Vatican City, Dec 15, 2009 / 12:02 pm
After the Angelus this past Sunday, Pope Benedict directed a special message in Spanish to the newly ordained priests of the Legionaries of Christ from the window of the papal residence.
Fifty-nine priests, representing four continents, were ordained to the order on Saturday, Dec. 12, in the Roman basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls. The ordinations took place on the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
There was a large contingent of priests, family members and members of the Regnum Christi movement in St. Peter's Square, to whom the Pontiff addressed an "affectionate greeting." The hundreds of members received the salute with raucous applause.
The Legionaries of Christ are currently the subject of an Apostolic Visitation, following the revelation that their now-deceased founder, Fr. Marcial Maciel, led a double life.