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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Saturday met with the Nomadelfia community here at the Vatican.

Nomadelfia is a group of Catholic volunteers seeking to build a new civilization according to the Gospel, living in a way that is based the early Christian communities.

Listen to Ann Schneible’s report:

Reflecting on the mystery of the Son of God becoming Man, the Pope said, Advent is an opportunity to reflect on how we should not “place ourselves above others, but we are called to lower ourselves, to serve out of love for the weakest, to make ourselves little with the little ones.”

The Holy Father turned his reflection to the founder of the Nomadelfia community, Fr Zeno Saltini.

Fr Saltini, he said, remains “present to us today as an example of a faithful disciple of Christ who, in imitation of the Divine teacher, bends to the suffering of the weakest and poorest, becoming a witness of inexhaustible charity.”

Pope Francis spoke to the community members about their “spiritual heritage” which is tied in a special way to the “welcoming of children” and caring for the elderly.

“Children and elderly build the future of peoples: children, because they are able to advance history; the elderly because they transmit the experience and wisdom of their lives.”

The Pope urged them to not tire of cultivating “this dialogue between the generations.”

Pope Francis concluded by wishing everyone a happy journey towards Christmas, and gave them his blessing.

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(Vatican Radio) On Saturday the Holy Father Francis received in audience the president of the Republic of Malta, Her Excellency Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca, who subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin and His Excellency Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States. During the cordial discussions, the good relations between the Holy See and Malta were evoked, focusing in particular on the special contribution of the Catholic religion in the formation of the identity of the country and on the relevant role of the Church in promoting the human and cultural progress of society. The conversation continued with an exchange of views on the main questions of an international and regional nature, also in view of the upcoming Maltese presidency of the European Union, with special reference to the phenomenon of migration, current conflicts in the Mediterranean area and the importance of dialogue between religions and cultures.

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Vatican City, Dec 17, 2016 / 05:59 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Thought rumors have been floating around for some time, the Vatican confirmed Saturday that Pope Francis will travel to Fatima, Portugal May 12-13 in honor of the centenary of the apparitions.

“On the occasion of the centenary of the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary at Cova da Iria, and welcoming the invitation of the Republic and of the Portuguese bishops, His Holiness Pope Francis will go on pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima May 12-13, 2017.”

The announcement was made in a Dec. 17 communique from the Vatican. Official statements confirming the dates had already been made over the past few days by both the president of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, as well as the Fatima Shrine itself.

Of all Marian apparitions, those relating to Our Lady of Fatima are among the most famous. On May 13, 1917, siblings Francisco and Jacinta Marto – 9 and 7 – and their cousin, 10-year-old Lucia dos Santos, took their sheep to graze near the Portuguese town of Fatima when they saw a figure of a woman dressed in white and holding a rosary.

After this first appearance, the Virgin Mary then appeared to the children on the 13th of every month from May until October. The message of the Fatima apparitions can be summarized primarily as a call to repentance and prayer.

In 1930, the Catholic Church proclaimed the supernatural character of the apparitions and a shrine was erected at Fatima. It was visited by Pope Paul VI May 13, 1967, and later by Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

St. John Paul II had a particularly strong devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. After a harrowing assassination attempt in 1981, he credited his survival to her miraculous intervention. As a sign of his gratitude, he placed the bullet from the failed assassination in her crown.

“Pray for the brother who shot me, whom I have sincerely forgiven. United to Christ, as a priest and victim, I offer my sufferings for the Church and the world,” Pope John Paul II said on that occasion.

Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin traveled to Fatima Oct. 11-13, six months before the Pope's own visit, largely as a precursor to the papal trip.

His visit, which could indicate what the Pope's schedule might look like, included a stop in Lisbon, where he gave a talk on “The Identity of Europe” at a conference at the Catholic University of Portugal marking the 50th anniversary of its founding in 2017.

He also visited several churches and had dinner with Cardinal Manuel José Macário do Nascimento Clemente, the Roman Catholic Patriarch of Lisbon.

At Fatima, Parolin participated in an Oct. 12 blessing of the candles and praying the holy rosary at the Little Chapel of Apparitions before processing to the altar to celebrate a candlelit Mass in front of the Basilica of the Holy Rosary. On Oct. 13, there was a special procession to the Basilica with Mass and benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.

It is likely that the Pope’s visit will look similar that of Parolin, however, Francis has previously said he would only go to Fatima.

In 2013 Pope Francis received the statue of Our Lady of Fatima in St. Peter's Square, inviting those present to meditate on the gaze of Mary.

“Oh Mary, let us feel your gaze as a Mother,” he said. “Lead us to your Son, as we are not Christians ‘for show', but who can 'get their hands dirty' to build with your Son, Jesus, his Kingdom of love, joy and peace.”

“How important it is,” he said of Mary’s gaze. “How many things can be said with a look! Affection, encouragement, compassion, love, but also reproach, envy, pride, even hatred.”

“Often the look says more than words, or says what words cannot or dare not say. Who looks at the Virgin Mary? She looks at all of us, each of us…She looks at us like a Mother, with tenderness, with mercy, with love. The same way she looked at the child Jesus, in every moment of his life…When we are tired, discouraged, overwhelmed by the problems, look to Mary.”

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Vatican City, Dec 17, 2016 / 07:02 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Pope Francis kicked off his 80th birthday by having breakfast with a group of homeless from around St. Peter’s and inviting them to Mass – but his giving didn’t stop there.

Throughout the day birthday treats and a special Christmas gift will be given to the poor and needy in soup kitchens and shelters throughout Rome in the name of the Pope in honor of his special day.

Francis started his birthday by welcoming eight homeless people, two women and six men, to his residence in the Vatican’s St. Martha guesthouse.

Accompanied by Papal Almoner Bishop Konrad Krajewski, the eight individuals come from different nationalities, and included four Italians, two Romanians, one Moldavian and one Peruvian. They had been in the area around St. Peter’s Basilica and the showers under the colonnade when they were invited by Krajewski in the early morning to join the Pope for breakfast.

At 7:15a.m. Pope Francis came down and met them, greeting each one personally and “affectionately,” according to a Dec. 17 Vatican communique. The homeless then gave the Pope three large vases of sunflowers, which Francis immediately put in the chapel of the Saint Martha house where he celebrates daily Mass.

The group then made their way to the cafeteria for breakfast. Pope Francis sat with his guests and spoke with each of them before offering some typical Argentine sweets and inviting them to attend his 8a.m. Mass with the resident cardinals in Rome inside the Pauline Chapel of the Apostolic Palace.

Cardinal Angelo Amato, Dean of the College of Cardinals, offered a special greeting to the Pope, reminding him of his parents, Mario and Maria Regina Bergoglio, his family and all of the others “who have contributed to your formation.” He also recalled the moment of the conclave and noted that many of the cardinals sat alongside Francis as they elected him to guide the Church “in this important time in history.”

“Today we wanted to celebrate Holy Mass with you, to thank the Lord for having chosen you for this mission and for all the love with which you are carrying it out every day.”

He affirmed their closeness to the Pope, particularly on “this beautiful day of your life,” and assured of their constant prayer before offering a cheer “Ad multos annos,” or “to many years!”

In his homily for Mass, Pope Francis also made his own reference to memory, saying the day’s Gospel reading from Matthew, which recounts the genealogy of Jesus, is an opportunity to pause and remember the graces received.

“This is the meaning of today’s liturgy: the grace of memory. We need to ask for this grace: to not forget.”

Remembering one’s story, their ancestors and the path of faith they have walked is based on love, he said, explaining that to reflect on this “does us good,” since it makes the period of waiting before Christmas even more “intense” and vigilant.

While the long Gospel passage might seem a bit “annoying,” it tells the story of a God who wanted to be with his people to the point of making himself a man like each one of us, Francis said.

“This is today’s grace: to remember,” he said, noting that in the story told in the Gospel we see that it’s both a story of grace, but also of sin.

“Along the path we always find grace and sin...even we, in our lives, find the same thing: moments of great fidelity to the Lord, of joy in service, and some bad moments of infidelity,” he said, but emphasized the fact that these moments of darkness are what make us feel the need for salvation.

When we become aware of our need to be saved, “we confess the faith, we make a confession of faith: ‘I am a sinner, but you can save me, you can carry me forward,” the Pope said, adding that this recognition allows us to go forward “in the joy of hope.”

Francis closed his homily by praying that the Lord would help everyone “to recover this grace of memory.”

The rest of Pope Francis’ special day is set to continue like normal, with various meetings and encounters with both individuals and groups of people.

However, as a special sign honoring the Pope’s birthday, soup kitchens throughout Rome will offer special treats after either lunch or dinner, while in various shelters where homeless stay overnight, guests will be given a bag with an image reminding them of Christmas, as well as a “small gift.”

Pope Francis will likely continue to receive well-wishes throughout the day. As of Saturday morning, he had already received nearly 50,000 birthday messages from around the world via email, as part of a special initiative launched by the Vatican in honor of the big day.

The majority of messages that have already arrived are in the English, Spanish and Italian languages, however, more than 1,000 came in Latin, which the Pope has an impeccable knowledge of.

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