Cardinal Tagle urged pilgrims to "live as Jesus lived", following the example of Mary

Cardinal Tagle urged pilgrims to "live as Jesus lived", following the example of Mary

In the Mass homily of May 13th, the Archbishop of Manila looked at Mary and challenged Christians to achieve the Gospel in their lives.

The motto for the Mass which, at the end of the morning, closed the International Anniversary Pilgrimage, was given by the celebration commentator, moments before the Eucharist, while Our Lady walked around the Prayers Area in procession, under the attentive eye of more than 200 thousand pilgrims.

“After the celebration of the Centennial of the Apparitions, the Shrine invites us to recognize the time we are living as time of grace and mercy, gifts that God continues to offer us here in Fatima, by the hands of Our Lady. This year, we are especially grateful to be pilgrims in Church as the holy people of God, who recognize, in the Mother of Jesus, the Son of God, its own spiritual mother ", heard in the Prayer Area between two Marian songs.
In the Mass homily that ended the first anniversary pilgrimage of 2019, Cardinal Antonio Tagle, who presided at the celebration, gave the example of Our Lady´s life, to urge pilgrims to achieve the Gospel in their lives.

Based on the proclaimed Gospel, which emphasized the blessing of the divine motherhood of Our Lady, the Philippine Cardinal highlighted "another aspect of Mary's motherhood": her obedience in faith, to the word of God.

"Mary's motherhood was an act of faith, by accepting God´s invitation to be the mother of the Son of God. She was an obedient servant whose full surrender and availability of God made her the Mother of the Son of God. But her response of belief in God’s word and putting it into action made God’s blessing complete. "

Presenting Mary “as the model and exemplar of the Church, who teaches the whole Church to find the path of true blessedness ", the president of the celebration alerted the pilgrims to the danger of the realities that in today's world lead to the misconception of a "blessed" life: money, fashion, influence and material goods, leaving a plea for parents and elders to take seriously the responsibility of educating their children in the faith.

In conclusion, Cardinal Antonio Tagle reinforced the invitation to pilgrims to listen the "calling of God" as a true blessing, by listening His Word and the realization of His will.

 "There is no greater blessing than being called by God to serve Jesus, to make Jesus known, loved, and served. This will only happen if like Mary we will be attentive to the God’s Word, receive Jesus in our life and live as Jesus lived, "said the Archbishop of Manila.

"Maturity of faith" of the sick and "joyful testimony of faith" of pilgrims praised

During the moment of Adoration and Eucharistic Blessing, Sister Angela Coelho, director of the Francisco and Jacinta Marto Foundation, spoke particularly to the sick, praising their "maturity of faith" and their example of "confidence in God, despite the difficult circumstances of life, "by assuring the intercession of Lucia de Jesus and the Holy Shepherds, of whom the second anniversary of the canonization was marked on this Pilgrimage.

The last word of this International Anniversary Pilgrimage was given by the bishop of Leiria-Fátima. Cardinal António Marto thanked the presence of his Philippine homonym.

 The last word of this International Anniversary Pilgrimage was given by the bishop of Leiria-Fátima. Cardinal António Marto began by congratulating the "joyful testimony of faith" of the present pilgrims, to underline the words of his Philippine homonym, to whom he thanked the presence and the message.

"Although we come from different latitudes, here we have the experience of being a unique people who, with Mary, walk in the path of hope and peace. And Mary, shows us that this blessing is each one us, as individuals and also as people blessed by God with the gift of His love, His tenderness, His mercy, His light, His comfort and of His strength, to renew our faith, "said the prelate.

Among the chants that animated the celebration, a reference to "Quem vos escolheu", Who chose you, sung in the Gifts Presentation, a composition that is part of the Liturgy of the Hours hymns in our country and which includes a poem by Friar Agostinho da Cruz, an important Christian poet whose fourth centennial of death is celebrated this year of 2019.

310 priests, 24 bishops and 3 cardinals concelebrated the Mass.

202 groups of pilgrims from 40 countries participated in the Mass that closed the International Pilgrimage of May, which evoked the first apparition of Our Lady in Cova da Iria.