(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis will make a two-day apostolic visit to the northern Italian city of Turin, 21-22 June, which will include a moment of prayer before the Shroud of Turin and a visit to the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of St. John Bosco.
The pope’s packed schedule includes visits of other religious institutions and encounters with various groups of people, generally marginalized by society.
Listen to the report by Laura Ieraci:
It is expected to be another early start for Pope Francis on his two-day visit on Sunday to Turin in northern Italy. Leaving Rome on Sunday at 7 a.m., local time, the Pope is expected to arrive in Turin one hour later and set off immediately on a series of encounters.
His first encounter is expected to be with workers in a city square, where a farmer, a factory worker and a business owner are expected to extend their greetings to the Pope. After addressing the workers, the Pope is expected to walk to the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist nearby, where he will spend a few moments in prayer before the Shroud of Turin, revered by many as the burial cloth of Jesus. He is also expected to spend a few moments in prayer before the altar dedicated to a young blessed, born in Turin, Piergiorgio Frassati.
Thousands are then expected to gather for the outdoor papal Mass, after which the Pope is expected to have lunch in the local archbishop’s residence with some inmates from a juvenile detention centre, some immigrants and homeless people, and a family of Roma people.
After lunch, the Pope will spend some private time in prayer at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Consolata, after which he will head to the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of St. John Bosco, who had the Marian basilica built and who founded the communities of Salesian priests and sisters.
The Pope is then expected to meet with those who suffer from illness and disability in the Church of Cottolengo. His last encounter on Sunday is expected to be with thousands of young people in a large city square.
The pace of his second day in Turin is expected be at a bit slower, starting with an ecumenical meeting with some evangelical pastors at the Valdese Temple. After this meeting, expected to last a little more than an hour, the Pope is expected to return to the archbishop’s residence, where he will meet with some of his relatives in private, celebrate a Mass for them and enjoy lunch together with them.
Pope Francis is expected to land at Rome’s Ciampino Airport at 6:30 p.m., Rome time, on Monday.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis will make a two-day apostolic visit to the northern Italian city of Turin, 21-22 June, which will include a moment of prayer before the Shroud of Turin and a visit to the Basilica of Mary Help of Christians to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of St. John Bosco. The…
Read more
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received the participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Catholic Biblical Federation on Friday. The CBF is a worldwide association of Episcopal Conferences and more than 200 Catholic Biblical institutions, representatives of which are gathered in the small town of Nemi near Rome from June 18 th -23 rd to explore Sacred Scripture as a source of evangelization, especially in light of the passage from the 1 st Letter of St. John (1:3): “What we have seen and heard we are proclaiming to you.”
Putting aside his prepared remarks for the occasion, which he nevertheless delivered in written form, Pope Francis reflected on two characteristics of Biblical evangelizers and teachers of the faith: parrhesia or ‘frankness’; hypomone or ‘patience’.
For his extemporaneous remarks, Pope Francis drew on the Mass reading of the day, which came from the 2 nd Letter of St. Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians, in which St. Paul lists the hardships and trials he has faced in service of the Gospel, only to conclude that his weakness is his only vaunt (cf. 2 Cor 11:30). Pope Francis also recalled St. Paul’s insistence that his only glory is the Cross of Christ (cf. Gal. 6:14). “This is a Church that is outward-bound,” said Pope Francis, “a martyrial Church: it is a Church that goes through the streets, that goes out on its way.” The Holy Father went on to say, “Accidents happen along the way – as they might to anyone who undertakes a journey – but I prefer a Church wounded in [such an] accident, to a Church that is sick from being closed up and turned in on herelf – a Church with both frankness and patience: the patience that knows how to bear herself up under [adverse] circumstances, and also the tenderness to carry on its shoulders those wounded faithful, who have been put in her charge.”
This 9 th Plenary Assembly of the CBF is the first over which the Federation’s new president, Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle of Manila, Philippines, is presiding, after being elected to succeed Italian Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, President of the Pontifical Council for the Family, who led the organization for more than a dozen years, starting in 2002.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Friday received the Italian delegation of athletes to the upcoming Special Olympics in the US city of Los Angeles. In remarks prepared for the occasion, Pope Francis praised the athletes for their courage and hard work.
He also praised sport in general as a very positive means of self-discovery, that can help those who practice it to open themselves up to others and learn the valuable lessons of teamwork, common effort, and fair play: an effective means of breaking down barriers of mistrust and discrimination, while building friendship and understanding.
“It is my hope,” said Pope Francis,” “that you all might live the upcoming Games in a joyful, passionate, serene manner: have fun,” he told them, “and make friendships with you brothers and sisters from around the world!”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis received the participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Catholic Biblical Federation on Friday. The CBF is a worldwide association of Episcopal Conferences and more than 200 Catholic Biblical institutions, representatives of which are gathered in the small town of Nemi near Rome from June 18th-23rd to explore Sacred Scripture as…
Read more