Scripture & Ecumenism -Il Papa

Listening to the word of God is a priority for ecumenism, said Benedict XVI at the close of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

"The Church does not 'make' herself and does not live of herself, but of the creative word that issues from the mouth of God," the Pope said Thursday at the ecumenical celebration of vespers, held in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls.

The Holy Father suggested that to proceed on the path to Christian unity it is necessary to "listen together to the word of God; to practice 'lectio divina' of the Bible," and to "allow oneself to be surprised by the novelty, which never grows old and is never exhausted, of the word of God." The Pontiff also underlined the need "to overcome our deafness so that those words will penetrate which do not accord with our prejudices and opinions; to listen and to study, in communion with believers of all times."

All this, continued Benedict XVI, "constitutes a path that must be followed to attain unity in faith, as response to listening of the word."

The Pope was received in the crowded basilica by its Cardinal Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo, archpriest of the basilica, and Benedictine Abbot Primate Notker Wolf.

During the celebration Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, reviewed the most important ecumenical events which Benedict XVI attended this past year.

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