Meeting with General Antonio Ramalho Eanes (12 May 1982)

On Wednesday, 12 May 1982, the Holy Father met in Lisbon with General Antonio Ramalho Eanes, President of the Portuguese Republic. In the Pope's Greeting* he spoke of the long history of ties between Portugal and the Holy See and expressed the hope that Portugal “with its charism of universality and easy integration, will continue to be a force for understanding between peoples.”

Most Excellent General
António Ramalho Eanes,
President of the Portuguese Republic.

1. I am very grateful to Your Excellency for the very fine hospitality with which you have just received me. And, at this moment, I would like to renew the expression of my gratitude also for your deferential presence at the airport upon my arrival in Portugal.

Through Your Excellency goes my gratitude to all the dear Portuguese people and their illustrious Representatives, for the commitment and availability demonstrated to make this journey that I am now making to the "Land of Saint Mary" become a reality. In the exquisite availability, I want to underline the invitations that have been made to me, personally, especially by Your Excellency; they added to the desire of the Portuguese Episcopate, long expressed by the Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon, António Ribeiro, in his capacity, at the time, as President of the Portuguese Episcopal Conference.

All the touching esteem - of these invitations and of the gestures of homage with which we wanted to honor the successor of Saint Peter in the See of Rome - certainly does not stop at my person: the homage goes to the Pastor of the universal Church, who in this capacity visits Portuguese land; homage which ultimately goes to the Lord and Master of the Church itself, Jesus Christ, with his undoubted right of citizenship in the history of man.

I am, therefore, in Portugal on a pastoral visit; and above all, on a pilgrimage to Fatima; and at the same time I am grateful to satisfy the imperatives of friendship, of an ancient friendship that exists between this beloved country and the Apostolic See of Rome.

2. Indeed, the ties between Portugal and the Roman See of Peter go back a long way. Lost in the fog of centuries is that moment in which, for the first time, the blessed name of Christ rang out in this homeland of the Lusitanian people, at the time of the Roman presence in the Iberian Peninsula. And from then on, with the Christian faith, the people of Lusitania also accepted the Church, which Jesus Christ himself wanted to build on the "rock" of Peter, to whom he wanted to entrust the responsibility of the magisterium and ministry of the whole People of God, scattered across the face of the earth. Gradually, organic relationships were established as an expression and support of the love and loyalty to the Church, one and Catholic, of the faithful of the dioceses of these Regions, from Braga to Ossónoba, in the current borders of the lands ranging from Minho to the Algarve.

And I believe I can affirm, in a retrospective vision, that the love of the faithful of these lands for the supreme Roman Pontiff must have been surpassed only by his well-known devotion to Christ the Redeemer - in the mysteries of the Passion and the Eucharist - and to Our Lady who, invoked with one of her most beautiful prerogatives - the Immaculate Conception - was chosen and acclaimed "Queen" and Patroness of Portugal (cf. Auto da aclamaão de N. Senhora da Conceião como Padroeira de Portugal , pelas Cortes de Lisboa, am 1646); these devotions constantly animated the worship of God and the solid adherence to other religious duties, which left profound marks in the history and life of the beloved Portuguese people.

As we know, the Church wherever it meets, wishes to be able to serve the personal and social vocation of its members, who are at the same time members of a specific political community. Indeed, due to its mission and competence of a spiritual nature, it is not confused with society nor is it linked to any political system; but it wants to be a sign, in every part, of the transcendence of the human person; and he does this by preaching the evangelical truth and illuminating, with her doctrine and with the testimony of her faithful, all fields of human activity (cf. Gaudium et Spes , 76).

Thus the relations of the Portuguese nation with the See of Peter which, with the passing of time, took the form of recognitions and commitments, as we know (just three years ago, I had the pleasure of participating in the commemorations of the eighth centenary of the first of these recognitions, in the Church of Sant'Antonio dei Portuguese in Rome) are placed in this perspective. Aware of the duty dictated to her by her own mission - to help men in the search for an answer to the eternal questions about the meaning of present and future life and of the relationship between both - here too the Church has always tried to walk with man, in the desire to provide him with a service.

In this light the path taken together by the Church and Portugal must be seen, with its friendly relations with the See of Rome, which earned it, from my predecessor Benedict XIV, the title of "most faithful" Nation, in the person of his Kings (cf. Breve Apost., die 23 dec. 1748, in “Bullarium Romanum”, Venetiis, typ. Gatti, 1778, t. III, p. 1).

3. The historical line of Portugal, as indeed happens with other peoples, is not exempt from the alternation of light and shadow, in the different aspects of the life of its population, but, ultimately, they have remained as coordinates, many things that have not changed, nor can they change. The Church - as we know - actually believes that "the key, the center and the end of all human history meet in Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever" ( Gaudium et Spes , 10). And Portugal, globally, in the majority of its population, in its fundamental historical choices, has made its choice for Christ, Christ the Redeemer of man, as the five shields of the homeland flag and the Cross of its caravels in the epic of discoveries.

Christ is always the proposal of the Church, located in time and space, and for this reason truly and intimately linked to the human race and its history, in the desire to serve man with his dignity and with the openness of his spirit, in full truth of his existence, of his personal being and, at the same time, of his community and social being (cf. John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis , 14).

Among the vicissitudes that emerge in the history and life of Portugal, the phenomenon of migration appears in the foreground, which dates back to distant dates: many of its children left their homeland, in the past as well as today, with painful separations and moments of uncertainty , to look in other places for the possibility of improving one's life. The loss of these children, which undoubtedly constitutes a loss for this country, usually represents an advantage for the lands where they go to settle.

Of those who left here, both those who did so for reasons of survival or others, there were also multitudes of lovers of the ideal and enthusiasts of Christ - the Portuguese missionaries - who left here sailing, to go to “making Christianity” in the different continents. And, a historical monument of this which still exists - as I was informed - is the "Christian papiar", synonymous with "speaking Portuguese", in some regions of south-east Asia, a very rich anthroponymy, which easily makes one identify as Catholic or of Catholic ancestry, Christianized by the Portuguese, many men and women in all latitudes of the globe.

These valiant missionaries, servants of Christ and of his Church and the glory of Portugal who, with their ardor, their total and generous dedication, brought spiritual assistance to many brothers scattered around the world, not failing to contribute to their development, helping them to progress in the satisfaction of fundamental needs and to cultivate the dignity of the human person. Thus, by evangelizing the Good News of salvation, they offered them a human service; and also for this reason they are creditors of our admiration and gratitude.

4. The Portuguese who remained did not live their history without difficulty. But as it unfolded they were able to show uncommon qualities of courage, of capacity for resistance in bearing trials and risks, of perseverance, connoting the moral fiber and spiritual strength which, today as yesterday, must support and animate the children of this nation in the struggles of the present, with head held high, looking with dignity and hope to the future.

With the responsible participation and generous contribution of all to the common good, the elimination of poverty, help for the marginalized or uprooted, the prospect of work for all - especially for the lively young people of this land - the structuring of conditions of life, assistance and security, in the economic and social fields, including health, education, work, family and old age, must continue to be a decisive collective commitment of a people aware of the characteristic values ​​of their community and proud to bear witness to them in political and social life.

The historical conscience and the Christian faith of the Portuguese, not separated from the need for an honest relationship with the truth, as a condition of authentic freedom, must continue to convince them even today, certainly, that, without excluding legitimate healthy and responsible pluralism, only love builds; and that the key to the solution of its problems and its prosperity is made up of a Christian and human sense of values, blended in justice and harmonized in solidarity, fraternity and love between men-brothers.

5. I hope that, following its own historical line, Portugal, with its charism of universality and easy integration, will continue to be a force for understanding between peoples, especially among those who have cultural affinities with it. Portuguese emigrants and missionaries went to all parts of the world and, where they arrived, made the name of their country loved and honored. May this continue to be a source of human and spiritual inspiration for its being-in-the-world and keep Portugal in the high esteem of its brightest days.

The “Casa Lusitana” continues to have a noble mission. And perhaps its legacy of Christian faith, preserved and cultivated over the centuries, in the current expressions of its identity, which made it the "beautiful homeland, along the sea, of a heroic people, with the grace of God, singing . . .” - as one of your poets would say - continue to be a constant impulse to help this noble country achieve a well-being that expresses the happiness of all Portuguese, in a climate of hard-working harmony, prosperity and peace!

I thank, once again, the kind and distinguished welcome of Your Excellency; and, above all, the beloved Portuguese people who have chosen him as their Representative, I invoke the most copious blessings of almighty and merciful God.

* Teachings of John Paul II , vol. V, 2 pp.1523-1527.
 

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