“Continue praying for Pope Francis”: Nuncio in Angola at Belated Holy Father’s Anniversary

Reflecting on the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, the Italian-born Vatican diplomat said, “We find in this solemn liturgy the exemplary lives of the apostles Peter and Paul, the first witnesses of Jesus of Nazareth and the first missionaries of the risen Christ.”

“The memory of St. Peter predominates immensely in our minds mainly because of the fact that he went to Rome as its first Bishop, and that he suffered martyrdom there, leaving that city as his apostolic home,” the Apostolic Nuncio in Angola said.

He continued, “The Apostle Peter was the head of the emerging Christian community, and continues to exercise this role through the person who replaces him in his identity as Bishop of Rome in the person of the Pastor of the Universal Church, that is, in the person of the Pope.” 

“This gives us the opportunity to direct our thoughts, affection and reverence to the current Pontiff, Pope Francis, and through him raise our prayers to the Lord,” Archbishop Gaspari who also represents the Holy Father in São Tomé and Príncipe said.

He added, “The Catholic Church is conscious of having faithfully preserved in the Bishop of Rome the Catholic tradition and the faith of the Fathers of the ministry of Peter's successor.”

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“The ministry of caring for the flock that Jesus gave to Peter does not refer only to the apostle; if the work of caring for the flock continues, his ministry must also continue. This is why we speak of Peter, but we also speak of his successor, which for us Catholics is the Pope, the Bishop of Rome,” the 60-year-old Archbishop explained. 

He said that the Holy Father’s title “represents the service to which he is called for charity in the Universal Catholic Church. This must be the specific mandate he received from Christ himself.”

“The faithful's loyalty to the Pope has a biblical (and) theological foundation beyond sympathy,” Archbishop Gaspari said during the June 29 thanksgiving Mass.

Joao Vissesse contributed to the writing of this article

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