SEVENTH ANNIVERSARY OF PONTIFICATE OF HIS HOLINESS, POPE BENEDICT XVI...

[Renel B. Peña]

SEVENTH ANNIVERSARY OF PONTIFICATE OF HIS HOLINESS, POPE BENEDICT XVI...

Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum;
habemus Papam:

Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum,
Dominum Josephum
Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem Ratzinger
qui sibi nomen imposuit Benedictum XVI

Divine Shepherd of our souls!
how great is thy love for Thy sheep!
Thou givest even Thy life to save them.
The fury of wolves does not make Thee flee from us;
Thou becomest their prey, that we may escape.
Thou didst die in our stead, because Thou wast our Shepherd.

Benedict XVI today celebrates the seventh anniversary of his election as Pope. On 19 April 2005 Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, succeeding Pope John Paul II, became the 264th successor of St. Peter.

The conclave that led to the election of Benedict XVI began on Monday 18 April 2005 in the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican Apostolic Palace , with the "extra omnes" pronounced at 5.25 p.m. by Archbishop Piero Marini, master of the Liturgical Celebrations of the Supreme Pontiff, following the taking of the oath by the 115 cardinal electors. The first black smoke appeared at 8.04 p.m. on the same day. Black smoke again appeared at 11.52 a .m. on Tuesday 19 April, while the white smoke arose on Tuesday 19 April at 5.50 p.m.

At 6.48 p.m., the Holy Father Benedict XVI, preceded by the Cross, appeared on the external loggia to greet the people and to impart the Apostolic Blessing "Urbi et Orbi" (to the city and to the world).

Prior to the blessing, the new Pontiff addressed the faithful with the following words:

"Dear brothers and sisters, after the great Pope John Paul II, the Lord Cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble worker in the vineyard of the Lord. I am consoled by the fact that the Lord knows how to act, even with inadequate instruments and above all I entrust myself to your prayers. In the joy of the Risen Lord, trusting in His permanent help, as we go forward the Lord will help us, and His Mother, Mary Most Holy, is on our side Thank you."

On 24 April 2005 in St. Peter's Square, Benedict XVI celebrated his first Mass as Pontiff in the presence of half a million people. One hundred and fifty cardinals concelebrated with the Pope.

In his first homily, the Pope said: "One of the basic characteristics of a shepherd must be to love the people entrusted to him, even as he loves Christ Whom he serves. 'Feed my sheep', says Christ to Peter, and now, at this moment, He says it to me as well. Feeding means loving, and loving also means being ready to suffer. Loving means giving the sheep what is truly good, the nourishment of God's truth, of God's word, the nourishment of His presence, which He gives us in the Blessed Sacrament.

" My dear friends, at this moment I can only say: pray for me, that I may learn to love the Lord more and more. Pray for me, that I may learn to love His flock more and more, in other words, you, the holy Church, each one of you and all of you together. Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves. Let us pray for one another, that the Lord will carry us and that we will learn to carry one another".

LATIN PRAYERS FOR POPE BENEDICT XVI.

V. Oremus pro Pontifice nostro Benedicto. 
R. Dominus conservet eum, et vivificet eum, et beatum faciat eum in terra, et non tradat eum in animam inimicorum eius. [Ps 40:3] 

(Pater Noster, Ave Maria) 

Deus, omnium fidelium pastor et rector, famulum tuum Nostro Benedicto, quem pastorem Ecclesiae tuae praeesse voluisti, propitius respice: da ei, quaesumus, verbo et exemplo, quibus praeest, proficere: ut ad vitam, una cum grege sibi credito, perveniat sempiternam. Per Christum, Dominum nostrum. Amen. 

ENGLISH TRANSLATION:
V. Let us pray for Benedict, our Pope. 
R. May the Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies. [Ps 40:3] 

(Say Our Father, Hail Mary)

O God, Shepherd and Ruler of all Thy faithful people, look mercifully upon Thy servant Pope Benedict, whom Thou hast chosen as shepherd to preside over Thy Church. Grant him, we beseech Thee, that by his word and example, he may edify those over whom he hath charge, so that together with the flock committed to him, may he attain everlasting life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Grant, then, Good Shepherd, Jesus!
that we may ever keep close to Thee and to Peter;
that as he rests upon Thee, we may rest upon him;
and thus we may defy every tempest,
for Thou, dear Lord, hast said:
A wise man built his house upon a rock;
and the rain fell, and the floods came,
and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house,
and it fell not ;
for it was founded on a ROCK.