To Hope Is to Participate – Alberto Marvelli

Author: Pope Leo XIV

Jubilee Catechesis

On Saturday, 6 December 2025, the first week of Advent, in Saint Peter's Square, the Holy Father reflected on the example of young Alberto Marvelli, who devoted himself to the sick and wounded.

Dear brothers and sisters, good morning and welcome!

We have recently entered the liturgical season of Advent, which teaches us to pay attention to the signs of the times. We remember the first coming of Jesus, God with us, to learn to recognize him each time he comes and to prepare for his return. Then we will be together forever. Together with him, with all our brothers and sisters, with every other creature, in this finally redeemed world: the new creation.

This waiting is not passive. In fact, the Birth of Jesus reveals to us an engaging God: Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, Simeon, Anna, and later John the Baptist, the disciples, and all who encounter the Lord are involved, are called to participate . It is a great honor, and how dizzying! God involves us in his story, in his dreams. To hope, then, is to participate . The motto of the Jubilee, "Pilgrims of Hope," is not a slogan that will pass in a month! It is a program for life: "pilgrims of hope" means people who walk and wait, not with their hands in their pockets, but by participating.

The Second Vatican Council taught us to read the signs of the times: it tells us that no one can do it alone, but together, in the Church and with many brothers and sisters, we can read the signs of the times. They are signs of God, of God who comes with his Kingdom, through historical circumstances. God is not outside the world, outside of this life: we learned in the first coming of Jesus, God-with-us, to seek him among the realities of life. To seek him with intelligence, heart, and rolled-up sleeves! And the Council said that this mission belongs especially to the lay faithful, men and women, because the God who became incarnate comes to us in everyday situations. In the problems and beauties of the world, Jesus awaits us and engages us, asking us to work with him. This is why to hope is to participate!

Today I would like to recall a name: Alberto Marvelli , a young Italian who lived in the first half of the last century. Raised in the Gospel by his family, trained in Catholic Action, he graduated in engineering and entered social life during the Second World War, which he firmly condemned. In Rimini and the surrounding area, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to helping the wounded, the sick, and the displaced. Many admired his selfless dedication, and after the war, he was elected councilor and placed in charge of the Housing and Reconstruction Commission. Thus, he entered active political life, but while cycling to a rally, he was hit by a military truck. He was 28 years old. Alberto showed us that to hope is to participate, that serving the Kingdom of God brings joy even in the midst of great risks. The world becomes better if we lose a little security and tranquility to choose the good. This is what participation is.

Let us ask ourselves: am I participating in some good initiative that engages my talents? Do I have the horizon and the breath of the Kingdom of God when I perform some service? Or do I do it grumbling, complaining that everything is going badly? A smile on our lips is the sign of grace within us.

To hope is to participate: this is a gift from God to us. No one saves the world alone. Nor does God want to save it alone: He could, but he doesn't want to, because together is better. Participating allows us to express and makes more our own what we will finally contemplate forever, when Jesus finally returns.