Bells will ring in St. Peter’s Square following the New Year’s Day Mass on Thursday.
This may seem normal. However, the novelty here is that the bells will be streamed live not from the Square itself, but from elsewhere.
The Vatican confirmed that this evening the Holy Father will take part in Vespers for tomorrow’s feast of Mary, Mother of God, and make a stop by the Nativity scene afterward. Tomorrow, he will celebrate Mass, also in the Basilica, which will be followed by the Angelus.
In a statement, the Vatican noted that at the conclusion of the Angelus, faithful in the Square will be able to hear the ringing of the Maria Dolens bell of the northern Italian city of Rovereto in Trentino.
The ringing will be able to be transmitted through large screens in the Square and through the Italian television channel RAI and the Vatican’s CTV channel.
As it does every night, the Maria Dolens bell will ring 100 times to commemorate World War I.
Moreover, the gesture being done on Jan. 1 is appropriate, as it is emphasizing the message of peace launched by the Pope on the occasion of the 48th World Day of Peace.
The bell rings out every evening tolling a hundred times in remembrance of the Fallen of all wars and of all the nations of the world.
Rovereto’s Bell of Peace has become an international meeting point for different religions, cultures and nations seeking ever deeper, constant meditation on the themes of peace, tollerance and human rights.
In 1965, the bell was blessed in St. Peter’s Square by Pope Paul VI. Five days later, the bell returned to Rovereto and was placed on the city’s Miravalle Hill.
On the body of the bell of «Maria Dolens» are engraved the autographed comments of the Supreme Pontiff Pius XII «With peace nothing is lost. Everything is to be lost through war.» John XXIII: «In pace hominum ordinata concordia et tranquilla libertas.»
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On the NET:
More about Maria Dolens: http://www.parrocchie.it/rovereto/lizzanella/bell.htm
