During his long and fruitful pontificate, St John Paul II embraced the entire world, which stands yet again in need of his blessing, Cardinal Pietro Parolin said. Source: CNS.
“Bless us, Holy Father John Paul II. Bless the Lord’s Church on its journey, that it may be a pilgrim of hope. Bless this lacerated and disoriented humanity, that it may find the way back to its dignity and its highest vocation, that it may know the riches of God’s mercy and love,” the cardinal said during a memorial Mass in St Peter’s Basilica yesterday, the 20th anniversary of the late Polish pope’s death.
Hundreds of faithful attended the Mass, including Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a small government delegation representing Poland, cardinals and bishops living in Rome, and diplomats accredited to the Vatican.
Retired Polish Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, who served as St John Paul’s personal secretary from 1966 until the pope’s death in 2005, greeted and thanked the congregation.
Cardinal Parolin, who began serving in the Vatican Secretariat of State under the late pope starting in 1986, gave the homily, which recalled the legacy and spirituality of the Polish pope, whose pontificate of more than 26 years was the third longest in history.
Pope John Paul exclaimed “with impressive force from the very first unforgettable homily at the inauguration of his pontificate, ‘Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ’,“ who knows what humanity is meant to be and points the way to eternal life, the cardinal said.
“We remember with gratitude and admiration his tireless service of peace, his passionate warnings, his diplomatic initiatives trying to avert wars” even when he was experiencing difficult moments in his life and “the fragility of physical strength was already evident,” Cardinal Parolin said.
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St John Paul II tirelessly served the Church, embraced the world, cardinal says (By Carol Glatz, CNS)
