The Pope once again met with pilgrims in St. Peter's Square to deliver his weekly public catechesis. This time, he focused on the rites of the sacred liturgy.
SUMMARY OF THE WEEKLY PUBLIC CATECHESIS IN SPANISH:
Dear brothers and sisters,
In our series of catecheses on the Second Vatican Council, we continue our reflection on Sacrosanctum Concilium, by looking at the elements of the rite, the sign, and the symbol found in the sacred liturgy. The rite of the Christian liturgy is the ecclesial mediation through which the divine gift reaches us. In the liturgy, we are invited to participate — body, mind, and heart — and enter into a dimension inhabited by the Holy Spirit. In order to enter into this dimension, the liturgy is woven with signs and symbols that have a performative and transformative dimension.
For example, kneeling is a sign of our worship of God while exchanging the sign of peace points to our ecclesial communion. Further, signs help us to recall the constitutive acts of the Sacraments as when we are sprinkled with holy water we remember our commitment to Christ.
As we prepare for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, may each of us reawaken our openness to an encounter with God by rediscovering the signs and symbols of the sacred liturgy.
I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, particularly the groups from England, Sweden, Australia, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, South Korea, Canada, and the United States of America. I greet in particular the scholars and participants in the conference “Revising the World Medical Association Declaration of Taipei” and the organizing partners of the Global Summit, “Fostering Hope for Children.”
As we prepare for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, let us be strengthened by this divine gift and become witnesses of his love to all we encounter. God bless you!
