VATICAN CITY, 12 MAY 2010 (VIS) - Early this morning the Pope left the apostolic nunciature in the Portuguese capital of Lisbon and travelled by helicopter to Fatima, a town of 8,000 inhabitants associated with the apparitions of the Virgin Mary to three shepherd children Jacinta, Francisco and Lucia in 1917. Jacinta and Francisco were beatified by John Paul II in Fatima in 2000.
The shrine was built on the site of the apparitions (an area known as "Cova de Iria") with an esplanade surrounded by various buildings, At the north end stands the basilica and to its left the "Capelinha", the Chapel of the Apparitions, which was built in 1919.
Before the image of the Virgin Mary in the Chapel of the Apparitions, Benedict read a prayer in which he recalled how Venerable John Paul II had visited Our Lady of Fatima on three occasions and given thanks for "the 'unseen hand' that rescued him from death in the assassination attempt on 13 May 1981".
" I thank you, beloved Mother, for the prayers and sacrifices that the shepherd children
of Fatima offered for the Pope, led by the sentiments that you inspired in them in the apparitions. I also thank all those who, every day, pray for the Successor of Peter and for his intentions, that the Pope may be strong in faith, bold in hope and zealous in love".
The Holy Father also presented a golden rose "brought from Rome as a homage of gratitude from the Pope for the marvels that the Almighty has worked through you in the hearts of so many who come as pilgrims to this your maternal home".
Benedict XVI then went to the Church of the Blessed Trinity, three hundred metres away, where he presided at Vespers with priests, religious, seminarians and deacons.
In his homily he expressed his own and the Church's recognition and gratitude "to all of you who have given your life to Christ. ... Thank you for your witness, often silent and certainly not easy; thank you for your fidelity to the Gospel and to the Church".
"The greatest concern of every Christian, especially of every consecrated person or minister of the altar, must be fidelity, loyalty to one's own vocation, as a disciple who wishes to follow the Lord. ... This evidently supposes true intimacy with Christ in prayer, since it is the powerful and intense experience of the Lord's love that brings priests and consecrated persons to respond to His love in way that is exclusive and spousal".
"There exists a deep solidarity among all the members of the Body of Christ", explained the Holy Father. "It is not possible to love Christ without loving His brothers and sisters. It was for their salvation that John Mary Vianney decided to become a priest", he said.
"It is important to assist one another with prayer, helpful advice and discernment! Be especially attentive to those situations where there is a certain weakening of priestly ideals or dedication to activities not fully consonant with what is proper for a minister of Jesus Christ".
"The priesthood of Christ is eternal, but the life of priests is limited. Christ has willed that others continue in time the priestly ministry that He instituted. Keep alive in your hearts, and in others around you, the desire to raise up - in co-operation with the grace of the Holy Spirit - new priestly vocations among the faithful".
Turning then to address seminarians, the Pope told them: "Carefully examine your intentions and your motivations. Devote yourselves with a steadfast heart and a generous spirit to your training. The Eucharist, which is the centre of Christian life and the school of humility and service, should be your first love".
Before the end of the ceremony, the Pope entrusted priests to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. "We are mindful that, without Jesus, we can do nothing good", he said, "and that only through Him, with Him and in Him, will we be instruments of salvation for the world.
"Bride of the Holy Spirit, obtain for us the inestimable gift of transformation in Christ. Through the same power of the Spirit that overshadowed you, making you the Mother of the Saviour, help us to bring Christ your Son to birth in ourselves too. May the Church be thus renewed by priests who are holy, priests transfigured by the grace of Him Who makes all things new".
"Help us, through your powerful intercession, never to fall short of this sublime vocation, nor to give way to our selfishness, to the allurements of the world and to the wiles of the Evil One".
"Mother of the Church, we priests want to be pastors who do not feed themselves but rather give themselves to God for their brethren, finding their happiness in this. Not only with words, but with our lives, we want to repeat humbly, day after day, our 'here I am'".
After Vespers the Holy Father dined at the nearby "Casa Nossa Senhora do Carmo", a centre for spiritual exercises which is part of the shrine complex.
PV-PORTUGAL/ VIS 20100513 (860)
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