The Cross Over Germany, the Cross on Our Hearts

October 12, 2011 By 1 Comment

“I crossed Germany from north to south, from east to west.”

–Pope Benedict XVI, speaking about
his apostolic visit to his homeland

 

 We are a people of hope and a people of symbol.

This was made apparent once again when Pope Benedict XVI, traveling by air during his recent apostolic trip to his homeland, flew from Berlin to Erfurt, from Eichsfeld to Freiburg—thus drawing the Sign of the Cross over the country of Germany.  Amid the flurry of state visits, papal processions and encounters with abuse victims, the Pope had thoughtfully overlaid this symbol of grace and faith.

The imagery of Pope Benedict’s large-scale aerial blessing was largely overlooked, as news reports focused instead on his messages to Jewish rabbis, Muslim leaders, and victims of clergy sexual abuse.  It was the Pope himself who called attention to this significant detail in the planning.

The Sign of the Cross—drawn with the Pope’s hand and with his airplane—had marked Germany for Jesus.

Read more about the Sign of the Cross, about its use in the earliest days of the Church, and about what the Catechism teaches about this ancient prayer, in my post at the Patheos website.

Filed Under: Catholic, Faith, Germany, Pope Benedict XVI, Prayer Tagged With: , , , 1 Comment

Freiburg, the Pope, and Me

September 24, 2011 By 2 Comments




Today, September 24, Pope Benedict XVI rode through the streets of Freiburg in the popemobile before meeting with a group of lay Catholics gathered at the Freiburg Seminary.  In the background of the copyrighted photo, you can clearly see Freiburg’s village clock.

I was there, too, in October 2000.  I was poring through some photos and came across one in particular that I’d like to share.

Our family photo reveals the village clock in clearer perspective.  It also shows you that right next door to the clock tower is an apothecary shop (apotheke) and—Who knew!?—a McDonald’s restaurant.  No golden arches, though, from what I can see.

*     *     *     *

 

 

 

 

Freiburg, Germany, is a city of cobblestone streets, religious imagery, and striking architecture.

*     *     *     *

Freiburg’s cathedral, called Freiburg Minster, was built on the foundation of an earlier church which had stood on the site since 1120, when the city of Freiburg had its beginnings.  In its tower, the only Gothic church tower in all of Germany, are 16 bells including the great “Hosanna” bell, dating back to 1258.  The sturdy tower with its lead anchors survived the World War II bombing raids of 1944, during which all the houses on the west and north side of the market were destroyed.

Filed Under: Catholic, Germany, Pope Benedict XVI, Travel Tagged With: , , , , , , 2 Comments

Benedict’s Visit to His German Homeland: Grace, Compassion and Truth

September 24, 2011 By 1 Comment

Day by day, Pope Benedict’s first official state visit to his native Germany brings encouraging reports:

In Berlin, he met with German Jewish leaders.  In that meeting, Pope Benedict emphasized that what the two faiths “hold in common is not an insignificant part of their traditions.”  He went on to tell the dozens of rabbis that:

It is clear to us all that a loving relationship of mutual understanding between Israel and the Church, each respecting the existence of the other, still has further to grow and needs to be built into the heart of our proclamation of the faith.

The pontiff met in a  closed-door session with a group of Muslims and again emphasized the good:  He praised Muslims for placing “great importance” on the religious dimension of life, and emphasized the importance of values shared by both the religions in an increasingly secularized society.

Speaking yesterday in the Erfurt chapel where Martin Luther—then an Augustinian monk—had prayed before launching his schismatic protest against Rome, Pope Benedict praised Luther’s “deep passion and driving force” in his beliefs. Of course the pope could not, though, do what some uninformed reporters had predicted and bring with him an “ecumenical gift”—that is, change Church teaching in order to achieve greater harmony with Protestants.  No, he explained; to expect this was a “political misreading of faith and of ecumenism.”

He also met yesterday with a group of victims of clergy sexual abuse, and expressed his “deep compassion and regret.”

Today, September 24, Pope Benedict XVI addressed German lay Catholics gathered in the Collegium Borromaeum, the priest seminary at Freiburg.  Speaking candidly about the secularism and relativism that have taken hold in that country, the pope said:

The Church in Germany is superbly organized. But behind the structures, is there also a corresponding spiritual strength, the strength of faith in a living God?

We must honestly admit that we have more than enough by way of structure but not enough by way of Spirit. I would add: the real crisis facing the Church in the western world is a crisis of faith. If we do not find a way of genuinely renewing our faith, all structural reform will remain ineffective.

Filed Under: Catholic, Ecumenism, Faith, Pope Benedict XVI, Theology Tagged With: , , , , , 1 Comment