The Secretary of State of the Vatican, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, presided over a Mass of thanksgiving for the canonization of the first two Venezuelan saints in which he denounced the existence of “unjust prisons” and “oppressed” in the country.
In his homily, the cardinal called to follow the example of Saint José Gregorio Hernández and Saint Carmen Rendiles, canonized in Saint Peter’s Square on Sunday by Pope Leo XIV, so that Venezuela can pass “from death to life” through love for brothers, based on the first Letter of Saint John.
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“He who does not love remains in death,” indicated the cardinal as reported Vatican News.
In the Venezuelan saints, he added, “this ancient message has been updated in a heroic way.” “They call us to live this message as our own, following the example of the Master and the example that they offered us,” he indicated during the Eucharist celebrated this Monday, October 20, at the Altar of the Chair of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.
Then, in a direct appeal to the country, Cardinal Parolin exclaimed: “Only in this way, dear Venezuela, will you pass from death to life! Only in this way, dear Venezuela, your light will shine in the darkness, your darkness will become noon, if you would listen to the Word of the Lord that calls you to open the unjust prisons, make the bolts of the stocks break, let the oppressed free, break all the stocks.”
At the beginning of his homily, the Vatican Secretary of State shared the excitement of having two new Venezuelans in the book of Saints with the numerous pilgrims, bishops and priests who came to Rome from the Latin American country for the canonization.
Saints “for all”
“Our hearts are filled with the same joy that we experienced yesterday in St. Peter’s Square, because Venezuela has its first saints. Not one, but two: saints for all,” said Cardinal Parolin.
Inspired by the first reading, taken from the book of the prophet Isaiah (58, 6-11), the cardinal recalled that the new Venezuelan saints embodied the call to mercy and service: “As one voice, Saint Joseph Gregory and Mother Carmen respond to the invitation of the biblical text: to break bread with the hungry, to shelter the homeless poor, to clothe the one you see naked and not to close yourself to your own flesh.”
Regarding the man known as the “doctor of the poor,” who treated the sick for free and even paid for the medications himself, the Vatican authority explained how “we see him solicitously walking the streets of the city, bringing medical expertise, but also the balm of consolation.” “Many said that only his presence was healing,” he explained.
Regarding Saint Carmen Rendiles, who is also very loved in Venezuela, Cardinal Parolin highlighted that the Church “wants to pay tribute to the strong woman, who works and builds and who is the guarantor of the transmission of faith to the generations entrusted to her.” “In it the Church celebrates the strength of the Venezuelan female genius,” he assured.
“Build on the foundations of justice”
The cardinal also made a firm call for national reconciliation and the reconstruction of the social fabric of the country, emphasizing that true peace can only be achieved “on the foundations of justice, truth, freedom and love.”
“Only in this way, dear Venezuela, will you be able to respond to your vocation for peace,” the cardinal stated, “if you build it on the foundations of justice, truth, freedom and love; respecting human rights, generating spaces for meeting and democratic coexistence, making prevail what unites and not what divides, seeking the means and instances to find common solutions to the great problems that affect you, putting the good common goal of all public activity.”
“And kairos for Venezuela”
The Secretary of State defined the canonization of the two saints as a providential moment for the country: “The canonization of José Gregorio Hernández and Mother Carmen is a kairosan opportune moment to embark on this path. Don’t let it pass unnecessarily!
The ceremony was accompanied by the Simón Bolívar Choir of the Venezuelan Orchestra System, which performed traditional and liturgical songs.
Victoria Cardiel
Victoria Cardiel is a journalist specialized in social and religious information issues. Since 2013, he has covered all Vatican news for various media, such as the Spanish news agency Europa Press, or the weekly newspaper of the Archdiocese of Madrid, Alfa y Omega.