Pope proclaims seven new saints: “Not heroes, but authentic men and women”

Today, World Mission Day, Leo XIV canonised seven blessed individuals, including the Armenian Ignatius Maloyan, martyr of the genocide, and Peter To Rot, the first saint of Papua New Guinea. At the Angelus on Myanmar: “Immediate and effective ceasefire”. Prayer for the Holy Land and Ukraine: “Just and lasting peace”.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Today, World Mission Day, a great celebration took place in St Peter's Square, with the Holy Mass of canonisation of seven blessed of the Catholic Church. Among them was the Armenian Ignatius Choukrallah Maloyan (1869-1915), Catholic archbishop and martyr of the genocide. Also present was Peter To Rot (1912-1945), a layman beatified by Pope Wojtyla, now the first saint of Papua New Guinea and defender of Christian values during the Japanese occupation.

At the Angelus, at the end of the celebration, Leo XIV thanked the civil and religious authorities present, particularly those from Armenia and Lebanon. On Mission Day, he said: ‘The Church is entirely missionary, but today we pray especially for those men and women who have left everything to go and bring the Gospel to those who do not know it.’ The Pope addressed his thoughts to the missionaries. ‘They are missionaries of hope among the peoples. May the Lord bless them!’ he said.

Also during the Marian prayer, Prevost recalled Myanmar, due to the ‘unfortunately painful’ news coming from the Asian country. ‘They report continuous armed clashes and aerial bombardments, even on civilians and civilian infrastructure,’ he recalled. Pope Leo XIV said he was ‘close to those who suffer because of violence, insecurity and so many hardships.’ He renewed his ‘heartfelt appeal for an immediate and effective ceasefire.’ The pontiff reiterated the urgency of change: ‘May the instruments of war give way to those of peace, through inclusive and constructive dialogue!’

‘We entrust to the intercession of the Virgin Mary and the new saints our continued prayer for peace in the Holy Land, Ukraine and other places of war,’ he added. He also recalled other conflicts that continue to bloody the world. ‘May God grant all those responsible wisdom and perseverance to advance in the search for a just and lasting peace,’ said Leo XIV.

Alongside Maloyan and To Rot - whose faces have been affixed to the facade of St Peter's Basilica - are three Italians: Bartolo Longo (1841-1926), missionary Maria Troncatti (1883-1969), and Vincenza Maria Poloni (1802-1855). They are joined by Venezuelans Giuseppe Gregorio Hernández Cisneros (1864-1919) and María Carmen Elena Rendiles Martínez (1903-1977). ‘They kept the lamp of faith burning; indeed, they themselves became lamps capable of spreading the light of Christ,’ said Pope Leo XIV in his homily. He added: ‘Today's new saints are not heroes or champions of some ideal, but authentic men and women.’

Without faith, “hope” and ‘freedom’ would disappear. ‘Our desire for life would fall into nothingness,’ he added. ‘Just as we never tire of breathing, so let us never tire of praying!’ he said. ‘Faith [...] is expressed in prayer, and authentic prayer lives on faith.’ But faith is tested by ‘two temptations.’ The first concerns ‘the scandal of evil,’ which leads ‘us to think that God does not hear the cries of the oppressed and has no pity for the innocent who suffer.’ The second, added the Augustinian pontiff, ‘is the claim that God must act as we want him to: prayer then gives way to a command to God, to teach him how to be just and effective.’

‘God does justice to all, giving his life for all,’ he explained. God is present when ‘the innocent suffer’ and his justice is expressed through ‘forgiveness.’ ‘He sees evil and redeems it, taking it upon himself,’ he said. His presence endures even in the most painful situations. ‘When we are crucified by pain and violence, by hatred and war, Christ is already there, on the cross for us and with us. There is no cry that God does not console; there is no tear that is far from his heart,’ the pontiff emphasised. ‘The Lord listens to us, embraces us as we are, to transform us like Him.’ Only by accepting ‘God's mercy’ can we truly become capable of ‘mercy towards our neighbour.’ ‘Those who do not accept peace as a gift will not know how to give peace,’ he added.