” “"Pope John pointed at faith in Christ and at the belonging to the Church, mother and mistress, as at a guarantee for a fruitful Christian testimony in the world. Thus, in the strong oppositions of his time, the Pope was a man and a pastor of peace, who successfully opened in the East and in the West unexpected horizons of brotherhood between Christians and of dialogue with everyone". This was said tonight by Benedict XVI, at the end of Mass he officiated in Saint Peter’s for the fiftieth anniversary of the appointment of Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli to the Papal Chair, as he went down into the basilica to worship the spoils of the blessed John XXIII and give a speech to the devotees, which included many pilgrims from Bergamo. "You have come to reassert your common bonds, and faith opens them up to a truly Catholic dimension", stated the Pope, speaking to the devotees from Bergamo, led by their bishop, mgr. Roberto Amadei, urging them to "follow the example and the lesson of the Pope who was born in your land". "A truly special gift, offered to the Church with John XXIII, was the Second Ecumenical Vatican Council that he decided, prepared and opened went on Benedict XVI . We are all committed to receiving that gift in an appropriate way, by keeping meditating on its lessons and translating its operational suggestions into our lives". (continued)” “
