Cardinal Cantara Mesa, preacher of the Pope’s Palace, led the Holy See’s first meditation for the 2023 Lent season. The cardinal stressed the need to renew the newness that comes from the Holy Spirit.
(Vatican News Network)On the morning of March 3, Cardinal Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the Pope’s Palace, led the staff of the Holy See in the first meditation of this year’s Lent in the Paul VI Hall of the Vatican. The cardinal focused on the “newness of the Holy Spirit”, emphasizing the need for continuous renewal and conversion of individuals and the Church as a whole.
Cardinal Cantara Mesa pointed out that the problem is not what is new, but how we respond to it. “Every innovation and every challenge is a crossroads. We may take two very different paths, the secular path or the divine path, the path of death or the path of life.”
“Infallibility” in the Church means “always on the path of life and light”, that is: following the Holy Spirit. The homily explained that this year’s Lent series of meditations aims to “encourage us to put the Holy Spirit at the center of the whole life of the Church”, especially in the current Synod process.
We can learn from the experience of Christian groups in the early days of the church. At that time, the church obeyed the guidance of the Holy Spirit and followed the guidance of the Holy Spirit no matter how big or small it was. For example, on the issue of admitting Gentiles into the church, the early church sought the guidance of the Holy Spirit to make a decision. This approach was also used at the Second Vatican Council: through it the Church endeavored to renew the teaching of the Church itself, and in particular the role of the lay faithful.
Moreover, in matters concerning the Church, it is not only by councils or decrees that they are settled, but also by the acceptance of these teachings. This may sometimes require a “compromise”. Cardinal Cantara Mesa explained that when everything is practiced in the Holy Spirit, “compromise is not a concession, or a compromise of the truth, but an act of charity and conformity to the times”.
Next, the cardinal mentioned the role of the Apostle Peter as a coordinator when everyone disagrees (see: Act XV). The successive popes, as Peter’s successors, still play the same role today. When extreme opposing views and divisions arise within the church, the solution is to try to read the issue from the other side’s point of view.
When making judgments, never condemn them. According to the cardinal, this is not to say that we do not know right from wrong, but to remove those harmful elements from our judgment. “The power of Christian love lies in its ability to transform judgment”, by the grace of the Holy Spirit “transforming judgment from an act without love into an act of love”.
The preacher of the Pope’s Palace finally prayed to the Lord: “Please make me an instrument of your peace.”
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