Pope meets with 100 priests at Rome’s Holy Cross Basilica

By Salvatore Cernuzio

Pope Francis’ white Fiat 500L appeared at 4 PM on Friday on the avenue leading to Rome’s Basilica of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem.

In the historic Roman basilica in the Esquilino district, the Pope met with about a hundred parish priests, assistant parish priests, and rectors from the central sector of the Diocese of Rome, which encompasses a total of 38 parishes.

A small group of faithful, gathered already since 3 PM, greeted the passing vehicle.

Pope Francis waved before entering the gate that leads to the building adjacent to the basilica, where the meeting took place behind closed doors.

Msgr. Francesco Pesce, parish priest of St. Mary of the Hills and pastoral coordinator of the central sector, was present, following his appointment on April 6 as the auxiliary bishop.

Bishop Daniele Libanori, who was previously in charge of the central sector, has been appointed as the Pope's Assessor for Consecrated Life.

Q&A on topics related to pastoral activity

The Pope’s dialogue with the 100 priests lasted about two hours.

Bishop Baldassare Reina, the vicar general, opened with a brief greeting, which was followed by the recitation of a psalm, and then questions and answers on all topics that in one way or another touch on the Church’s pastoral activity.

The discussion focused on assistance to children and especially the elderly, who are a society’s wisdom and should not be discarded but rather safeguarded.

They also spoke about the most vulnerable segments of society, including migrants and the homeless who gravitate toward a challenging area like the Termini train station.

The Pope and the priests also discussed the upcoming Jubilee and the reception of pilgrims, who will come from all over the world and will spend much of their time in the city’s historic center.

The "wonderful complexity" of the churches in the Center

Following the event, Msgr. Pesce offered a glimspe of the dialogue with the Pope.

He said the priests tried "to recount to the Holy Father, borrowing the words of Amoris Laetitia, the 'wonderful complexity' of this portion of the Church of Rome, where the whole world is represented, and which will be the gateway to the Jubilee."

"The excitement for this encounter immediately turned into gratitude and prayer for the Pope," added the priest. "It was a great moment of communion, a stretch of road traveled side by side that gives us new momentum for our service not only to the Catholics of the historic center but to the whole world, which we encounter here every day in the faces of tourists and pilgrims."

Though there are relatively few residents in the historic center, "most Romans come here to work," emphasized Msgr. Pesce. "Although there aren't many young people in our parishes, in the evenings, all the young people of Rome are in the historic center."

A look to the future and the Jubilee

Bishop Reina described a "very cordial meeting."

He said the Pope “expressed all his fatherhood towards the priests but also his pastoral peculiarity. He was a pastor who recounted his experience, gave very useful advice for the pastoral situation of the historic center. The priests were all very happy."

According to Fr. Alessandro, a parish priest, they "talked about the potential of the churches in the historic center, not the problems, with a look to the future, to the Jubilee, to the reception of pilgrims, of Romans who come here to work... The potential of the churches in the center, which are not dead, but alive and living."

"It was a truly a beautiful encounter," commented the priest, "in which the Pope helped us a lot to look at the positive, the beautiful."

Final encounter with the Diocese’s sectors

Friday’s meeting was the last in a series of visits the Pope has made to the five sectors of the Diocese of Rome, having visited from September to April the neighborhoods of Primavalle, Villa Verde, Acilia, and Casal Monastero.

During these visits, Pope Francis met with the parish priests of the 36 prefectures for a conversation consisting of questions and answers.