VATICAN CITY, OCT 3, 2004 (VIS) - This morning in St. Peter's Square the Holy Father presided at a Eucharistic celebration during which he beatified Servants of God Pierre Vigne (1670-1740), Joseph-Marie Cassant (1878-1903), Anna Katharina Emmerick (1774-1824), Maria Ludovica De Angelis (1880-1962) and Charles of Austria (1887-1922).
In the homily, the Pope gave a brief biography of the five new blesseds who "allowed themselves to be guided by the Word of God as by a luminous and sure light, which never failed to illuminate their path." Referring to Fr. Vigne, founder of the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, he said that "by contemplating Christ present in the Eucharist and in His salvific passion, he was led to be an authentic disciple and faithful missionary of the Church. May his example give the faithful the desire to draw courage for the mission from the love of the Eucharist and adoration of the Most Holy Sacrament! Let us ask him to touch the hearts of young people so that they may accept consecrating themselves to Him in priesthood or religious life if they are called by God."
"Brother Joseph-Marie Cassant, priest and Trappist monk, always put his trust in God, in contemplation of the mystery of the passion, and in union with Christ present in the Eucharist. … In the midst of tribulation, with his eyes fixed on Christ, he offered his suffering for Our Lord and the Church. May our contemporaries, in particular the contemplatives and the sick, discover, following his example, the mystery of prayer, which raises the world to God and gives strength in trials!"
Speaking about Blessed Maria Ludovica De Angelis, virgin, of the Congregation of the Daughters of the Our Lady of Mercy in Savona, Italy John Paul II highlighted her "maternal heart, her leadership qualities and the audacity that belongs to saints. She had a specific and generous love with sick children, facing sacrifices to give them relief; with her colleagues in the Hospital de la Plata she was a model of joy and responsibility, creating a family atmosphere; for her sisters in the community, she was an authentic example. … In everything, she was sustained by prayer, making her life a continuous dialogue with Our Lord."
Blessed Anna Katharina Emmerick of the Order of Regular Canonesses of St. Augustin "demonstrated and experienced in her own flesh 'the bitter passion of our Lord Jesus Christ.' … Her material poverty is contrasted by her rich interior life. In addition to her patience in bearing her physical weaknesses, the strength of character of the new blessed and her firmness in faith impress us. Her example opened the hearts of poor and rich men, educated and humble people, to complete loving passion toward Jesus Christ."
The Holy Father emphasized that every day Emperor and King Charles of Austria faced the challenge of Christians "to seek out the will of God in everything, to know it and to put it into action. … He was a friend of peace. In his eyes, war was 'something horrible.' When he ascended to the throne in the middle of the fury of World War I, he tried to take up the peace initiative of my predecessor Benedict XV. … In his political conduct, his priority was to follow the call to sanctity of Christians. Therefore, he considered the idea of social love important. May he always be a model for us all, in particular for those today who have a political responsibility in Europe!"
At the end of the Mass, before praying the Angelus, the Holy Father invited everyone during this month dedicated to the rosary "to pray this beautiful prayer, imitating the new blesseds." Later he greeted in their respective languages the pilgrims who came for the beatification.
HML/BEATIFICATIONS/… VIS 20041004 (630)
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