Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - "From the day of his election as Bishop of Rome, October 16, 1978, I urgently felt the command of Jesus: 'Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature '. I felt so compelled to imitate the apostle Peter, who went to visit everyone to confirm and strengthen the vitality of the Church in faithfulness to the Word and in the service of the truth ": with these words, June 12, 2003, John Paul II addressed the participants in the apostolic journeys, at the end of his 100th trip.
On the occasion of the beatification of Pope John Paul II, the Congregation for the Evangelization of People pays tribute to the "missionary Pope" with an exhibition documenting his many trips to all continents, narrated by a selection of photos and movies. The display also offers a number of gifts received by the Pope during his visits. Set up in the Missionary Museum, located in the Palace of Propaganda Fide in Rome, the path of the multimedia exhibition illustrates the process of evangelization in the five continents, allowing the visitor to cross the whole world following John Paul II. From the first apostolic visit of his pontificate, in Latin America, from 25 January to 1 February 1979, the longest journey, in Asia and Oceania, 1986, until the Jubilee pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 2000 and last journey, at the foot of Our Lady of Lourdes in August 2004, the visitor goes through some of the highlights of the pastoral visits of the Bishop of Rome, which are now part of history. "The big assemblies of the people of God, gathered for the celebration of the Eucharist, remain imprinted in my memory and in my heart - said John Paul II on June 12, 2003 - as the highest and most touching memories of my visits”. A memory that has not softened down in the hearts of everyone and may the exhibition relive this memory by giving it new light.
The exhibition will be open until June 6, it will be inaugurated this afternoon, April 30, with a message on behalf of Cardinal Ivan Dias, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of People, the performance of the Ave Maria by the soprano Sally He Li, and two " interventions" of the artist Maria Dompè: one on the facade of the Palace of Propaganda Fide, in Piazza di Spagna and the other in the Borromini Chapel of the Magi. (SL) (Agenzia Fides 30/04/2011)
