At the end of Holy Mass, celebrated in front of the Vatican Basilica for the proclamation of the saints Giorgio Preca, Szymon da Lipnicy, Karel van Sint Andries Houben and Marie Eugénie de Jésus Milleret, before saying the Marian prayer of the Angelus, the Pope greeted the pilgrims in Saint Peter’s Square and gave a thought to the many populations that are suffering because of wars: "I greet the Italian-speaking pilgrims, especially the National Association of Military Health, the motto of which is: ‘Arma pietati cedant May weapons give in to pity’: may this materialise all over the world!". A thought to "the Church of Bologna, which celebrates the 750th anniversary of the deed under which the Senate of that city ratified the abolition of slavery in their area". "May this initiative concluded Benedict XVI arouse new efforts to overcome the new forms of slavery that still afflict mankind". Finally, at the end of the Marian prayer, the Holy Father received, in the Cappella della Pietà, the heads of the delegations of the countries who had attended the canonisation ceremony.
