(ZENIT News / Castel Gandolfo, 15.07.2025) – On the morning of Tuesday, July 15, Pope Leo XIV presided over Holy Mass in the Chapel of the carabinieri station (the carabinieri are the Italian Gendarmerie, a Military Police Force that oversees public order and internal security in the country). Present at the Mass were the Italian Minister of Defense, the Commander General of the Carabinieri, and the Italian Military Archbishop, Gian Franco Saba. Below is the English translation of the Pope’s homily.
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Dear Brothers and Sisters:
The Gospel we have just heard conveys to us the authentic Christian meaning of these two words. Brother and sister are names of relationship, which we often repeat in the Liturgy as a greeting, as signs of closeness and affection. Jesus, the Only-Begotten Son of God, explains their meaning in relation to Himself and to His Father, revealing a bond stronger than blood because it involves us all, uniting all men and women. In fact, we are all truly brothers and sisters of Jesus when we do God’s Will, that is, when we live loving one another, as God has loved us.
Thus, every relationship that God lives, in Himself and for us, becomes a gift: when His Only-Begotten Son becomes our Brother, His Father becomes our Father, and the Holy Spirit, who unites the Father and the Son, comes to dwell in our hearts. God’s love is so great that Jesus does not even keep His Mother to Himself, but gives us Mary as our Mother at the hour of the cross (cf. John 19:27). Only one who lives with such complete dedication can say: «Whoever does the Will of my Father who is in Heaven is my brother and sister and mother» (Matthew 12:50). In particular, these words help us understand that Mary becomes the Mother of Jesus because She listens to the Word of God with love, welcomes it into her heart and lives it faithfully. Commenting on the Gospel passage we have just recalled, St. Augustine wrote that «for Mary it is more valuable to have been a disciple of Christ than to have been the Mother of Christ.» In fact, «Mary was blessed because She heard the Word of God and put it into practice» (Sermo 72/A, 7). The meaning of Mary’s life is found in fidelity to the Word received from God: the Word of life that she welcomed, carried in Her womb and gave to the world.
Dear brothers, the 75th anniversary of the proclamation of the faithful Virgin, the Virgo Fidelis, as Patroness of the Carabinieri Corps was recently celebrated. It was precisely from Castel Gandolfo, in 1949, that my Venerable Predecessor, Pope Pius XII, welcomed this beautiful proposal from the Corps’ General Command. After the tragedy of the war, in a period of moral and material reconstruction, Mary’s fidelity to God became a model of fidelity of every Carabinieri to the homeland and the Italian people. This virtue expresses the dedication, purity, and constancy of their commitment to the common good, which the Carabinieri protect by guaranteeing public safety and by defending the rights of all, especially those in danger.
I therefore express my profound gratitude for the noble and demanding service that the Corps provides to Italy and its citizens, as well as to the Holy See and the faithful who visit Rome: I am thinking especially of the many pilgrims during this Jubilee Year.
Devotion to the faithful Virgin also reflects the Carabinieri’s motto, «Faithful Through the Centuries,» expressing the sense of duty and self-denial of each member of the Corps, even to the point of self-sacrifice. I therefore thank the Civil and Military Authorities present here for what they do in the fulfilment of their duties: in the face of injustices that undermine the social order, do not give in to the temptation to think that evil can be victorious. Especially in this time of war and violence, remain faithful to your oath: as a servant of the State, respond to crime with the force of law and honesty. This is how the Carabinieri Corps, the Worthy [Corps], will always deserve the esteem of the Italian people.
In this Eucharist, as we celebrate the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of the Lord, it is right and necessary to remember the Carabinieri who gave their lives in the fulfilment of their duty: I commend to you as an example the Venerable Salvo D’Acquisto, gold medal winner for military valour, whose Cause of Beatification is underway. In every mission, may the Virgin Fidelis accompany you, lovingly watching over each one of you, your families, and your work.
Translation of the Italian original into Spanish by ZENIT’s Editorial Director and, into English, by Virginia M. Forrester.
