In his homily, the Pope said: I greet all of you, dear Brothers and Sisters, affectionately, to take part in this liturgical celebration. I would particularly like to thank the General of the Redemptorists, Father Juan M. Lasso de la Vega, the General Counsel, the Religious of this Community and through you all the communities of your institute scattered throughout the world. I express my sincere appreciation for the work you do, faithful to the teachings of St. Alphonsus, the singer of the “Glories of Mary”. And thank you to Madonna for the opportunity that today has given me to meet you under her blessed look.

Nineteen hundred years have elapsed since April 26, 1866, when Pope Pius IX entrusted to your Institute the spread of the cult to the Virgin of Perpetual Assistance. From then on, you have not ceased to love this Byzantine icon, coming from the Orient, and has become a reference point for the faithful who come to pray in this temple (…).

The icon recalls the mystery of divine maternity while inviting them to trust, enhancing the role that the Virgin plays in the life of every believer. Mary is the mother of hope and goodness; mother of mercy and grace (…).

To all of you, dear Brothers and Sisters, who are attending this sacred place, I say, take the stimulus from this celebration to renew your devotion to the Blessed Virgin of Perpetual Aid, which you can contemplate here. Do not forget that the Virgin occupies, after Christ, the highest and closest place to us “(Lumen Gentium, 56); and “it is united with all men in need of salvation” (ibid., 53).

Do not forget the words of St. Alphonsus Maria de ‘Liguori, who observes that “every good, every help, every grace that men have received and will receive from God in the future, everything has come and will be through intercession and through Mary “(Ascetic Works, idem, p. 110).

At the end of his homily, he prayed to the Holy Father: “Great sign of our hope, we call upon you! O Virgin of Perpetual Assistance, Holy Mother of the Redeemer; rescue your people, who will resuscitate; gives everyone the joy of walking to the third millennium in the conscious and active solidarity with the poor, announcing in a new and brave manner the Gospel of your Son, the foundation and the culmination of every human coexistence, aspiring to true, just and true peace lasting. Like the Child Jesus, whom we admire in this venerable icon, we too want to tighten your right. You do not lack power or goodness to help us in every need and every need. The present time is your hour! So come to our aid and be for all hope and hope, ‘Amen!’

After Mass: “I would like to say a very personal word about the mission Pope Pius IX entrusted to you. I remember that during the last war, during the Nazi occupation of Poland, I was a worker in a factory in Krakow. In the evening when I returned home from the factory, I always stayed in a church, even that of the Redemptorists, who was on my way. There was an image of Our Lady of Perpetual Assistance in that church. I stopped there many times and not just because that church was on my way, but also because I found that very beautiful image. I continued to visit that church even when I was appointed Bishop, and later also by Cardinal. I have also held many sermons and I have administered the Sacrament of Confirmation several times. So you understand how coming to this place is as if I had made a journey in my past, in my youth.

I thank the Divine Providence, thank the Madonna of Perpetual Help, who has shown me Perpetual Relief in very difficult circumstances.