VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Here is a Vatican translation of the brief greeting Benedict XVI delivered today to the youth who gathered at the Apostolic Nunciature in Lisbon to welcome the Pope to Portugal, and receive his apostolic blessing.
Today the Pope began his 4-day visit to the country to mark the 10th anniversary of the beatification of Jacinta and Francisco Marto, who were two of the witnesses of Our Lady of Fatima’s apparitions in 1917.
* * *
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Dear Young Friends,
Dear Friends,
I appreciated the lively and numerous participation of young people in this afternoon’s Mass on the Terreiro do Paço, a clear indication of their faith and their desire to build their future on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you for your joyful witness to Christ, who is eternally young, and thank you for the kindness you have shown to his humble Vicar on earth by gathering here this evening. You have come to wish me good night and from my heart I thank you; but now you must let me go and sleep, otherwise the night will not be good, and tomorrow awaits us.
I am very happy in being able to join the multitude of pilgrims to Fatima on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Beatification of Francisco and Jacinta. With Our Lady’s help, they learned to recognize God’s light in the depths of their hearts and to adore it in their lives. May the Virgin Mary obtain the same grace for you and may she protect you! I continue to count on you and on your prayers that this Visit to Portugal may bear abundant fruit. And now, with great affection, I give you my blessing, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Good night! See you tomorrow.
Thank you very much!
© Copyright 2010 — Libreria Editrice Vaticana
