Buongiorno, good morning. We are going to begin singing the Veni Creator. I think you all have a copy. I hope someone has a better voice than mine this morning… Let us begin a cappella.
[Veni Creator]

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Peace be with you!

[Cardinal Tagle’s greeting]
“At the Service of the Church”! Good morning to all of you. I will begin with some prepared remarks in Italian, and then perhaps switch to English to let the translators rest. Then we will have time for dialogue. I would be very happy to listen to as many of you as possible, perhaps to have the chance for you to ask some questions, and in that way to be able to come to know one another a little bit.

We have 200 bishops, only one Pope, and not a whole lot of time, so we will make the most of it. We will have a break around 11 o’clock or work towards finishing around 11, and then the second part of the morning will be for an individual chance to say hello, have a nice picture taken — which you can hang up somewhere in your bishop’s house — and at least have a chance to greet one another. So that will be the course of the morning. You are free to begin thinking about questions that you may have or things that you might want to share.

First, a few prepared remarks in Italian.

Dear brothers in the episcopate,

I welcome you and greet you with great joy, as you near the end of these days of formation and prayer that you have had together here in Rome. I thank the Dicastery for Bishops — I had thought I would come to this course dressed in black too, however... — the Dicastery for the Eastern Churches, and the Dicastery for Evangelization, in the persons of the Prefects, the Secretaries, and their collaborators, who have been involved in the preparation and organization of this course.

To begin, I would like to remind you of something that is very simple and yet not to be taken for granted: the gift you have received is not for yourselves, but for the service of the cause of the Gospel. You have been chosen and called to be sent forth as apostles of the Lord and servants of the faith. I would like to dwell briefly upon this idea before engaging in a fraternal dialogue with you: the bishop is a servant, the bishop is called to serve the faith of the people.

This is a part of our identity. Later, I will talk about some elements and characteristics of this identity. Perhaps some of you are still saying: why was I chosen? At least, I ask myself this question. Service is not an external characteristic or a way of exercising this role. On the contrary, those whom Jesus calls as disciples and heralds of the Gospel, especially the Twelve, are required to have inner freedom, poverty of spirit, and a willingness to serve that is born of love, in order to embody the very choice of Jesus, who made himself poor to enrich us (cf. 2 Cor 8:9). He revealed “God’s style” to us: he does not reveal himself to us through his might, but through the love of a Father who calls us to communion with him.

Regarding the ordination of a bishop, Augustine stated: “The man, you see, who presides over the people ought first of all to understand that he is the servant of many masters” (Sermon 340/A, 1). He also affirmed that “a certain appetite for superiority” (ibid.) had crept into the Apostles, in the face of which Jesus had to intervene like a doctor to heal them. We certainly remember the Lord’s warning when he saw the group of the Twelve arguing about who was the greatest: “Whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all” (Mk 10:43-44). Pope Francis often repeated that the only authority we have is service, and humble service! It is very important for us to meditate on those words and try to live them.

I ask you to always be vigilant and to walk in humility and prayer, in order to become servants of the people to whom the Lord sends you. We can express this service, as Pope Francis related on an occasion such as this, by being signs of God’s closeness: “Closeness to the people entrusted to us, therefore, is not an opportunistic strategy, but our essential condition. Jesus loves to draw near to his brothers and sisters through us, through our open hands that caress and comfort; our words uttered to anoint the world with the Gospel and not with ourselves; our heart when it bears the distress and joys of our brothers and sisters” (Address to Bishops participating in the course promoted by the Congregation for Bishops and by the Congregation for the Eastern Churches,, 12 September 2019).

At the same time, today we must ask ourselves what it means to be servants of the faith of the people. Simply knowing the importance and necessity of our ministry being rooted in the spirit of service and in the image of Christ is not enough. Indeed, this awareness must also be translated into the style of our apostolate, into the various forms of pastoral care and governance, into the yearning to proclaim the Gospel, in ways that are as diverse and creative as the concrete situations you will face.

The crisis of faith and its transmission, together with the difficulties concerning church attendance and ecclesial practice, invite us to rediscover our passion and courage for a new proclamation of the Gospel. Even so, many people who seem to be far from the faith often return to knock on the doors of the Church or open themselves to a new search for spirituality, which sometimes does not find adequate expressions and forms in the usual pastoral plans. Neither can we forget other challenges, of a more cultural and social nature, which affect us all and certain areas in particular: the drama of war and violence, the suffering of the poor, the desire of so many for a more fraternal and united world, the ethical questions that call into question the value of life and freedom, and the list could certainly continue.

In this context, the Church sends you out as caring, attentive shepherds who know how to share the journey, the questions, the anxieties and the hopes of the people; shepherds who desire to be guides, fathers and brothers to priests and to your sisters and brothers in the faith.

Dear friends, I pray for you, that you may never lack the breadth of the Spirit so that the joy of your ordination, like a sweet fragrance, may spread to those you will serve. Thank you!