Vatican City, Oct 7, 2004 / 22:00 pm
Pope John Paul II's Apostolic Letter "Mane Nobiscum Domine" ("Stay with us, Lord"), on the occasion of the October 2004-October 2005 Year of the Eucharist, was presented today in the Holy See Press Office by Cardinal Francis Arinze, who said that the "the underlying theme of the Apostolic Letter is the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus."
The Letter, which consists of an introduction, four chapters and a conclusion, begins with the words "'Stay with us, for it is towards evening,'" said Cardinal Arinze. "This was the heartfelt invitation that the two disciples, walking towards Emmaus the very evening of the Resurrection, issued to the Wayfarer who had joined them along the road. Filled with sad thoughts, they could not imagine that that stranger was their very Master, by now risen."
"The Year of the Eucharist," he added, "will see the Church especially committed to living the mystery of the Holy Eucharist. Jesus continues to walk with us and to introduce us to the mysteries of God, opening us up to the deep meaning of Sacred Scriptures. At the summit of this encounter, Jesus breaks for us 'the bread of life'."
In Chapter One, "In the Wake of Vatican II and the Jubilee," said the prefect, "the Holy Father underlines that the Year of the Eucharist strongly expresses the focus on Jesus Christ and the contemplation of His face that is marking the pastoral path of the Church, especially since Vatican Council II. In Christ, the Word made flesh, not only is the mystery of God revealed, but the mystery of man is also revealed to us." The Pope writes, in fact: "Christ is at the center not only of the history of the Church, but also the history of mankind."