50 years after death of Bl. John XXIII, Pope Francis reflects on anniversary
June 03, 2013
On June 3, the Vatican observed the 50th anniversary of the death of Blessed John XXIII.
On Monday evening, Pope Francis received a delegation of pilgrims from the Diocese of Bergamo, Italy, where Angelo Roncalli—the future Pope John XXIII—was ordained to the priesthood in 1904. The Pope joined them in praying at the tomb of his predecessor.
In his remarks to the group from Bergamo, Pope Francis reflected on the motto chosen by Pope John XXIII: “Obedience and peace.” He remarked that John XXIII was “a man who was able to communicate peace.” This, Pope Francis said, was because of “a mind deeply at peace, the fruit of a long and challenging work on himself.” Blessed John XXIII described his own interior struggle, the Pontiff noted, in his autobiography, Journal of a Soul.
Regarding obedience, Pope Francis said that his predecessor pursued that virtue by “performing that service in the Church, which his superiors asked of him, without seeking anything for himself, with no escape from anything that was required of him.”
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