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

Peace be with you!

Your Most Reverend Eminences,
Excellencies,
Brothers and sisters,

I welcome you, greeting all of you who come from the dioceses of Tuscany, together with pilgrims from Camerino-San Severino Marche, Fabriano-Matelica, Lanciano-Ortona and San Severo. Welcome to you all! The Jubilee pilgrimage is a good opportunity to renew together the profession of faith also to express the community and ecclesial dimension of following Christ; indeed, the one Church of Christ is embodied in the particular realities such as dioceses, but it also calls us to catholicity, to feeling that we are one family of the children of God beyond established boundaries, overcoming the temptation of a closed identity, and living in communion.

It is a necessary frontier, especially with regard to the challenges of evangelization.

Certainly, the existential, social and ecclesial experience of your dioceses is diverse, inasmuch as you come from three Italian regions which have their own history; however, even if with different emphases, we are all called to question ourselves and to imagine new pastoral paths for a renewed proclamation of the Gospel, above all to face some themes such as the catechesis of Christian initiation, the decline in vocations to the ordained ministry, the active participation of the laity in ecclesial life, the presence of Communities with regard to the lives of families, the poor, the world of work, and so on.

In some Italian regions – and Tuscany and the Marches are among them – a process of unification of the dioceses has also been undertaken which, on the one hand, can bring out certain pastoral potentialities, not so much in terms of numerical strength but in terms of the quality of the offering.

On the other hand, given that each diocese has its own particular ecclesial history and considering the geographical, territorial and sometimes pastoral differences, it is necessary to engage in a genuine synodal exercise, that is, to walk together in order to question ourselves, to begin some experimentation and to initiate a serene and frank discernment in order to highlight the possibilities and limitations of such a process, so as to verify whether or not the conditions exist to move forward. There are already some collaborations in place that go beyond diocesan boundaries, as in the case of the ecclesiastical court, and there are others that are being launched, for example, with regard to the initial formation of priests and seminaries. I invite you to continue along this path, because these experiences can help us to discern the future.

I would like to address, in particular, the people of Tuscany, as this is the region's Jubilee pilgrimage. Your land, located in the centre of Italy, is an extraordinary cradle of culture and art that preserves the indelible traces of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance and has produced illustrious figures such as Dante Alighieri, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarroti and many others. It is also heir to a rich Christian history, in which the seed of holiness of Saint Catherine of Siena, Saint Gemma Galgani and others matured, as well as numerous important Popes.

The richness of this heritage, naturally, must not cause us to look back, limiting ourselves to admiring the splendour of the past and underestimating the challenges of the present. Today, even in the face of the goodwill and generosity that characterize you as a people, there is no shortage of issues that highlight a certain crisis of faith and religious practice, and which require a courageous investment in Christian formation and a new enthusiasm for evangelization.

However, I would like to urge you to assume, as a local Church, the style of proximity, listening to the struggles and hardships of the people. I say this thinking above all of the worrying news regarding various sectors of the world of work. This should not seem out of place but, rather, as Saint Paul VI recalled, concerning the world of work, the Christian community “must not only open itself up, but even more, must be fraternally and actively present in this world with a spirit of intelligent understanding, watchful discernment, friendly dialogue. … The Christian community, faced with the negative consequences of the occupational and social crisis, faced with uncertain prospects for the future, is called to exercise, with generous passion, a multifaceted role by studying problems, developing solutions, and assuming its responsibilities: in short, it must be the Church in the community, that is, the Church in homes, the Church in factories, the Church ‘among the people’” (Saint John Paul II, Address to workers, 18 March 1984).

In an industrious land such as Tuscany, home to some of the finest examples of small-scale craftsmanship and small and medium-sized industry, it is painful to see how the economic crisis affecting many companies is forcing the dismissal of so many workers and leaving many others on temporary lay-off, waiting for the finalization of institutional agreements aimed at resuming activities. I therefore urge you to be a Church close to the world of work, compassionate and embodied, so that the proclamation of the Gospel may become a concrete presence of consolation and hope, but also a prophetic word that recalls the importance of guaranteeing work to everyone, since it is “an essential dimension of social life” (Francis, Fratelli tutti, 162).

Dear friends, some of the urgent pastoral and social matters on which I have wished to dwell, albeit in different ways and according to different priorities, affect all the local Churches and call every one of our Christian Communities to a reawakening of evangelization and a discernment on the forms of ecclesial presence in the territory. Don Lorenzo Milani, prophet of the Tuscan and Italian Church, whom Pope Francis defined as “a witness and interpreter of social and economic transformation” (Francis, Address to members of the Committee for the centenary of Don Lorenzo Milani, 22 January 2024), had as his motto “I care”, that is, “It matters to me, I am interested, it is close to my heart”. I urge you not to be passive, and to do your part to shape the face of a Church that cares about people’s lives, and especially the poorest.

I entrust you to the intercession of the Virgin Mary and bless you and your communities. I wish a good pilgrimage to you all!

____________

Daily Bulletin of the Holy See Press Office, 11 October 2025