A Church where all are fully embraced

May 09, 2025

By Edoardo Giribaldi
As part of the Holy Year 2025, the Vatican hosted the Jubilee of Persons with Disabilities, a powerful celebration of inclusion, dignity, and faith that resonated throughout Rome and across the global Church.

Archbishop Rino Fisichella, Pro-Prefect Emeritus of the Dicastery for Evangelisation, celebrated Mass on April 28 at the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls. In his homily, he invited the faithful to embrace what he called a “revolution of the ordinary” — a daring yet deeply human approach to integration where the Church transforms “them” into “us” through genuine welcome rather than spectacle.

“Inclusion,” he said, “is not about exceptional actions or rhetoric. It’s about restoring dignity, autonomy, and ensuring that no one, if truly welcomed, can remain alone.”

Held at one of the Church’s oldest pilgrimage sites, the Basilica underscored this mission by adapting its ancient architecture to new needs: ramps were installed at the marble stairways, allowing full access to the liturgy. The Eucharistic celebration innovated within tradition, offering real-time translation in LIS (International Sign Language) for all hymns and prayers — a meaningful step towards liturgical accessibility.

Archbishop Fisichella reflected on the healing of the paralysed man in the Acts of the Apostles, not as a moment of spectacle, but as a witness to the Church’s mission: to help each person rise, walk, and participate fully. “The first community of believers did not ask for privileges,” he said, “but for the courage not to remain silent”.

Cristina Borlotti, who leads the Pastoral Office for Persons with Disabilities in the Diocese of Bergamo, echoed this commitment. Speaking to Vatican News, she emphasized the need to sow inclusion not through “special” initiatives, but within everyday life. “It starts with language,” she said. “Not ‘the disabled,’ but ‘persons with disabilities.’ Words can build bridges or walls.”

This cultural shift — one Pope Francis has championed throughout his pontificate — was a recurring theme across the Jubilee events. At the conference We: Pilgrims of Hope, disability rights advocate Marta Russo introduced Marta’s Thoughts, a national school campaign promoting accessible tourism and awareness. She called on young people to carry forward the Pope’s call for a “cultural revolution” — one that puts the person, not their limitation, at the centre.

For many pilgrims, the Jubilee was not only symbolic but transformative. Luca, a young participant from Varmo, Italy, shared how such a journey to Rome would have been “unthinkable” in a wheelchair just a few years ago. Now, he dreams of a world where his experience of dignity, opportunity, and belonging becomes the norm for others.

The events continued April 29 in St Peter’s Square with catechesis led by Archbishop Fisichella, supported by interpreters in multiple sign languages. There, he shared the moving story of Blessed Hermann of Reichenau — born in 1014 with a cleft palate and cerebral palsy, yet the author of the beloved hymn Salve Regina. “Weakness,” said the Archbishop, “can become an instrument of love. Take your disability and make it the strength of love that gives even more.”

The Jubilee concluded with moments of prayer, a pilgrimage through the Holy Door, opportunities for confession and Eucharistic adoration, and a festive gathering at Castel Sant’Angelo. Along the Via della Conciliazione, food stands and testimonies filled the air with witness to the beauty and strength of life lived in fragility — not as something less, but as something deeply sacred.

As Archbishop Fisichella reminded all gathered, the true sign of the Church’s credibility lies not in grand declarations, but in creating a community where every person — regardless of ability — is seen, heard, and fully embraced.--Vatican News