Vatican City, Sep 27, 2005 / 22:00 pm
Continuing his weekly reflections on the Psalms, Pope Benedict, in today's general audience, reflected on God's continuing intervention throughout the "sad and glorious events" of human history, and how He constantly reveals Himself as redeemer of His people.
Speaking to a crowd of almost 30,000 in St. Peter's Square, the Pope offered reflection on the first part of Psalm 134: "Praise the Lord, Who works marvels."
This passage, he said, "is a liturgical-style hymn, interwoven with allusions, evocations, and references to other biblical texts. ... It begins with a broad-ranging and impassioned call to praise the Lord," in His temple, "the communal and preferred site of prayer. There the presence of 'our God' is effectively felt; a 'good' and 'gracious' God, the God of the choice and the covenant."
The Holy Father said that the writer's invitation to praise the Lord is followed by the "proclamation of the faith," the substance of the entire hymn which reveals itself as being a proclamation of the greatness of the Lord as revealed in His marvelous works."