Pope says Christians should announce Christ's death, resurrection

Published: 2007-04-11

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI said modern Christians should imitate the early disciples by announcing Christ's death and resurrection wherever they live and work. "We, too, like Mary Magdalene and St. Thomas and the other apostles, are called to be witnesses of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We can't keep this great news to ourselves. We need to announce it to the whole world," the pope said at his general audience April 11. The disciples had the gift of encountering the risen Christ in their homes, offering them a tangible confirmation of the resurrection, he said. But as St. Augustine said, Christians should know that "to have Christ in one's own heart is greater than having him in one's home," the pope said. "We, too, if we seek the Lord with a simple and sincere spirit, will meet him. In fact, he himself will come to meet us. He will make himself known, he will call us by name, he will lead us to the closeness of his love," the pope said. More than 35,000 people filled the seats in St. Peter's Square to see and hear the pope at his first general audience following Holy Week liturgies.

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