Holy Father Extols the Generosity of Faith of Two New Blesseds

15 JUNE 2010. From the Holy Father's comments before and after praying the Angelus on Sunday with pilgrims gathered in Saint Peter's Square, we get a glimpse of the tremendous example of Christian living that the Church now has in two new Blesseds: Blessed Jerzy Popiełuszko (beatified on 6 June 2010 in Warsaw, Poland) and Blessed Manuel “Lolo” Lozano Garrido (beatified on 12 June 2010 in Linares, Spain).

Of Blessed Father Jerzy, the Holy Father said:

He exercised his generous and courageous ministry alongside those who worked for freedom, for the defense of life and its dignity. His work in the service of goodness and truth was a sign of contradiction for the regime that governed Poland at that time. The love of the Heart of Christ led him to give his life, and his witness was the seed of a new springtime in the Church and society. If we look at history we can observe that so many pages of authentic spiritual and social renewal have been written by the contribution of Catholic priests, animated only by the passion for the Gospel and for man, for his true religious and civil liberty. How many initiatives of integral human promotion have begun in the intuition of a priestly heart!

After the Angelus, in comments made in Spanish, the Holy Father went on to witness to the example of Blessed Lolo:

[He] was a faithful layman who knew how to irradiate the love of God with his example and his writings, even among the sufferings that confined him to a wheelchair for nearly 28 years. At the end of his life, he also lost his sight, but he continued to win hearts for Christ with his serene joy and his unwavering faith.

Journalists can find in him an eloquent testimony of the good that can be done when one's pen reflects the greatness of the soul and is put at the service of truth and noble causes.