Second Vespers, August 5, 2024, Pope Francis

From the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore Second Vespers in the presence of Pope Francis, presided over by Coadjutor Archpriest Rolandas Makrickas, on the occasion of the anniversary of the consecration of the Basilica and the Solemnity of the "Madonna of the Snows".
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Wording: Pope's homily at Vespers in S. Maria Maggiore
Here is the official translation of Pope Francis' homily at Vespers in Santa Maria Maggiore on August 5, 2024.

The Miracle of the Snow and the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome
05/08/2024
The Miracle of the Snow and the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome
I would like to share with you a brief reflection on the basis of two signs that mark this feast: the first is the traditional "snowfall" that will shortly occur during the Magnificat; the second is the icon of the Salus populi romani. These two signs, if interpreted well, can help us understand the message of God's Word that we have prayed in the Psalms and heard in the reading.

The "snowfall". Is it just folklore or does it have a symbolic meaning? That depends on us, on how we understand it and what meaning we give it. We all know that it commemorates the miraculous event that showed Pope Liberius the place where the original basilica was to be built. However, the fact that this sign is repeated on today's feast day inside the basilica and during the liturgy invites us to take it more symbolically.

And so I suggest that we be guided by two verses from the Book of Sirach, in which it is said of the snow that God makes fall from heaven: "The eye marvels at its white splendour, and the heart marvels at showers of snow" (Sir 43:18). Here the Wisdom Teacher emphasizes the double feeling that the natural phenomenon evokes in the human soul: admiration and amazement. When you see the snow falling, "admire the eye" and "marvel at the heart." And this guides us in the interpretation of the sign of snowfall: it can be understood as a symbol of grace, that is, of a reality that combines beauty and gratuitousness. It is something that cannot be earned, let alone bought, it can only be received as a gift, and as such it is also completely unpredictable, just like a snowfall in Rome in the middle of summer. Grace triggers admiration and amazement.

With this inner attitude, our gaze can now turn to the second, much more important sign: the ancient icon of Mary, which is, so to speak, the jewel of this basilica. In her, in the image of the Virgin Mary with the Child, grace takes on a Christian form in its entirety. Here grace appears in its concreteness, without any mythological, magical, spiritualistic disguise that always lurks in the realm of religion. In the icon there is only the essential: the woman and the son, as in the text of Saint Paul, which we have just heard, "God sent his Son, born of a woman" (cf. Gal 4:4). The woman is the one who is full of grace, conceived without sin, immaculate like the freshly fallen snow. God looked at her with admiration and amazement and chose her as her mother because she is the daughter of his Son: created in him before time, she became his mother in the fullness of time. The child holds the Holy Book with his left hand and blesses with his right; and she is the first blessed, the blessed of all women. Her black mantle makes the golden robe of her son stand out: in him alone dwells the whole fullness of the divinity; she reflects his glory with her unveiled face.

This is why the faithful people come to ask for the blessing of Our Lady, because she is the Mediatrix of the grace that, through the action of the Holy Spirit, flows always and only from Jesus Christ. Especially in the course of the coming year, the Holy Year, there will be many pilgrims who will come to this Basilica to implore Our Lady's blessing. We are gathered here today, as it were, as a vanguard, and we invoke their intercession for the city of Rome and for the whole world, especially for peace: peace that is true and lasting only when it comes from the hearts of those who are penitent and have been forgiven; the peace that comes from the cross of Jesus Christ, from his blood that he received from Mary and shed for the forgiveness of sins.

I would like to end by addressing the Blessed Virgin with the words of Saint Cyril of Alexandria at the end of the Council of Ephesus: "O Mary, Mother of God, I greet you, you who have carried the light, you who have borne the light, you who are pure. I greet you, Virgin Mary, Mother and Handmaid. You are a virgin through him who was born of you; You are a mother, through the one you have carried in your arms. [...] I greet you, Mary, treasure of the earth; Luminaire that does not go out; from you was born the Sun of Righteousness" (Homily 11; PG 77). Holy Mother of God, pray for us.

(Vatican News)
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Pope in S. Maria Maggiore: Plea for peace for Rome and the world
It is one of the few Catholic celebrations in Rome in the middle of summer, and for the first time Pope Francis has participated in it: at the solemn vespers in Santa Maria Maggiore, which commemorates the founding legend of the papal basilica in late antiquity. In his homily, Francis asked for the intercession of the Blessed Mother for peace and ventured a forecast for the Holy Year 2025.

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04/08/2024
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It is a special sign every year: at Vespers on 5 August, during the Magnificat, white rose petals "snow" from the ceiling of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. The production is reminiscent of the "snow miracle" that led to the construction of the church. In the middle of the hot Roman summer, on the morning of August 5, 358, according to legend, a blanket of snow appeared on the Esquiline Hill, which the Virgin Mary had prophesied in a dream to the then Pope Liberius so that he would build a church dedicated to her there. Vespers are the culmination of the triduum, which celebrates the apparition and consecration of the basilica. Since 1983, the basilica has imitated the traditional summer snowfall with the rain of flowers.
The archpriest-coadjutor Rolandas Makrickas presided over this year's celebration in the fully occupied basilica. For the first time, Pope Francis was also present – but he is a frequent visitor to the basilica. During his pontificate, he has been here more than a hundred times to pray before and after trips abroad before the miraculous image of the Salus Populi Romani.

More than just folklore
In his homily, the Pope started from the traditional snowfall, which is now part of the liturgy. This is not so much "folklore", but also a symbolic sign: "It depends on us, on how we understand it - the snowfall - and what meaning we give it," said the Pope, who in this context refers to two verses from the Book of Sirach, in which the prophet describes with admiration and amazement the human reaction to the snow sent by God from heaven:

The Pope and the Snow Miracle - a report by Vatican Radio
https://media.vaticannews.va/media/audio/s1/2024/08/06/13/138190940_F138190940.mp3
"It can be understood as a symbol of grace, that is, of a reality that combines beauty and gratuitousness. It is something that cannot be earned, let alone bought, it can only be received as a gift, and as such it is also completely unpredictable, just like a snowfall in Rome in the middle of summer. Grace triggers admiration and amazement."

"Here grace appears in its concreteness"

With "this inner attitude" one can now turn to the ancient Marian icon of the Salus Populi Romani, the "jewel" of this basilica:

"In her, in the image of the Virgin Mary with the Child, grace takes on a complete Christian form. Here grace appears in its concreteness, without any mythological, magical, spiritualistic disguise that always lurks in the realm of religion."

The most beautiful moments of Vespers in the video
In the icon only the essential is to be found, namely the wife and the son, as heard in the text of St. Paul just recited (cf. Gal 4:4), Francis emphasized:

"The woman is the one who is full of grace, conceived without sin, immaculate like the freshly fallen snow. God looked at her with admiration and amazement and chose her as his mother because she is the daughter of his Son: created in him before time, she became his mother in the fullness of time."

"That is why the faithful people come to ask for the blessing of Our Lady"

Mary, the first blessed among all women through her Son, makes her son stand out in a special way through the representation in the icon, "reflects his glory with her unveiled face," Francis continued.

"This is why the faithful people come to ask for the blessing of Our Lady, because she is the Mediatrix of the grace that, through the action of the Holy Spirit, flows constantly and only from Jesus Christ."

Especially in the coming Holy Year, many pilgrims would find their way to the basilica to implore the blessing of Our Lady, Francis predicted:

"We are gathered here today, as it were, like an avant-garde, and we invoke their intercession for the city of Rome and for the whole world, especially for peace: peace that is true and lasting only when it comes from the hearts of those who are penitent and have been forgiven; the peace that comes from the cross of Jesus Christ, from his blood which he received from Mary and shed for the forgiveness of sins."
At the final
Following the celebration, Francis, accompanied by the Archpriest of the Basilica, Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko, spent a moment of personal prayer in front of the icon of Mary, laying a bouquet of flowers. Francis also wants to be buried in Santa Maria Maggiore. He has often expressed his appreciation for the oldest and largest St. Mary's Church in the West.
(Vatican News - CS)
https://www.vaticannews.va/de/papst/news/2024-08/papst-franziskus-vesper-5-august-schnee-maria-maggiore-predigt.html