In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Peace be with you!

Good morning and welcome to the Vatican.

Your Excellencies,
Dear priests and young friends,

I am pleased to greet all of you on the occasion of your pilgrimage to Rome during this Jubilee Year, which as you know is focused on the theological virtue of hope. In particular, I welcome the young people from the Diocese of Copenhagen, which is this group, together with the teachers from Ireland, England, Wales and Scotland.

You are following in the footsteps of countless pilgrims from your various countries, who for centuries have been making this same pilgrimage to Rome, to the “Eternal City”. Indeed, Rome has always been a special home for Christians, since it is the place where the Apostles Peter and Paul gave the supreme witness to their love for Jesus by offering their lives as martyrs. As the Successor of Peter, I wish to express my gratitude for your presence here, and I pray that by visiting the various holy sites you may draw inspiration and hope from the profound example of how the saints and martyrs imitated Christ.

A pilgrimage has a vital part to play in our life of faith, for it removes us from our homes and our daily routines, and gives us time and space to encounter God more deeply. Such moments always help us to grow, for through them the Holy Spirit gently fashions us to be ever more closely conformed to the mind and the heart of Jesus Christ.

In a particular way, dear brothers and sisters, young people gathered with us this morning, remember that God has created each one of you with a purpose and a mission in this life. Use this opportunity for listening, for prayer, so that you may hear more clearly God’s voice calling you deep within your hearts. I would add that today, so often, we lose the ability to listen, to really listen. We listen to music, we have our ears flooded constantly with all kinds of digital input, but sometimes we forget to listen to our own hearts and it’s in our hearts that God speaks to us, that God calls us and invites us to know him better and to live in his love. And through that listening you might be open to allowing God’s grace to strengthen your faith in Jesus (cf. Col 2:7), so that you might more readily share that gift with others.

And addressing you, dear teachers: what I have just said to the young people applies equally to you, especially given your important role in the formation of today’s youth: children, teenagers, young adults. For they will look up to you as models: models in life, models of faith. They’ll look to you particularly as to how you teach and how you live. I hope that, each day, you will nurture your relationship with Christ, who gives us the pattern of all authentic teaching (cf Mt 7:28), so that, in turn, you may guide and encourage those entrusted to your care to follow Christ in their own lives.

And finally, when all of you return home, please remember that a pilgrimage does not end, it shifts its focus to the daily “pilgrimage of discipleship”. We are all pilgrims and we are always pilgrims, walking as we seek to follow the Lord, and as we seek the path that is truly ours in life. That’s certainly not easy, but with the help of the Lord, the intercession of the saints, and by encouraging one another, you can be certain that, as long as you remain faithful, trusting always in God’s mercy, the experience of this pilgrimage will continue to bear fruit throughout your lives (cf. Jn 15:16).

Dear friends, with these few words, and entrusting you to the intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, I gladly impart to each of you my heartfelt blessing.

God bless you and thank you.