Pope to Rectors of Shrines:
Keeping popular piety alive
 |
| Pope Francis speaks to rectors and pastoral workers of Shrines.(Vatican Media) |
Pope Francis meets Rectors and Pastoral Workers of Shrines,
encouraging them to make pilgrims feel “at home” and to help them enrich their
popular piety.
By Seàn-Patrick Lovett
A Shrine is a church, or other sacred place, which is
visited by people who come as pilgrims to pray, or to seek grace and
consolation. There are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of such locations all over
the world. And the tradition of visiting and praying at a Shrine is as old as
the Church itself.
On Thursday morning in the Vatican, Pope Francis met with
some of those responsible for these Shrines and sacred places, Rectors and
Pastoral Workers, currently attending an International Conference on the topic.
Shrines are irreplaceable
Reflecting on the contemporary importance of Shrines, the
Pope described them as places where people gather “to express their faith in
simplicity, and according to the various traditions that have been learned
since childhood.” In this sense, he said, “Shrines are irreplaceable
because they keep popular piety alive.”
Places of welcome
Shrines must always be places of welcome, said Pope Francis,
and pilgrims must always be made to feel at home, “like a long-awaited family
member who has finally arrived.” Many people visit a Shrine, said the Pope,
because of its works of art, or because it is located in a beautiful natural
environment. “When these people are welcomed,” he said, “they become more
willing to open their hearts and let them be shaped by Grace.”
Places of prayer
Above all, said Pope Francis, the Shrine is a place of
prayer. Most of our Shrines are dedicated to Our Lady: “Here the Virgin Mary
opens the arms of her maternal love to listen to the prayer of each and every
one”, he said. “Here she smiles, offering consolation. Here she sheds tears
with those who weep… Here she becomes the companion on the road of every person
who raises their eyes to her asking for grace, and certain of being heard.”
Places of reconciliation
No one visiting a Shrine should feel like a stranger, said
the Pope, especially when they come weighed down by sin. “The Shrine is a
privileged place to experience mercy that knows no boundaries,” he said.
“When mercy is experienced, it becomes a form of real evangelization, because
it transforms those who receive it into witnesses of mercy.” Praying in
silence, or with pious formulas and gestures learned as a child, “each one must
be helped to express themselves in personal prayer.”
It is this prayer, concluded Pope Francis, that makes
Shrines such fruitful places “where popular piety is nourished and grows.”
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét