Here’s something jubilant and wonderful — and not the sort of thing you see every day at St. Peter’s.
Amid singing, clapping, and dancing to traditional Congolese music, Pope Francis celebrated the Zaire Use of the Ordinary Form of the Roman Rite in St. Peter’s Basilica on Sunday.
The pope began his homily on July 3 with the word, “esengo,” which means “joy” in Lingala, the Bantu-based creole spoken in parts of the Democratic Republic of Congo and by millions of speakers across Central Africa.
Pope Francis celebrated the Mass for Rome’s Congolese community on the day that he was due to offer Mass in Kinshasa before his trip to Africa was canceled at the request of the pope’s doctors.
The pope, whose mobility has been limited due to a knee injury, remained seated throughout the Mass. Francis presided over the Liturgy of the Word and gave the homily. Archbishop Richard Gallagher offered the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
… After the Vatican announced that the trip was postponed due to the ongoing medical treatment for the pope’s knee pain, Pope Francis said on June 13: “We will bring Kinshasa to St. Peter’s, and there we will celebrate with all the Congolese in Rome, of which there are many.”
About 2,000 people were present in the inculturated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica on the first Sunday of July.
Women in brightly colored traditional dresses sang and danced as they prayed the Gloria. People clapped and shouted as Archbishop Richard Gallagher incensed the main altar.
The gifts were brought up to the altar in a dancing procession. Religious sisters in the pews stepped from side to side together to the music.
And check out the offertory below, with explanations from EWTN’s commentator.
