Pope Tawadros II of the Egyptian Coptic Orthodox Church presided over the first Mass at the Church of St. Joseph of Arimathea, in Milan, Italy.
Pope Tawadros delivered the sermon of the mass.
He began by expressing his happiness at being in the midst of the attendees, saying, “I am happy to lead this Mass, among the fathers, bishops, monks and priests, as well as this large number of deacons. It is a Mass for service, because the meaning of the word deacon is a servant.”
Pope Tawadros talked about the importance of having light in the hearts of men, because a spiritual life is what makes a deacon a successful deacon.
Tawadros talked about the late Anba Kyrollos, the former Archbishop of Milan.
“Kyrillos worked hard at the beginning of the founding of this diocese until the very small fruit became a big and fruitful tree. With you, Anba Antonio will continue the journey with love, giving, and honesty,” he said.
Pope Tawadros II received at the headquarters of the Archdiocese of Milan the Archbishop of Milan Mario Delpini, of the Catholic Church, who came to welcome the Pope.
The Pope expressed his happiness at the Archbishop’s visit, considering it an extension of the love that began with his visit to Pope Francis.
On Tuesday evening, Pope Tawadros II also visited the Church of the Annunciation in the Italian town of Paderno Dugnano, affiliated to the Diocese of Milan, where crowds greeted him with white roses, ululating, and the church choir presented a group of praises and hymns.
Pope Tawadros commented on his visit to the Vatican, saying: “On the path of love, we visited the Vatican in the past days… as we celebrated together the 50th anniversary of the official dialogue between the two Churches.”
