VATICAN CITY — As the capital of Italy and center of Catholicism,
the city of Rome must work with the Catholic Church to preserve and defend its
rich historical and spiritual traditions, Pope Francis said.
Throughout its nearly 3,000-year history, Rome also has become a
symbol for the world of the universal call to "welcome and integrate
different populations and people from all over the world," the pope said
March 26 during a visit to Rome's City Hall.
Rome "has a universal vocation, it is the bearer of a
mission and an ideal capable of crossing mountains and seas and being
proclaimed to everyone, near and far, whatever people they belong to, whatever
language they speak and whatever the color of their skin," he said.
Making his morning visit to Rome's Capitoline Hill, the pope was
welcomed by Mayor Virginia Raggi to the city's administrative offices
overlooking the ancient ruins of the Roman Forum.
Once the site of gladiatorial spectacles, processions and public
discourses, the Capitoline Hill now serves as the beating heart of Rome's city
administration. After introducing her husband, Andrea Severini, and son to the
pope, Raggi escorted Pope Francis to the balcony of her office with a clear
view of the Forum, the vestiges of Rome's ancient glory.
After meeting privately with the mayor, the pope was welcomed by
Rome's City Hall officials with a warm applause.
In his address, Pope Francis thanked the mayor and city officials
for their continued collaboration in organizing the myriad events that attract
pilgrims from around the world to the heart of Christendom, including the
Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy.
Rome, he said, has had the unique distinction not only of
inspiring Western civilization through its developments in civil law, but also
inspiring Christians who visit the city and are moved by the witness of
countless martyrs who gave their lives for Christ.
The martyrs, especially Sts. Peter and Paul, "have
contributed to giving the city a new face" that continues to shine today
through Rome's monuments, art work, churches and its people, the pope said.
"The 'Eternal City' is like an enormous treasure chest of
spiritual, historical-artistic and institutional treasures, and at the same
time it is the place inhabited by about 3 million people who work here, study,
pray, meet and carry on their personal and family history, and together are the
honor and the endeavor of every administrator, of anyone who works for the
common good of the city," he said.
He also conveyed the Vatican's commitment in helping to ensure
that Rome's splendor "will not be degraded" and that it continues to
be "a beacon of civilization."
"Rome demands and deserves everyone's active, wise, generous
collaboration," the pope said. "It deserves that both private
citizens and social forces and public institutions, the Catholic Church and
other religious communities, all place themselves at the service of the good of
the city and of the people who live there, especially those who for whatever
reason are on the margins, almost discarded and forgotten or who experience the
suffering of illness, abandonment or loneliness."
After his speech, the pope also greeted city employees and their
families, as well as Roman citizens gathered in the Capitoline Square.
Greeting hundreds of people outside, standing around the famous
statue of the Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, Pope Francis said that Romans,
both believers and nonbelievers, are "in the heart of the pope," and
he encouraged all citizens to work together and "care for one
another."
In this way, the pope said, "you embody in yourselves the
most beautiful values of this city: a united community, living in harmony,
acting not only for justice, but in a spirit of justice."