Pope's greetings to the Little Apostles of Charity, invitation to pray the rosary, and the memory of Blessed Alvaro del Portillo

Vatican City, 2014 (VIS) – Before the catechesis of this Wednesday's general audience in St. Peter's Square, the Pope received in the Paul VI Hall the participants in the pilgrimage organised by the Secular Institute of the Little Apostles of Charity, founded sixty years ago by Blessed Luigi Monza who worked “with skill and love” in the care of the disabled. Pope Francis mentioned the Institute in his catechesis as an example of the charism of care for the most vulnerable, recalling that the work of Luigi Monza was supported by Pope Paul VI when he was archbishop of Milan, Italy, and urged them to be held as an example “for families and for those who hold public responsibilities”.

After the catechesis and during his greetings in various languages, the Holy Father addressed German and Polish pilgrims, reminding them that October is the month of the Holy Rosary, and invited them to meditate on the path and work of Christ through the eyes of Mary, and to pray the rosary to accompany the work of the Synod of Bishops on the family.

He also addressed the Portuguese-speaking faithful, including members of the “Associacao Crista de Empresarios e Gestores” (Christian Association of Businesspeople and Managers), encouraging them to persevere in their testimony in society and to allow themselves to be guided by the Holy Spirit “to understand the true path of history”.

“Keep the flame of faith burning, ignited on the day of your baptism and sustained by the example of the holy martyrs, so that others may see the joy of your life in Christ”, he said to pilgrims from Croatia.

“I also greet Bishop Javier Echevarria, prelate of Opus Dei, as well as the faithful of the prelature present here to give thanks for the beatification of Bishop Alvaro del Portillo”, he concluded, in Spanish. “May the intercession and the example of the new blessed help them to respond generously to God's call to holiness and to the apostolate in ordinary life, in the service of the Church and of the whole of humanity. Many thanks, and may God bless you”.