Pope Francis and the message of forgiveness at Celestine V's tombTesto originale del articolo in inglese qui
Testo del articolo in inglese qui
In a few weeks Pope Francis will make a new trip, this time to Aquila, in Italy. This will be the official beginning of the celebrations of the "Celestinian Pardon", a rite dating back to 1294.
On August 29 of that year, in the Basilica of Santa Maria of Collemaggio, Pietro Angeleri was elected Pope under the name of Celestine V in the presence of over twenty thousand people. On the same occasion he granted the gift of plenary indulgence to "all those who, confessing and sincerely sorry, have devoutly visited the same basilica "from the Vespers of August 28 to the Vespers of the 29th".
The forgiveness bun
The formal ball of the pontifical church took place a month later, on September 29th, and the following year the first solemn feast was celebrated, which continues today. The rite of the "Celestinian Pardon" is a kind of "giubilee ante litteram" dedicated to forgiveness, since the first Holy Year was instituted on the first Holy Year.
nel 1300 da Bonifacio VIII.
The authenticity of the Bolla del Perdono has been discussed several times in the past, but it was St. Paul VI who, in 1967, on the occasion of the general revision of all plenary indulgences, put that of Celestine V on trial to the official list.
The central tenets of the precious document are peace, solidarity and reconciliation. Today they are more topical than ever, especially in view of the bellicose events that are shaking Europe as well. And it is significant that the last trip Pope Francis made was to Canada, just to reconcile.
la Chiesa con i popoli originari di quelle terre.
Papa Francesco all'Aquila
The trip to Aquila assumes a further meaning of revival, after the disastrous earthquake of 2009 has destroyed the entire historic center, including the basilica of Collemaggio. The visit of Pope Francis is also a stimulus for the people who are still struggling to recover the normality of ordinary life. In any case, after the private visit to the cathedral of the city, still uninhabitable, the Pope will also greet the relatives of the victims of the earthquake.
Francesco will also be the first pontiff in history to open, after 728 years, the Holy Door that inaugurates the events of Forgiveness, and it is significant that he does it who has made mercy the cornerstone of his pontificate.
"L'Aquila, with the image of Collemaggio, will reach the whole world as a city that announces the message of Forgiveness, a message that we must see ourselves as protagonists, with the works and with our witness," commented Cardinal Giuseppe Petrocchi, who since 2013 has directed the diocesan community of L'Aquila.
The program of the Pope's visit has at its center "the spiritual and cultural dimension of an event that must point to the essential", having forgiveness as "fundamental nucleus", the archbishop remarked.
One last note. Starting from 2019, the Celestinian Perdonanza is part of the intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO.
