Jesus at the center
Benedict XVI, July 16, 2012

Francis of Assisi, after his conversion, practiced this Gospel to the letter, becoming a most faithful witness to Jesus; and associated in a singular way with the mystery of the cross, he was transformed into "another Jesus," as Bonaventure, in fact, presents him.

At the inspirational center of St. Bonaventure’s life and theology is Jesus Christ. We find this centrality of Christ...(Ephesians 1:3-14), the celebrated hymn of St. Paul to the Ephesians, which begins thus: "Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus, who has blessed us with every spiritual benediction in heaven in Christ."

In four passages that each begin with the phrase "in him," referring to Jesus Christ, the Apostle then shows how this plan of blessing is realized. "In him" the Father has chosen us before the creation of the world; "in him" we have redemption through his blood; "in him" we have become heirs, predestined to be "the praise of his glory"; "in him" those who believe in the Gospel receive the seal of the Holy Spirit.

This hymn of St. Paul contains the vision of history that St. Bonaventure helped to spread in the Church: all of history has Christ as its center, Christ, who also guarantees newness and renewal in every age. In Jesus, God has said and given everything, but since he is an inexhaustible treasure, the Holy Spirit never ceases to reveal and actualize his mystery. Hence the work of Christ and of the Church never regresses but always progresses.

Jesus gazes at you