Pope Benedict XVI Leaves for Castel Gandolfo Teaching on Freedom. New Encyclical on Faith

7,000 pilgrims filled the Paul VI Hall to hear this beloved Pope at the last of his scheduled catechetical teachings until August 4, 2010. The Pope left for Castel Gandolfo after the instruction. 'Freedom', the Pope explained, 'is authentic and helps in the construction of a truly human civilization only when reconciled with truth. If disconnected from truth, freedom tragically becomes the principle that destroys the inner harmony of human beings, a source of abuse for the strong and the violent, a cause of suffering and mourning. Freedom ... grows and is perfected, said Duns Scotus, when man opens himself to God.'

ROME, Italy (Catholic Online) - Continuing his series of extraordinary Wednesday teachings on great theologians from the Middle Ages, the gifted Teacher in the Chair of Peter, Benedict XVI, delighted the pilgrims who flocked to hear him. He taught on the great 13th Century Franciscan Friar, priest and theologian from Scotland, John Duns Scotus. He recalled that the Venerable john Paul II aptly referred to Duns Scotus as, "the cantor of the incarnate Word". The title would be an apt one for this Pope as well. His teachings since he assumed the Chair of Peter have been both inspired and profound. Over 7,000 pilgrims filled the Paul VI Hall to hear this beloved Pope at the last of his scheduled catechetical teachings until August 4, 2010. The Pope left for Castel Gandolfo after the instruction. There he will spend the summer months in protracted prayer, work, and study. However, it has also been revealed that he is writing another Encyclical Letter, this one focusing on Faith. It will complete his triptych on Love, Hope and Faith, the three Theological Virtues at the heart of the Christian life, message and mission. The Pope reminded the pilgrims that the great theologian Duns Scotus lived in a time of great struggle when the Church and the Ruling authorities were in conflict, a time not unlike our own. He told the pilgrims Duns Scotus " invites us to remember how many times in the history of the Church, believers have found hostility and promptly even persecution because of their loyalty and devotion to Christ, to the Church and to the Pope. We all look with admiration to these Christians, that teach us to protect as a precious inheritance the faith in Christ and the communion with the Successor of Peter and, therefore, with the Universal Church." In addition to the theologians "great Christo- centric vision" and Marian insights, the Pope focused on a theme in Duns Scotus which is also central to the magisterium of Pope Benedict XVI - the nature and obligations of true human freedom.  "Freedom", the Pope explained, "is authentic and helps in the construction of a truly human civilization only when reconciled with truth. If disconnected from truth, freedom tragically becomes the principle that destroys the inner harmony of human beings, a source of abuse for the strong and the violent, a cause of suffering and mourning. Freedom ... grows and is perfected, said Duns Scotus, when man opens himself to God. ... When we listen to the divine Revelation, to the Word of God, in order to accept it, then we receive a message which fills our lives with light and hope, and we are truly free". In an editorial entitled "The Catholic Church is the Guardian of True Freedom for our Age" I recently noted that Pope Benedicts' focus on the nature and obligations of human freedom continues the teaching on the subject found in the Venerable John Paul II and the Second Vatican Council. The Catholic Church points the way to authentic human freedom in an age which has been deluded by a multitude of counterfeits and competing claims. This neo-pagan age has become enslaved while proclaiming a counterfeit notion of freedom. The task of exposing what both John Paul and Benedict call "erroneous interpretations of freedom" and insisting on freedoms constitutive connection to truth lies at the core of Pope Benedict's pontificate. In one of his seminal works entitled "Introduction to Christianity" he wrote "one could very well describe Christianity as a philosophy of freedom." And, so it is. Philosophy deals with existential questions such as what is freedom and how it is to be exercised in a manner which promotes human flourishing and promotes the true common good. This neo-pagan age has become intoxicated on the wine of a false notion of freedom as a power over others who are weaker and the "right" to do whatever one wills rather than what is right and true.  In the homily he gave just prior to being chosen to succeed John Paul II where he warned of the "Dictatorship of Relativism, then Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger also uttered these profound words "The freedom to kill is not true freedom, but a tyranny that reduces the human being to slavery." While calling doing what is wrong a "right," contemporary men and women are bound in chains of self delusion, atheistic materialism and nihilism. The new slavery of this age treats persons as property to be used rather than gifts to be received. It propels the advance of the culture of death. The capacity to make choices is what makes us human persons, reflecting the Image of God. As the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council wrote in the "Mission of the Church in the Modern World', "Authentic freedom is an outstanding manifestation of the divine image within man." (Gaudium et Spes, "Joy and Hope," 17). However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church also reminds us that "Mortal sin is a radical possibility of human freedom, as is love itself." (CCC, 1861) Authentic Human Freedom cannot be realized in decisions made against God and against the Natural Law. Authentic freedom has a moral constitution. It must be exercised in reference to the truth concerning the human person, the family, our obligations in solidarity to one another and the common good. That is why the fullness of authentic human freedom is ultimately found in a relationship with the God who is its source and who alone can set us free to choose rightly. In his encyclical letter on Faith and Reason, John Paul wrote: "It is not just that freedom is part of the act of faith: it is absolutely required. Indeed, it is faith that allows individuals to give consummate expression to their own freedom. Put differently, freedom is not realized in decisions made against God. For how could it be an exercise of true freedom to refuse to be open to the very reality which enables our self-realization? Men and women can accomplish no more important act in their lives than the act of faith; it is here that freedom reaches the certainty of truth and chooses to live in that truth." (Fides et Ratio # 13) We can expect a profoundly important development of the relationship between saving faith and the exercise of true freedom in Pope Benedicts coming Encyclical Letter.  Choosing what is good and what is true is the only pathway to authentic human freedom. The Catholic Catechism instructs "The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes. There is no true freedom except in the service of what is good and just. The choice to disobey and do evil is an abuse of freedom and leads to "the slavery of sin." (Cf. Rom 6:17) (CCC 1733) Accompanying the counterfeit definitions of "freedom" in our day is a growing hostility toward the Catholic Church. That is partly because she, like the One who founded her, insists on the existence of moral absolutes and right and wrong. In so doing, she threatens the Dictatorship of Relativism and contends for the future. We eagerly await this theologian Popes next Encyclical Letter on Faith. He understands that the great crisis of our age is a crisis of truth and meaning. It can only be met with a strong, clear and unqualified re-presentation of the fullness of the Christian proclamation. There is no doubt that Pope Benedict XVI is well equipped to lead the Church into a new missionary age.  The Pope concluded Wednesday's audience by telling the 7000 pilgrims that the Franciscan Theologian John Duns Scotus reminds us " that the essential thing in our lives is to believe that God is close to us and loves us in Jesus Christ, and to cultivate, then, a profound love for Him and His Church. We are the witnesses of that love on this earth." Let us hear these words of Pope Benedict XVI and live them.

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