God loves you! Real love is demanding. I would fail in my mission if I did not tell you so. Love demands a personal commitment to the will of God. - Bl. Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II on Universal Salvation ““Eternal damnation”, therefore, is not attributed to Gods initiative because in his merciful love he can only desire the salvation of the beings he created. In reality, it is the creature who closes himself to his love. Damnation consists precisely in definitive separation from God, freely chosen by the human person and confirmed with death that seals his choice for ever. God’s judgement ratifies this state. Christian faith teaches that in taking the risk of saying “yes” or “no”, which marks the human creature’s freedom, some have already said no. They are the spiritual creatures that rebelled against God’s love and are called demons (cf. Fourth Lateran Council, DS 800-801). What happened to them is a warning to us: it is a continuous call to avoid the tragedy which leads to sin and to conform our life to that of Jesus who lived his life with a “yes” to God. Eternal damnation remains a possibility, but we are not granted, without special divine revelation, the knowledge of whether or which human beings are effectively involved in it.” (General Audience — July 28, 1999) “The fruit of contemplating the least of his brothers is the discovery that every person, although in a way which is mysterious for us, is in search of God, by whom he or she is created and loved. His first disciples discovered this: [Lord], everyone is searching for you (Mk 1,37). And the Greeks, on behalf of future generations, exclaim: We wish to see Jesus (Jn 12,21). Yes, Christ is the true light that illuminates every person who comes into this world (cf. Jn 1,9): mankind searches for him, feeling after him (Acts 17,27), drawn by an inner attraction the origin of which they themselves do not know. It is hidden in the heart of God, where there beats a desire for universal salvation. Of this, God makes us witnesses and heralds. For this purpose he fills us, like in a new Pentecost, with the fire of his Spirit, with his love and with his presence: I am with you always, to the close of the age (Mt 28,20).” (The Holy Fathers Message For World Mission Sunday 2001, Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo (Ps 89[88],2) [I will sing the mercies of the Lord forever].) “If the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, is to convince the world precisely of this judgment, undoubtedly he does so to continue Christs work aimed at universal salvation. We can therefore conclude that in bearing witness to Christ, the Paraclete is an assiduous (though invisible) advocate and defender of the work of salvation, and of all those engaged in this work. He is also the guarantor of the definitive triumph over sin and over the world subjected to sin, in order to free it from sin and introduce it into the way of salvation.” (The Holy Spirit as Advocate; General Audience — May 24, 1989) “[The Church] is because of all that more serviceable for her mission of salvation for all: God desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. … Accordingly, what is in question here is man in all his truth, in his full magnitude. We are not dealing with the abstract man, but the real, concrete, historical man. We are dealing with each man, for each one is included in the mystery of the Redemption and with each one Christ has united himself for ever through this mystery. … The [Second Vatican] Council points out this very fact when, speaking of that likeness, it recalls that man is the only creature on earth that God willed for itself. Man as willed by God, as chosen by him from eternity and called, destined for grace and glory-this is each man, the most concrete man, the most real; this is man in all the fullness of the mystery in which he has become a sharer in Jesus Christ, the mystery in which each one of the four thousand million human beings living on our planet has become a sharer from the moment he is conceived beneath the heart of his mother.” (Encyclical Redemptor Hominis 5, 13) “The Churchs universal mission is born of faith in Jesus Christ, as is stated in our Trinitarian profession of faith: I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father.... For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man. The redemption event brings salvation to all, for each one is included in the mystery of the redemption and with each one Christ has united himself forever through this mystery. ... Just as by his incarnation the Son of God united himself in some sense with every human being, so too we are obliged to hold that the Holy Spirit offers everyone the possibility of sharing in the Paschal Mystery in a manner known to God. Gods plan is to unite all things in Christ, things in heaven and things on earth(Eph 1:10)… It is necessary to keep these two truths together, namely, the real possibility of salvation in Christ for all mankind and the necessity of the Church for salvation... We know, however, that Jesus came to bring integral salvation, one which embraces the whole person and all mankind, and opens up the wondrous prospect of divine filiation. Why mission? Because to us, as to St. Paul, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ (Eph 3:8). Newness of life in him is the Good News for men and women of every age: all are called to it anddestined for it.” (Encyclical, Redemptoris Missio 4, 6, 9, 11) “In proclaiming the Risen Lord, Christians present the One who inaugurates a new era of history and announce to the world the good news of a complete and universal salvation which contains in itself the pledge of a new world in which pain and injustice will give way to joy and beauty. At the beginning of a new millennium marked by a clearer awareness of the universality of salvation and a realization that the Gospel daily needs to be proclaimed anew, the Synodal Assembly raised an appeal that our commitment to mission should not be lessened but rather expanded, through ever more profound missionary cooperation.” (Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Pastores Gregis) “This universal mission of salvation takes on great importance on the day when the Church commemorates the conversion of St Paul. Among the Apostles, in fact, Paul himself expresses and fulfils the Church’s universal mission in a particular way. On the road to Damascus Christ associates him with the divine plan of universal salvation: “The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will ... for you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and heard” (Acts 22:14-16).” (Homily During Mass With His Holiness Aram I As Part Of Week Of Prayer For Christian Unity; Saturday, 25 Januray 1997) “All are invited to be reconciled to God (2 Cor 5:20), to be saved and to work together for universal salvation, because God wants all to be saved (1 Tim 2:4). All are invited with their personal qualities to work in the Fathers vineyard, where each one has his own place and his own recompense. ... For lay people this fruit is specifically their contribution to transforming the world by grace, and to building a better society. Only with fidelity to grace can the ways of grace be opened in the world. This happens when the laity carry out their own family tasks, especially in raising children. It also involves their own work of service to society at every level and in every form of involvement for the sake of justice, love and peace.” (Jesus Earthly Life Is a Model for the Laity; General Audience — November 10, 1993) “My dear Brother Bishops, as you make your way back to your local Churches, I ask God to strengthen you in your commitment to a renewed integral evangelization, in your efforts to present the One who inaugurates a new era of history and announce to the world the good news of a complete and universal salvation which contains in itself the pledge of a new world in which pain and injustice will give way to joy and beauty (Pastores Gregis¸ 65).” (Address Of John Paul II To The Bishops Of The Philippines On Their Ad Limina Visit, Thursday, 30 October 2003) “He offers himself in sacrifice to free humanity from the oppression of sin. He behaves in an exemplary way in his physical and especially moral sufferings, generously enduring injustices. As the fruit of his sacrifice, he receives a new life and obtains universal salvation.” (The Catechesis Of The Holy Father, The Word Became Flesh And Dwelt Among Us; General Audience — 3 December 1997) “As members of the one family of God we can tolerate no division or discrimination in our midst. When the Father sent his Son into the world he entrusted him with a mission of universal salvation. Jesus came that all may have life and have it abundantly (Jn 10:10). No person, no group is excluded from this mission of unifying love which has now been entrusted to us. We too must pray as Jesus did on the very eve of his death, with the simple and sublime words: Father may they be one in us, as you are in me and I am in you (Jn 17: 21 ).” (Message Of His Holiness Pope John Paul II For The Celebration Of The World Day Of Peace, 1 January 1989; To Build Peace, Respect Minorities) “A liturgical act is an event of grace whose effect exceeds the will or expertise of the agents who are called to be humble instruments in the Lords hands. It is they who have the task of making it possible to see what God is for us, what he does for us, and of making the faithful today realize that they are entering into the history of creation sanctified by the Redeemer, in the mystery of universal salvation. At a practical level, I will add that it is important to attend to the quality of the signs, without however showing elitism, for Christs followers, whatever their culture, must be able to recognize in the words and actions the Lords presence in his Church and the gifts of his grace.” (On the Pastoral Care of the Liturgy, March 8, 1997) “The complete dimension of the presbyters mission in relation to the Eucharist is understood if one considers that this sacrament is primarily the renewal at the altar of the sacrifice of the cross, the central moment in the work of redemption. Christ, the priest and victim, is as such the artisan of universal salvation, in obedience to the Father. He is the one high priest of the new and eternal covenant, who byaccomplishing our salvation offers perfect worship to the Father, a worship which ancient celebrations of the Old Testament merely prefigured.” (Priests Are Ordained to Celebrate Mass; General Audience — May 12, 1993) — with Jho Butil and Benhar Montesa.
Posted on: Tue, 22 Oct 2013 20:27:01 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015