Great pain also in Messina for the death of Pope Francis: “United in prayer by Pope Francis we learn the language of the simple, the strength of the prophets and the loyalty to the Lord – reads the Message signed by Archbishop Giovanni Accolla – A man of God with his feet on the ground always close to the last. He washed his feet in the prisoners, he had continuous attention to migrants, he always showed profound solidarity with the sick, particularly in the last part of his life also as a sick person hospitalized. How can we forget his testimony during the Covid time! And even more the countless times when he raised his voice in favor of peace“Shouting”, not always listened to, to the greats of the earth to take paths of peace. He wanted a church that was a yeast and salt of the world, identifying the most authoritative and credible resource in the experience of fraternity. A church icon of communion, service and synodality, which prays and the liturgy makes it liturgy of life. I invite everyone to pray to suffrage for the Holy Father. He who is in the presence of God, still intercends for peace in the world and for all of us. May the Church welcome what has taught us and testified to us “.
The archbishop recommends paternally to the clergy and the faithful of the archdiocese to raise his suffrage prayer for the Holy Father, who in these years of pontificate has been a gift for the Church. Waiting for the date of the concelebration to the cathedral basilica presided over by the archbishop, the parish priests are urged to celebrate with their communities so that God, who gives the right reward to the workers of the Gospel, welcomes Pope Francis who constituted successor of Peter and pastor of his church, so that it contemplates the mysteries that has dispensed to his people.
The message of the mayor Basile
The mayor of Messina Federico Basile, the junta and the entire municipal administration express profound condolences for the disappearance of His Holiness Pope Francis, a beloved pontiff and spiritual guide who has been able to speak to the heart of the world with humility, strength and extraordinary humanity. “With the death of Pope Francis – declares the mayor Basile – the world loses a courageous voice, capable of breaking down walls and building bridges, of being next to the last and strongly recalling the universal values of peace, justice and fraternity. The city of Messina tightens in a moved hug to the universal Church, reminding with gratitude its teaching and its example.”
The municipal administration invites citizens to join in a moment of recollection and prayer in memory of the Holy Father, a symbol of hope and renewal for the whole of humanity.