Rome, Italy. Sunday, October 23, Cardinal Agostino Vallini, the Pope’s vicar for the Diocese of Rome, visited the parish, Sacro Cuore di Maria in Parioli, Rome, Italy. The event was filled with joy the community, the joy of having with us the Bishop, Father, Pastor, a sign of communion of the whole Church. Upon arriving, the Cardinal met in the Sala Rotonda, the Parish Pastoral Council and the Pastoral Workers. The pastor gave an essential picture of reality by saying that our church is the place of Eucharistic spirituality, prayer, reconciliation, but also a place of welcome, of catechesis, of charity, of attention to the family inspired Post Synodal Exhortation Amoris laetitia by Pope Francis and the outcome of the last Diocesan Convention. The parish priest pointed out that even to them there are weak areas such as youth ministry and liturgy, sectors on which they have been reflecting on with the help of the Parish Pastoral Council and to whom are placing solutions with the help of brothers from the nearby General Curia of the Claretian Missionaries.

The Cardinal urged the laity to be active in the parish, “Faith, in certain circles, either you bring it or no one will do. Rome has become a multicultural city but is no longer a Christian city.”

Do not be discouraged, insists the bishop, “ours is not an initiative to aggregate people, it is a proposal of faith done in humility and evangelical poverty. How was the Church born? It was with the conversion effected by the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. St. Peter did not participate in the oratory but he did his witnessing of faith. The challenge for the neighborhood is for us to become saints ourselves, through listening, acceptance, putting into practice the Word of God, through the Eucharist and charity. The model are the apostles who were assiduous in common prayer, the breaking of bread, in brotherly love and enjoyed the esteem of all.

Among the activities on which the Bishop has insisted to strengthen or have, include the establishment of the Word Listening Groups, the post baptismal ministries, the oratory as a place of growth of children and young people, the attention to the elderly by involving the children, the family to which we all play, the promotion of culture that will offer opportunities for the meeting of freedom and the grace of God.

At midday, the Cardinal celebrated the noon time Mass, which was well participated by the faithful.