Pope Francis shares in a video message what always “impressed” him about the Argentine Diocese of Quilmes, which in June 2026 celebrates 50 years of foundation.
“I like that the Church of Quilmes announces the joy of the Gospel: a nice way to celebrate 50 years. It seems like it was yesterday, I remember. That diocese, which moved forward with so much courage,” says the Holy Father in the video.
Receive the main news from ACI Prensa by WhatsApp and Telegram
It is increasingly difficult to see Catholic news on social media. Subscribe to our free channels today:
The Pontiff then highlights that Quilmes is a “difficult diocese because of the configuration of people it has, but it is a creative diocese. That is one of the things that always impressed me about Quilmes: creative. He was not afraid of changes, he was not afraid to face a reality as it is.“.
“I congratulate you and wish you all a good celebration of 50 years,” highlights the Pope.
“May Jesus bless you, the Virgin take care of you and I give you my blessing in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Oh, and please, do not forget to pray for me, but pray for me, not against. Thank you,” concluded Pope Francis.
Mons. Carlos Tissera, who January 20 was received in audience by Pope Francis at the Vaticanpointed out that in the hour-long meeting “we even told jokes, also talking about serious things, naturally, about our Church in general, about the Church of Quilmes, of course, and also about the country.”
“So I found him fine with his arm, still sore, but fulfilling his obligations. Today there were many waiting for other audiences. He sends everyone many greetings, he remembers them a lot,” said the prelate.
On January 16, the Vatican reported that Pope Francis suffered a fall at Casa Santa Marta, his residence in the Vatican, which caused a bruise on his right forearm. Although no fractures were detected, his arm was immobilized as a preventive measure.
The Diocese of Quilmes was established by Pope Saint Paul VI on June 19, 1976. According to its website It includes the territory of the districts of Quilmes, Berazategui and Florencio Varela, in the province of Buenos Aires.
It has an area of 532 square kilometers and a population of more than 1.3 million people, 80% of which are Catholic.
Walter Sánchez Silva
I have been a husband since 2008. My wife and I have three children here and one who went to heaven in 2023, before he was born. Since I joined ACI Prensa in 2005, I have had the opportunity to cover various events of the Catholic Church. Among them, the World Youth Days in Cologne, Madrid and Rio de Janeiro and the apostolic trips of Pope Benedict XVI to Mexico and of Pope Francis to South Korea. I have been sent to the Vatican to cover the Family synods, in 2015; of the Amazon, in 2019 and that of Synodality, in 2023. I closely follow the situation of the Catholic Church in Nicaragua, which suffers persecution from the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega, as well as current ecclesiastical events in the region.