Papal address After Mass in Valencia

7/13/2006 - 6:00 AM PST

Advertisment

"Open Your Homes and Hearts to Christ"

VALENCIA, Spain, JULY 13, 2006 (Zenit) - Here is the address Benedict XVI delivered on Sunday before praying the Angelus at the end of the closing Mass of the 5th World Meeting of Families.

* * *

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Before ending this celebration, we turn to the Virgin Mary, whom so many families invoke in the intimacy of their homes, to assist them with her maternal concern.

With the intercession of Mary, open your homes and hearts to Christ so that he will be your strength and joy, and help you to live united and to proclaim to the world the invincible power of true love.

At this time I wish to thank all those who have made possible the smooth unfolding of this meeting. In a particular way, I wish to acknowledge the sacrificial and efficient work of numerous volunteers of so many nationalities for their abnegated collaboration in all the ceremonies.

I dedicate special thanks to the numerous individuals and religious communities, especially the cloistered, who have supported all the celebrations with their persevering prayer.

Now I have the joy to announce that the next World Meeting of Families will be held in the year 2009 in Mexico City.

To the beloved Church which journeys in the noble Mexican nation and in the person of the Lord Cardinal Norberto Rivera Carrera, archbishop of that city, I already express my gratitude for his acceptance.

[The Holy Father then greeted pilgrims in French, English, German, Italian, Portuguese and Polish. In English, he said:]

I greet all the English-speaking participants who have gathered from various parts of the world. I trust that your experiences here will have strengthened your commitment to promoting the integrity of family life.

May God abundantly bless you and all those you represent, and through the intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, may you and your families be filled with the wisdom of her Son.

[He then continued in Spanish, saying:]

I embrace from my heart all the families here present and those who have joined this celebration through radio, television or other means of social communication.

I entrust all to the Holy Family of Nazareth, that it may protect them and that, following its silent example, they may help children grow in wisdom, age and grace before God and men (cf. Luke 2:52).

� Copyright 2006 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana [adapted]

Contact

The Vatican
http://www.catholic.org , VA
Pope Benedict XVI - Bishop of Rome, 661 869-1000

Email

info@yourcatholicvoice.org

Keywords

Pope, Mass, Valencia, Families, Christ

Rate This Article

Was this helpful to you? Very Helpful Somewhat Helpful Not Helpful at All

Would you be interested in more articles like this? Yes, I am Interested No, I am not Interested

Rate Article

0 Comments

Comments submitted must be civil, remain on-topic and not violate any laws including copyright. We reserve the right to delete any comments which are abusive, inappropriate or not constructive to the discussion.

Though we invite robust discussion, we reserve the right to not publish any comment which denigrates the human person, undermines marriage and the family, or advocates for positions which openly oppose the teaching of the Catholic Church.

This is a supervised forum and the Editors of Catholic Online retain the right to direct it.

We also reserve the right to block any commenter for repeated violations. Your email address is required to post, but it will not be published on the site.

We ask that you NOT post your comment more than once. Catholic Online is growing and our ability to review all comments sometimes results in a delay in their publication.

Name *

Email *

Comment *

Send me important information from Catholic Online and it's partners. See Sample

Post Comment