Pope Benedict XVI leads an ecumenic meeting in Prague September 27, 2009
Posted on 09/28/2009 9:47:26 AM PDT by NYer
Pope Benedict XVI leads an ecumenic meeting in Prague September 27, 2009
PRAGUE, Czech Republic, SEPT. 27, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The Gospel is not an ideology, but rather, illuminates the dignity of the human person generation after generation, says Benedict XVI.
The Pope affirmed this today in an ecumenical meeting held in the context of his three-day apostolic journey to the Czech Republic. He returns to Rome on Monday.
The Holy Father told the representatives of Christian religions that "as Europe listens to the story of Christianity, she hears her own."
"Her notions of justice, freedom and social responsibility, together with the cultural and legal institutions established to preserve these ideas and hand them on to future generations, are shaped by her Christian inheritance," he said. "Indeed, her memory of the past animates her aspirations for the future."
Spreading the faith
The Pontiff went on to reflect on the testimony of the saints, saying they show how commitment to spreading the Gospel is founded on the "conviction that Christians should not cower in fear of the world but rather confidently share the treasury of truths entrusted to them."
And Christians today, 20 years after the fall of communism, "must have the courage to invite men and women to the radical conversion that ensues upon an encounter with Christ and ushers in a new life of grace," he continued.
Benedict XVI said that in this perspective "we understand more clearly why Christians are obliged to join others in reminding Europe of her roots."
"It is not because these roots have long since withered," the Pope affirmed. "On the contrary! It is because they continue -- in subtle but nonetheless fruitful ways -- to supply the continent with the spiritual and moral sustenance that allows her to enter into meaningful dialogue with people from other cultures and religions.
"Precisely because the Gospel is not an ideology, it does not presume to lock evolving socio-political realities into rigid schemas. Rather, it transcends the vicissitudes of this world and casts new light on the dignity of the human person in every age."
The Holy Father concluded by asking his listeners at the ecumenical gathering to pray that God would "implant within us a spirit of courage to share the timeless saving truths which have shaped, and will continue to shape, the social and cultural progress of this continent.
Ping!
I tried convincing someone to return to his European religious roots and he ended up devoting his life to Odin. < /joke>
From a religious aspect, the most important function of government is to maintain an orderly society that allows people to practice their religion as they will.
It was not a coincidence that Christianity arose at the time it did in the Roman Empire. It was a wide-spread orderly society. As long as you were not a threat to order or the government, you were allowed to practice any religion you wanted. Rome didn’t care.
Chistians in the past (and present) that establish an official Christian church entangling Christiantiy with government make a huge mistake. The best environment for Christianity to develop is one that allows open and free religious debate.
“we understand more clearly why Christians are obliged to join others in reminding Europe of her roots.”
Maybe because the Muslim population is growing by leaps and bounds in Europe.
Rome persecuted the Christians because they viewed the early church as a threat to their chosen lifestyle of debauchery. Rome did care.
Chistians in the past (and present) that establish an official Christian church entangling Christiantiy with government make a huge mistake.
Concur. The Church should influence public servants to a moral lifestyle but should not venture to a Theocracy, they corrupt far to swiftly.
The best environment for Christianity to develop is one that allows open and free religious debate.
Not so. Christianity grew at its greatest rate during the persecutions. It is when there is no outward threat that apostacy tends to grow. It is a malignant cancer that invades the body.
Rome persecuted the Christians because they viewed the early church as a threat to their chosen lifestyle of debauchery. Rome did care.
Not during the time of Christ or the Apostles. During their time they had very free reign to move about the empire unhindered (and unpersecuted) by the government.
It includes a means to salvation provided by YHvH : Yah'shua. I would think it is the Word of YHvH to His created beings.
shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach
When Christ walked the Earth, he was a Jew.
Paul was in prison while in Rome as were Andronicus and Junias, relatives who were in prison with him (Romans 16). He spoke often of the persecuted and martyred. Paul was not martyred for jaywalking, he died in Rome because he was a threat.
Ping!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.