At 11:30 this morning, in the Sala dei Papi in the Apostolic Palace, the Holy Father, Pope Francis received in audience the members of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences who are completing their Plenary Assembly.
Dear brothers and sisters,
We meet at the conclusion of your Plenary Assembly, in which, as your President has noted, you are commemorating the 60th anniversary of the institution of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences, by the Venerable Pius XII. I would like to thank Father Ardura for the sentiments he expressed on your behalf. Above all, I am grateful for the commitment with which you have placed your competences and your professionalism at the service of the Church and of the Holy See.
Still valid is the celebrated affirmation spoken of by Cicerone in his work De Oratore, and partially cited by Blessed John XXIII, who was so passionate about historical study, in the speech with which he opened the Second Vatican Council: Historica vero testis temporum, lux veritatis, vita memoriae, magistra vitae. The study of history represents in fact one of the tools for fervent research of the truth, which has always pervaded man's soul.
In your studies and your teaching, you will find a comparison particularly with the variations you encounter in the Church as she journeys through time, with her glorious history of evangelization, of hope, of daily struggles, of lives poured out in service, of constancy in laborious work (cf Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium, 96), as well as infidelity, denials and sins. Your research, marked with genuine passion for the Church and sincere love for the truth, can be of great assistance to those who face the challenge of discerning the will of the Holy Spirit, and what that same Spirit wants to say to the Church today.
The Committee for Historical Sciences has long since entered into dialogue and cooperation with cultural institutions and academic centres in numerous nations, and is always greeted with respect on the world stage of historical studies. In the encounter with and in collaboration with researchers from every culture and religion, you can offer a special contribution to the dialogue between the Church and the contemporary world.
Among the initiatives that you have planned, I think particularly of the international convention marking the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. During this convention, you will browse through the most recent research, paying particular attention to the diplomatic initiatives undertaken by the Holy See during that tragic conflict and the contribution given by Catholics and by other Christians to rescue the wounded, the refugees, the orphans and the widows, to searching for the missing, and to rebuilding a world wounded by what Benedict XV defined as useless slaughter. As timely now as it ever has been, his heartfelt appeal still resonates today: With peace, nothing is lost, with war, everything may be lost (Letter to the Heads of the warring factions, August 1, 1917). When we listen once again to these profound words, we truly realize how they speak of a history that is master of life.
Dear friends, I wish you an ever deepening journey of study, and I encourage you to continue with enthusiasm in your research and your service of the truth. With all my heart, I bless you and I ask you to remember me in your prayers. Thank you!
Greetings of His Holiness, Pope Francis
for the meeting with members of the
Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences
Dear brothers and sisters,
We meet at the conclusion of your Plenary Assembly, in which, as your President has noted, you are commemorating the 60th anniversary of the institution of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences, by the Venerable Pius XII. I would like to thank Father Ardura for the sentiments he expressed on your behalf. Above all, I am grateful for the commitment with which you have placed your competences and your professionalism at the service of the Church and of the Holy See.
Still valid is the celebrated affirmation spoken of by Cicerone in his work De Oratore, and partially cited by Blessed John XXIII, who was so passionate about historical study, in the speech with which he opened the Second Vatican Council: Historica vero testis temporum, lux veritatis, vita memoriae, magistra vitae. The study of history represents in fact one of the tools for fervent research of the truth, which has always pervaded man's soul.
In your studies and your teaching, you will find a comparison particularly with the variations you encounter in the Church as she journeys through time, with her glorious history of evangelization, of hope, of daily struggles, of lives poured out in service, of constancy in laborious work (cf Apostolic Exhortation, Evangelii gaudium, 96), as well as infidelity, denials and sins. Your research, marked with genuine passion for the Church and sincere love for the truth, can be of great assistance to those who face the challenge of discerning the will of the Holy Spirit, and what that same Spirit wants to say to the Church today.
The Committee for Historical Sciences has long since entered into dialogue and cooperation with cultural institutions and academic centres in numerous nations, and is always greeted with respect on the world stage of historical studies. In the encounter with and in collaboration with researchers from every culture and religion, you can offer a special contribution to the dialogue between the Church and the contemporary world.
Among the initiatives that you have planned, I think particularly of the international convention marking the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. During this convention, you will browse through the most recent research, paying particular attention to the diplomatic initiatives undertaken by the Holy See during that tragic conflict and the contribution given by Catholics and by other Christians to rescue the wounded, the refugees, the orphans and the widows, to searching for the missing, and to rebuilding a world wounded by what Benedict XV defined as useless slaughter. As timely now as it ever has been, his heartfelt appeal still resonates today: With peace, nothing is lost, with war, everything may be lost (Letter to the Heads of the warring factions, August 1, 1917). When we listen once again to these profound words, we truly realize how they speak of a history that is master of life.
Dear friends, I wish you an ever deepening journey of study, and I encourage you to continue with enthusiasm in your research and your service of the truth. With all my heart, I bless you and I ask you to remember me in your prayers. Thank you!
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