Audience in the Clementine Hall December 12, 1987

St. John Paul II

Rome, December 12, 1987

The Holy Father has received this morning some members of the Neocatechumenal Communities of Palermo, Catania, Perugia, Florence and Rome that have renewed before the Pope their profession of faith to the Successor of Peter. We reproduce the spontaneous speech delivered by the Pope:

«I want to say, without multiplying words, that faith must be professed, it must be sung, it must be lived; this is your path, also ours, the path of everyone.

Yes, with faith you must come to Saint Peter, to his tomb, to the place where he was baptized, where he bore testimony of the dead and risen Christ. With this faith, it is necessary to provoke, sometimes, the surprise of tourists: you are one of those who create this surprise in all those who think that they can only be a tourist in this city; they must understand that here one does not come only as tourist, but also as a pilgrim.

Well, enough! You will find another, much longer speech in the “Osservatore Romano.” »