Cardinal Re, at Mass for election of Roman Pontiff, emphasizes Church’s unity in fidelity to the Gospel
May 07, 2025
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals, celebrated the Mass for the election of the Roman Pontiff in St. Peter’s Basilica on the morning of May 7 (booklet, video). The Mass took place hours before the 133 cardinal electors were scheduled to enter the conclave that will elect the 267th pope.
“We are here to invoke the help of the Holy Spirit, to implore his light and strength so that the Pope elected may be he whom the Church and humanity need at this difficult and complex turning point in history,” the 91-year-old prelate preached. “To pray, by invoking the Holy Spirit, is the only right and proper attitude to take as the Cardinal electors prepare to undertake an act of the highest human and ecclesial responsibility and to make a choice of exceptional importance.”
The readings at the Mass, he continued, “invite us to fraternal love, to mutual help and to commitment to ecclesial communion and universal human fraternity. Among the tasks of every successor of Peter is that of fostering communion: communion of all Christians with Christ; communion of the Bishops with the Pope; communion of the Bishops among themselves.”
“This is also a strong call to maintain the unity of the Church on the path traced out by Christ to the Apostles,” he added. “The unity of the Church is willed by Christ; a unity that does not mean uniformity, but a firm and profound communion in diversity, provided that full fidelity to the Gospel is maintained.”
Cardinal Re, the dean of the College of Cardinals since 2020, concluded:
Let us pray, then, that the Holy Spirit, who in the last hundred years has given us a series of truly holy and great Pontiffs, will give us a new Pope according to God’s heart for the good of the Church and of humanity.
Let us pray that God will grant the Church a Pope who knows how best to awaken the consciences of all and the moral and spiritual energies in today’s society, characterized by great technological progress but which tends to forget God. Today’s world expects much from the Church regarding the safeguarding of those fundamental human and spiritual values without which human coexistence will not be better nor bring good to future generations.
May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, intercede with her maternal intercession, so that the Holy Spirit will enlighten the minds of the Cardinal electors and help them agree on the Pope that our time needs.
For all current news, visit our News home page.
All comments are moderated. To lighten our editing burden, only current donors are allowed to Sound Off. If you are a current donor, log in to see the comment form; otherwise please support our work, and Sound Off!
