Presentation of
the Homage to the Blessed Virgin by the Holy See
Structure of
the Homage
Jubilee of Bishops
Saturday 7 October 2000
The profound communion which
exists between the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of Peter, and
the Bishops of the Particular Churches, the Successors of the
Apostles; a wish to join in celebrating, in a spirit of
conversion and renewal, the Great Jubilee which marks the two
thousandth anniversary of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus
Christ; and a desire to offer grateful homage to the Virgin of
Nazareth who gave birth to the Saviour of the world: these are
the inspiration behind this recitation of the Rosary with Holy
Father.
Not since the time of the
Second Vatican Council (1962-1965) has there been so vast and
representative a gathering of the world’s Bishops: the
Universal Church is truly present in this meeting.
Other characteristics of the
meeting are:
- an emphasis on the Church’s
presence on the five continents:
The leading of the five
mysteries of the Rosary is entrusted successively to
representatives - a Cardinal, a Bishop, a family - of the five
Continents, in this order: Oceania, Asia, America, Africa,
Europe;
- a connection with the events
of Fátima (1917):
The same day on which this
significant moment of the Jubilee of Bishops is being
celebrated - 7 October, the Memorial of Our Lady of the
Rosary, and the first Saturday of the month, both integral
elements of the message of Fátima - as well as the recent
Beatification of two of the visionaries - Francisco and
Jacinta - led to this choice.
The "Fátima
presence" is brought out by certain characteristic signs,
such as:
the statue of Our Lady of Fátima
in Saint Peter’s Square; the participation in the fifth
mystery of Sister Lucia and the community of the Carmelite
Monastery of Coimbra; the singing of songs associated with the
Shrine of Fátima; the floral tribute to Our Lady to be
presented by three Portuguese shepherd children.
Structure of the Homage
The celebration has four parts:
I. Introduction
This includes:
- the opening song "O
Sanctissima", addressed to the Blessed Virgin, in
which there blend the voices and hearts of all those taking
part in the Jubilee of Bishops;
- an introduction, which
explains the meaning of the gathering to the faithful present;
- the procession with
the statue of Our Lady of Fátima, from the inside of the
Vatican Basilica to its place on the esplanade of Saint
Peter’s Square. The procession will be accompanied by the
singing of the Litaniæ de Sancta Maria Regina;
- the incensing of the
statue by the Holy Father, followed by the prayer Deus,
qui Filii tui Genetricem, taken from the Feast of the
Queenship of Mary (22 August);
- the Holy Father’s greeting
and introduction, and the prayer Grant, Lord,
set the meeting of the Bishops within the context of the
celebration of the Jubilee Year.
II. Meditation on the mysteries
of the Rosary
The meditation on the five
glorious mysteries of the Rosary takes place in eight parts:
- the announcement of the
mystery, followed by a brief explanation of its meaning;
- the proclamation of the
Word of God: a Bishop proclaims a passage of the New
Testament which, whether in a literal or an accommodated
sense, refers to the saving event which is the subject of the
meditation;
- the proclamation of the
Word of the Church: a Cardinal proclaims a passage of the
Apostolic Exhortation or Instrumentum Laboris of the
corresponding Continental Assembly of Bishops held in
preparation for the celebration of the Great Jubilee of the
Year 2000;
- the singing of a verse
of the popular hymn of the Shrine of Fátima, in the course of
which one of the five candles in front of the statue of the
Blessed Virgin is lighted;
- the Lord’s Prayer: a
Cardinal (in the following order: Australian, Asian, American,
African, European) recites the first part of the Our Father;
the assembly responds by reciting the second part;
- Ten "Hail Marys":
a family member recites ten times the salutation of the Angel
and of Elizabeth, the Hail, Mary, which is the
characteristic element of the Rosary; the assembly responds
with the ecclesial prayer Holy Mary;
- praise to the Trinity:
at the end of each decade the choir and the assembly glorify
the Triune God by singing the traditional formula Gloria
Patri;
- a prayer to the Blessed
Virgin: the Holy Father concludes the meditation of the
mystery with a prayer addressed to the Mother of the Lord,
which evokes the saving event just meditated upon.
III. Address of the Holy Father
- After the recitation of the
Rosary, the Holy Father addresses the Bishops assembled for
the Jubilee and the other members of the faithful in
attendance.
IV. Conclusion
The conclusion has three
sections:
- the floral tribute to
Our Lady of Fátima, presented by three Portuguese shepherd
children while the choir and the assembly sing the Salve
Regina;
- the Apostolic Blessing
imparted by the Holy Father;
- the procession with
the statue through Saint Peter’s Square to the "Mater
Ecclesiæ" Monastery, accompanied by the singing of a few
verses of the hymn Salve, Mater Misericordiæ.
Among those taking part in the
procession are students from the Saint Pius X Preseminary and
women Religious living in Vatican City.
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