19 may, 2010
To Venerable BrotherBISHOP ANTONIO AUGUSTO DOS SANTOS MARTO Ordinary of Leiria-Fatima I come by this means to renew the expression of my gratitude to You and, through You, to all those who, in that beloved Diocese, I owe a word of thanks, specially at the Shrine of Fatima, for the loving way with which they received Me, doing all they could so that the Successor of Peter could pay homage to the Virgin Mother and proclaim Her glories to the innumerous crowd gathered there. I keep indelible, in my memory and my heart, the images of that immense assembly, praising, at one voice, the Most Holy Trinity and waving thousands of white handkerchiefs at their Mother, the Virgin Mary. That is a people who loves God and feels loved by God. May the ecclesial community of Leiria-Fatima, whom You shepherd, fructify in peace and joy of the Lord, following on the steps of Blesseds Francisco and Jacinta and of so many other Saints, to whom was granted to rekindle hope in the hearts and daily lives of men and women, their companions on the journey, reminding them that God is the ultimate goal of that journey. It is with these sentiments and wishes, which I entrust to the Mother of God and Our Blessed Mother, that I implore from the Holy Spirit a renewed effusion of His gifts on Your ministry and on that of your priests, in order to lead the people to repose and feed on God, while I grant to all the sons and daughters of the Diocese of Leiria-Fatima, specially to all the aged and the sick, the young and the children, My Apostolic Blessing. Vatican, 19 May 2010 Benedict XVI |
