Today Pope Francis will travel to the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore to pray the Rosary and invoke the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary for the gift of Peace. Tomorrow, 7th October, Feast of the Holy Rosary, Our Lady of Victories, the Pope asked for a day fasting and prayer to implore Peace upon our world.
This is not the first time: Syria, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Ukraine and Russia, and now the Holy Land. But there is something ‘new’. On 19th September, the Vatican has released an official Note on the (alleged) messages of “The Queen of Peace” in Medjugorje.
The title “Queen of Peace” – we read in the Note – offers a rich theocentric vision that captured the true meaning of peace. According to this understanding, peace signifies not only the absence of war; it also has a spiritual, a family, and a social meaning. This ‘kind’ of peace is achieved primarily through prayer and it has to be spread through mission.
“Love one another. As brothers and sisters, avoid all quarrels” (25 December 1981). “I want to call you to forgive. Forgive, my children! Forgive others, forgive yourselves” (13 March 2010). “Do not look for mistakes and errors in others, do not judge” (4 May 2020). “Peace. Peace. Peace! Be reconciled! Be reconciled with God and among yourselves” (26 June 1981). “Without prayer, there is no peace. Therefore, I urge you, dear children, to pray at the foot of the Cross for peace” (6 September 1984). “Pray for peace to reign in the world, for peace to reign in the hearts of men. Be my bearers of peace in this restless world. Be my living sign: a sign of peace” (5 August 2013).
Pax,
