00 15/04/2015 23:47




ALWAYS AND EVER OUR MOST BELOVED BENEDICTUS XVI









As our beloved Benedict is about to turn 88, his private secretary, Mons. Gaenswein, brings up the subject of death in an interview broadcast last night in Italy. I think two reasons I have not felt particularly distressed when thinking of the inevitable is that I am sure Joseph Ratzinger/Benedict XVI is in God's hands in a very special way, and that St. Joseph, his name saint, is the patron of a happy death. And so I end every daily prayer and thought about B16 with "God grant you more years of a quiet, prayerful and happy life in his service". AD MULTOS ANNOS, SANCTE PATER!

New interview with Mons. Gaenswein:
Benedict XVI at 88 'preparing to meet God',
and Francis is not intimidated by ISIS threats

April 14, 2015

"Pope Benedict XVI thinks about death and is preparing for it - obviously, as he is a man about to turn 88, he thinks of this," says Mons. Georg Gaenswein, private secretary to the emeritus Pope and prefect of the Francis's Pontifical Household.

"We have spoken about this many times, he and I, although he is usually very discreet and reserved. But his attitude is very Christian - to prepare for death means to prepare to meet God, which is, obviously, the conclusive meeting".

Mons. Gaenswein spoke to Mediaset (Italian Channel 4) for the initial presentation of a series called "La Strada dei Miracoli" (The street of miracles) premiering tonight (April 14).

He also spoke about the threats of ISIS against Pope Francis, saying: "The Pope has no fears for himself. He fears for the faithful [wherever they are threatened or actually persecuted], but certainly, the ISIS threat must be taken seriously. He has spoken several times about persons who are persecuted just because they are Christians - they are killed, burned, crucified, or beheaded. For himself, I don't think he has any fear at all of the fundamentalists".

On the question of miracles, Gaenswein said:
At various times we get letters from persons thanking Benedict XVI - because they had asked him to pray for them in a situation of great difficulty or a serious health crisis, which they subsequently overcame. And they say this was thanks to Pope Benedict's prayers... And so they thank him. I think faith produces miracles, and if the prayer is strong, it can produce miracles. I think that is an experience with all believers....

The most important thing about these phenomena is to distinguish the false from the true - a 'mystic' experience from a true miracle. There are also varied cases of apparitions and private revelations...

Personally, I am very cautious. We must not forget that even Lucifer, the angel of light turned Satan, can deceive masterfully.
Therefore, it is best to keep calm, be prudent and trust in prayer...

However, anyone who prays to receive a private revelation or a special experience is looking for something extraordinary rather than trusting in the power of prayer.

Gaenswein also talks of the little free time that he has: "I go to the mountains. Certainly I read, I listen to music... I especially like the songs of Gianna Nannini and Eros Ramazzoti [popular Italian songwriter/singers who rose to fame in the 1980s - I liked their music, too!]. Of course I would like to take up tennis again, which I stopped after Pope Benedict retired, but I still have not found the time to do that".



Earlier this week, Beatrice posted a photograph of B16 taken April 9 with seminarians from Munich who had come to Rome for a weeklong field trip. A Danish reader of her site pointed her to the website of the Archdiocesan St. John the Baptist Seminary of Munich, from which I translated the following account:



Meetings and experiences during
our Easter Octave in Rome, April 6-11

On Easter Monday, while we were still brimming with the joy of the Resurrection, the community of the seminary started out after Lauds for Rome. The Eternal City, in which the heart of the Church beats as in no other place, certainly impresses everyone who visits, and for us seminarians, our trip to Rome was truly an impressive experience.

We began with a 'seven churches' pilgrimage which took us over a 25-kilometer walk through the city to visit the seven main churches, and thereby, to revisit the stations of the life of Jesus and various dimensions of the faith, with the help of our Rector. Thus our first day was spiritually and culturally edifying even if it was most tiring for our legs.

Among others, the objective for the trip was also to get to know some of the offices of the Roman Curia. In the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Fr. Hermann Geissler, FSO, explained to us the dicastery's tasks and structure, its experiences and main concerns. At the Secretariat of State, Fr. Martin Linner, SJ, gave us a substantial overview of the secretariat's work, but also spoke to us of his own personal motivation for his vocation and about his life and work, in a way that gave us a closer human look at how the Vatican administers the Church.

One of our first meetings was with Prelate Eugen Kleindienst at the German embassy to the Holy See. He spoke to us about the Church's diplomacy and politics.

But the high point of our trip was certainly our meeting with emeritus Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday. We were tense with anticipation throughout the day, more so while we had to undergo security checks before we were allowed to proceed.

Archbishop Georg Gaenswein greeted us at Mater Ecclesiae and led us to the chapel. Because of the size of our group, it was the only place large enough to accommodate our meeting with the Pope.



The warmth that Benedict XVI radiated quickly put us at ease: he was visibly happy over a visit from his homeland, and was soon relating his own experience as a seminarian. We had a conversation about what is most essential in priestly life: friendship with Christ, fraternity and community with each other, the importance of study, and the spiritual life.

Benedict's personality, the dignity and elegance that he radiates, and above all, the friendliness with which he spoke to each of us, moved us greatly, encouraging us seminarians even more on our way to priesthood.

Then the trip came to an end. We had accomplished our program, and between Masses and meetings, we even had time to discover the fascinations of Rome according to our personal interests. Thus, our community grew even closer this week and we look forward to the new semester with renewed zeal.

I find it noteworthy that the narrator twice used the German verb 'ausstrahlen' - to radiate - when describing the attributes he noted most in Benedict XVI. It is a verb I have always associated with him from the moment he stepped out to greet the world for the first time as Pope almost ten years ago today... It manifests an almost palpable spiritual glow that few people are graced with. Its force struck me directly and irresistibly on April 19, 2005, in an experience that is unrepeatable - certainly, a defining moment in my own spiritual development.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 16/04/2015 16:38]