In the days when the beginning of the conclave is expected to attract attention is L‘Initiative of the cloistered nuns of the Monastery of the Clarisse sisters of Rimini. As happened already at the time of the last papal vote in 2013, the religious relaunched the “Adopt a cardinal” project. But behind the apparently “light” sentence there is instead a concretely religious idea. “It is absolutely not a Toto-Papa or a survey to express your preferences on the next Pontiff” Sister in Letizia, abbess of the convent. “But it is an initiative of prayer, useful to support each of the cardinals on their path that will lead them to the delicate choice of the new Pope”.
But how can you adhere to the initiative and therefore adopt a cardinal? In the church of San Bernardino in Rimini, since last Sunday, the Clarisse sisters have put a large billboard on the bulletin board where all 135 names of the purple are marked (although in reality two of them will not be present at the papal vote, editor’s note) participating in the conclave. The faithful can write their name, in correspondence with the chosen cardinal, and subsequently they are called to pray. Or freely or following the scheme suggested by the nuns: first the “Come, Holy Spirit” and then to follow Regina Coeli, angel of God and the eternal rest. For those who are not in Rimini or surroundings, on the other hand, there is the possibility of doing all this virtually, indicating the “proper” cardinal on the monastery website.
Sister in Letizia, then, continues explaining the meaning with which this initiative must be understood: «Adoption must be understood as something spiritual. For us, prayer creates a bond of fraternity. We and the faithful with this adoption ask that the Holy Spirit can guide and accompany every cardinal in his choice ». The response of the faithful was wide. On the website of the Clarisse sisters are counted Over 700 “adoption messages” and on the bulletin board placed in church there are over 100 signatures. In addition, all the cardinals were adopted at least once and this was the main objective of the initiative. «From the start we made it clear that it was important for us to accompany all the cardinals to the conclave with a prayer. Each of them now has at least one father or a spiritual adopted mother. We really thank all the participants », continues the abbess.
Sister in Letizia specifically chose the cardinal Gérald Cyprien Lacroix. 67 -year -old Canadian archbishop, Lacroix was appointed by Pope Francis with whom he has always had a close link. «Mine is a simple spiritual choice, not a note. We do not know in person practically any of the cardinals. Only Pizzaballa came to us in the past », Sister in the. Just Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa together with Matteo Zuppi and Pietro Parolin is the most adopted purple. The idea of having a next Italian Pope, after so many years, seems to collect consensus among the faithful who participated in the project of the Clarisse sisters. «It is clear that many faithful in any case have expressed their preference. But for us a name is not important rather than another. We in these days and during the conclave we put ourselves under the protection of Mary and the Holy Spirit. And we ask those who want to pray daily », concludes Sister in.
On the cover, an Ansa photo
