HOLY MASS
HOMILY OF JOHN PAUL II
Airport of Legnica Poland
2 June 1997
1. "My soul magnifies the Lord" (Lk 1:46). The Magnificat! We have heard once again the words of the canticle in today's Gospel. Mary, after the Annunciation, went to visit her cousin Elizabeth. And Elizabeth, hearing Mary's greeting, experienced a special moment of illumination. In the depths of her heart she knew that her young relative was carrying in her womb the Messiah. Greeting Mary she therefore exclaimed: "Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb!" (Lk 1:42). Then, in response to Elizabeth's greeting, Mary gives praise to God with the words of the Magnificat:
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour . . ." (Lk 1:46-47).
The Church never grows tired of going back to the words of this canticle. In particular she repeats them every day at vespers, giving thanks to God for the same reason that Mary thanked him: for the fact that the Son of God was made man and came to dwell among us. And we today, at this Liturgy of the Holy Mass in Legnica, sing with Mary the Magnificat in order to express our gratitude for the unending presence of Christ in the Eucharist. For we have come together in the context of the International Eucharistic Congress at Wrocław . With the words of Mary we give thanks for every good thing in which we share through the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of the Lord.
We raise this song of thanksgiving together with all the generations of believers throughout the world. And it is a particular joy for us that this universal hymn is being heard in Lower Silesia — here in Legnica. I am pleased that I have been able to come here to meet the Christian community that for five years has been part of the new Diocese of Legnica. I offer words of cordial greeting to your Shepherd, Bishop Tadeusz, to his Auxiliary Bishop, to the priests, to the consecrated persons and to all the faithful of the Diocese. I greet also the pilgrims from Germany and from the Czech Republic, and the Sorbo-Lusatians. I thank them for their presence.
Your diocese is young, but Christianity in these lands has a long and rich tradition. We all know that Legnica is an historic place, the place where a Prince of the Piast Dynasty, Henry II the Pious, son of Saint Hedwig, put up resistance to the invaders from the East — the Tartars — halting their dangerous onslaught westwards. For this reason, although the battle was for the moment lost, many historians see it as one of the most important battles in the history of Europe. It also has exceptional importance from the point of view of faith. It is difficult to identify the main motives which prevailed in Henry's heart — the desire to defend his homeland and its tormented people, or to halt the Muslim army that was threatening Christianity. It seems that both motives were equally present in him. Henry, giving his life for the people entrusted to his rule, gave it at the same time for his faith in Christ. And that is a significant characteristic of his piety, which the generations of that time noted and preserved in the epithet attached to his name.
This historical circumstance linked to the place of our Liturgy today prompts a reflection on the mystery of the Eucharist from a particular perspective, the perspective of social life. In this regard, the Second Vatican Council rightly teaches: "No Christian community can be built up unless it has its basis and centre in the celebration of the most Holy Eucharist"; from this, therefore, "all education in the spirit of community must originate" (Presbyterorum Ordinis, 6).
2. "Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?" (1 Cor 3:16). These words of Saint Paul were addressed to a specific Christian community — the one at Corinth — but they are valid for every community that develops in any city or village down the centuries. What did the first communities live by? Whence did they receive the Spirit of God? The Acts of the Apostles testify that Christians from the very beginning were assiduous in prayer, in listening to the word of God and in the breaking of the bread, that is, in the Liturgy of the Eucharist (cf. 2:42). Thus they would go back every day to the Upper Room, to the moment when Christ instituted the Eucharist. From then on the Eucharist became the beginning of a new structure.
