Pope Benedict XVI Blog

Pope, at St Augustine burial place, says seeks truth

Pope Benedict XVI holds a cross during a mass in Pavia, northern Italy, April 22, 2007. Pope Benedict on Sunday visited the burial place of St Augustine, the intellectually restless 5th century theologian who had major impact on Western thought, and urged Catholics to never stop seeking the truth. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini
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Reuters India
Sun Apr 22, 2007 5:47 PM IST

By Philip Pullella

PAVIA, Italy (Reuters) - Pope Benedict on Sunday visited the burial place of St Augustine, the intellectually restless 5th century theologian who had major impact on Western thought, and urged Catholics to never stop seeking the truth.

The 80-year-old Pope, on the second day of a weekend trip to northern Italy, said a mass for some 20,000 people gathered on a riverside field in this city southwest of Milan.

Benedict, one of the Catholic Church's top theologians even before he was elected Pope two years ago, dedicated most of his homily at the mass to St. Augustine, who was born in North Africa and is considered one of history's greatest thinkers.

Augustine's major writings, including "Confessions,", "The City of God," and "Of Free Choice of the Will," are considered to be central to the developing of both Western theology and Western thought in the first millennium.

Augustine was tormented by his personal quest for the truth and a personal relationship with God, and the Pope said today's Christians should emulate him.
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posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 7:23 PM