P R A Y I N G wi th Benedict XVI 104 • BENEDICT XVI BENEDICT XVI • 105 BENEDICT XVI • 105 Praying with Benedict XVI 104 • B NEDICT XVI Benedict XVI: “As far as the Pope is concerned, he too is a simple beggar before God— even more than other people. Naturally I always pray first and foremost to our Lord, with whom I am united simply by old acquaintance, so to speak. But I also invoke the saints. I am friends with Augustine, with Bonaventure, with Thomas Aquinas. Then one says to such saints also: Help me! And the Mother of God is, in any case, always a major point of reference. In this sense I commend myself to the communion of saints. With them, strengthened by them, I then talk with the dear Lord also, begging, for the most part, but also in thanksgiving—or quite simply being joyful.”180 180 Light of the World, p. 17. © Sipa Press Benedict XVI presides at vespers on September 19, 2008, at the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. Behind him is the 14th-century statue of the Virgin and Child, the “Virgin of Paris,” found intact after the fire on April 15, 2019.
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