About thirty thousand people attended Holy Mass in Saint Peter’s Square Saturday morning
to commemorate forty years since the founding of the Holy Spirit Renewal in Italy.
The Archbishop of Genoa and president of the Italian Episcopal Conference (CEI), Cardinal
Angelo Bagnasco, was the main celebrant. The celebration was immediately followed
by a special audience with Pope Benedict XVI, who addressed the representatives of
the Holy Spirit Renewal.
“In your pilgrimage,” the Holy Father said, “where
you have the opportunity to spend time in prayer before the tomb of Saint Peter, may
you reinvigorate your faith, grow in the Christian witness, and confront without fear,
and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the challenging tasks of the new evangelization.”
“Dear
friends of the Holy Spirit Renewal! Never tire of turning towards heaven: the world
is in need of prayer. Be of service to those men and women who feel drawn towards
Heaven in their lives, giving praise to the Lord through a new way of life. And may
you be joyful Christians!
“I entrust each and every one of you,” he concluded,
“to the most Holy Mary, who was present at the Last Supper and the event of Pentecost.
Persevere with her in prayer, go forward guided by the light of the Holy Spirit, living
and proclaiming the announcement of Christ.”
The Holy Father concluded by imparting
his Apostolic Blessing upon those who were present and their families.