying in a cave

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

EFFECTS OF PRAYER

 5,432 total views

 5,432 total views Homily for Wednesday after Epiphany, 08 Jan 2025, Mk 6, 45-52 They had just fed 5,000 people. St. Mark tells us Jesus instructed his disciples to serve them in groups of 50 to 100. Even with 100 per group, he would still have needed at least 50 volunteers to do the serving. They

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

TEACHING WHILE FEEDING

 6,742 total views

 6,742 total views Homily for Tues after Epiphany, 07 Jan 2025, Mk 6:34-44 Because we are familiar with a two-part Liturgy at Mass that distinguishes between the first part, which we call the Liturgy of the Word and the second part, which we call the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we tend to project it on this

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

TATLONG REGALO

 4,307 total views

 4,307 total views Homiliya para sa Kapistahan ng Epifania o Pagpapakita ng Panginoon sa mga Bansa, Enero 4, 2025, Mt 2:1-12 May nabasa akong isang feministang cartoon strip tungkol sa pagdalaw ng tatlong Pantas na lalaki “Ano daw kaya ang nangyari kung imbes na mga lalaki ay mga babae ang tatlong Pantas na bumisita sa Sagrada

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

THE PARABLE OF THE DONKEY

 5,705 total views

 5,705 total views Homily for Thursday before Epiphany, Jn 1:19-28 Today’s readings remind me of the parable of the donkey who thought he was the Messiah when he entered Jerusalem. That was because he was met by crowds of people who were waving their palm branches at him. Some of them were even laying their cloaks

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

INA NG PAGASA

 8,019 total views

 8,019 total views Solemnidad ni Mariang Ina ng Diyos, Bagong Taon 2025, Lk 2:16-21 Sa aklat ng Eksodo may isang eksena kung saan naglalambing si Moises sa Diyos. Sabi niya sa Panginoon: kung talagang matalik na kaibigan ang turing mo sa akin, sana ipakita mo sa akin ang iyong mukha. Sagot daw ng Diyos, “Di mo

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

KEEP THE FIRE BURNING

 5,701 total views

 5,701 total views Homily for the Episcopal Ordination of Bishop Euginius Cañete, 28 Dec 2024, Matthew 2: 13-18 Dear brothers and sisters in Christ. We are still in the season of Christmas, so let me begin by greeting you a Merry Christmas. What a joy it is to preside at this Eucharist in the company of

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

MAGPATULÓY

 16,534 total views

 16,534 total views Homiliya para sa Pasko 2024, Lk 2:1-14 Minsan kahit mga batikang lector at commentator sa simbahan nagkakamali din ng bigkas sa ibang mga Tagalog na salita depende sa diin. Halimbawa, matapos itaas ng pari ang Ostia at sabihing, “Ito ang Kordero ng Diyos, ito ang nag-aalis ng mga kasalanan ng sanlibutan…”. Sasagot ang

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

LANDAS NG KAPAYAPAAN

 12,112 total views

 12,112 total views Homiliya para sa Huling Simbang Gabi, 24 Dis 2024, Lk 1:67-79 Parang orakulo ng propeta ang narinig nating awit ni Zacarias sa ating ebanghelyo para sa huling simbang gabi: “Sapagkat lubhang mahabagin ang ating Diyos, magbubukang-liwayway sa atin ang araw ng kaligtasan upang magbigay-liwanag sa mga nasa kadiliman at nasa lilim ng kamatayan,

Read More »
Cardinal Ambo Homilies
H.E. Pablo Virgilio Cardinal David, D.D.

BUMALIKID

 7,017 total views

 7,017 total views Homiliya para sa Pampitong Simbang Gabi, ikaapat na Linggo ng Adbiyento, 22 Disyembre 2024, Lk 1: 39-45 Ang Salmong Tugunan ang pinagbatayan ko ng pagninilay ngayong umaga. Pero hindi ako kuntento sa Tagalog translation. Sa literal na Ingles ganito ang sinasabi: “Lord make us turn to you; let us see your face and

Read More »

Latest Blogs

Scroll to Top