From the Basilica of Saint Anthony in Padua, the prayer for Pope Francis in these days is uniting the community of friars with so many faithful and pilgrims who, in great numbers, entrust the Holy Father to the Lord through the intercession of St. Anthony.
Every day, in the celebration of the Eucharist, we remember the Pope in a special way, addressing our heartfelt prayer to the Lord that the Church may have its Pastor back in health.
We are also united with the initiative of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, which urges us to pray the Rosary to manifest our closeness to the Pope by entrusting him to the protection of Mary, “Healer of the Sick.” We are thus trying to become an important “link” of that one “chain of prayer” which Cardinal Zuppi is exhorting us to do, in order to become a single “praying embrace.”
Indeed, affection for Pope Francis nourishes in our hearts the hope that he will be supported and consoled in this part of his journey, marked by suffering, but also illuminated by his own witness of strong faith and living hope, for Pope Francis is himself an example for us all in this regard.
Father Antonio Ramina
Rector of the Pontifical Basilica of St. Anthony in Padua, Italy