Pope Benedict XVI Blog

Benedict--St. Athanasius teaches us that those who draw near to God are able to truly draw near to mankind

Wednesday Audience


Benedict XVI speaking at the General Audience in Paul VI hall

Vatican City, Jun 20, 2007 / 08:57 am (CNA).- Benedict XVI’s general audience today was held inside of Paul VI hall. The theme of the Pope’s teaching was the figure of St. Athanasius of Alexandria (circa 300-373), whom he called a "column of the Church," and a "model of orthodoxy in both East and West."

After noting how St. Athanasius' statue was placed by Bernini, alongside statues of other doctors of the Church (St. John Chrysostom, St. Ambrose and St. Augustine), in the apse of the Vatican Basilica, the Pope described the Alexandrian saint as a "passionate theologian of the incarnation of the 'Logos,' the Word of God," and "the most important and tenacious adversary of the Arian heresy which then threatened faith in Christ by minimizing His divinity, in keeping with a recurring historical tendency which is also evident in various ways today."

Athanasius participated in the Council of Nicaea, when bishops established "the symbol of faith ... commonly known as the Nicaean Creed. The Creed affirms that "the Son is 'of one substance' with the Father, precisely in order to highlight His full divinity which was denied by the Arians. ... The fundamental idea behind St. Athanasius’ theological labors was precisely that God is accessible ... and that though our communion with Christ we can truly unite ourselves to God."
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posted by Dr. Denice Hanley, DPM, M.Div. @ 2:17 PM