Justin & the Church after Vatican II

June 1st: The Feast of Saint Justin. 

One of the apostolic fathers, Justin was a philosopher trained in rhetoric and the first great Christian apologist. We have important writings from his hand and a detailed account of his trial and martyrdom. The Romans were fastidious in their legal proceedings and, by one estimate, employed 100,000 stenographers in the empire.  Thus we know of his responses at his trial and those of his young followers.  His students followed him to the arena: humbling for those of us who teach.

Justin Martyr pray for us!

Vatican II Fifty Years After

Given the initial whirlwind we reaped after the Council, it is easy to forget why it was called.  Apologetics!  John XXIII wanted to find a new way to explain the eternal truths to a world which had lost its way and had a tin ear to the traditional language of Christianity.  In Europe the cultural disease was far more advanced than in America, but even in this New World the health of mother church was much more superficial than we realized.  

The hour is late, but the Council is now finally bearing fruit with John Paul the Great's  New Evangelism and a thousand flowers that are blooming.  Benedict chose the name of the patron of Europe knowing the task facing us is much like that of Benedict of Nursia whose monasteries century by century turned the dark ages into the High Mediaeval splendor exemplified by Thomas Aquinas' Proper and Office for Corpus Christi.  That great feast is celebrated June 13th or the Sunday before as in our diocese.

The Priestly Order of St. Peter is a fairly new order of priests trained to celebrate the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite (the traditional Latin mass.) In this interview with Catholic News Service, Father Joseph Kramer of the Order puts Vatican II into perspective and explains why young Catholics are turning to a more traditional Catholicism: 

Thanks to Father Z for this!

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM: A GREAT FATHER OF SOCIAL DOCTRINE

From the Vatican News Service:

JOHN CHRYSOSTOM: A GREAT FATHER OF SOCIAL DOCTRINE

VATICAN CITY, SEP 26, 2007 (VIS) - In his general audience, which was held this morning in St. Peter's Square in the presence of more than 20,000 people, the Pope resumed the catechesis he had begun last week on St. John Chrysostom.

This Father of the Church was appointed as bishop of Constantinople, capital of the eastern Roman empire, in the year 397 and immediately began planning the reform of the Church. said the Pope. "The austerity of the episcopal palace," he added, "had to be an example to everyone." In fact, thanks to his "concern for the poor," the saint "was also known as the 'Alms-giver' ... and he created a number of highly-regarded charitable institutions."

"As a true pastor, he treated everyone cordially. ... In particular, he always showed tender concern for women and particular interest in marriage and the family. He invited the faithful to participate in liturgical life, which his creative genius would make particularly splendid and attractive." However "despite his kind heart, ... because of his continuous dealings with the civil authorities and institutions, he often found himself involved in political questions and intrigues, ... and was condemned to exile" where he died in the year 407.

"Of St. John Chrysostom it was said," the Pope continued, "that God caused people to see in him another Paul, a Doctor of the Universe. ... Chrysostom's ideal vision is clearly expressed in his commentary to the first pages of the book of Genesis," in which he meditates upon "the eight works accomplished by God in the sequence of six days." The saint wishes "to lead the faithful back from the creation to the Creator, ... the God of condescension ... Who sends fallen man a letter: Holy Scripture."

The bishop of Constantinople also refers to God as "tender Father, Doctor of souls, Mother and affectionate Friend." In the end "it is God Who descends towards us, He takes bodily from, ... dies on the cross, ... and truly becomes God-with-us, our brother."

"In addition to these three stages - God Who is visible in His creation, God Who writes us a letter, and God Who descends towards us - there is a fourth stage in the life and activity of Christians: the vital and dynamic principle of the Holy Spirit Who transforms the reality of the world. God comes into our lives ... and transforms us from within."

In his commentary to the Acts of the Apostles, St. John Chrysostom proposes "the model of the early Church as a model for society, creating a social 'utopia' ... and seeking to give a Christian soul and a Christian aspect to the city. In other words, Chrysostom understood that it was not enough to give alms, to help the poor one case at a time, rather that it was necessary to create a new structure, a new model for society ... based on the new Testament. For this reason, we may consider him as one of the great Fathers of the Church's social doctrine."

With St. Paul, St. John Chrysostom "supported the primacy of human beings, including slaves and the poor." This contrasted with the structure of the Greek 'polis' where "vast sectors of the population were excluded form the right to citizenship;" in the Christian city, on the other hand, "all are brothers and sisters with the same rights."

At the end of his life St. John Chrysostom returned to the theme of "God's plan for humanity," reaffirming that "God loves each of us with an infinite love, and therefore He wants everyone to be saved."

AG/CHRYSOSTOM/... VIS 070926 (610)

John Chrysostom: Coherence between Ideas and Real Life

John Chrysostom:
Coherence between Ideas and Real Life

From the Vatican News Service


VATICAN CITY, SEP 19, 2007 (VIS) - In his general audience, held this morning in St. Peter's Square, the Pope continued with his series of catecheses on the subject of the Fathers of the Church, focussing today on St. John Chrysostom.



The Pope began by recalling the fact that this year marks the 16th centenary of the death of St. John Chrysostom, who was born in Antioch, in modern-day Turkey, in the year 349. "Called Chrysostom, meaning 'golden-mouthed,' for his eloquence, it could be said that he is still alive today through his works," the Holy Father observed.



"Ordained a deacon in 381 and a priest in 386, he became a famous preacher in the churches of his city; ... 387 was John's 'heroic year'," said Benedict XVI, the year of "the so-called 'revolt of the statues' when people destroyed the imperial statues as a sign of protest against the rise in taxes."



The Holy Father then went on to observe how this saint "was one of the most prolific of the Fathers, of him we have 17 treatises, more than 700 authentic homilies, his commentaries on Matthew and Paul, and 241 letters. He was not a speculative theologian. He transmitted the traditional and certain doctrine of the Church at a time of theological controversies, caused above all by Arianism, in other words the negation of Christ's divinity."



"His is an explicitly pastoral theology," the Pope continued, "in which he shows a constant concern for coherence between thought expressed in words and real existence, This, in particular, is the common thread of the magnificent catecheses with which he prepared catechumens to receive Baptism."



Benedict XVI indicated how "St. John Chrysostom was concerned that his writings should accompany the integral - physical, intellectual and religious - development of the person."



In his works, the saint highlighted the importance of childhood because it is then "that inclinations to vice and virtue appear. For this reason the law of God must, from the beginning, be impressed upon the soul 'as upon a wax tablet'."



Childhood, said the Pope referring to the saint's writings, "is followed by the sea of adolescence in which the gales blow violently as concupiscence grows within us." Then comes courtship and marriage, about which the saint points out "that a well prepared husband and wife close the way to divorce: everything takes place joyfully and children can be educated to virtue. When the first child is born, he or she is like a bridge: the three become a single flesh because the child brings the two parts together and all together they constitute a family, a little Church."



Finally, the Pope recalled how the saint used to address his writings to the lay faithful who, "through Baptism, take on the priestly office, royal and prophetic. ... This lesson of Chrysostom on the authentically Christian presence of the lay faithful in the family and in society is today more important than ever."

AG/ST. JOHN CHRYSOSTOM/... VIS 070919 (510)

Benedict's Wednesday Address: GREGORY OF NYSSA: AIM OF MAN IS TO BE LIKE GOD

GREGORY OF NYSSA: AIM OF MAN IS TO BE LIKE GOD

VATICAN CITY, SEP 5, 2007 (VIS) - This morning, the Pope travelled by helicopter from his summer residence at Castelgandolfo to the Vatican, where he landed shortly before 10 a.m. He then went to St. Peter's Square where he presided at his weekly general audience, attended today by 16,000 people.

Continuing his series of catecheses on the Fathers of the Church, the Holy Father returned to consider the figure of St. Gregory of Nyssa (335-395) - who had also been the subject of last week's catechesis - highlighting how the bishop saint always "showed a highly elevated sense of man's dignity."

For St. Gregory, "man's aim is to make himself like God ... through love, knowledge and the practice of virtues, ... in a perpetual and dynamic adherence to good, like a runner stretching forwards."

However, "the perfection that makes us participants in God's own sanctity is not something granted forever," the Holy Father warned. Rather it is "a permanent journey, a constant commitment to progress ... because complete likeness to God can never be achieved, The history of each soul is that of a love ... open to new horizons, because God continually expands the possibilities of the soul, so as to make it capable of ever greater good."

"In this journey of spiritual ascent, Christ is the Model and the Master Who shows us the beautiful image of God. Looking at Him, each of us discovers ourselves to be 'the painter of our own life' in which our will undertakes the work and our virtues are the colors at our disposal."

"The value that St. Gregory gives to the word Christian is very important," said Pope Benedict, "because a Christian is one who bears the name of Christ, and one who bears the name of Christ must be like Him also in this life. ... But Christ, Gregory recalls, is also present in the poor," and he invites people to recognize the dignity of the poor, precisely because "they represent the Person of the Savior."

The Holy Father concluded by saying that "the path to God, then, passes through prayer and pureness of heart, and through love for others. Love is the stairway that leads to God."

At the end of the audience, the Holy Father greeted participants in various languages. Then, addressing Missionaries of Charity who have come to Rome for the tenth anniversary of the death of Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, he highlighted how "the life and witness of this true disciple of Christ ... are an invitation for you and for the entire Church always to serve God faithfully in the poorest and the most needy."

AG/GREGORY OF NYSSA:MOTHER TERESA/... VIS 070905 (460)

Do You Want the Long Version of Benedict's Talk on the Church Fathers in English?

I commented previously on how the English and German versions of his Wednesday talks on the Fathers of the Church were shorter than the Italian versions. I suspect he gives the talks in Italian and then summarizes them extemporaneously in the other languages.

Sandro Magister has just published English translations of the long versions on his blog, www.chiesa. The first five talks are from the Vatican web site and the last two were translated by www.chiesa.

Origen of Alexandria

Either Benedict speaks extemporaneously in each language, not quite saying the same thing in each, or the translations are very loose. (Maybe they reassembled the original ICEL experts!) Last Wednesday, he spoke on another of the church fathers, Origin, the great biblical scholar of the early church. You will find the German and the English versions below with the links to the Vatican website which owns the copyrights to these versions.

Amy Welborn, in her Open Book blog, quotes extensively from the AsiaNews.it article on the audience. Her account and the AsiaNews account are both much longer than either the German or English versions. They contain an interesting phrase. His "'orated reading' of the Bible, [his] catechesis and coherence in 'moral' behaviour ... mark the life and works of the third century Origen..." Does "orated reading" of scripture come from orare to speak or pray (i.e. speaking to God.) Although it may be just a neologism accidentally created by a mauled translation from the Italian version of Benedetto's address (which is three to four times longer), I like it. We need scripture scholars who pray and live the scriptures. Ordinary folk too!

According to AsiaNews.it, Benedict concluded: "'Let us pray to God – ha [sic] concluded - that he gift [sic] us philosophers, theologians and thinkers today, capable of finding this multi-level dimension, this permanent actuality in their reading of the Sacred Scriptures. Let us pray that the Lord help us to read the Scriptures correctly, so it may nurture and feed us with the true bread of life and of his Word'."

The Holy Father likes him so much, maybe he will finally declare him a saint. If his Holiness should pray to Origin for the conversion of biblical scholars and succeed, he would have the requisite miracles!

BENEDICT XVI

GENERAL AUDIENCE

St Peter's Square
Wednesday, 25 April 2007

Origen of Alexandria

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Our catechetical journey through the early Church brings us to the remarkable figure of Origen of Alexandria. This great teacher of the faith was highly esteemed by his students not only for his theological brilliance, but also for his exemplary moral conduct. His father, Leonides, was martyred during the reign of Septimius Severus. Though Origen himself always had a deep yearning to die a martyr’s death, he decided that the best way to honour his father and glorify Christ was by living a good and upright life. Later, under the emperor Decius, he was arrested and tortured for his faith, dying a few years later. Origen is best known for his unique contribution to theology: an “irreversible turn” which grounded theology in Scripture. He emphasized an allegorical and spiritual reading of the word of God, and demonstrated how the three levels of meaning—the literal, the moral, and the spiritual—progressively lead us to a deeper prayer life and closer relationship with God. Origen teaches us that when we meditate on God’s word and conform our lives to it, we allow the Holy Spirit to guide us to the fullness of truth. May we follow Origen’s example by praying with scripture, always listening attentively to God’s word.

Und auf deutsch:

BENEDIKT XVI.

GENERALAUDIENZ

Mittwoch, 25. April 2007

Liebe Brüder und Schwestern!

In der heutigen Katechese wenden wir uns dem Leben und dem Werk des Origenes zu, des fruchtbarsten Kirchenschriftstellers der ersten drei christlichen Jahrhunderte. Origenes wirkte als bekannter Lehrer in seiner Heimatstadt Alexandrien und dann in Cäsarea in Palästina. Während der Christenverfolgung unter Kaiser Decius im Jahre 250 erlitt er schwerste Torturen, an deren Folgen er wenige Jahre später nicht ganz siebzigjährig starb. Sein umfangreiches Werk, von dem jedoch nur ein Bruchteil überliefert ist, stellt eine unumkehrbare Wende in der Entwicklung des christlichen Denkens dar, die in der gelungenen Symbiose von Theologie und Exegese gründet. Origenes bemühte sich um einen zuverlässigen Text der biblischen Bücher, wovon die Hexapla, eine sechsspaltige Synopse des hebräischen Textes und der griechischen Übersetzungen des Alten Testaments, Zeugnis gibt. Vor allem aber widmete er sich der systematischen Auslegung der Heiligen Schrift in Kommentaren und Homilien. Dabei unterschied er den wörtlichen, den moralischen und den geistigen Schriftsinn. Diese Differenzierung hilft dem Leser, das Wort Gottes tiefer zu verstehen und im Glauben zu wachsen. So gelingt es Origenes auch, die Einheit von Altem und Neuem Testament aufzuzeigen und die lebendige, stets neue Kraft des Wortes Gottes für die Gläubigen zu erschließen.

© Copyright 2007 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Benedikt said a bit more on Clement of Alexander than did Benedict!

BENEDIKT XVI. GENERALAUDIENZ Mittwoch, 18. April 2007 Liebe Brüder und Schwestern! Heute wollen wir die Reihe unserer Betrachtungen über bedeutende Persönlichkeiten der frühen Kirche mit Klemens von Alexandrien fortsetzen. Er stammte aus dem griechischen Kulturkreis und wuchs wahrscheinlich in Athen auf; später wirkte er in Alexandrien, einer hellenistischen Kolonie in Ägypten. Klemens starb um das Jahr 215 in Kappadozien in Kleinasien. Von den literarischen Werken des Klemens von Alexandrien sind nur wenige erhalten geblieben: unter anderem ein Buch mit dem Titel Protreptikos, eine Art Mahnrede, in der das Christentum gegenüber heidnischen Ideen von Göttern als die wahre Philosophie dargestellt wird, die ein durch den göttlichen Logos geschenkter Weg zum Heil ist. In einem weiteren Werk, dem Paidagogos, führt Klemens aus, daß Christus, der wahre Erzieher, die Menschen von sündigen Gewohnheiten befreien und zu einem besseren Leben führen will. In einem Sammelband, den Stromateis, geht Klemens dem Gedanken nach, daß auch im griechischen Denken „Samenkörner“ der Wahrheit zu finden sind. Er unterstreicht, daß nur der Christ Zugang zur „wahren Lehre“ hat. Gott schenkt dem Menschen die Vernunft, aber er hilft ihm vor allem durch die Gabe des Glaubens, die Wahrheit zu erkennen und das ewige Leben zu erlangen. Klemens legt zudem großen Wert auf ein tugendhaftes Verhalten, das den Glauben stützt. Die apátheia, die Freiheit von den Leidenschaften, gehört dazu, sie muß aber ergänzt werden durch die Gottes- und Nächstenliebe, die den Menschen für die wahre Gemeinschaft mit Gott öffnet. Liebe Freunde, mein verehrter Vorgänger Papst Johannes Paul II. hat in seiner Enzyklika Fides et ratio auf ein zentrales Anliegen des Klemens von Alexandrien hingewiesen: Die griechische Philosophie war ein Streben nach richtigem Denken und Erkennen, sie ist jedoch kein Ersatz für die christliche Wahrheit, die selbst göttlichen Ursprungs ist und keiner Ergänzung bedarf (vgl. Nr. 38). * * * Ganz herzlich begrüße ich die Audienzteilnehmer deutscher Sprache und danke allen, die in diesen Tagen aus Anlaß meines 80. Geburtstags nach Rom gekommen sind und mich mit musikalischen Beiträgen erfreut haben. Unter den vielen, die ich gerne persönlich grüßen würde, kann ich hier nur einige Gruppen nennen: die Pilger aus dem Erzbistum München und Freising mit Kardinal Wetter, den Weihbischöfen und dem Domkapitel, die Marianische Männerkongregation Regensburg, die Alphornbläser aus Bayern und Baden-Württemberg sowie die Deggendorfer mit ihrer Bäckerinnung. Ich grüße auch gerne die großen Pilgergruppen aus den Bistümern Mainz und Trier. Ich freue mich über die Glückwünsche und danke für euer Gebet, mit dem ihr mich und meinen Hirtendienst begleitet. Vergelt’s Gott dafür! Der auferstandene Herr Jesus Christus, den uns diese österliche Festzeit in der heiligen Liturgie besonders nahebringt, stärke euch in der Gemeinschaft im Glauben und in der Liebe und schenke euch seinen Frieden. Euch alle schütze und führe der gütige Gott in diesen Tagen mit seiner Gnade und seinem Segen! © Copyright 2007 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Benedict on Iranaeus

Saint Irenaeus of Lyons

Benedict can quote from memory from the Church fathers and the scriptures. He is now using he is Wednesday addresses to teach about the early fathers:

"Dear Brothers and Sisters,

"Continuing our catechesis on the Church Fathers, we turn now to Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, a great theologian and bishop at the end of the second century. In his writings, Irenaeus clearly sets forth the contents of the apostolic faith and appeals to the Church’s living tradition in order to defend that faith from false teachings. He thus emphasizes the regula fidei: the “rule of faith” contained in the Apostles’ Creed and in the Gospel proclaimed by the Church’s Bishops. The Gospel Irenaeus preached was the Gospel preached by his teacher Polycarp, who in turn received it from the Apostle John in an unbroken line of succession going back to Christ himself. Irenaeus also writes of the unique authority of the Church of Rome as founded on the Apostles. This zealous pastor illustrates for us three important characteristics of the Apostolic Tradition: it is “public”, because it is available to all through the teaching of the Bishops; it is “one”, because its content remains the same despite the variety of languages and cultures; and it is “pneumatic”, because, through it, the Holy Spirit continues to enliven and renew the Church even today."

"Our dialogue with [others], inspired by Saint Justin, must remain firmly rooted in Truth, while always avoiding that which is merely fashionable."

Benedict on Justin from his Wednesday Lenten address:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Continuing our catechesis on the Fathers of the Early Church, we consider today Saint Justin, Philosopher and Martyr. Saint Justin was born in Samaria, Palestine, around the year 100 (one hundred). During his youth he ardently sought the truth. After a meeting with an old man, who directed him to prayer and the study of the prophets, the Saint converted to Christianity. He eventually established a school in Rome where he taught the new religion; he was denounced as a Christian and decapitated in the year 165 (one sixty five). Of his written works only his two Apologies and his Dialogue with Trypho remain. These emphasize God’s project of Creation and Salvation which find fulfilment in Jesus Christ, who is the Logos or Word of God. Before the birth of Christ the Logos allowed men and women to come to know part of the truth about God and man. The full truth, however, has been given to Christians with the Incarnation of the Word of God. Our dialogue with philosophy and other religions, inspired by Saint Justin, must remain firmly rooted in Truth, while always avoiding that which is merely fashionable.

Benedict on Ignatius

Benedict continued with his second general address on the Apostolic Fathers. AsiaNews.it headlines "Pope: Ignatius of Antioch, the irrepressible desire of Christians for Unity." You can read the full text in english on the Vatican website.

Benedict on Clement

On St. Clement of Rome

Benedict XVI used his Wednesday address to talk about Clement, fourth bishop of Rome and martyr to Christ. Having finished discussing the apostles, he is now using his weekly addresses to discuss the apostolic fathers.

The Pope speaks to pilgrims in St. Peter's Square each Wednesday. John Paul the Great used these Wednesday addresses over a two year period to expound his theology of the body. The new Waldstein edition and translation is out.




Why the Apostolic Fathers

Benedict told the pilgrims, "Now, we will turn our attention to the Apostolic Fathers, that is, to the first and second generation of the Church after the apostles. This way we can see how the Church's path started in history. St. Clement, Bishop of Rome during the last years of the first century, is the third successor of Peter, after Linus and Anacletus. The most important testimonial of his life is that written by St. Irenaeus, bishop of Lyon until 202. He asserts that Clement 'had seen the apostles … had met with them,' and 'still had their preaching in his ears, and their tradition before his eyes' (Adv. Haer. 3,3,3)."

"The Church Has a Sacramental, Not a Political Structure"

What is the church? Benedict tells us that "St. Clement['s letter to the Corinthians] underlines that the Church has a sacramental structure, not a political structure. God's actions that come to us in the liturgy precede our decisions and our ideas. The Church is above all a gift of God and not a creature of ours and therefore this sacramental structure not only guarantees the common order but also the precedence of the gift of God that we all need. "

As Cardinal Ratzinger, Benedict warned the church that it was incrreasingly perceived more like a multinational corporation that the body of Christ.


You can read the whole address and his comments to the English speaking pilgrims on zenit (www.zenit.org )