Vatican inaugurates new post office in St Peter's Square

By Lorena Leonardi

A ribbon-cutting ceremony on December 19 in St. Peter’s Square inaugurated the mobile post office donated by Poste Italiane (the Italian Postal Service). Already operational, the office is designed to offer pilgrims and visitors exclusive postal and philatelic products.

Present for the event were Cardinal President of the Governorate of the Vatican City State, Cardinal Vérgez Alzaga, and the Director of Poste Italiane, Giuseppe Lasco, and Sister Raffaella Petrini, Secretary General of the Governorate.

The new Vatican Mobile Post Office will not only be for work or service, but will be a place where it is truly possible to “send, receive, meet and be met by God's announcements.”

The prayer of blessing

Inside the office, after the blessing, the President of the Governorate sprinkled the building with holy water.

Afterwards, a crucifix was affixed to the wall on the left side of the building and Cardinal Alzaga and Director Lasco signed the deed of donation from the Italian Post Office.

Photograph showing the reflection of St. Peter's dome in the window of the newly inaugurated post office

A place of service to communication and communion

During the dedication ceremony, Cardinal Alzaga reflected on the Annunciation in the Gospels.

The angel Gabriel, the one who ‘brings announcements, sent by God’ reaches ‘even the most insignificant places, like Nazareth’ and ‘even the smallest people, like Mary, the little one from Nazareth,’ the Cardinal said.

He entrusted all the employees, pilgrims, visitors and anyone else who will use the office to the Blessed Mother as "a place of service to communication and communion."

A sustainable and accessible office

Located on the left side of St. Peter’s Square, the new office has three workstations and is made of low environmental impact materials, including wood.

It replaces the previous office, which was established on December 20, 2010 and was decommissioned on December 5 this year.

Ready to welcome pilgrims, citizens and visitors, the new office, in addition to the traditional postal services, offers a space dedicated to the study of postage stamps and postal history.