In recent months we have witnessed two very important events for the Church, events that continue to surprise many of us because of the newness they have brought. I am referring to the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI and the election of Pope Francis. It is worthwhile taking a brief look at these historical events and to think about their significance for the Church and for each one of us.

It all began on 11 February last at an ordinary consistory concerning the canonisation of future saints, when Pope Benedict XVI made an announcement that was totally unprecedented and unexpected: “After having repeatedly examined my conscience before God, I have come to the certainty that my strengths, due to an advanced age, are no longer suited to an adequate exercise of the petrine ministry. [...] in order to govern the barque of Saint Peter and proclaim the Gospel, both strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfil the ministry entrusted to me. For this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom I declare that I renounce the ministry of Bishop of Rome, Successor of Saint Peter, entrusted to me by the cardinals on 19 April 2005, in such a way, that as from 28 February 2013, at 20:00 hours, the See of Rome, the See of Saint Peter, will be vacant ...”. This news quickly spread all over the world. It is true that the Code of Canon Law (can. 332-§2) states that, in certain cases, there is the possibility for a pontiff to resign from the petrine ministry, but this possibility has never been used until now (except for the case of Pope Celestine V in 1294!). It is for this reason that Pope Benedict XVI’s decision caused people everywhere to react with surprise and amazement, as we all remember. At the same time, questions arose about the future exercise of the petrine ministry in the Church. However, there were widespread feelings of deep respect and great compassion for a pope advanced in years who must surely have suffered much in making that choice. The humility and courage of the elderly pontiff could be very clearly seen in his resignation.

The final Wednesday general audience given by Pope Benedict XVI was moving for all of us. On 27 February 2013, Saint Peter’s Square was overflowing and there was an atmosphere of deep emotion. The people listened with close attention to Pope Benedict’s last address and they applauded several times as he spoke. Each person, in their own way, wanted to express their gratitude to Benedict XVI for having steered the ship of the Church for almost eight years of pontificate. The pope, now emeritus, explained his decision once again: “I have asked God insistently in prayer to grant me his light and to help me make the right decision, not for my own good, but for the good of the Church. I have taken this step with full awareness of its gravity and even its novelty, but with profound interior serenity. Loving the Church means also having the courage to make difficult, painful decisions, always looking to the good of the Church and not of oneself. [...] I am not abandoning the cross, but remaining in a new way at the side of the crucified Lord. I no longer bear the power of office for the governance of the Church, but in the service of prayer I remain, so to speak, in the enclosure of Saint Peter...” (General Audience, 27 February 2013). We were all moved by those memorable words.

A comprehensive assessment of this pontificate would undoubtedly take a long time, but we can confidently say at this point that Pope Benedict has left us an immensely rich magisterium of great theological weight on which the Church will be nourished for many years to come. He also left us a moving testimony of goodness, humility, refinement, simplicity and especially of faith and great love for the Church. These are certainly distinctive traits of his personality and of his pontificate. The Pontifical Council for the Laity has countless reasons to be grateful to Pope Benedict XVI. I recall his convinced commitment to the new season of ecclesial groups of the lay faithful in the Church. This culminated with the World Meeting of Ecclesial Movements and New Communities with the Successor of Peter in June 2006. I recall his meetings with young people from all over the world at World Youth Day. He was a great supporter of this event and recognised it to be “new evangelisation in action” and a “powerful remedy against faith fatigue” (Cologne 2005, Sydney 2008 and Madrid 2011). I also recall his wonderful teachings in documents and speeches devoted to the vocation and mission of the laity in the Church and in the world. The Pope-emeritus is deserving of our deepest gratitude and we continue to support him with our constant prayer for his intentions.

On 28 February last, at exactly eight o’clock in the evening, the Sede Vacante period began. They were days when we came to a clearer understanding of the role of the Successor of Peter in the Church, and we could almost tangibly feel his absence. Every time that this happens, the people of God grow more anxious as they await a new pontiff. While the cardinals were gathered in the Sistine Chapel invoking the Holy Spirit, just like the apostles in the Pentecost cenacle, Saint Peter’s Square was filled with people who had come from every continent. Then there came the memorable evening of 13 March. All were surprised to see the white smoke after the fifth ballot. After about an hour the Cardinal Proto-Deacon gave the awaited announcement: “Habemus Papam...”. The new pope is Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Archbishop of Buenos Aires, who has chosen the name Francis after Francis of Assisi. The election of a new pope always gives rise to surprise, but this time the surprise was even greater. It was the first time that a pope chose the name Francis, and it was the first time that the Church has a Latin-American pope, a pope that the cardinals “had gone to the ends of the earth” to find, as he himself said after his election. In his first greeting to the people, Pope Francis amazed everyone with his disarming simplicity. He came before the crowds that were waiting for him in Saint Peter’s Square, wearing a simple white cassock. He spoke with a language of familiarity: “Brothers and sisters, good evening!”. Right away, he addressed the people of the diocese of Rome of whom he was elected bishop: “And now, we take up this journey: Bishop and People. This is a journey of the Church of Rome which presides in charity over all the Churches, a journey of fraternity, of love, of trust among us”. He then made a remarkable request asking everyone to pray for him: “I ask you to pray to the Lord that he will bless me”. The people responded to this request immediately in silent prayer that was very moving. From the moment Pope Francis appeared in the Loggia of the Blessings, he conquered the hearts of the people and gave rise to great enthusiasm that has continued with the same intensity even with the passage of time.

Each new pope who emerges from the cenacle of the Sistine Chapel brings with him a new breath of the Spirit of Pentecost. Each time, it appears that the Holy Spirit is saying to the Church: “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” (Is 43:19). This time, we have several innovations. Pope Francis is giving the universal Church a very rich and precious experience of the Church in Latin America. It is a Church deeply rooted in the culture of the people, animated by simple faith and great joy. It is a young Church that is full of missionary enthusiasm and that has so much to share with others. This is the Church that has given us the new pope, a sign that it has reached maturity, and also a clear sign of the catholicity of the Church that is not confined to a particular continent or cultural tradition, but that always look beyond...

Pope Francis presents himself to the Church above all as a passionate evangeliser. For many years he was on the front line of the difficult evangelising mission in the poor neighbourhoods of Buenos Aires, in particular those that suffer from great poverty and destitution. It is precisely because of these experiences that his talks often return to the urgent appeal to go out from ourselves and reach out to others, especially the least fortunate: “Following and accompanying Christ, staying with him, demands ‘coming out of ourselves’, requires us to be outgoing; to come out of ourselves, out of a dreary way of living faith that has become a habit, out of the temptation to withdraw into our own plans which end by shutting out God’s creative action” (General Audience, 27 March 2013). Pope Francis is asking the whole Church to avoid the dangerous risk of self-referentiality and a sterile closing in on ourselves. This would be a real betrayal of the Church’s deepest nature and mission in the world. The Church, in all its structures and communities and in all the faithful, must be a Church “on a journey”, a Church at the service of the very poor and those on the margins.

Let us not forget that Pope Francis has chosen the name of Francis of Assisi. He is the first pope to bear this name. The choice of the name of the Poverello of Assisi is a clear message to the world and the Church. In some respects, it contains the programme of his pontificate. The Holy Father has explained this choice several times. He said that Francis of Assisi “is the man of poverty, the man of peace, the man who loves and protects creation [...] How I would like a Church which is poor and for the poor!” (Audience with media representatives, 16 March 2013). This explains his awareness of and concern for the sick, suffering, excluded, and all who live on the margins. In this respect, we all remember the ritual of the washing of the feet of the twelve young people in the Casal del Marmo prison for young offenders in Rome.

Pope Francis has brought to the whole Church the simple message of God who is rich in mercy. It is a message of great hope: “How many deserts, even today, do human beings need to cross! Above all, the desert within, when we have no love for God or neighbour, when we fail to realize that we are guardians of all that the Creator has given us and continues to give us. God’s mercy can make even the driest land become a garden, can restore life to dry bones (cf. Ez 37:1-14). [...] Let us be renewed by God’s mercy, let us be loved by Jesus, let us enable the power of his love to transform our lives too” (Urbi et Orbi message, 31 March 2013). The Holy Father speaks to a lost and confused world and points to Christ as the only source of hope: “Please do not let yourselves be robbed of hope! Do not let hope be stolen! The hope that Jesus gives us. […] Do not be men and women of sadness!” (Homily on Palm Sunday, 24 March 2013). On another occasion he said: “Let us protect Christ in our lives, so that we can protect others, so that we can protect creation! [...]We must not be afraid of goodness or even of tenderness! (Mass for the inauguration of the Pontificate, 19 March 2013).

Pope Francis has brought a renewed breath of the Spirit to young people too. He did so at the diocesan celebration of World Youth Day on Palm Sunday. He immediately established a real dialogue with them. He spoke to them as a friend and this raised great enthusiasm among them. “You bring us the joy of faith and you tell us that we must live the faith with a young heart, always: a young heart, even at the age of seventy or eighty. Dear young people! With Christ, the heart never grows old!” (Homily on Palm Sunday, 24 March 2013). He referred to the world gathering that will take place in Rio de Janeiro next July: “Dear friends, I too am setting out on a journey with you, starting today, in the footsteps of Blessed John Paul II and Benedict XVI [...] I will see you in that great city in Brazil! Prepare well – prepare spiritually above all – in your communities, so that our gathering in Rio may be a sign of faith for the whole world. Young people must say to the world: to follow Christ is good; to go with Christ is good; the message of Christ is good; emerging from ourselves, to the ends of the earth and of existence, to take Jesus there, is good! (ibid.)

As we can see, Pope Francis – following the example of Saint Francis of Assisi – wants the Church to return to the heart of the Gospel with its style of life, and to speak to the world of God who is Love. His message is very simple and direct, and it easily penetrates people’s hearts. From the beginning of his ministry, the new pontiff has shown himself to be a wonderful communicator, both through his words and his actions. He is a true pastor, and the proclamation of the Gospel is the great passion of his life.

Let us therefore welcome Pope Francis and give thanks to the Holy Spirit who has given him to the Church at this time in history. Let us gather around him with love and filial obedience and accompany him in his important ministry with our prayers, for the harvest of the gospel that awaits him is truly immense!