Dear brothers and sisters,

The Gospel we have heard gives us the authentic Christian meaning of these two words. Brother and sister are names of relation, which we repeat often in the liturgy as a greeting, as a sign of closeness and affection. Jesus, the only-begotten Son of God, explains their meaning in relation to himself and to his Father, revealing a bond stronger than blood, since it involves all of us, uniting every man and every woman. Indeed, we are all truly brothers and sisters of Jesus when we do God’s will, that is, when we live loving each other, as God has loved us.

Every relationship that God lives, in himself and for us, thus becomes a gift: when his only Son becomes our brother, his Father becomes our Father, and the Holy Spirit, which joins the Father and the Son, comes to dwell in our hearts. God’s love is so great that Jesus does not keep even his mother for himself, giving Mary to us as our mother, in the hour of the cross (cf. Jn 19:27). Only those who live by such full dedication can affirm: “For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother” (Mt 12:50). In particular, these words let us understand that Mary becomes the mother of Jesus because she listens to the word of God with love; she welcomes it into her own heart and lives it faithfully. Commenting the Gospel passage recalled just now, Saint Augustine therefore wrote that “Mary … is blessed, because she heard the word of God and kept it” (Sermon 72/A, 7). The meaning of Mary's life is enshrined in her faithfulness to the Word she received from God: the Word of life she received, carried in her womb and gave to the world.

Dear friends, the 75^th anniversary of the proclamation of the faithful Virgin, the Virgo fidelis, as Patroness of the Carabinieri Corps, was recently celebrated. Right here in Castel Gandolfo, in 1949 my venerable predecessor Pope Pius XII accepted this beautiful proposal from the general Command of the Corps. After the tragedy of the war, in a period of moral and material reconstruction, Mary’s fidelity to God thus became a model of the fidelity of every Carabiniere towards his homeland and the Italian people. This virtue expresses the devotion, purity, and constancy in commitment to the common good which the Carabinieri protect by guaranteeing public safety and defending the rights of all, especially those in dangerous conditions.

I therefore wish to express deep gratitude for the noble and demanding service that the Corps provides to Italy and her citizens, as well as to the Holy See and the faithful who visit Rome: I think in particular of the many pilgrims in this Jubilee year.

Devotion to the faithful Virgin also reflects the motto of the Carabinieri, Nei secoli fedele – faithful throughout the centuries – expressing the sense of duty and abnegation of every member of the Corps, to the point of self-sacrifice. I therefore thank the authorities present, both civil and military, for what you do in the fulfilment of your duties: in the face of injustice, which harms the social order, you do not give in to the termptation of thinking that evil may prevail. Especially in this time of wars and violence, you remain faithful to your oath: as servants of the State, you respond to crime with the force of the law and with honesty. This is how the Carabinieri Corps, the Benemerita, will always be worthy of the respect of the Italian people.

In this Eucharist, as we celebrate the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord, it is right and dutiful to remember the Carabinieri who have given their lives in the course of duty: I offer as an example to you the venerable Salvo D’Acquisto, awarded the gold medal for military valour, whose cause for beatification is underway. In every mission, may the Virgo fidelis accompany you, watching lovingly over each one of you, your families and your work.

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Holy See Press Office Bulletin, 15 July 2025