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So let this venerable icon symbolize our hope today. We are, after all, Roman Catholics. We are thus embraced in Mary’s title, “health of the Roman people.” On this, the final day of our pilgrimage of hope, let us entrust to her every worry, every concern, every weakness that we brought with us from across the ocean.

We are in Rome as pilgrims celebrating the Jubilee of Hope. Let us see in the Rosary a Marian prayer that captures and expresses “Christ in [us], our hope of glory” (Col 1:27).

As the family of the Knights of Columbus, we have restored the symbol of Peter’s confession of faith. During this pilgrimage of hope, may the truth and reality of Peter’s confession be fully restored in us, so that it might shine forth daily with the renewed splendor of virtue and holiness.

What ties together these two saints for us concretely is the image of the Sacred Heart which we, the Knights of Columbus, restored. As we gaze upon the open heart of the Savior, the abyss of charity, we see abundant room for a Francis of Assisi, for an Ignatius of Loyola, for a Blessed Michael McGivney, and yes, for you and even me.

Saints are those who take Jesus’ words literally. St. Therese was just such a person.

All three witnesses: Paul, Lorenzo, and Pedro urge us never to be discouraged and never to give up our faith, but to keep our eyes fixed on the prize of eternal life, and to anchor our confession of faith in Jesus’ own testimony before Pilate.

Even if we find that such direct ministry is not possible, for whatever reason, we can always share our resources, and unite ourselves to those in need in our prayers to Jesus, who, for our sake, became poor, so we might become rich in the things of God.

Mercy High School has been graduating stellar alumnae for 65 years. Each generation has its own set of challenges to face, but today the mission of Mercy High School is more relevant & urgent than ever.

It is a pleasure to return to St. Mary’s City, this time to bless the interior of the Brick Chapel and also to bless and re-inter the remains of those who have gone before us in faith and patriotism.

May the intercession of Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian reaffirm in our hearts— priests, seminarians and lay faithful alike— the importance of forgiveness and of solidarity. May these saints help us, one and all, to forgive, not grudgingly but in rejoicing!

At the Holy Sepulchre we realized afresh how, even in this complex and war-torn land, where sometimes all appears to be lost for the Christian community, God brings light from darkness, grace from sin, life from death.