Acta Benedicti Pp. XVI 863

Every generation has the task of engaging anew in the arduous search for

the right way to order human affairs, seeking to understand the proper use of

human freedom.1 And while the duty to strengthen "structures of freedom" is

vital, it is never enough: human aspirations soar beyond the self, beyond

what any political or economic authority can provide, towards a radiant

hope 2 that has its origin beyond ourselves yet is encountered within, as truth

and beauty and goodness. Freedom seeks purpose: it requires conviction.

True freedom presupposes the search for truth - for the true good - and

hence finds its fulfilment precisely in knowing and doing what is right and

just. Truth, in other words, is the guiding norm for freedom, and goodness is

freedom's perfection. Aristotle defined the good as "that at which all things

aim", and went on to suggest that "though it is worthwhile to attain the end

merely for one man, it is finer and more godlike to attain it for a nation or for

city-states".3 Indeed, the lofty responsibility to awaken receptivity to truth

and goodness falls to all leaders - religious, political and cultural, each in his

or her own way. Jointly we must engage in the struggle for freedom and the

search for truth, which either go together hand in hand or together they

perish in misery.4

For Christians, truth has a name: God. And goodness has a face: Jesus

Christ. The faith of Christians, from the time of Saints Cyril and Methodius

and the early missionaries, has in fact played a decisive role in shaping the

spiritual and cultural heritage of this country. It must do likewise in the

present and into the future. The rich patrimony of spiritual and cultural

values, each finding expression in the other, has not only given shape to

the nation's identity but has also furnished it with the vision necessary to

exercise a role of cohesion at the heart of Europe. For centuries this territory

has been a meeting point between various peoples, traditions, and cultures.

As we are all aware, it has known painful chapters and carries the scars of

tragic events born of misunderstanding, war and persecution. Yet it is also

true, that its Christian roots have nourished a remarkable spirit of forgive-

ness, reconciliation and cooperation which has enabled the people of these

lands to find freedom and to usher in a new beginning, a new synthesis, a

1 Cfr. Spe Salvi, 25. 2 Cfr. ibid., 35. 3 Nicomachean Ethics, 1; cfr. Caritas in Veritate, 2. 4 Cfr. Fides et Ratio, 90.