I går nevnte jeg hva pave Benedikt i onsdagsaudiens denne uka hadde tatt opp om Paulus’ (eller «Pauli») budskap om oppstandelsen. Her vil jeg også vise til hva paven har sagt hver onsdag i hele oktober om ulike aspekter ved Paulus’ liv og lære. Jeg nevner temaene for hans prekener motsatt kronologisk rekkefølge:
On St. Paul and the Cross
«The Risen One Is Always the One Who Has Been Crucified»
Dear brothers and sisters:
In the personal experience of St. Paul, there is an indisputable fact: While at the beginning he had been a persecutor of the Christians and had used violence against them, from the moment of his conversion on the road to Damascus, he changed to the side of Christ crucified, making him the reason for his life and the motive for his preaching. ….
On Paul’s Christology
«The Radical Humility of Christ Is the Expression of Divine Love»
Dear brothers and sisters:
In the catecheses from previous weeks, we have meditated on the «conversion» of St. Paul, fruit of a personal encounter with the crucified and risen Christ, and we have asked ourselves about the reaction of the Apostle to the Gentiles to the earthly Jesus. Today I would like to speak of the teaching St. Paul left us about the centrality of the risen Christ in the mystery of salvation, about his Christology. …..
St. Paul’s Teaching on the Church
«We Are the Temple of God in the World»
Dear brothers and sisters:
In last Wednesday’s catechesis, I spoke of Paul’s relationship with the pre-Easter Jesus in his earthly life. The question was: «What did Paul know of the life of Jesus, his words, his passion?»
Today, I would like to speak of the teaching of St. Paul on the Church. We should begin by noting that this word — «iglesia» in Spanish, like «église» in French or «chiesa» in Italian — is taken from the Greek «ekklēsía.» It comes from the Old Testament and means the assembly of the people of Israel, gathered by God, and particularly the model assembly at the foot of Sinai. …..
On How St. Paul Knew Christ
«Jesus Lives Now and Speaks With Us Now»
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In the previous catecheses on St. Paul, I spoke of his encounter with the Risen Christ, which fundamentally changed his life, and then of his relationship with the Twelve Apostles called by Jesus, particularly with Sts. James, Peter and John, and of his relationship with the Church of Jerusalem.
The question that now remains is what St. Paul knew of the earthly Jesus: of his life, his teachings, his passion. Before entering into this question it could be useful to have in mind that Paul himself distinguished two ways of knowing Jesus and, in general, two ways of knowing a person. …..
Også tidligere: Onsdagsaudiensen 10. september
On Paul, an Apostle of Christ
«Love Is the True Wealth of Human Life»
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Last Wednesday I spoke about the great turning point in St. Paul’s life after his encounter with the Risen Christ. Jesus entered his life and transformed him from persecutor into apostle. That meeting marked the start of his mission. Paul could not continue to live as he did before. Now he felt invested by the Lord with the charge to proclaim his Gospel as an apostle.
It is precisely about this new condition of life, namely of his being an apostle of Christ, that I would like to speak today. In keeping with the Gospel, we normally identify the Twelve with the title of apostles, thus intending to indicate those who were life companions and hearers of Jesus’ teaching. But Paul also feels himself a true apostle and it seems clear, therefore, that the Pauline concept of apostolate is not restricted to the group of Twelve. ….