Pope Francis said on Sunday (July 12th) that Mary is always with us, her children, especially the poor and the most needy.  He also prayed that Mary may strengthen the Church’s members in fraternal love and that with her help the Church may be a welcoming home for all. His words came during his Angelus address pronounced at the end of the open-air Mass celebrated at Nu Guazu outside Asuncion on the final day of his visit to Paraguay. 

Please find below an English translation of the Pope’s prepared remarks at his Angelus address following the Mass at Nu Guazu: “I thank the Archbishop of Asuncion, the Most Reverend Edmundo Ponziano Valenzuela Mellid, for his kind words…

Asked by a journalist, here in Asuncion, during the final press briefing, what he thinks is the main common denominator of Pope Francis’ three-nation Latin American tour, Papal spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi didn’t have to think too hard.

No, he didn’t say “the appeal for justice and equality,”  “closeness to the poor and the needy” or “the call to leaders to combat corruption”; he didn’t even talk about the strong Marian dimension of the journey or about Pope Francis’ embracing pastoral approach as he reached out to millions of faithful during massive Eucharistic celebrations, private moments of prayer, encounters with his fellow bishops and with representatives of civil society…