Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Rome (Fides Service) - On the fourth Sunday of Lent, 26 March Pope Benedict, the Bishop of Rome, made a pastoral visit to one of his parishes, the parish of God the Merciful Father built at the request of Pope John Paul II on the occasion of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. The Sunday liturgy is permeated with joy. “One immediately asks: for what reason should we rejoice?” the Pope said during his homily and he explained: “Certainly one reason is that Easter is drawing near and this gives us a foretaste of the joy of the encounter with the Risen Christ. However there is an even more profound reason to be found in the scripture readings offered in the liturgy. These remind us that despite our unworthiness, we are the objects of the infinite mercy of God. God loves us with a love which we might call “obstinate” and he holds us close in his inexhaustible tenderness”.
After explaining the meaning of the readings the Pope spoke about the actual church building which, he said “was built at the request of my Predecessor John Paul II to stand in memory of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 as an expression of the essence of the significance of that extraordinary spiritual event”. He the quoted from the Angelus address prepared for April 3 last year (Divine Mercy Sunday or the 2nd Sunday of Easter) but never read by Pope John Paul II. “To humanity, which at times seems to be lost and dominated by the power of evil, selfishness and fear, the risen Lord offers the gift of His love that pardons, reconciles and opens the soul to hope. It is love that converts hearts and brings peace. ... How much the world needs to understand and accept Divine Mercy!" These handwritten words, said Benedict XVI "are like a last will and testament."
In the last part of his homily the Pope greeted the parish priest, Cardinal Vicar Camillo Ruini and Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe titular of the church and the parish pastoral helpers and he encouraged those present: “to understand and accept the loving mercy of God: may this be a commitment first of all within the family and then in every sector of the local district .. Continue dear friends on the path you have undertaken striving to make your parish a real family where fidelity to the Word of God and Church Tradition become increasingly day by day a rule of life. I know too that this church of yours because of its original architecture is visited by many people. Help the appreciate not only the beauty of the sacred building but more importantly the riches of a community which is alive and strives to bear witness to the love of God the all merciful Father. That love which is the true secret of Christian joy which today’s liturgy calls us to live”. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 27/3/2006 - righe 31, parole 463)
