In his Wednesday audience Pope Benedict XVI continued his catechesis on the Creed, reflecting on what it means when we call God the Father Almighty.
Speaking to a packed Paul VI audience hall, Pope Benedict reflected that it is not always easy today to talk about fatherhood. Especially in the West, where broken families, increasing work commitments, the concerns of trying to balance the family budget as well as the distracting invasion of the mass media in daily life can prevent a peaceful and constructive relationship between fathers and children”.
At times, he added: “communication becomes difficult, trust can be lost and relationships with the father figure can become problematic. And without adequate models of reference even imagining God as a father becomes problematic”, particularly for people who have experienced overly authoritarian or absentee fathers.
But Pope Benedict said Wednesday biblical revelation helps us to overcome these difficulties by telling us about a God who shows us what it truly means to be a “father”, a loving, patient and forgiving father who is also Almighty
Pope Benedict concluded: “Saying, I believe in God the Father Almighty, in His power, in His way of being a father, is always an act of faith, conversion, transformation of our thoughts, our love, our whole way of life”.
Following the audience the Pope tweeted : “Every human being is loved by God the Father. No one need feel forgotten, for every name is written in the Lord’s loving Heart”.