Wednesday's General Audience

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At yesterday's general audience, the Pope discussed Psalm 120 (121):

As I already announced last Wednesday, I have decided to resume in the catecheses the commentary on the Psalms and canticles that are part of vespers, using the texts prepared by my predecessor John Paul II.

Psalm 120(121), on which we meditate today, is part of the collection of "songs of ascension," that is, of the pilgrimage toward the encounter with the Lord in the temple of Zion. It is a Psalm of trust because in it the Hebrew verb "shamar" -- to keep, to guard -- resounds six times. God, whose name is repeatedly invoked, emerges as the "keeper" always awake, careful and solicitous, the "sentinel" who watches over his people to protect them from every risk and danger.

The song opens with the gaze of the one praying directed on high, "toward the mountains," namely, toward the hills where Jerusalem rises: from on high comes help, because the Lord dwells on high in his holy temple (see verses 1-2). However, the "hills" can also refer to the places where idolatrous shrines rise, the so-called high places, frequently condemned in the Old Testament (see 1 Kings 3:2; 2 Kings 18:4). In this case there is a contrast: While the pilgrim journeys toward Zion, his eyes fall on the pagan temples, which constitute a great temptation for him. But his faith is firm and he has a certainty: "My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth" (Psalm 120[121]:2).

Read the rest from Zenit.

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This page contains a single entry by Papa-Lu published on May 5, 2005 7:59 AM.

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