Lima, Peru, Apr 6, 2010 / 11:51 am
During Easter Sunday Mass at the Cathedral of Lima, Cardinal Juan Luis Cipriani Thorne expressed solidarity with Pope Benedict XVI and noted that the media attacks against the Holy Father and the Church are “a rebellion” against truth and love.
“Personally, I object. And for this reason, in these especially difficult times, courage and the love of God must stand.”
The cardinal prayed that God might be with the Pontiff to “strengthen him” in the face of “a rebellion against the truth, against kindness, against love ... I pray that Jesus and the Virgin Mary will protect the Catholic Church and especially the Holy Father, so that this campaign to smear him will not prevail.”
Likewise, during his program, “Dialogue of Faith,” the cardinal expressed joy at seeing so many receive the Sacrament of Confession and visit the Blessed Sacrament during Holy Week.
He said that the "theme in our churches" last week was this: "God died for you and for me. It is something that changed history, and in that sea of people - the thousands or millions who went to confession or received Communion or visited the Blessed Sacrament - we saw an amazing expression of faith that can only lead us to say to the Lord, ‘Thank you, because you have not forgotten us!'"
The cardinal added that the Holy Week celebrations have been a chance to “reboot our hope and joy” and bring renewal to all.