Pope Francis asked Cardinal Juan José Omella about the language in which a text was written that he had to read last October 7 during the audience to the participants in the pilgrimage to the Vatican of the brotherhood of the Mare de Déu de Montserrat, on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of its foundation, in which around sixty people from Girona, members of the Hospitalitat de Lourdes brotherhood, also took part.
. During this audience he blessed the image of the Moreneta that is venerated in the Girona cathedral. Upon seeing the text, the Holy Father confirmed that it was in Spanish. “Doesn't it have to be in Catalan?” he asked Omella. The cardinal replied “no” and immediately the pope proceeded to read Déu de la tendresa in Spanish.
Sources from the Archbishopric have pointed out to Agència Catalana de Notícies (ACN) that these types of events are highly planned and "everything is scheduled", and they remember that the pope usually uses Italian and Spanish. In addition, they have highlighted that at the beginning of the audience, the Pope greeted everyone with a "bon dia."
The dialogue about the language of the text that the pope had to read takes place just as the last notes of a song in Catalan were finishing, as seen in the video where this sequence can be seen.
Besides. Pope Francis has formally proposed the candidate for the new bishop of Girona. The pontiff has signed the acceptance giving approval to the name that has been sent to him. Now, he is waiting for the person to accept the position so that the diocese has a bishop again. The leadership in the diocese has been vacant for more than a year, after the previous bishop, Francesc Pardo, died on March 31, 2022. Previously, in June 2021, he had already presented his resignation from the position upon turning 75. years.
From here, two possible scenarios open up. The first, that the candidate is already a bishop and, therefore, can assume the position or, the second, that he is not and that he must be ordained as such. Everything indicates, however, that although the situation has resolved, the traditional mass of Sant Narcís will still not be able to be officiated by the new bishop.
