Thank you and may God Bless You!
DECEMBER
2014
MONTH of
THE DIVINE INFANCY
MARIAN DOCUMENTS BY THE HOLY FATHER
~ 2000 ~
Pope John Paul II, Angelus, January 30, 2000
Dearest Brothers and Sisters!
1. Next Wednesday, February 2, Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, the Jubilee of consecrated life will be celebrated, that is, of the persons who have consecrated their life to Christ, committing themselves with vows of poverty, chastity and obedience.
I wish to send a special greeting to these brothers and sisters of ours: to those who have come to Rome for this occasion, and to all in every part of the world who celebrate their Jubilee in their respective dioceses. I encourage all to cross the Holy Door with confidence and hope, renewing their full disposition to make of their own life a song of praise to the Most Holy Trinity. Here in Rome we are preparing for this event with a triduum that begins today. Today is dedicated to giving thanks for vocations and consecrations, which are inestimable gifts of God, toparticipate in the person of Jesus Christ, the "Anointed One" of the Father. Tomorrow the topic will be that of fraternal communion, and in the afternoon in the Paul VI Auditorium in the Vatican, there will be a joyful celebration of consecrated persons, which can be followed on radio and television. On February 1, then, the day that will highlight mission and witness, Eucharistic adoration is scheduled in the Basilica of St. Mary Major. The climax of the Jubilee of the consecrated life will be the Holy Mass that, God willing, I will have the joy to preside in St. Peter's Square, surrounded by a large crowd of consecrated persons.
2. I invite you all to spiritually join the brothers and sisters who express the different forms of consecrated life, because their vocation is a gift for the whole Church! The Bride of Christ, the Church herself, owes much of her beauty to the innumerable charisms of consecration that the Holy Spirit has inspired in the faithful over the centuries, beginning with the apostolic community until today. By their very presence, consecrated persons are a sign of Christ and of his lifestyle, and while they invite us to put nothing before God or his Kingdom, they are an example to all of generosity in prayer and dedication to their neighbor.
3. This is what we see realized perfectly in Mary of Nazareth: her most singular union with the Incarnate Word makes her a model of the evangelical life, obedient, poor, and chaste like that of Jesus.
Consecrated persons, men and women, have always recognized in the Blessed Virgin the mother of their vocation, experiencing her kindly help in favorable times and in difficulties. Today, let us entrust to Mary all her consecrated daughters and sons. Let us pray that humanity will be able to find in their evangelical witness effective help to walk in the new millennium according to God's plan.
January 30
January 12
January 5
August 15
May 14
Pope John Paul II, General Audience, January 12, 2000
1. In order to complete our reflection on Mary, at the end of the cycle of catechesis dedicated to the Father, today we wish to underline her role in our journey towards the Father.
He himself willed Mary's presence in the history of salvation. When he decided to send his Son into the world, he willed that he should come to us by being born of a woman (Cf. Gal 4,4). Thus he willed that this woman -- the first to welcome his Son, should communicate him to all humanity.
Therefore, Mary is on the road that goes from the Father to humanity, as the mother who gives everyone her Savior Son. At the same time, she is on the road that men must take to go to the Father through Christ in the Spirit (Cf. Eph. 2,18).
2. In order to understand Mary's presence in the journey toward the Father, with the whole Church we must acknowledge that Christ is "the way, the truth and the life" (Jn, 14,6) and the only Mediator between God and men (Cf. 1 Tm 2,5). Mary is inserted in Christ's unique mediation and is totally at his service. Consequently, as the Council emphasized in "Lumen Gentium," "Mary's function as mother of men in no way obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows its power" (N. 60). We are very far from assigning a role to Mary in the life of the Church outside of Christ's mediation or next to it, as though it were a parallel or concurrent mediation.
As I said expressly in the encyclical "Redemptoris Mater," Mary's maternal mediation "is mediation in Christ" (N. 38). The Council explains: "The Blessed Virgin's salutary influence on men originates not in any inner necessity but in the disposition of God. It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on his mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from it. It does not hinder in any way the immediate union of the faithful with Christ but on the contrary fosters it" (LG, 60).
Mary herself was redeemed by Christ and thus is the first of the redeemed, because the grace given her by God the Father at the beginning of her existence is due to the "merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human species," as Pius IX's bull "Ineffabilis Deus" states (DS, 2803). All Mary's cooperation in salvation is based on Christ's mediation which, as the Council specifies again, "does not exclude but rather gives rise to a manifold cooperation which is but a sharing in this one source." (LG, 62).
Considered from this point of view, Mary's mediation appears as the highest fruit of Christ's mediation and is essentially oriented to making our encounter with Him more intimate and profound. "The Church does not hesitate to profess this subordinate role of Mary, which it constantly experiences and recommends to the heartfelt attention of the faithful, so that encouraged by this maternal help they may the more closely adhere to the Mediator and Redeemer" (Ibid.).
3. In fact, Mary does not wish to draw attention to her person. She lived on earth with her gaze fixed on Jesus and the Heavenly Father. Her strongest desire is to make all turn their gazes in the same direction. She wishes to promote a look of faith and hope in the Savior sent to us by the Father.
She was a model of the gaze of faith and hope above all when, in the tempest of the passion of the Son, she kept in her heart total faith in him and in the Father. While the disciples, greatly distressed by the events, were profoundly shaken in their faith, Mary, also tried by sorrow, remained integral in the certainty that Jesus' prediction would come true: "The Son of Man ... will be raised on the third day" (Matt. 17, 22-23). This certainty did not leave her even when she took the lifeless body of her crucified son in her arms.
4. With this gaze of faith and hope, Mary encourages the Church and believers to always do the Father's will, manifested to us by Christ.
The words spoken to the servants at the miracle of Cana reecho in every generation of Christians: "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2,5). Her advice was followed when the servants filled the jars to the brim. Mary makes the same request of us today. It is an exhortation to enter into the new period of history with the determination to do all that Christ has said in the Gospel in the Father's name, which at present is inspired in us through the Spirit who dwells in us. If we do what Christ asks us to do, the millennium that is approaching will be able to have a new face, more evangelical and more genuinely Christian, and so respond to Mary's most profound aspirations.
5. The words: "Do whatever he tells you," with reference to Christ, also recall us to the Father, toward whom we are journeying. They coincide with the Father's voice that resounded on the Mount of the Transfiguration: "This is my beloved Son... listen to him" (Matt. 17,5). With the word of Christ and the light of the Holy Spirit, this Father himself calls us, guides us, cares for us.
Our holiness consists in doing all that the Father has said. Here is the value of Mary's life: fulfillment of the divine will. Accompanied and sustained by Mary, by way of acknowledgment let us receive the new millennium from the Father's hands and be determined to correspond to his grace with humble and generous devotion. (ZENIT Translation)
Pope John Paul II, General Audience, January 5, 2000
Today I am pleased to begin the first General Audience of the year 2000, just a few days after the inauguration of the Great Jubilee, by offering all those present my most cordial wishes for the Jubilee Year: may it really be a "solid time" of grace, reconciliation and interior renewal.
Over the past year, the last dedicated to the immediate preparation for the Jubilee, we reflected together in greater depth on the mystery of the Father. Today, by way of conclusion of that cycle of reflections and as a special introduction to the Catechesis of the Holy Year, we will take time to lovingly ponder the person of Mary.
In her, the "beloved daughter of the Father" (Lumen Gentium, 53), the divine plan of love for humanity was manifested. Given her destiny to become the mother of his Son, the Father chose her from among all creatures and raised her to the highest dignity and mission in the service of his people.
This plan of the Father began to manifest itself in the "Proto-Gospel" when, following the fall of Adam and Eve, God announced that he would put enmity between the serpent and the woman: it would be the woman's son who would crush the serpent's head (Cf. Gen 3,15).
The promise begins to be fulfilled at the Annunciation, when Mary is given the proposal to become the Mother of the Savior.
2. "Rejoice, full of grace" (Lk 1,28). The first word the Father speaks to Mary through his angel is a formula of greeting that can be understood as an invitation to joy, an invitation re-echoing that directed to the entire people of Israel by the prophet Zachariah: "Greatly exult daughter of Sion! Behold, your King is coming to you" (Zach. 9,9; Cf. also Sof 3, 14-18). With this first word addressed to Mary, the Father reveals his intention to communicate real and lasting joy to humanity. The very joy of the Father, which consists in having the Son near him, is offered to all, but first of all it is entrusted to Mary so that from her it will be shed on the human community.
3. The invitation to joy is linked by Mary to the special gift she received from the Father: "kecharitomene." Not without reason, the Greek expression is often translated as "full of grace": it is, indeed, an abundance that reaches the highest degree. We should note that the expression sounds as though it is Mary's own name, the "name" given to her by the Father from the beginning of her existence. Up to the conception, in fact, her soul was filled with all blessings, enabling her to follow a road of eminent sanctity throughout her earthly existence. In Mary's face we perceive the reflection of the mysterious face of the Father. The infinite tenderness of God, who is Love, is revealed in the maternal features of Jesus' Mother.
4. When speaking of Jesus, Mary is the only mother who can say "my son," as the Father says it: "You are my Son" (Mk 1,11). For his part, Jesus calls the Father "Abba," "Daddy" (Cf. Mk 14,36), while he calls Mary "mommy," placing all his filial affection in this name.
After he leaves his mother in Nazareth, during his public life when he meets her he calls her "woman," to emphasize that henceforth he takes orders only from the Father, but also to declare that she is not simply a biological mother, but, rather, has a mission to fulfill as "Daughter of Sion" and mother of the people of the New Covenant. As such, Mary always remains oriented to full adherence to the will of the Father.
This was not the case with all of Jesus' family. The fourth Gospel reveals that his relatives "did not believe in him" (Jn 7,5) and Mark mentions that "they went out to seize him; for they said, 'He is beside himself.' " (Mk 3,21). One can be sure that Mary's interior dispositions were completely different. This is confirmed in Luke's Gospel, in which Mary presents herself as the humble "handmaid of the Lord" (Lk 1,38). In this light we read the response given by Jesus when "he was told: 'Your mother and your brethren are standing outside, desiring to see you.' (Lk 8,20; Cf. Mt 12,46-47; Mk 3, 32); Jesus replied: "My mother and my brethren are those who hear the word of God and do it" (Lk 8,21). Indeed, Mary is a model of hearing the Word of God (Cf. Lk 2, 19.51) and of docility to it.
5. The Virgin preserved and renewed with perseverance her total disposition expressed at the Annunciation. The immense privilege and lofty mission of being Mother of the Son of God did not change her humble behavior, submissive to the Father's plan. Among the other aspects of this divine plan, she assumed the educational endeavor implied in her maternity. The mother is not simply the one who gives birth but also the one who actively undertakes the formation and development of the son's personality. Mary's behavior undoubtedly had an influence on Jesus' conduct. One can assume, for example, that the act of the washing the feet (Cf. Jn 13, 4-5), which was left to the disciples as a model to imitate (Cf. Jn 13, 14-15), reflects that which Jesus himself had observed in Mary's behavior during his childhood, when, in a spirit of humble service, she washed her guests' feet.
According to Gospel testimony, during the period Jesus spent in Nazareth he was "subject" to Mary and Joseph (Cf. Lk 2,51). He thus received from Mary a real education that marked his humanity. On the other hand, Mary let herself be influenced and formed by her son. In the progressive manifestation of Jesus, she discovered the Father more profoundly and gave him the homage of all the love of her daughterly heart. Now her task is to help the Church to walk as she did in Christ's footsteps. (ZENIT Translation)
August 15, 2000
Pope John Paul II, June 29, 1999
“The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us” (Jn 1:14)
My dear young people:
1. Fifteen years ago, at the close of the Holy Year of the Redemption, I entrusted to you a great wooden Cross, asking you to carry it across the world as a sign of the love which the Lord Jesus has for mankind and to proclaim to everyone that only in Christ who died and is risen is there salvation and redemption. Since that day, carried by generous hands and hearts, the Cross has made a long, uninterrupted pilgrimage across the continents, to demonstrate that the Cross walks with young people and young people walk with the Cross.
Around the “Holy Year Cross”, World Youth Days were born and developed as meaningful “moments of rest” along your journey as young Christians; a constant, pressing invitation to build life on the rock that is Christ. How can we fail to bless the Lord for the countless fruits born in the hearts of individuals and in the whole Church thanks to the World Youth Days, which in this last part of the century have marked the journey of young believers towards the new millennium?
After spanning the continents, that Cross now returns to Rome bringing with it the prayers and commitment of millions of young people who have recognized it as a simple and sacred sign of God’s love for humanity. Because Rome, as you know, will host World Youth Day of the Year 2000, in the heart of the Great Jubilee.
Dear young people, I invite you therefore to undertake with joy the pilgrimage to Rome for this important ecclesial appointment, which will rightly be the “Youth Jubilee”. Prepare to enter the Holy Door, knowing that to pass through it is to strengthen faith in Him in order to live the new life which he has given to us (cfr Incarnationis Mysterium 8).
2. I chose as the theme for your 15th World Day the lapidary phrase with which Saint John
the Apostle describes the profound mystery of God made man: “The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us” (Jn 1:14). What distinguishes the Christian faith from all other religions, is the certainty that the man Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, the Word made flesh, the second person of the Trinity who came into the world. “Such is the joyous conviction of the Church from her beginning, whenever she sings 'the mystery of our religion': 'He was manifested in the flesh'” (Catechism of the Catholic Church 463). God, the invisible one is alive and present in the person of Jesus, Son of Mary, the Theotokos, Mother of God. Jesus of Nazareth is God with us, Emmanuel: he who knows Him knows God, he who sees Him sees God, he who follows Him follows God, he who unites himself with Him is united with God (cfr Jn 12:44-50). In Jesus, born in Bethlehem, God embraces the human condition, making himself accessible, establishing a covenant with mankind.
On the eve of the new millennium, I make again to you my pressing appeal to open wide the doors to Christ who “to those who received him, gave power to become children of God” (Jn 1:12) To receive Jesus Christ means to accept from the Father the command to live, loving Him and our brothers and sisters, showing solidarity to everyone, without distinction; it means believing that in the history of humanity even though it is marked by evil and suffering, the final word belongs to life and to love, because God came to dwell among us, so we may dwell in Him.
By his incarnation Christ became poor to enrich us with his poverty, and he gave us redemption, which is the fruit above all of the blood he shed on the Cross (cfr Catechism of the Catholic Church 517). On Calvary, “ours were the sufferings he bore ... he was pierced through for our faults” (Is 53: 4-5). The supreme sacrifice of his life, freely given for our salvation, is the proof of God’s infinite love for us. Saint John the Apostle writes: “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son so that everyone that believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). He sent Him to share in every way, except sin, our human condition; he “gave” him totally to men, despite their obstinate and homicidal rejection (cfr Mt 21:33-39), to obtain, through his death, their reconciliation. “The God of creation is revealed as the God of redemption, as the God who is 'faithful to himself' and faithful to his love for man and the world which he revealed on the day of creation ... how precious must man be in the eyes of the Creator, if he gained so great a Redeemer” (Redemptor hominis 9.10)
Jesus went towards his death. He did not draw back from any of the consequences of his being “with us”, Emmanuel. He took our place, ransoming us on the Cross from evil and sin (cfr Evangelium vitae 50). Just as the Roman Centurion, seeing the manner in which Jesus died, understood that he was the Son of God (cfr Mk 15:39) so we too, seeing and contemplating the Crucified Lord, understand who God really is, as he reveals in Jesus the depth of his love for mankind (cfr Redemptor hominis 9). “Passion” means a passionate love, unconditioned self- giving: Christ’s passion is the summit of an entire life “given” to his brothers and sisters to reveal the heart of the Father. The Cross, which seems to rise up from the earth, in actual fact reaches down from heaven, enfolding the universe in a divine embrace. The Cross reveals itself to be “the centre, meaning and goal of all history and of every human life” (Evangelium vitae 50).
“One man has died for all” (2 Cor 5:14): Christ “gave himself up in our place as a fragrant offering and a sacrifice to God” (Eph 5:2). Behind the death of Jesus there is a plan of love, which the faith of the Church calls the “mystery of the redemption”: the whole of humanity is redeemed, that is, set free from the slavery of sin and led into the kingdom of God. Christ is Lord of heaven and earth. Whoever listens to his word and believes in the Father, who sent him, has eternal life (cfr Jn 5:25). He is the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (Jn 1:29.36), the high priest who, having suffered like us, is able to share our infirmity (cfr Heb 4:14 ) and “made perfect” through the painful experience of the Cross, becomes “for all who obey him, the source of eternal salvation” (Heb 5:9).
3. Dear young people, faced with these great mysteries, learn to lift your hearts in an attitude of contemplation. Stop and look with wonder at the infant Mary brought into the world, wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger: the infant is God himself who has come among us. Look at Jesus of Nazareth, received by some and scorned by others, despised and rejected: He is the Saviour of all. Adore Christ, our Redeemer, who ransoms us and frees us from sin and death: He is the living God, the source of Life.
Contemplate and reflect! God created us to share in his very own life; he calls us to be his children, living members of the mystical Body of Christ, luminous temple of the Spirit of Love. He calls us to be his: he wants us all to be saints. Dear young people, may it be your holy ambition to be holy, as He is holy.
You will ask me: but is it possible today to be saints? If we had to rely only on human strength, the undertaking would be truly impossible. You are well aware, in fact, of your successes and your failures; you are aware of the heavy burdens weighing on man, the many dangers which threaten him and the consequences caused by his sins. At times we may be gripped by discouragement and even come to think that it is impossible to change anything either in the world or in ourselves.
Although the journey is difficult, we can do everything in the One who is our Redeemer. Turn then to no one, except Jesus. Do not look elsewhere for that which only He can give you, because “of all the names in the world given to men this is the only one by which we can be saved” (Acts 4:12). With Christ, saintliness - the divine plan for every baptized person - becomes possible. Rely on Him; believe in the invincible power of the Gospel and place faith as the foundation of your hope. Jesus walks with you, he renews your heart and strengthens you with the vigour of his Spirit.
Young people of every continent, do not be afraid to be the saints of the new millennium! Be contemplative, love prayer; be coherent with your faith and generous in the service of your brothers and sisters, be active members of the Church and builders of peace. To succeed in this demanding project of life, continue to listen to His Word, draw strength from the Sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Penance. The Lord wants you to be intrepid apostles of his Gospel and builders of a new humanity. In fact, how could you say you believe in God made man without taking a firm position against all that destroys the human person and the family? If you believe that Christ has revealed the Father’s love for every person, you cannot fail to strive to contribute to the building of a new world, founded on the power of love and forgiveness, on the struggle against injustice and all physical, moral and spiritual distress, on the orientation of politics, economy, culture and technology to the service of man and his integral development.
4. I sincerely wish that the Jubilee, now at the door, may be an opportune time for courageous spiritual renewal and an exceptional celebration of God’s love for humanity. From the whole Church may there rise up “a hymn of praise and thanksgiving to the Father, who in his incomparable love granted us in Christ to be 'fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God'” (Incarnationis Mysterium 6). May we draw comfort from the certainty expressed by Saint Paul the Apostle: If God did not spare his only Son but gave him for us, how can he fail to give us everything with him? Who can separate us from the love of Christ? In every event of life, including death, we can be more than winners, by virtue of the One who loved us to the Cross (cfr Rom 8: 31-37).
The mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God and that of the Redemption he worked for all men, constitute the central message of our faith. The Church proclaims this down through the centuries, walking “amidst the misunderstandings and persecutions of the world and the consolations of God” (S. Augustine De Civ. Dei 18, 51, 2; PL 41,614) and she entrusts it to her children as a precious treasure to be safeguarded and shared.
You too, dear young people, are the receivers and the trustees of this heritage: “This is our faith. This is the faith of the Church. And we are proud to profess it, in Jesus Christ Our Lord” (Roman Pontifical, Rite of Confirmation). We will proclaim it together on the occasion of the next World Youth Day, in which I hope very many of you will take part. Rome is a “city- shrine” where the memory of the Apostles Peter and Paul and other martyrs remind pilgrims of the vocation of every baptized person. Before the world, in August next year, we will repeat the profession of faith made by Saint Peter the Apostle: “Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (Jn 6:68) because “you are the Christ the Son of the Living God!” (Mt 16:16).
Also to you boys and girls who will be adults in the next century, is entrusted the “Book of Life”, which on Christmas Eve this year the Pope, the first to cross the threshold of the Holy Door, will show to the Church and to the world as the wellspring of life and hope for the third millennium (Incarnationis Mysterium 8).
May it become your most precious treasure: in the careful study and generous acceptance of the Word of the Lord, you will find nourishment and strength for your daily life, you will find motivation for tireless commitment to the building of a civilization of love.
5. Let us now turn our eyes to the Virgin Mother of God, of whom the city of Rome treasures one of the earliest and most honoured monuments which the devotion of the Christian people
has dedicated to her: the Basilica of Saint Mary Major.
The Incarnation of the Word and the Redemption of mankind are closely linked with the Annunciation when God revealed to Mary his plan and found in her, a young person like yourselves, a heart totally open to the action of his love. For centuries Christian devotion has recalled every day, with the recitation of the Angelus Domini, God’s entrance into the history of man. May this prayer become your daily meditated prayer.
Mary is the dawn which precedes the rising of the Sun of justice, Christ our Redeemer. With her “yes” at the Annunciation, as she opened herself completely to Father’s plan, she welcomed and made possible the incarnation of the Son. The first disciple, with her discreet presence she accompanied Jesus all the way to Calvary and sustained the hope of the Apostles as they waited for the Resurrection and Pentecost. In the life of the Church she continues to be mystically the one who precedes the Lord’s coming. To Mary, who fulfills without interruption her ministry as Mother of the Church and of each Christian, I entrust with confidence the preparation of the 15th World Youth Day. May Most Holy Mary teach you, dear young people, how to discern the will of the heavenly Father in your life. May she obtain for you the strength and the wisdom to speak to God and to speak about God. Through her example may she encourage you to be in the new millennium announcers of hope, love and peace.
Looking forward to meeting many of you in Rome next year, “I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace that has power to build you up and to give you your inheritance among all the sanctified” (Acts 20:32), while, gladly and with great affection, I bless all of you, with your families and your loved ones.
From the Vatican, June 29th 1999, solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul
Joannes Paulus P.P. II
Courtesy of Catholic Information Network (CIN)
Holy Father, John Paul II, Regina Caeli Message, May 14, 2000
The pilgrimage to Fátima was an opportunity to thank Mary for her protection and to renew God's call through her for prayer and penance At the General Audience of Wednesday, 17 May, the Holy Father spoke about his recent pilgrimage to Fátima, Portugal, where he celebrated Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary and beatified Francisco and Jacinta Marto, two of the three shepherd children to whom Our Lady appeared in 1917. The Pope stressed that his pilgrimage to Fátima was an opportunity to thank the Blessed Virgin for her protection throughout his Pontificate, and he urged the faithful to pray and do penance for world peace and the conversion of sinners. Here is a translation of his catechesis, which was given in Italian.
Dear Brothers and Sisters!
1. Today I would like to reflect with you on my pilgrimage to Fátima, which the Lord enabled me to make on Friday and Saturday of last week. I still feel the emotions I experienced then. I can see the immense crowd gathered in front of the shrine on Friday evening when I arrived, and especially on Saturday morning for the beatification of the two little shepherds Francisco and Jacinta. A crowd exuberant with joy and, at the same time, capable of spending moments in absolute silence and intense recollection.
My heart is filled with gratitude: for the third time, on 13 May, the anniversary of the first apparition of Our Lady in the Cova da Iria, Providence enabled me to go on pilgrimage to the feet of the Blessed Virgin, to the place where she appeared to the three little shepherds, Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta, from May to October 1917. Lucia is still alive and once again I had the joy of meeting her.
I extend my heartfelt thanks to the Bishop of Fátima and to all the Bishops of Portugal for preparing this visit and for their warm welcome.
I also renew my greetings and gratitude to the President, the Prime Minister and the other Portuguese authorities for the attention they showed me and for all they did to ensure the success of this apostolic pilgrimage.
The little shepherds heroically lived the Christian virtues
2. In Fátima, as in Lourdes, the Blessed Virgin chose to give her message to children: Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia. They received it so faithfully that they deserved not only to be recognized as credible witnesses of the apparitions, but also to become themselves an example of evangelical life.
Lucia, their cousin who was slightly older and is still alive, has given significant descriptions of the two new blesseds. Francisco was a good, thoughtful child with a contemplative soul, whereas Jacinta was lively, somewhat sensitive but very sweet and loving. Their parents taught them to pray, and the Lord himself drew them more closely to himself through the appearance of an angel who, holding a chalice and a host in his hands, taught them to unite themselves with the Eucharistic sacrifice in reparation for sins.
This experience prepared them for the subsequent meetings with Our Lady, who invited them to pray fervently and to offer sacrifices for the conversion of sinners. With the two shepherd children of Fátima, the Church has beatified two very young people because, although they were not martyrs, they showed that they lived the Christian virtues to a heroic degree despite their young age. The heroism of children, but true heroism.
Their holiness does not depend on the apparitions but on their fidelity and commitment in responding to the extraordinary gift they received from the Lord and from Mary most holy. After their encounter with the angel and with the beautiful Lady, they recited the Rosary many times a day, offering frequent penances for the end of the war and for the souls most in need of divine mercy, and they felt an intense desire to "console" the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. The little shepherds also had to endure the great pressures of those who with force and terrible threats tried to make them deny everything and reveal the secrets they had received. But they encouraged one another, trusting in the Lord and in the help of "that Lady", of whom Francisco said: "She is our friend". Because of their fidelity to God, they are a shining example to children and adults of how to comply in a simple and generous way with the transforming action of divine grace.
3. My pilgrimage to Fátima was also an opportunity to thank Mary for what she wished to communicate to the Church through these children and for the protection she has given me throughout my Pontificate: a thanks which I wanted to renew to her symbolically with the gift of the precious episcopal ring that Cardinal Wyszynski gave me a few days after my election to the See of Peter.
Since the time seemed right to me, I thought it appropriate to make public the content of the so-called third part of the secret. I am happy to have been able to pray in the Chapel of the Apparitions, built on the spot where the "Lady shining with light" appeared several times to the three children and spoke to them. I gave thanks for all that God's mercy has wrought in the 20th century through the motherly intercession of Mary. In the light of the apparitions of Fátima, the events of this tormented historical period become remarkably eloquent. It is not difficult, then, to have a better understanding of all the mercy God has shown to the Church and to humanity through Mary. We can only thank him for the courageous witness of the many heralds of Christ who remained faithful to him, even to the sacrifice of their lives. Here I would also like to recall the children and adults, the men and women who, following the instructions of the Blessed Virgin at Fátima, have offered prayers and sacrifices everyday, especially through penance and the recitation of the Holy Rosary. I would like to remember them all and give thanks to God.
God's appeal through Our Lady is still timely
4. A message of conversion and hope has spread from Fátima throughout the world, a message which, in conformity with Christian revelation, is deeply rooted in history. It invites believers, on the basis of their lived experiences, to pray fervently for peace in the world and to do penance so that hearts may be opened to conversion. This is the trto our generation particularly tried by events of the past. God's appeal to us through the Blessed Virgin still retains all its timeliness today.
Dear brothers and sisters, let us receive the light that comes from Fátima: let us be guided by Mary. May her Immaculate Heart be our refuge and the way that leads us to Christ. May the blessed shepherd children intercede for the Church, so that she can continue courageously on her earthly pilgrimage and proclaim the Gospel of salvation with constant fidelity to all mankind!