Pope celebrates feast of Sts. Peter and Paul

(June 29, 2010) Pope Benedict XVI on Tuesday marked the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul with a solemn Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica during which he bestowed the pallium on 38 new metropolitan archbishops from around the world, including Indian Archbishop Francis Kallarakal of Verapoly in Kerala state. The Eucharistic Celebration was also attended by a delegation from the Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Barthòlomew I of Constantinople, Istanbul, Turkey, who is revered as the spiritual head of Orthodox Christians worldwide. In his homily at Mass, Pope Benedict recalled Christ’s promise that the gates of hell shall not prevail against His Church, pointing out how God shielded Sts. Peter and Paul from dangerous situations. More than trials and persecutions, the Pope pointed out, the greatest danger to the Church is one that defiles the Christian faith and life of her members and communities, damaging the integrity of the Mystical Body, weakening her capacity to prophesy and witness and blurring the beauty of her face. Pope Benedict said that Christ’s promise to His Church is specifically linked with the rite of bestowing on archbishops the pallium, a white stole worn by metropolitan archbishops around the neck as a sign of their authority and the unity of local churches with the Pope and the common faith. He pointed out that communion with Peter and his successors is the guarantee of freedom for the pastors of the Church and the communities entrusted to them. More essentially, the Petrine ministry is the guarantee of freedom in terms of full adherence to the truth and genuine tradition so that the People of God may be preserved from errors concerning faith and morals, the Pope explained. Pope Benedict further stated that division within the ecclesial communion is a typical action of evil and the power of sin. Urging that the cause of full Christian unity be always sought for and renewed from generation to generation, the Pope expressed gratitude for progress made in Catholic-Orthodox relations.