«I am not preparing for an end, but for an encounter»

We remember Pope Benedict XVI as a kind pope, who accepted the position of humble servant of the Church, a "number one" who never flaunted his wisdom. Over the years we have met many times, and each meeting has been a caress from God

«Holiness, I still have in my eyes the joy of all the young people who met you on Sunday 5 February. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your availability and the time he has given us and for having accepted the "Artigiano della Pace" recognition, which Sermig has been assigning for 30 years to personalities and teachers of peace and dialogue ».

On 5 February 2012, Pope Benedict XVI received in private audience a delegation of young people and friends of Sermig accompanied by the founder Ernesto Olivero. That appointment was an opportunity to renew the discreet but profound bond with the pope emeritus who passed away on 31 December last.

Everything had started six years earlier, in Ernesto's first meeting with the Holy Father, during which he had accepted the Sermig Peace flag as a gift. Other meetings then followed: on 2 May 2010 during his visit to Turin at the laying of the foundation stone of the new church of the Arsenale della Pace, dedicated to Mary Mother of Youth, and the presentation of the Youth Peace World Cup in L'Aquila and Turin in the same year. Another caress from God is the delicate message written for the friends of the Good Day, “Good day to all the friends of the Arsenale della Pace: may the Lord bless you always. Pray for me".

The last meeting, ten years later. Ernesto had written to him: «Dear Pope Emeritus, I am writing to you with great emotion and gratitude. It was February 3, 2006 and for the first time I met you, as founder of Sermig, to tell you the marvels of our history: the transformation of the old military arsenal of Turin into the Arsenale della Pace, the thousand and thousand lives saved by indifference, the commitment of many young people for a world without injustice. On that occasion, for the first time, I read to you the prayer to "Mary, Mother of the Young" which, to my great amazement, you decided to sign making it yours, as previously Pope John Paul II and subsequently Pope Francis had done. From that moment on, what I like to define as the most incredible story of my life took shape: an adventure that over the years brought us to meet the face of the Mother of Youth, the icon that arrived from Russia thanks to a friend believer, blessed by her in Castel Gandolfo on the feast of the Assumption of 2010 and today venerated in the new church of the Arsenale della Pace. It is a very particular image that depicts Mary with three hands, according to the tradition of San Giovanni Damasceno. Dear Pope Emeritus, I would like to meet you to thank you in person, but also to share with you all the events that, without knowing it, you have sparked…».

And he received us very affectionately on February 28, 2020 and gave us his last blessing. As they said in the Middle Ages: "To God", dear Pope Benedict, we will always remember you with much affection and gratitude.

Redazione Sermig
NP Gennaio 2023