The pontiff told young Angolans that Our Lady entrusts them with the task of building a better world shaped by the Gospel.<\/p>\n
KIMBAXE, Angola \u2014 Pope Leo XIV on Sunday urged young people in Angola to help build \u201ca better, welcoming world, where there is no more war, injustice, poverty, or dishonesty,\u201d during a rosary gathering at the Marian shrine of Mama Muxima.<\/p>\n
Holy Rosary at Mama Muxima Shrine in Angola, Africa<\/p>\n
The shrine, whose name means \u201cMother of the Heart\u201d in Kimbundu, is one of Angola\u2019s best-known Marian sanctuaries. Built by the Portuguese in the 17th century on a hill overlooking the Kwanza River, it has long been a place of pilgrimage and prayer for Angolan Catholics.<\/p>\n
Addressing young people, members of the Legion of Mary, and other pilgrims gathered at the shrine, the pope said he was \u201cpleased to share this moment of Marian prayer\u201d with them.<\/p>\n
\u201cTogether we have recited the holy rosary, an ancient and simple devotion that originated in the Church as a form of prayer for everyone,\u201d Leo said.<\/p>\n
Quoting St. John Paul II, the pope described the rosary as the prayer of a Christianity that has preserved the \u201cfreshness of its beginnings and feels drawn by the Spirit of God to \u2018set out into the deep\u2019 … to proclaim, and even cry out, before the world that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior.\u201d<\/p>\n
Leo said that in the \u201cliving and young Church of Angola,\u201d one can \u201ctruly feel the freshness of faith and the power of the Spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n
He reflected on the history of the shrine, saying it has been a place where \u201cfor centuries, many men and women have prayed in times of joy and also in moments of sorrow and great suffering in the history of this country.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a long time now, Mama Muxima has quietly worked to keep the heart of the Church alive and beating,\u201d he said. \u201cHer heart contains a multitude of hearts: yours, and those of many people who love, pray, celebrate, weep, and sometimes \u2014 even when unable to come in person \u2014 entrust their requests and petitions to letters and postal messages.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMama Muxima welcomes everyone, listens to everyone, and prays for everyone,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Meditating on the glorious mysteries, the pope said the faithful were contemplating both their destiny in Christ and their mission in his love.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt Easter, Christ conquered death, showing us the way back to the Father,\u201d Leo said. \u201cAnd so that we too may walk this luminous and demanding path, sharing its beauty with the whole world, he has given us his Spirit, who animates and sustains us on our journey and in our mission.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLike Mary, we too are made for heaven,\u201d he continued. \u201cAs we journey toward heaven with joy, we look to her as our good Mother and model of holiness. Following her example, we bring the light of the risen One to the brothers and sisters we meet.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pope also reflected on the popular title of the shrine, saying that although it is dedicated to the Immaculate Conception, the faithful have spontaneously renamed it the shrine of the \u201cMother of the Heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is a beautiful title, which makes us reflect on the heart of Mary: a pure and wise heart, capable of treasuring and pondering the extraordinary events in the life of the Son of God,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Leo said praying the rosary means taking on a concrete responsibility toward others.<\/p>\n
\u201cPraying the rosary, then, commits us to loving every person with a mother\u2019s heart \u2014 concretely and generously \u2014 and to dedicating ourselves to the good of one another, especially the poorest,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cA mother loves all her children in the same way and with her whole heart, even though each one is different,\u201d the pope continued. \u201cIn the presence of the Mother of the Heart, we too want to promise to do likewise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe strive without measure so that no one may lack love,\u201d he said. \u201cWe also seek to provide the necessities for living with dignity and happiness: that the hungry may have enough to eat, that the sick may receive the necessary care, that children may be guaranteed a proper education, and that the elderly may live their later years in peace.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cA mother thinks of all these things. Indeed, Mary thinks of all these things, and she also invites us to share in her maternal concern,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Turning again to the young people gathered at the shrine, Leo pointed to the construction of a new sanctuary there as a sign of a larger calling.<\/p>\n
\u201cDear young people, members of the Legion of Mary, brothers and sisters, Our Lady asks us to let ourselves be moved by the sentiments of her heart, so that like her, we may be workers for justice and bearers of peace,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere, a great project is underway: the construction of a new shrine, able to welcome all who come on pilgrimage. Everyone \u2014 especially you young people \u2014 should take this as a sign,\u201d the pope said.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the Mother of Heaven entrusts a great project to you as well: to build a better, welcoming world, where there is no more war, injustice, poverty or dishonesty, and where the principles of the Gospel increasingly inspire and shape hearts, structures, and programs, for the good of all.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is love that must triumph, not war!\u201d Leo said. \u201cThis is what the heart of Mary \u2014 the heart of the Mother of all \u2014 teaches us.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLet us set out, then, from this shrine as \u2018messenger angels\u2019 of life, bringing Mary\u2019s tender embrace and God\u2019s blessing to everyone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
At the end of his address, the pope invoked a Kimbundu hymn familiar to devotees of Mama Muxima, speaking in the native tongue: Mama Muxima, tueza koku\u00e9, Mama Muxima, tutambulul\u00e9, which translates to English: \u201cMother of the heart, we come to you; Mother of the heart, receive us.\u201d<\/p>\n
You can tell the crowd had been waiting for this. During his apostolic trip to Africa, Pope Leo has already shown off his English, French, Portuguese, and Spanish \u2014 but this afternoon he unlocked a new language: Kimbundu, a Bantu language spoken in Angola.He said: \u201cMama Muxima,\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/dympWkGF6E<\/p>\n
\u201cDearest friends, let us offer everything to Mary, giving ourselves entirely to our brothers and sisters, and let us joyfully receive, through her intercession, the Lord\u2019s blessing, so that we may bring it to everyone we meet,\u201d he said. \u201cAmen.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his greeting, Bishop Emilio Sumbelelo of Viana highlighted the importance of devotion to Mama Muxima in Angola and noted that in 2022 the cornerstone of a future basilica was laid by the president of the republic and blessed by the late Cardinal Alexandre do Nascimento. The basilica will be dedicated to Our Lady of the Conception of Muxima, fulfilling a promise made by the Angolan government to the Catholic Church during St. John Paul II\u2019s 1992 visit to the country.<\/p>\n
For many Angolans, the shrine remains a powerful symbol of faith, national memory, and hope.<\/p>\n
This story was first published by ACI Stampa, the Italian-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.<\/p>\n