Porta Fidei on Faith

Published on October 11, 2011, This Apostolic Letter was written as

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI announced the opening of the Year of Faith on

October 11, 2012, in the Fiftieth anniversary of opening of the Second

Vatican Council. Alongside with the opening of the Year of Faith, Pope

Benedict XVI called a general assembly of the Synod of Bishops to usher

the whole Church into a time of particular reflection and rediscovery of the

Faith.

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the opening of Second Vatican

Council, the Church aims to help the people to understand that the teachings

of the council fathers about our faith are still applicable to the present time.

These teachings need a proper reading and understanding that our faith

would become deeper. Moreover, this apostolic letter calls for the

strengthening of faith amidst the persecutions of the world that influence

many to weaken their faith. Despite the challenges of the present time, the

Church is called to have faith as response to the mystery of death and

resurrection God has revealed and to proclaim it.

However, knowing the faith is insufficient unless the heart, the

authentic sacred space within the person, is opened by grace that allows the

heart to see below the surface and to understand that what has been
proclaimed is the Word of God (Acts 16:14). Thus, faith is both personal and

communal. That is why, faith must entail action, action towards the service

of the good of the other.

According to Pope Benedict XVI, man has an inborn hunger to

encounter God, the absolute Truth (PF #10). Hence, though there are some

who deny the existence of God, they are still in search of the truth. It is also

a call for the Church to help these persons to understand the truth they are

searching for, to lead them to God. Faith pushes the person to help the other

to discover the truth desired by the heart and mind.