ANGELUS TODAY
The Holy Father addressed a packed St. Peter's Square today in leading the Angelus on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.
The 100-foot Vatican Christmas tree, donated by the Walloon region of Belgium, has been decked for the season.
Above, the mosaic of Mary as 'Mater Ecclesiae' on a corner wall of the Apostolic Palace building facing St. Peter's Square.
Here are the words addressed by the Holy Father today to the English-speaking faithful.
Today we celebrate the Immaculate Conception of Mary, the Mother of Jesus.
As we venerate her life of holiness, full of grace from the beginning of her existence, we praise God and acclaim the power of his gifts.
May all Christians, filled with joyful hope and following the example of Mary, be faithful to God’s grace and seek a life of holiness.
I wish you all a happy feast day and a pleasant stay in Rome!
Here is a translation of the Pope's words today:
Dear brothers and sisters!
On December 8, we celebrate one of the most beautiful feasts of the Blessed Virgin Mary: the Solemnity of her Immaculate Conception.
But what does it mean that Mary is the Immaculate? What does this title say to us? First of all, let us refer to the liturgical texts for today, especially the great 'fresco' from Chapter 3 of Genesis and the account of the Annunciation in the Gospel of Luke.
After the Original Sin, God turned to the serpent, who represents Satan, he curses him and adds a promise: "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel"(Gn 3,15).
It is the announcement of a rematch: Satan in the dawn of Creation appears to have prevailed, but a son of woman would come who would crush his head. Thus, through the woman's race, God himself would triumph.
That woman is the Virgin Mary, of whom was born Jesus Christ, who with his sacrifice, defeated the old tempter once and for all. That is why, in so many paintings or statues of the Immaculate, she is shown crushing a serpent under her foot.
The evangelist Luke, on the other hand, shows us the Virgin Mary as she receives the announcement of the celestial messenger (cfr Lk 1,26-38). She appearas as the humble authentic daughter of Israel, the true Sion in whom God wishes to make his dwelling.
She is the shoot from which the Messiah would be born, the just and merciful King. In the simplicity of the home in Nazareth, there lived the pure 'remains' of Israel, in whom God wished his people to be reborn, like a new tree that would extend its branches over the whole world, offering the good fruits of salvation to all men.
Unlike Adam and Eve, Mary remains obedient to the will of the Lord, and with all her being she says 'Yes' and places herself fully at the disposition of divine design.
She is the new Eve, the true 'mother of all the living', who, through faith in Christ, will receive eternal life.
Dear friends, what immense joy to have Mary Immaculate for our mother! Everytime we experience our fragility and any hint of evil, we can turn to her, and our hearts will receive light and comfort.
Even in the trials of life, in the tempests that may make our faith and hope waver, let us think that we are her children and that the roots of our existence are anchored in the infinite grace of God.
The Church itself, although it is exposed to the negative influences of the world, always finds in her the star to orient herself and to follow the way indicated by Christ.
Mary is, in fact, the Mother of the Church, as Pope Paul VI and the Second Vatican Council solemnly proclaimed.
Therefore, as we give thanks to God for this stupendous sign of his goodness, let us entrust to the Immaculate Virgin each of us, our families and communities, the whole Church and the whole world.
I will do so this afternoon, following tradition, at the foot of the monument dedicated to her in Piazza di Spagna.
After the prayers, he said this:
This year, once again, on today's occasion, I have the joy of greeting the Pontifical Academy of the Immaculate, led by Cardinal Andrea Maria Deskur. Dear Cardinal, dear friends, I affectionately entrust each of you and your activities to the maternal protection of the Virgin Mary.
I also address a special thought to Italian Catholic Action which, in so many parishes today, renews its commitment to and in the Church. I particularly encourage the educators of the Catholic Action for Children, who are present today after the conclusion of their annual conference, to be generous and tireless in educating children in the faith and in Christian witness.
I almost missed this item in today's OR which is a backgrounder on the Roman homage to the Immaculate Conception ON her feast day.
The Popes and the 'Immacolata'
Translated from
the 12/7-12/8 issue of
A white stole instead of the traditional red to emphasize the nature of this Marian solemnity.
A Spanish choir to accompany the end of the Pope's prayer at the foot of the Marian pillar.
The floraL homage to be offered by Benedict XVI, prepared this time by the horticulturists of the Vatican Gardens.
These were to be some of the features in the afternoon rites with the Pope at Piazza di Spagna today in honor of the Immaculate Conception, according to Mons. Guido Marini, master of papal liturgical celebrations.
The monument to the Immacolata was erected in Piazza di Spagna to commemorate the proclamation by Pius IX on December 8, 1854, of the dogma that the Blessed Virgin Mary was conceived without original sin.
Two hundred Vatican firemen were required to set the brnoze statue of the Virgin atop the marble column (both statue and monument were designed by Luigi Proletti). Every year, a wreath of fresh flowers is placed on the image on the feast of the Immaculate Conception.
Papa Mastai-Ferretti (Pius IX) himself inaugurated the monument on Dec. 8, 1857 from a tribunal that was mounted in front of the Embassy of Spain that gives its name to the Piazza.
In 1908, the nearby parish of Sant'Andrea della Fratte started to organize annual pilgrimages to the monument by Roman citizens. Since 1938, the Pontifical Academy of the Immacolata has been in charge of the event.
For the occasion, the firemen [honored for the contribution of their 19th century predecessors to the work], the ambassador of Spain, the clergy and religious of the city, and representatives of colleges, seminaries, confraternities and the Catholic laity, are joined by city, pronvicial and regional civilian authorities, labor organizations, and other productive sectors of the Urbe (the city of Rome).
After the demise of the Papal states in the mid-19th century, several years after the dogma of the Immaculate Conception was proclaimed, it was Pius XII, a Roman by birth, who first came to pay homage to the Immacolata on Dec. 8, 1953, which was the start of the Marian year to mark the first centenary of the dogma.
John XXIII, just over a month from his coronation as Pope, first came to the Immacolata in 1958, returning on her feast day in 1960 and 1961.
After that, Paul VI made it an annual event, coming first as Pope on December 8, 1965, after he had just closed the Second Vatican Council.
During the oil crisis in the 1970s, he came to Piazza di Spagna in a horse-drawn carriage.
John Paul II, who had a particular devotion to Mary, made it an annual pilgrimage. And Benedict XVI has carried on the tradition.
With hindsight, one must remark that the Pope did not wear a white stole today but a golden one. [I think I read somewhere that for purposes of the liturgy, white and gold are 'equivalent' colors.]
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 09/12/2009 04:29]