Dear brothers and sisters, today in Italy we celebrate the Day for Life on the theme “Women and men for life in the footsteps of Saint Teresa of Calcutta”. I join the Italian Bishops in their hope for bold educational action in favour of human life. Every life is sacred! Let us go forward with the culture of life to counter the logic of waste and the declining birth rate; let us be close and together let us pray for the babies who are threatened by the termination of pregnancy, as well as for the people who are at the end of life — every life is sacred! — so that no one may be left alone and that love may defend the meaning of life. Let us recall the words of Mother Teresa: “Life is beautiful, admire it; life is life, defend it!”, be it a baby who is about to be born, or a person who is close to death: every life is sacred!
I greet all those who work for life, professors at the universities of Rome and those who work for the formation of the next generations, so that they may be able to build a welcoming and noble society for each person.
I greet all the pilgrims, families, parish groups and associations from different parts of the world.
I wish everyone a happy Sunday. Please do not forget to pray for me. Enjoy your lunch. Arrivederci!