Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bonoua (Agenzia Fides) – The Bishop of the Diocese of Grand-Bassam, Bishop Paul Dakoury, in the presence of the Apostolic Nuncio in Ivory Coast, Archbishop Ambrose Madtha, and Bishop Anthony Swamy of Chikmagalur (India), presided over the first Mass in the new Shrine of the Madonna della Guardia, on the hill of Bonou, built by the Opera Don Orione. The solemn ceremony was attended by the Superior General of the Opera Don Orione, Father Flavio Peloso, the Superior of the Vice-Province Don Orione Notre Dame d'Afrique, Fr. Angelo Girolami, a number of diocesan and Orione priests, local authorities and civilians, and a large crowd of over 2,000 faithful who came to honor Mary.
"The blessing of the Shrine is an important event for the entire diocese and throughout the Ivory Coast - said Bishop Paul Dakoury -. Devotion to Mary leads to Jesus and unites the Church." To give additional solemnity to the party, there was an ordination of three new deacons of the Opera Don Orione: André Fidèle Tano, Constant Dabirè, and Pascal Monsso. With them, in a festive mood, were the 15 Scholastics of Theology, the 15 clerics, trainees, the 11 novices, and 36 seminarians in philosophy. Following the celebration, which lasted from 3pm to 6:30pm, the Superior General carried the reliquary holding the precious relic of the Holy Cross through the crowd. "It is a gift from the Congregation for Bonou, for the diocese, for the Church in Ivory Coast," said Fr. Flavio Peloso. "Only by faith in Christ Jesus, that the silent presence of the Madonna della Guardia and the sacred Wood of the Cross reinforce from this shrine, will there be brotherhood, peace, and salvation in our families and in Ivory Coast, so troubled in recent years.
The Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Ambrose Madtha, read a message from the Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, with the Holy Father's apostolic blessing, which said: “The devotion to the Madonna della Guardia is dear to His Holiness Benedict XVI, who frequently, in praying in the quiet of the Vatican Gardens, pauses in front of the shrine which houses the sacred image donated by the Archdiocese of Genoa.” (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 10/12/2009)
