2023-06-07 12:56:00
June 7, 2023 / 5:56 a.m.
Pope Francis prayed this morning before the relics of Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus, patron saint of the missions, before undergoing a “laparotomy” operation at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome.
Before the General Audience this Wednesday, June 7, the Holy Father prayed for a few moments in front of the relics, and during his catechism he announced that he intends to dedicate an apostolic letter to them.
The Pontiff explained: “Here before us are the relics of Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus, universal patroness of the missions. It is beautiful that this happens while we are reflecting on the passion for evangelization, on apostolic zeal”.
“Today, therefore, let us let ourselves be helped by the testimony of Saint Therese. She was born 150 years ago, and on this anniversary I intend to dedicate an apostolic letter to her”, added the Successor of Peter.
At another time, the Pope stressed that Saint Therese “lived devoted to God and forgotten about herself, loving and consoling Jesus, and interceding for the salvation of all.”
Precisely this 2023 celebrates 150 years of the birth of the Saint and 100 years of her beatification.
For this reason, the Pope has granted a Jubilee Year that will last until Sunday, January 7, 2024 and whose motto is: “For trust and love”, the last words of his autobiography, “Story of a soul”.
The reliquary of the French saint, after having been carried on a pilgrimage by various dioceses in the Philippines and Germany, was present today in Saint Peter’s Square for the General Audience with Pope Francis.
His relics had already been before a General Audience, in the pontificate of Benedict XVI, on November 14, 2007.
The Roman stage of the pilgrimage of the relics will take place from June 6 to 16, 2023, and will be held on Pontifical Russian Collegethe Slavic school of the Jesuits, where Russian and Ukrainian religious reside.
After presiding over the General Audience and greeting the faithful gathered in Saint Peter’s Square, Pope Francis went to the Gemelli Hospital in Rome to undergo an operation due to the risk of intestinal obstruction.
Yesterday, Tuesday June 6 at 10:40 am (local time), Pope Francis had visited the Hospital to undergo a medical check-up and returned to the Vatican before noon.
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