"We are gathered in prayer in this cathedral of Rome, together with the Twelve Apostles, who all have the dove of peace over their heads," noted Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, president of the Italian Bishops' Conference, who presided over the episcopal consecration of Msgr. Giorgio Ferretti, archbishop of Foggia-Bovino, together with Msgr. Edgar Peña Parra, Substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of State, Msgr. Ambrogio Spreafico, bishop of Frosinone-Veroli-Ferentino and Anagni-Alatri, and Msgr. Vincenzo Pelvi, bishop emeritus of the archdiocese of Foggia-Bovino.
"Be always a man of Advent, happy to harvest where many others planted," continued Cardinal Zuppi. "You are a mature priest, but not a tepid one, who has been nourished on prayer and on service to the poor. The School of peace in the Begato neighbourhood, whose little ones you used to love so many years ago, has taught you how to love everyone. The Pope called you from Mozambique, a land so dear to us, where we experienced the pandemic of war and then of AIDS, but where we learnt to struggle against violence and contemplated the dance of peace'.
Cardinal Zuppi recommended to the newly consecrated archbishop, who has chosen 'It is more blessed to give than to receive' as his episcopal motto: 'Now you are sent to a land, marked by an ancient tradition of holiness. Yet even now there is treasure to find in a field, in a world that is getting used to a sea that has become a cemetery and is still practising the art of war'.
"We are guided by the great Advent prophet, John the Baptist, in this consecration. The bishop, like the Baptist, is also a prophet. A prophet who paves the way for himself and for others. Let yourself be guided and inspired only by the Gospel,' concluded the President of the Italian Bishops' Conference, and quoted the words of an Apulian saint, Don Tonino Bello: 'We need great things today. It is not enough to clean the window panes, we need the new day to burst into our homes'.
At the end of the celebration, the new Metropolitan Archbishop of Foggia-Bovino, Msgr. Giorgio Ferretti, thanked the many people who attended the celebration with these words: "Giving thanks is beautiful and reminds us that we live from bonds and not only from ourselves," said Msgr. Giorgio Ferretti, mentioning with affection those who accompanied him in his episcopal consecration at St. John Lateran. He started with "Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who has known me since I was young", Monsignor Edgar Peña, "who accompanied and supported me when he was Apostolic Nuncio in Mozambique, Monsignor Ambrogio Spreafico, from whose "paternal wisdom I have learnt so much", and Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia, "a model of a priest", and Prof. Andrea Riccardi and Prof. Marco Impagliazzo, "whom I warmly thank for the love and wisdom they have always expressed in guiding the Community".
"I am a priest of the Missionary Fraternity of Sant'Egidio," continued the consecrated archbishop, "but first and foremost a son of this Community, who has been accompanied from his youth to follow the Lord in prayer, to meet Him in the poor and to seek peace."
"An egotist will always be a sad and lonely man. I would like us to be a community united in the name of the Lord, welcoming and with open doors," Msgr. Ferretti concluded, thanking the many faithful of the archdiocese of Foggia-Bovino and the authorities of Puglia, who were present at the Lateran.
The celebration was attended by 2500 people, including a large delegation from the Community of Sant'Egidio in Genoa, where Msgr. Ferretti's priestly vocation matured, and from the diocese of Frosinone-Veroli-Ferentino, in whose clergy he was incardinated. The civil authorities of Foggia were present, as well as the founder of Sant'Egidio Andrea Riccardi and its president Marco Impagliazzo, and some representatives from Mozambique, where he spent the last seven years as a fidei donum priest.
