Easter Monday in Italy is known as La Pasquetta (Little Easter) or Angel Monday. The custom on this day is that the Holy Father prays the Marian prayer with the gathered faithful in Saint Peter's Square, so at noon on Easter Monday, Pope Francis appeared at the window of his study in the Vatican Apostolic Palace. From there, he recited the Regina Caeli with the faithful and with pilgrims who had gathered in Saint Peter's Square.
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Happy Easter! Cristòs anèsti! – Alethòs anèsti!", Christ is risen! He is truly risen! He is here with us in the Square! During this week, we continue to exchange Easter greetings, as though all this week were just one day. This is the great day that the Lord has made.
The predominant feeling which is evident in the gospel accounts of the Resurrection is joy, joy and wonder, a great mysterious wonder! Joy that comes from within! In the Liturgy, we re-live the joy that the disciples experienced when they received the news that the women announced: Jesus is Risen! We have seen him!
Let us allow this experience, imprinted in the Gospel, to be imprinted also in our hearts so that it can be lived to the full in our lives. Let us allow the joyful wonder of Easter Sunday to radiate in our thoughts, in the way we look at each other, in our attitudes, our gestures and our words ... What brilliant light all of this will bring! But it is not just makeup! It comes from within, from a heart that has been immersed in the font of joy, like Mary Magdalene's heart, which cried for the loss of her Lord and couldn't believe her eyes when she saw that he was risen. Those who experience this truth become witnesses of the Resurrection, because in a sense, they too are raised. This is why we are able to bear within us a ray of the light of the Risen One in various situations: in happy moments, making them even more beautiful and preserving them from selfishness; and in sad moments, as we bring the gifts of serenity and hope.
During this coming week, we would do well to open the Book of the Gospel and to read the accounts that speak of the Resurrection of Jesus. It will do us good! Take up the Book, find the stories and read them. It would also be good during this week to think about the joy that was in the heart of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Just as her sorrow was an intimate experience, even to the point of infusing her very soul, so her joy was also intimate and profound, and the disciples too could draw from this joy. Having lived through the experience of the death and resurrection of her Son, understood through the eyes of faith as the ultimate act of God's love, Mary's heart became a spring of peace, of consolation, of hope and of mercy. Every prerogative of our Mother is derived from this experience, from her participation in Jesus' passion, death and resurrection. From Friday morning until Sunday, She never lost hope: we contemplated the sorrow of our Mother, but at the same time, she was a Mother filled with hope. She is the Mother of all the disciples,the Mother of the Church, the Mother of hope.
Let us ask this silent witness to the death and resurrection of Jesus to introduce us to paschal joy. We will do this by reciting together the Regina Caeli, which replaces the Angelus during the Easter season.
After the recitation of the Regina Caeli, the Holy Father continued:
I wish to extend a cordial greeting to all of you, dear pilgrims who have come from all over Italy and from various countries in order to take part in this prayerful encounter.
Remember to open the Gospels during this week, and to find the accounts that speak of the Resurrection ... and to read a little bit of the story every day. It will do you good, during this week of the Resurrection of Jesus.
I wish every one of you the gift of joy and serenity on this Angel Monday, during which we prolong the joy of the Resurrection of Christ.
Happy and Holy Easter to you all! Enjoy your lunch! Goodbye!
Message of His Holiness, Pope Francis
introducing the Regina Caeli
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Happy Easter! Cristòs anèsti! – Alethòs anèsti!", Christ is risen! He is truly risen! He is here with us in the Square! During this week, we continue to exchange Easter greetings, as though all this week were just one day. This is the great day that the Lord has made.
The predominant feeling which is evident in the gospel accounts of the Resurrection is joy, joy and wonder, a great mysterious wonder! Joy that comes from within! In the Liturgy, we re-live the joy that the disciples experienced when they received the news that the women announced: Jesus is Risen! We have seen him!
Let us allow this experience, imprinted in the Gospel, to be imprinted also in our hearts so that it can be lived to the full in our lives. Let us allow the joyful wonder of Easter Sunday to radiate in our thoughts, in the way we look at each other, in our attitudes, our gestures and our words ... What brilliant light all of this will bring! But it is not just makeup! It comes from within, from a heart that has been immersed in the font of joy, like Mary Magdalene's heart, which cried for the loss of her Lord and couldn't believe her eyes when she saw that he was risen. Those who experience this truth become witnesses of the Resurrection, because in a sense, they too are raised. This is why we are able to bear within us a ray of the light of the Risen One in various situations: in happy moments, making them even more beautiful and preserving them from selfishness; and in sad moments, as we bring the gifts of serenity and hope.
During this coming week, we would do well to open the Book of the Gospel and to read the accounts that speak of the Resurrection of Jesus. It will do us good! Take up the Book, find the stories and read them. It would also be good during this week to think about the joy that was in the heart of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Just as her sorrow was an intimate experience, even to the point of infusing her very soul, so her joy was also intimate and profound, and the disciples too could draw from this joy. Having lived through the experience of the death and resurrection of her Son, understood through the eyes of faith as the ultimate act of God's love, Mary's heart became a spring of peace, of consolation, of hope and of mercy. Every prerogative of our Mother is derived from this experience, from her participation in Jesus' passion, death and resurrection. From Friday morning until Sunday, She never lost hope: we contemplated the sorrow of our Mother, but at the same time, she was a Mother filled with hope. She is the Mother of all the disciples,the Mother of the Church, the Mother of hope.
Let us ask this silent witness to the death and resurrection of Jesus to introduce us to paschal joy. We will do this by reciting together the Regina Caeli, which replaces the Angelus during the Easter season.
After the recitation of the Regina Caeli, the Holy Father continued:
I wish to extend a cordial greeting to all of you, dear pilgrims who have come from all over Italy and from various countries in order to take part in this prayerful encounter.
Remember to open the Gospels during this week, and to find the accounts that speak of the Resurrection ... and to read a little bit of the story every day. It will do you good, during this week of the Resurrection of Jesus.
I wish every one of you the gift of joy and serenity on this Angel Monday, during which we prolong the joy of the Resurrection of Christ.
Happy and Holy Easter to you all! Enjoy your lunch! Goodbye!
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