Register Summary

More than 11,000 pilgrims from around the world attended Pope John Paul II's general audience on Wednesday, May 29, in St. Peter's Square. During the audience, the Holy Father recalled some highlights from his visit during the previous week to Azerbaijan and Bulgaria.

“I would like to thank the Lord, first of all, for granting me the grace to make the trip,” the Holy Father noted. He pointed out that Azerbaijan has the smallest Catholic population of any country he has ever visited. “Especially during the Mass in Baku, I clearly perceived that the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church is alive and well in Azerbaijan,” he told the pilgrims.

His visit to Bulgaria coincided with the feast of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, who evangelized the Slavic peoples, and who “managed to admirably combine faith and culture, thereby making a critical contribution to the formation of Europe's spiritual foundations.”

While Pope John Paul II was in Bulgaria, he beatified four priests who were executed 50 years ago by the communist regime. “Their courageous witness to the faith, as well as the witness of other martyrs during the last century, is preparing a new springtime for the Church in Bulgaria,” he said. Finally, he fondly recalled his meeting with the youth of Bulgaria.

Today I am pleased to reflect with you on my recent apostolic trip to Azerbaijan and Bulgaria. I was deeply touched by this trip. I would like to thank the Lord, first of all, for granting me the grace to make the trip. In addition, I would like to cordially thank all those who made this trip possible: the presidents of both countries and their governments, the civil and military authorities, and all those who collaborated in the preparations for the trip and its execution. I would especially like to thank the bishops of the Catholic Church in both countries, and I extend a heart-felt thanks to the bishops of the Orthodox Church as well as the leaders of the Muslim and Jewish communities.

The ‘Little Flock’

These great religious traditions are an integral part of the rich cultural and historical heritage of the Azeri people. For this reason, when I was in Baku, the nation's capital, it is significant that I met not only with political and cultural delegates and delegates from the arts, but also with delegates from these various religions. Furthermore, the Catholic community in Azerbaijan is one of the smallest that I have visited. This “little flock” has inherited a very ancient spiritual tradition that they peacefully share with their Orthodox brothers and sisters amid a predominantly Muslim population.

For this reason, harking back in spirit to the Assisi meeting [of world religious leaders to pray for peace], I renewed, from Azerbaijan, which is truly a gateway between the East and the West, my call for peace and insisting that the various religions frankly oppose any form of violence. Especially during the Mass in Baku, I clearly perceived that the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church is alive and well in Azerbaijan.

A Witness to Faith

My visit to Sofia coincided with the feast of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, who evangelized the Slavic peoples. From the very beginning of their evangelization, a solid bond has united the See of Peter to the Bulgarian people. This bond was further solidified in the last century thanks to the valuable service of the then-apostolic delegate, Angelo Roncalli, Blessed John XXIII.

The purpose of my visit, the first by a Bishop of Rome, was to strengthen the bonds of communion with the Orthodox Church of Bulgaria, which is led by Patriarch Maxim, whom I had the joy of meeting after my visit to the patriarchal cathedral.

Afterwards I met in Sofia with representatives from the sciences, culture and the arts, and recalled the example of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, who managed to admirably combine faith and culture, thereby making a critical contribution to the formation of Europe's spiritual foundations.

An eminent example of this synthesis of spirituality, art and history is the Monastery of St. John of Rila, which is the heart of the Bulgarian nation and a pearl in the world's cultural heritage. I went to this holy place as a pilgrim in order to pay solemn tribute to Eastern monasticism, which has illuminated the entire Church with its witness through the centuries.

The climax of my short yet intense stay in Bulgaria was the Celebration of the Eucharist in Plovdiv's central square, during which I beatified Kamen Vitchev, Pavel Djidjov and Josaphat Chichkov, Augustinian priests of the Assumption, who were shot while they were prisoners in Sofia in 1952 with Bishop Eugene Bossikov, whom I beatified four years ago.

Their courageous witness to the faith, as well as the witness of other martyrs during the last century, is preparing a new springtime for the Church in Bulgaria. It is within this context that my last meeting took place —a meeting with the youth —in which I reiterated Christ's ever-meaningful message: “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world” (Matthew 5:13-14). Christ calls all of us to a heroic holiness. Thus, the end of my apostolic pilgrimage was marked by holiness.

Through the constant intercession of Mary, the Queen of Saints and Martyrs, may the Church in Azerbaijan and Bulgaria, as well as the Church in Europe and the entire world, spread the sweet fragrance of Christ's holiness in its many traditions and in its unity of one faith and one love!