In the Pallottine Family, celebrating triduum which precedes the Solemnity of St Vincent Pallotti has become a tradition. This year the triduum in the Church of SS Salvatore in Onda began on Sunday 19 January. The church, beautifully decorated by Br Peter Chrzanowski, the sacristan, gathered many lay people, Pallottine Sisters and Pallottine Missionary Sisters as well as Pallottine Fathers and Brothers. Evening Mass, celebrated in a Maronite rite, was presided over by Mons. Youhanna Rafic El Warcha, Procurator of the Maronite Patriarchate at the Holy See with some Maronite priests concelebrating. A group of students of the Maronite College in Rome was also present.
The Bishop highlighted Pallotti’s close link with the East. In his sermon he reflected on the virtue of hope stating that hope is a sure reality based on God’s promise and an essential element in the life of the believers. A man of hope can be seen by the way he acts; he works for a project that goes beyond; not short-term but long-term: this is the eschatological dimension of hope. St Vincent said: “As long as there is life, there is hope!” According to the heritage we received as members of the Pallottine Family, we must live hope and pass it on to all the people with whom we live, especially the needy, through works of mercy and charity.
The second day of the triduum was characterized by the atmosphere of joy. A large group of students of the second year of Theology at the Urban College, coming from various parts of the world, crowded the church. They were accompanied by their formator Fr Joby Kunnathettu Xavior who presided over the Mass while the seminarists animated the liturgy. Before the final blessing, one of the students – Sylvain Mumba Kipwe from Congo – on behalf of the whole group, expressed gratitude for St Vincent Pallotti’s life and teaching and their impact on many generations of the students of the College. He handed his letter of gratitude to Rector General Fr Zenon Hanas as it is a Pallottine tradition to collect all these letters and save them in the archives.
On 21 January, the third day of the triduum the Pallottine Family had a privilege to welcome His Eminence Cardinal Angel Fernandes Artime, SDB, Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. He presided over the Eucharist and highlighted in his homily that religious charisms form a multicoloured mosaics contributing to the richness of the Church. Each of them can offer a unique outlook on hope. The liturgy was animated by Br Marcin Woźniczka from the Anunciation Province in Poland who played the organ in a masterly way and sang hymns prepared for the occasion.
On 22 January, the Feast of St Vincent Pallotti was celebrated in a solemn way by the members of the Pallottine Family as well as guests and friends who gathered in large numbers in the Church of SS Salvatore in Onda for the evening Mass. Among the participants were members of other religious families and diocesan clergy; Sr Federica, Pallottine Sister who is 103 years old and 93 year-old Mr Vincenzo Pallotti, relative of St Vincent, who arrives in pilgrimage to SS Salvatore on 22 January every year. The community was composed of people who came from Umbria, Sicily, Rome but also from distant places such as India, Ireland, Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Brazil, Cameroon, Mozambique, Ivory Coast and Tanzania.
The Holy Mass was presided over by Fr Zenon Hanas, Rector General. In his thought-provoking homily, he urged everyone to make a special commitment during this Jubilee Year of Hope: to draw closer to God, recognised and invoked by Pallotti as Infinite Love. According to the General, if we took up the reading of the Saint’s writings and reinvigorated our faith and experience of the love of this God, Infinite Love, the virtue of Hope would also be revived, sustaining us in difficult times.
At the end Fr Daniel Luz Rocchetti, General Councillor and Rector of SS Salvatore in Onda, expressed his gratitude to all those who contributed to making the triduum and the Solemnity special this year.
“As long as we are alive, there is hope.” Many people taking part in the triduum and Solemnity of St Vincent Pallotti confirmed how true these words of our Founder are. We were strengthened, inspired and invigorated by Spirit-filled homilies, uplifting liturgies and a sense of belonging to a spiritual and charismatic family which has so much to offer. May St Vincent Pallotti intercede for us and instil in us unshakable hope in the Year of Hope.
Text: Sr. Malgorzata Wyrodek, SAC
Photos: Fr. Yetukuri Showri Raju, SAC
