Visit to the Cathedral of Lome

On Friday, 9 August 1985, the Holy Father visited the Cathedral of Lomé, (Togo) dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

1. Gathered this evening in the Cathedral of Lomé, we praise God for all the graces received during these two days of pastoral visit, but also for the entire history of the evangelization of your country which finds significant expression in this divine temple, the construction of which began in 1901. We here spontaneously pay homage to the memory of Monsignor Jean Strebler, the first Archbishop of Lomé, who inaugurated the new building in 1956 and whose missionary merits throughout Togo are well known to us all.

Personally, in greeting all those present here this evening, I thank you for your welcome, and above all for the prayer that you have just raised to God for the Successor of Peter. I am certain that you will continue to pray often for his ministry.

And together we pray for this diocese, for the Church in Togo. This cathedral is the symbol of the “spiritual home” that all of you build every day in Lomé with your Archbishop, Monsignor Dosseh-Anyron: priests of this parish, of the parishes of the city and of the diocese of Lomé, united in a single “presbyterium”, men and women religious consecrated to apostolic missions or to contemplation, catechists, lay people engaged in the many services of the Church or in bearing witness in the context of their profession, boys and girls, the sick, various associations and confraternities, all the baptized.

2. I would like to address a word of encouragement to each one of you in particular, the content of which you can guess. May each one of you feel like a living, precious, useful stone, contributing to the beauty and vitality of the whole Church! And to all of you I say: live in the joy of being the people of God, that joy that you express so spontaneously, so warmly in your celebrations. Live by deepening your knowledge of faith and your personal relationship with God in prayer. This cathedral, like every house of God, continually invites you to prayer, to adoration. Live in fraternity: do not forget that this is the sign par excellence by which Christ's disciples are recognized. In this way you will be a Church that celebrates, that prays, that loves.

3. In Lomé you form a living Church, clearly visible, given the number of Catholics. You certainly also feel the need to keep your community open to others. In fidelity to your faith, do not be afraid to engage in respectful and fraternal dialogue with them. And first of all with the Protestants: our common faith in Christ the Savior, our common meditation on the Gospel, push each other to progress in a healthy ecumenism, as the Church wants, in order to gradually realize the formal will of the Lord: "That they may be one". What is possible now is mutual esteem, acceptance, charity, some forms of common prayer. And I am also thinking of all men of good will of other religions, whose generosity can edify us and for whom our witness must be a path towards faith. Your diocesan Church, I have said so many times, must remain missionary.

4. This cathedral is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is a precious indication, it is a whole program! Instead of going on for a long time, I invite you to pray with me: “Sacred Heart of Jesus, perfect image, in our human nature, of God the Father, full of mercy, be blessed for all the graces of faith, of perseverance, of vocations, that you have granted to this people of Togo. Keep them in peace, in joy, in thanksgiving.

And now strengthen the faith, hope and charity of those you have called to truly know the love of God. Continue to pour out upon them this love which gives them a filial attitude towards the heavenly Father, which encourages them to pray as children of God.

Give everyone the desire to constantly purify their hearts, to make them transparent to the Gospel, the courage to “break”, when necessary, with sin, the ardent desire for the life of God to develop, which you have placed in them with Baptism.

Jesus, sweet and humble of heart, console those who are weary, give them the rest you promised. Make each one aware of his or her original vocation, of his or her role as a baptized person, as a confirmed person, as a consecrated person, as a deacon, as a priest. Strengthen their unity. Unceasingly extend their charity to the dimension of that benevolent, inexhaustible, boundless love that your divine heart has never ceased to manifest to men.

May the fire that you brought to earth, the passion of your kingdom, burn in them! May they participate more and more in the work of redemption, which you accomplished for them on the cross, at the price of your blood! May they continue their journey toward the fullness of life, to which you draw us all, in the “face to face” encounter in heaven.

Amen! 

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