His Holiness Pope Leo XIV at Audience: Vatican II calls us to friendship with Christ

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV at General Audience (@Vatican Media)

During his weekly General Audience, His Holiness Pope Leo XIV continues his new catechesis series on the Second Vatican Council and its documents, looking more closely at "one of the most beautiful and important of the Council," namely the Dogmatic Constitution 'Dei Verbum,' on the Divine Revelation.

By Deborah Castellano Lubov

“No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends..."

His Holiness Pope Leo XIV recalled Jesus' words in the Gospel passage according to St. John, during his Wednesday General Audience, on January 14, in the Vatican, as he continued his new catechesis series, which is dedicated to Vatican Council II and a rereading of its Documents.

The Pope announced that this week we would examine the Dogmatic Constitution Dei Verbum, on the divine Revelation, as he called it one of the most beautiful and important Documents of the Council.

The Holy Father recalled how the text remembers Jesus' having called us to be His friends.

"This is a fundamental point of Christian faith, which Dei Verbum reminds us of: Jesus Christ radically transforms man’s relationship with God, which is henceforth a relationship of friendship. Therefore, the only condition of the new covenant is love."

God makes us sons and daughters

He acknowledged that we are not equal to God and the pact between God and mankind always remains asymmetrical, with God being God and with us only being creatures.

However, in spite of this, the Holy Father reminds that with the coming of the Son in human flesh, the Covenant opens up to its final purpose.

"In Jesus," he said, "God makes us sons and daughters, and calls us to become like Him, albeit in our fragile humanity." The Pope urged faithful to listen as God speaks to them.

With this in mind, Pope Leo reminded the faithful of their need to listen, "so that the divine Word may penetrate our minds and our hearts," and also "to speak with God," "not to communicate to him what He already knows, but to reveal ourselves to ourselves."

Must make time for prayer each day

This, he explained, is why prayer is so important for us to live and to cultivate friendship with the Lord, "first of all" in liturgical and community prayer, "in which we do not decide what to hear from the Word of God, but it is He Himself who speaks to us through the Church"…

 This report was originally publsihed on the Website of Vatican News. Please click here to read the full text.