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

Peace be with you.

Your Excellencies,
Dear brothers and sisters,

I warmly welcome all of you, especially the Members, Trustees and Stewards of The Papal Foundation, and I offer my prayerful good wishes for your pilgrimage to Rome.  While this is our first opportunity to meet since I was called to take on the role of Bishop of Rome and Pope, I have already been aware of your work, especially during my years of service as Bishop of Chiclayo, where I saw first-hand the positive impact of the Foundation’s grants, as both the Diocese and a religious community were blessed to receive assistance on various projects, thanks to your generosity.  In just this first year of my Pontificate, I have been edified to see the global reach of the Foundation.  I am, therefore, deeply grateful for your ongoing commitment to assist the Successor of Peter in his mission to care for the needs of the universal Church.  In this regard, I was pleased to learn that membership in the Foundation continues to grow each year and that you have expressed an openness to increase the support provided as well as find new ways of being of service.

Your visit occurs during the Easter season, a time focusing on mission as well as peace.  After the Resurrection, Jesus commissioned the Apostles to be his messengers, promising to accompany them in their work and promising to be with them always (cf. Mk 16:20, Mt 28:20).  The Pope and the bishops, as successors of the Apostles, continue this task through preaching and works of evangelization.  Yet all members of the Church, by virtue of our Baptism, share the responsibility to proclaim the Gospel today with words as well as with charitable deeds.  As Saint James wrote to the early Christian community, faith without works is dead and has no power to save (cf. Jas 2:17), and the Gospels teach us that the Lord expects his disciples to care for the needs of the poorest and the most vulnerable (cf. Mt 25:31-46).

By funding projects, humanitarian aid and scholarships for people from around the world, The Papal Foundation participates in the Church’s ongoing evangelical mission.  Your generosity has allowed countless people to experience in a concrete fashion the goodness and kindness of God in their own communities.  Many priests and consecrated men and women have likewise been able to receive an advanced education from the Pontifical Universities in Rome that would otherwise not have been possible, forming them to be future leaders in the Church.  You will probably never meet everyone who has benefitted from your kindness, so in their name I express heartfelt appreciation.

One of them is sitting next to me, however, who received a scholarship from you, and I am sure he will gladly say “thank you.”

On Easter Sunday, the risen Lord greeted his Apostles by saying, “Peace be with you!” (Jn 20:19), and even today, Christ desires that his disciples be instruments of peace.  In addition to furthering the Church’s evangelical mission, the Foundation’s efforts also help to foster peace on the regional and local levels. Saint Paul VI wrote that development is the new name of peace (cf. Encyclical Letter Populorum Progressio, 87).  By this he meant that true harmony is not simply the absence of conflict, but comes from actively promoting an authentic integral human development (cf. ibid., 76).  Fostering genuine progress through tangible initiatives like those supported by the Foundation is a sure way to encourage concord among communities and individuals.

Dear sisters and brothers, with these sentiments I thank you for your presence here today as well as for all that you do to further the worthy mission of The Papal Foundation.  I ask for your continued prayers for my ministry as the Successor of Saint Peter and for the needs of the Church.  In entrusting you and your loved ones to the loving intercession of Mary, Mother of the Church, I gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of joy in Christ our risen Lord.

Thank you.