This afternoon, the Pope left the Vatican and travelled to Ostia. As a sign of his closeness to the families who live on the peripheries of Rome, he decided to visit and to bless their homes, as their pastor might do from one year to another during the Easter season.
Two days ago, Father Plinio Poncina, the Pastor of Stella Maris, one of the parishes in Ostia, pasted a sign on the door of one of the condominiums, advising families that he would be coming to visit them and to share the traditional Easter blessing.
One can only imagine their great surprise when, answering the door, instead of finding the pastor, they found Pope Francis standing in their doorways.
The Pope made himself their Pastor: with great simplicity, he spent time with families, he blessed a dozen apartments that are part of the condominium at Piazza Francesco Conteduca 11 and presented each one of the occupants with the gift of a rosary. Surprisingly, he apologized for the disturbance, reassuring them that he wanted to respect their daily afternoon period of silence - observed during the afternoon siesta - as is indicated on a card affixed to the entrance of the condominium.
Even though it is part of the territory of Rome, Ostia - with its 100,000 inhabitants - constitutes a nucleus of its own, comprising within its urban context a vibrant community of the faithful who live together and share some difficult realities associated with living on the peripheries. The parish church and the adjacent soccer field often become points of reference for the community and furnish a meeting point for the social and existential realities which are part of the lives of those who are excluded or on the margins of society.
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