123
faithful need to hear. A preacher has to contem-
plate the word, but he also has to contemplate his
people. In this way he learns âof the aspirations,
of riches and limitations, of ways of praying, of
loving, of looking at life and the world, which
distinguish this or that human gathering,â while
paying attention âto actual people, to using their
language, their signs and symbols, to answering
the questions they askâ.
120
He needs to be able
to link the message of a biblical text to a human
situation, to an experience which cries out for the
light of Godâs word. This interest has nothing to
do with shrewdness or calculation; it is profound-
ly religious and pastoral. Fundamentally it is a
âspiritual sensitivity for reading Godâs message
in eventsâ,
121
and this is much more than simply
finding something interesting to say. What we are
looking for is âwhat the Lord has to say in this or
that particular circumstanceâ.
122
Preparation for
preaching thus becomes an exercise in evangeli-
cal discernment, wherein we strive to recognize
â in the light of the Spirit â âa call which God
causes to resound in the historical situation itself.
In this situation, and also through it, God calls
the believerâ.
123
155.âIn this effort we may need but think of
some ordinary human experience such as a joyful
120
âIbid
.
, 63: AAS 68 (1976), 53
121
âIbid
.
, 43: AAS 68 (1976), 33
122
âIbid
.
123
âJ
ohn
P
aul
II, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation
Pastores Dabo Vobis
(25 March 1992), 10: AAS 84 (1992), 672.