Thanksgiving Masses for new Pope Saints

April 28, 2014 - Two special Masses were celebrated in Rome on Monday in thanksgiving for the
canonization of ‎Sts. John XXIII and John Paul II who were officially proclaimed saints by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s ‎Square on Sunday. Several hundred thousand pilgrims from St. John Paul II’s homeland, Poland, ‎filled ‎the Vatican’s St. Peter’s Square for a Mass celebrated by Cardinal Angelo Comastri, the Archpriest of ‎Saint Peter’s Basilica, along with John Paul’s former secretary, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, Archbishop ‎of Krakow, Poland‎. Another Mass for pilgrims from John XXIII’s native diocese of Bergamo, ‎northern Italy, was celebrated in the Church of San Carlo al Corso, where the future Pope, Angelo ‎Gisueppe Roncalli was ordained a priest on March 19, 1925. The Mass was celebrated by Bishop ‎Francesco Beschi of ‎Bergamo. ‎
In his homily, Cardinal Comastri noted that the canonization of St. John Paul II, the ‘pope of the ‎family’, was a necessary gift in an age when the family was under attack and threatened. He noted ‎that the "defense of human life" was at the heart of his preaching and action, and cited several quotes ‎including his famous “cry of Agrigento” in southern Italy denouncing Mafia atrocities. Cardinal ‎Comastri also recalled John Paul’s vigorous efforts in trying to prevent the Gulf War. ‎
At the start of the Mass, Cardinal Dziwisz greeted his fellow nationals in Polish, describing St. John ‎Paul ‘a son of the Poland and the Pope of Divine Mercy,” who put into practice the teachings of the ‎Second Vatican Council and also launched the Christian faith into the third millennium. Cardinal ‎Dziwisz, who served Karol Woytyla for some 40 years from before he became Pope John Paul II, also ‎noted that for him Italy had become a second homeland. “Surely today John Paul II is blessing Italy as ‎well as Poland and the entire world from above. All nations, cultures and languages have found a place ‎in his heart,” he said. ‎