The pope met with hundreds of people in the Paul VI Hall participating in a recent evangelization institution that's celebrating its 30 anniversary: the Parish Cells.
It's a method designed to revive the faith of subdued Christian communities, especially in parishes.
Its founder, Fr. Piergiorgio Perini, could not contain his emotion. He's 90 years old and has been a priest for 65 years.
It's a great honor for me to take the floor and greet you on behalf of our reality of new evangelization.
The pope thanked Fr. Perini for his years of dedication to this initiative. He highlighted how the Cells of Evangelization have helped people have personal encounters with Christ.
POPE FRANCIS
Our parishes are invaded by many initiatives, where often, however, the life of the people is not deeply affected. You too are entrusted with the task of reviving, especially in this period, the life of our parish communities.
The interesting part of this initiative is that it was not born from Catholics, but in the hands of a Korean pastor. Catholics learned from him, and Fr. Parini gave him a concrete place to start. He has created a method that covers various topics: from Eucharist adoration to the doctrinal and social formation of the laity.
Javier Romero
Translated: Rachel Dobrzynski
