Vatican Holds Holy Mass for Pope Francis' Health Celebrated by Archbishop Gallagher and Holy Rosary with Archbishop Zani
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The Vatican released on March 20, 2025, that a Mass was celebrated in Rome's Church of the Most Holy Name of Jesus (Chiesa del Gesù), for the health of Pope Francis. In the homily of the Mass for the health of the Pontiff, the Secretary for Relations with States, Monsignor Paul Gallagher, highlighted Francis' gratitude "for the closeness and the prayer that rises to Heaven in an abundant way for him". Then the archbishop dwells on the threat of evil that is increasingly present in countries at war, what is needed is "a diplomacy - he adds - detached from miserable human interests" and in favor of the common good.
The latest update on the pope's health was released on March 19th: The Holy Father's clinical condition is confirmed to be improving. The Holy Father has suspended non-invasive mechanical ventilation and also has less need of high-flow oxygen therapy. Motor and respiratory physiotherapy is continuing to make progress.
The nightly rosary was also held in St. Peter's Square with the faithful and Msgr. Angelo Vincenzo Zani, Archivist and Librarian of the Holy Roman Church, leading the prayers.
Pope Francis “in this moment of human fragility certainly does not serve the Church and humanity less effectively, although in another form”. The words of Monsignor Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, resonate in the Church of the Gesù in Rome, the “home” of the Jesuits, the order to which the Pope belongs. In the mass celebrated for the health of the Pontiff, the archbishop affirms that “He is grateful for the closeness and the prayer that, especially in these recent times, rises to Heaven in an abundant way for him, for his universal ministry and for the restoration of his health”.
The archbishop's homily centered on divine love that "continually flows" from God "through the pierced Heart of Jesus" and that asks to be reciprocated. A love that meets "with our misery, with our sins and takes on the connotation of 'mercy'". It is that love that leads to the right path. "The strong time of Lent - underlines Monsignor Gallagher - is a propitious time to deepen this path". Following it means letting oneself be loved by God and arriving at a spiritual rebirth that opens "new spaces and new horizons of hope, freedom and peace". The danger is that instead we pass from life to death.
Even in our days, where the threat of evil is becoming more and more consistent and darkness sometimes seems to prevail over the light itself: we see it sadly with the war in the tormented Ukraine, in Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and in other places of conflict.
Spiritual rebirth also leads to the path of encounter, but obstacles are not lacking. “There are those who unfortunately relentlessly fuel – explains the secretary for relations with states – a culture of death”, embracing the “perverse logic of hatred, of abuse and, therefore, of war, at every level. The world thus becomes the scene of a clash of ethnic groups and civilizations, of cultures and religions”.
Diplomacy at the service of the common good
Christians are instead called to spread the values of love, justice and peace. “Blessed are those times and places – Gallagher emphasizes – where we sit around the same table and trust in the strength of reason and conscience, having as our horizon the unspeakable value of human dignity!”.
How much is needed in our day for a diplomacy detached from miserable human interests to be able to operate freely for the common good, cooperating together to ensure for all the supreme goods of justice and peace!
The Pope, the Archbishop recalls, repeatedly urges us to embrace the logic of encounter because man is made of open and altruistic relationships. Thus, the outgoing Church, evoked by Francis, is also made of men who look to others, who are concerned with serving the common good. Egocentrism, in fact, is closure, a cage that prevents one from being a “blessing” for all.
There is a huge difference between those who bring life to others, reaching out to save, and those who bring death, depriving others of the help they need to survive!
Prayer and the voice of conscience
Finally, Monsignor Gallagher recalls that there is a need for “a higher light” that guides us in our choices and helps us to carry them forward. “Precisely in prayer, which is also made of silence, we must learn to hear the voice of conscience, which is not an arbitrary judgment, but the voice of the Lord that resonates in the interior sanctuary of the mind and heart”.
Those who fought for human dignity, who struggled against dictatorships, tyranny and injustice, even if they did not always share the Christian faith or a religious faith, did so in the name of conscience, recognizing in it that superior voice that indicates the right path.
The invitation of the Secretary for Relations with States is to take advantage of the Lenten season "to be silent and enter into this interior sanctuary of conscience", entrusting ourselves to the Virgin of Silence, to whom we can also entrust the Pope's health and peace in the world.
Pope Francis “in this moment of human fragility certainly does not serve the Church and humanity less effectively, although in another form”. The words of Monsignor Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States and International Organizations, resonate in the Church of the Gesù in Rome, the “home” of the Jesuits, the order to which the Pope belongs. In the mass celebrated for the health of the Pontiff, the archbishop affirms that “He is grateful for the closeness and the prayer that, especially in these recent times, rises to Heaven in an abundant way for him, for his universal ministry and for the restoration of his health”.
The archbishop's homily centered on divine love that "continually flows" from God "through the pierced Heart of Jesus" and that asks to be reciprocated. A love that meets "with our misery, with our sins and takes on the connotation of 'mercy'". It is that love that leads to the right path. "The strong time of Lent - underlines Monsignor Gallagher - is a propitious time to deepen this path". Following it means letting oneself be loved by God and arriving at a spiritual rebirth that opens "new spaces and new horizons of hope, freedom and peace". The danger is that instead we pass from life to death.
Even in our days, where the threat of evil is becoming more and more consistent and darkness sometimes seems to prevail over the light itself: we see it sadly with the war in the tormented Ukraine, in Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo, and in other places of conflict.
Spiritual rebirth also leads to the path of encounter, but obstacles are not lacking. “There are those who unfortunately relentlessly fuel – explains the secretary for relations with states – a culture of death”, embracing the “perverse logic of hatred, of abuse and, therefore, of war, at every level. The world thus becomes the scene of a clash of ethnic groups and civilizations, of cultures and religions”.
Diplomacy at the service of the common good
Christians are instead called to spread the values of love, justice and peace. “Blessed are those times and places – Gallagher emphasizes – where we sit around the same table and trust in the strength of reason and conscience, having as our horizon the unspeakable value of human dignity!”.
How much is needed in our day for a diplomacy detached from miserable human interests to be able to operate freely for the common good, cooperating together to ensure for all the supreme goods of justice and peace!
The Pope, the Archbishop recalls, repeatedly urges us to embrace the logic of encounter because man is made of open and altruistic relationships. Thus, the outgoing Church, evoked by Francis, is also made of men who look to others, who are concerned with serving the common good. Egocentrism, in fact, is closure, a cage that prevents one from being a “blessing” for all.
There is a huge difference between those who bring life to others, reaching out to save, and those who bring death, depriving others of the help they need to survive!
Prayer and the voice of conscience
Finally, Monsignor Gallagher recalls that there is a need for “a higher light” that guides us in our choices and helps us to carry them forward. “Precisely in prayer, which is also made of silence, we must learn to hear the voice of conscience, which is not an arbitrary judgment, but the voice of the Lord that resonates in the interior sanctuary of the mind and heart”.
Those who fought for human dignity, who struggled against dictatorships, tyranny and injustice, even if they did not always share the Christian faith or a religious faith, did so in the name of conscience, recognizing in it that superior voice that indicates the right path.
The invitation of the Secretary for Relations with States is to take advantage of the Lenten season "to be silent and enter into this interior sanctuary of conscience", entrusting ourselves to the Virgin of Silence, to whom we can also entrust the Pope's health and peace in the world.
Source: Vatican News
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