Praise be Jesus Christ.
Welcome to this live broadcast of Pope Leo's weekly Wednesday general audience held in the Paul VI Audience Hall of the Vatican.
My name is Kelsey Gussy, and I am Sister Christine Masivo, and we will be providing the English language commentary and translations for this event from wherever you're joining us. I would like to welcome you to this live broadcast. Some of you may also be joining us through the Vatican News app, Vatican News English YouTube channel, or our Facebook live feed.
And to all of you joining us through all our media partners: EWTN TV, Catholic Faith Network in America, Salt and Light TV, Shalom World TV, Adomaran TV, Catholic TV, and all our listeners with Luminous Radio India and Radio Maria England. A very special welcome to all of you.
So, as you can see, for those of you who have the images on your screen, the audience is being held not in St. Peter's Square, but in the Paul VI Audience Hall, because it is a rainy and cloudy morning here in the Eternal City.
Last week, in his continuing catechesis series on the documents of the Second Vatican Council, the Pope looked closely at the dogmatic constitution Dei Verbum on divine revelation, and more specifically, he reflected on the close relationship between sacred scripture and tradition. The word of God is not fossilized, but rather it is a living and organic reality that develops and grows in tradition, he underlined. Thanks to the Holy Spirit, tradition understands it in the riches of its truth and embodies it in the shifting coordinates of history.
The Pope also highlighted how tradition, which comes from the apostles, develops in the Church with the help of the Holy Spirit.
And last week, in further talking about the relationship between sacred scripture and tradition — tradition with a capital T — the Pope also explained that there is the living dimension of the word of God. And to show this, he quoted the Doctor of the Church, St. John Henry Newman, who affirmed that Christianity, both as a communal experience and as a doctrine, is a dynamic reality in the manner indicated by Jesus himself in the parables of the seed — a living reality that develops thanks to an inner vital force.
And speaking of John Henry Newman, just yesterday, the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments released a decree in which Pope Leo XIV inscribed the Doctor of the Church, John Henry Newman, in the General Roman Calendar, with his memorial to be held on October 9th.
And with that, we hear the crowds in the Paul VI Audience Hall greeting Pope Leo as he enters the hall to begin the general audience. [cheering] [applause]
We now hear the reading of today, which comes from 2 Timothy chapter 3, verses 14 to 16.
A reading from the second letter of St. Paul to Timothy. But as for you, Timothy, continue in what you have learned and firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it, and how from childhood you have known the sacred writings that are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. The word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
So as we continue to hear the different languages, it is the reading taken from the second letter of St. Paul to Timothy, chapter 3, verses 14 to 16.
And now we will hear the Holy Father's catechesis in Italian, and we will translate into English.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome.
The conciliar constitution Dei Verbum, on which we are reflecting during these weeks, indicates in the sacred scripture read in the living tradition of the Church a privileged space for encounter, where God continues to speak to the men and women of every time, so that by listening they can know him and love him.
The biblical texts, however, were not written in a heavenly or superhuman language. Indeed, as daily life teaches us, two people who speak different languages cannot understand each other. They cannot enter into dialogue and are unable to establish a relationship. In some cases, making oneself understood by others is a first act of love. This is why God chooses to speak using human languages, and thus various authors, inspired by the Holy Spirit, have written the texts of the sacred scripture.
As the conciliar document reminds us, the words of God expressed in human language have been made like human discourse, just as the word of the eternal Father, when he took to himself the flesh of human weakness, was in every way made like men. Therefore, not only in its content, but also in its language, the scripture reveals God's merciful condescension towards men and his desire to be close to them.
Throughout the course of the history of the Church, the relationship between the divine author and the human authors of the sacred scriptures has been studied for several centuries. Many theologians were concerned to defend the divine inspiration of the sacred scripture, almost considering the human authors merely as passive tools of the Holy Spirit. In more recent times, reflection has re-evaluated the contribution of the hagiographers in the writings of sacred scripture, to the point that the conciliar document speaks of God as the principal author of the sacred scripture, but also calls the hagiographers true authors of the sacred book.
As a keen exegete of the last century observed, to reduce human activity to that of mere instruments is not to glorify divine activity. God never modifies human beings and their potential.
If therefore the scripture is the word of God in human words, any approach to it that neglects or denies one of these two dimensions proves to be a partial interpretation. It follows that a correct interpretation of the sacred texts cannot dispense with the historic environment in which they developed and the literary forms that were used. On the contrary, to renounce the study of the human words that God used risks leading to fundamentalist or spiritualist readings of the scripture which betray its meaning.
This principle also applies to the proclamation of the word of God. If it loses touch with reality, with human hopes and sufferings, if an incomprehensible language is used, uncommunicative or anachronistic, it is ineffective. In every age, the Church is called to repropose the word of God in a language capable of being embodied in history and reaching hearts.
As Pope Francis reminds us, whenever we make the effort to return to the source and to recover the original freshness of the gospel, new avenues arise. New paths of creativity open up with different forms of expression, more eloquent signs and words with new meaning for today's world.
Equally reductive, on the other hand, is a reading of the scripture that neglects its divine origin and ends up understanding it as a mere human teaching, as something to be studied simply from a technical point of view, or as a text only of the past. Rather, especially when proclaimed in the context of the liturgy, scripture is intended to speak to today's believers, to touch their present lives with their problems, to enlighten the steps to be taken and the decisions to be made.
This becomes possible only when believers read and interpret the scripture texts under the guidance of the same Spirit who inspired them. In this regard, the scripture serves to nurture the life and charity of believers. As St. Augustine recalls, 'Whoever thinks that he understands the holy scriptures, but such an interpretation upon the mass does not tend to build up this twofold love of God and our neighbor, yet does not understand them as he ought.'
The divine origin of the scripture also recalls that the gospel entrusted to the witness of the baptized, despite embracing all the dimensions of life and reality, transcends them. It cannot be reduced to a mere philanthropic or social message, but is the joyful proclamation of the full and eternal life that God has given to us in Jesus.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us thank the Lord because in his goodness he ensures our lives do not lack the essential nourishment of his word. And let us pray that our words, and even more so our lives, do not obscure the love of God that is narrated in them.
And now we will hear different greetings in different languages to the Holy Father, as well as a recap, a summary of the Pope's catechesis in each of these languages. Now we hear it in French.
I greet the French-speaking pilgrims in particular, the Directorate of Catholic Education of the Diocese of Annecy, and the colleges of St. Francis of Assisi, St. Roch, and St. Charles.
Let us be diligent in reading the sacred scriptures so that they may shape our hearts and inspire our actions. May the word of God be incarnated in us and make our world a better place. May God bless you.
Most Holy Father, the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors wish to express to you their sentiments of deep respect and esteem, and to assure you of their prayers for your ministry as the successor of Peter.
At the end of the audience, we will sing together the Our Father in Latin. His Holiness will then impart his apostolic blessing, which he extends in a particular way to the members of your families at home. He also intends to bless any religious articles you may have brought for this purpose. And in a special way, his blessing goes to your children, the elderly, and those who are sick.
Dear brothers and sisters, in our continuing catechesis on the dogmatic constitution Dei Verbum, we reflect on the divine and human authorship of scripture. God is the principal author of scripture, and he chooses to reveal himself by using human language. Indeed, the various authors of scripture are not passive instruments, but are divinely inspired to communicate the word of God by utilizing literary forms and creative methods that incorporate images and examples of their time. While scripture is a text rooted in historical truth, it also contains a limitless spiritual depth that speaks to people of all times and places, communicating above all God's love and God's desire to save us. Let us thank God for his word that nourishes our lives, illumines our paths, and reminds us of the promise of eternal life.
I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today's audience, especially the groups from Ireland, Denmark, Japan, South Korea, and the United States of America. I greet in particular the students from the Junction Junior and Senior High School, and the students and faculty from Franciscan University in Steubenville.
Upon all of you and upon your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. God bless you.
And now we hear the summary of the catechesis in German.
Dear brothers and sisters of the German language, as we read the sacred scripture, let us implore the light of the Holy Spirit so that we may understand the word of God ever more deeply and recognize what he asks of us in the concrete situations of our daily lives.
And now we will hear a greeting and summary in Spanish.
Now, Pope Leo reads a quick summary in Spanish of the catechesis. As we just heard in English, I will not translate. He continues.
I cordially greet the Spanish-speaking pilgrims.
Let us ask the Holy Spirit to enlighten us so that we may proclaim the word of God with creative fidelity and missionary joy, announcing with our words and our deeds the wonders of his love. May the Lord bless you.
Thank you very much.
Now we'll hear the greeting and summary in Chinese.
