Visit to Corcovado in Rio de Janeiro (2 July 1980)

On Wednesday, 2 July 1980, the Holy Father visited Corcovado, the mountain in Rio de Janeiro, atop of which stands the great statue, with open arms, of Christ the Redeemer.

Praised be Jesus Christ!

1. Christ! From where else, in Brazil and outside of it, can this name echo - the only one that can save us (cf. Acts 4:12) - and which has a particular right of citizenship in the history of man and humanity ( cf. John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis , n. 10), better than this immense spur made altar, among natural wonders, created by Him, the Word of God (cf. Jn 1,3), right in the heart of Rio de Janeiro ? Here the statue, which exactly fifty years ago a people wanted to raise on top of the natural pedestal, becomes symbol, appeal and invitation at the same time.

Redeemer! Open arms embrace the city at his feet! Made of light and color and, at the same time, of shadows and darkness, the city is life and joy but it is also a fabric of afflictions and suffering, of violence and selfishness, of hatred, of evil and of sin. Radiant in the sunlight, a luminous figure suspended in the air at night, the Redeemer, in mute but eloquent preaching, here continues to proclaim that "God is light" (1Jn 1:7), "is love" (1Jn 4:8 ). A love greater than sin, weakness and the "transience of what was created" (cf. Rom 8:20), stronger than death (cf. John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis , n. 9).

2. Yes, from the top of these mountains there is no one who cannot contemplate his image, in an attitude of welcoming and embracing, and imagine him as he is, always willing to meet man, also desiring that man come meet. Now, this is the only purpose that the Church - and with her the Pope at this moment - has before her eyes and in her heart: that every man can encounter Christ so that Christ can travel the paths of life with every man ( cf. John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis , n. 13).

Symbol of love, appeal to reconciliation and invitation to fraternity, here Christ the Redeemer continually proclaims the power of the truth about man and the world, of the truth contained in the mystery of the Incarnation and Redemption (cf. ibid., n. 13 ) . At this moment, illuminated by Christ's gaze, the Pope's eyes turn to every inhabitant of this metropolis and the Pope's voice, a simple echo and resonance of Christ's voice, would like to speak, heart to heart, with one and all : he would like, as a short visit, to get to every hearth and also close to those who don't have it; to meeting places and workplaces, where there is joy but also where there is pain, especially where one suffers and is in pain - hospitals, penitentiaries, areas of the homeless, the breadless, the homeless -Love...

3. With this brief visit, the Pope with Christ would long to be able to comfort, instill hope, animate everyone, without leaving anyone out: children, young people, fathers and mothers of families, the elderly, the sick, imprisoned, discouraged and distressed. For everyone he would like to be the bearer of trust, love and peace. This is the meaning and intention of the blessing on the city and all its inhabitants, which I will give immediately afterwards, in the name of Christ the Redeemer, the Redeemer of man in his fullest meaning.

First, however, to confirm a friendship, or rather, to affirm a fraternity - because God has paternal care for everyone and wants all men to form a single human family - I would invite you to recite together the prayer that Christ the Redeemer has taught us.

I address this invitation to everyone, wherever they are; in the streets, at home, in cars, in workplaces or meeting places, in hospitals, in prisons... I invite the whole city to pray with me:

Our Father, who art in heaven, / hallowed be thy name; / thy kingdom come, / thy will be done / on earth as it is in heaven. / Give us today our daily bread; / forgive us our trespasses ,/as we forgive those who trespass against us;/and lead us not into temptation;/but deliver us from evil./Amen!

And may this moment of encounter and enchantment last in our hearts and in our memory and be transformed into a source of peace and grace for all: rich and poor, strong and weak, and, in a special way, for the "little ones". , who suffer in body or spirit. With the valid help of the Mother of our trust, Our Lady Aparecida.

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