THE WORDS OF POPE BENEDICT XVI TO THE COMMUNITY AT THE END OF THE CELEBRATION
At the end of this meeting of prayer in memory of the witnesses of faith of recent times, I gladly greet you all, especially those who have taken part in the liturgy from the square, or by radio or TV. Coming to Santa Maria in Trastevere for the 25th anniversary of the Community, Servant of God John Paul II entrusted this Basilica of St. Bartholomew to the Community of Sant’Egidio, and in the 2000 he decided that in it should be nurtured the memory of the new martyrs.
Dear friends of the Community of Sant’Egidio, you moved your first steps here in Rome, in the troublesome years after 1968. As children of this Church, presiding in charity, you have spread your charisma to many parts of the world. The Word of God, love for the Church, predilection for the poor, communication of the Gospel, were the stars that guided you, under different skies, to witness the one message of Christ. I thank you for your apostolic work; I thank you for your care for the least and your search for peace, which all characterise your Community. May the example of the martyrs, whom we have remembered today, continue to guide your steps, so that you may be authentic friends of God and friends of humanity. And be not afraid of the difficulties and sufferance this missionary activity entails: they are part of the “logic” of a courageous witness to Christian love.
Finally, I wish to address to you, and through you to all your Communities in the world, my best wishes for the fortieth anniversary of your birth. I extend my greetings to the sick, to the sanitary staff, to the religious and volunteer personnel of the nearby Fatebenefratelli Hospital on the Tiber Island. To each and every one of you I assure my memory in prayer, and invoking the motherly protection of the Holy Virgin, I give my Apostolic Blessing.
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