Pope
Francis on Saturday greeted the “Patrons of the Arts” in the Vatican
Museums.
The group, which is dedicated to preserving the vast and unique
collection of art housed in the Vatican Museums, was in Rome for the 30th anniversary of its founding.
In
his address, the Holy Father thanked the Patrons for their “outstanding
contribution to the restoration of numerous treasures of art preserved
in the Vatican collections and to the broader religious, artistic and
cultural mission of the Museums.”
Pope Francis said, “In every
age the Church has called upon the arts to give expression to the beauty
of her faith and to proclaim the Gospel message of the grandeur of
God’s creation, the dignity of human beings made in his image and
likeness, and the power of Christ’s death and resurrection to bring
redemption and rebirth to a world touched by the tragedy of sin and
death.”
The Vatican Museums, he said, “make it possible for countless
pilgrims and visitors to Rome to encounter this message through works of
art which bear witness to the spiritual aspirations of humanity, the
sublime mysteries of the Christian faith, and the quest of that supreme
beauty which has its source and fulfillment in God.”
Pope Francis
concluded his address with the prayer that the patronage of the arts
would always be a sign of “interior participation in the spiritual life
and mission of the Church” and “an expression of our hope in the coming
of that Kingdom.”
Below, please find the full text of Pope Francis’ speech to the
Patrons of the Arts of the Vatican Museums:
Dear Friends,
I
am pleased to greet the Patrons of the Arts in the Vatican Museums on
the occasion of this pilgrimage to Rome marking your thirtieth
anniversary of foundation. Over the past three decades the Patrons have
made an outstanding contribution to the restoration of numerous
treasures of art preserved in the Vatican collections and to the broader
religious, artistic and cultural mission of the Museums. For this I
thank you most heartily.
The establishment of the Patrons of the
Arts in the Vatican Museums was inspired not only by a praiseworthy
sense of stewardship for the Church’s heritage of sacred art, but also
by the desire to advance the spiritual and religious ideals which led to
the foundation of the papal collections. In every age the Church has
called upon the arts to give expression to the beauty of her faith and
to proclaim the Gospel message of the grandeur of God’s creation, the
dignity of human beings made in his image and likeness, and the power of
Christ’s death and resurrection to bring redemption and rebirth to a
world touched by the tragedy of sin and death. The Vatican Museums, with
their unique and rich history, make it possible for countless pilgrims
and visitors to Rome to encounter this message through works of art
which bear witness to the spiritual aspirations of humanity, the sublime
mysteries of the Christian faith, and the quest of that supreme beauty
which has its source and fulfillment in God.
Dear friends, may
your patronage of the arts in the Vatican Museums always be a sign of
your interior participation in the spiritual life and mission of the
Church. May it also be an expression of our hope in the coming of that
Kingdom whose beauty, harmony and peace are the expectation of every
human heart and the inspiration of mankind’s highest artistic
aspirations. To you, your families and associates, I cordially impart
my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of enduring joy and peace in the Lord.