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POPE-AUDIENCE Nov-11-2009 (470 words) With photos. xxxi
Human values, Europe's future are rooted in Christianity, says pope
By Carol Glatz
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Leaders who want to promote authentic human values and the future of Europe should rediscover, protect and promote the cultural and religious legacy that blossomed on the continent during the Middle Ages, said Pope Benedict XVI.
Instrumental in forging Europe's Christian identity was the Benedictine monastery of Cluny in France, he said during his general audience in the Vatican's Paul VI hall Nov. 11.
The pope continued his catechesis on the Christian culture of the Middle Ages by highlighting the monastic reform launched by the monastery of Cluny in the 10th century.
Founded during an era marked by profound social decay, political instability, war and widespread poverty, the monastery of Cluny "represented the spirit of a deep renewal of monastic life by returning it to its original ideas" of strict observance to the Rule of St. Benedict and making the liturgy the center of monastic life, the pope said.
The reform "stressed the solemn celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours and holy Mass" and promoted the use of sacred music, art and architecture to contribute to the beauty and solemnity of worshiping God, he said.
The monks stressed the importance of silence in their daily lives because they knew "that the purity of the virtues they aspired to necessitated private and constant meditation," the pope said.
The influence of Cluny quickly spread throughout the continent, he said, and its reforms had a positive impact on both the renewal of monastic life and the universal church.
Many bishops and some popes had been monks from Cluny and they took concrete action in expanding the spiritual renewal begun there, building on Cluny's reputation for sanctity and its devotion to evangelical inspiration and perfection.
In addition, the pope said, those connected with Cluny fought "two serious evils that afflicted the church during that period": clerical immorality and simony -- the buying or selling of ecclesiastical offices and other sacred things.
"The celibacy of priests returned to being appreciated and lived and more transparent procedures were introduced for staffing ecclesiastical offices," he said.
"Cluny helped forge the continent's Christian identity by its emphasis on the primacy of the spirit, respect for human dignity, commitment to peace and an authentic and integral humanism," Pope Benedict said.
This "important and precious contribution" from 1,000 years ago must not be forgotten, he added.
"Let us pray that those who are concerned about authentic humanism and the future of Europe may know how to rediscover, value and defend the rich cultural and religious heritage" from that time, he said.
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Editor's Note: The text of the pope's audience remarks in English will be posted online at: www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2009/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20091111_en.html.
The text of the pope's audience remarks in Spanish will be posted online at: www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/audiences/2009/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20091111_sp.html.
END
Copyright (c) 2009 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
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