Just before the celebration of the birth of Mary, Benedict XVI asked that her example and her support "make you capable of evangelizing the world of work, the economy, politics, which requires a new generation of committed Christian laypeople capable of seeking with competency and moral rigor solutions of sustainable development".
The pope's visit to Sardinia was dedicated to Mary and to her role in the work of Redemption. The visit was motivated by the celebration of the hundredth anniversary of the shrine of Our Lady of Bonaria, near Cagliari. It was a brief visit, beginning this morning and ending in the afternoon, and had its central moment in the Mass that Benedict XVI celebrated in the square of the shrine church. There, before the recitation of the Angelus, he addressed a thought to the mothers of the whole world: "those who, together with their husbands, raise their children in a harmonious family context, and those who, for so many reasons, find themselves facing this difficult task alone. May all of them carry out their daily service in the family, the Church, and society with dedication and fidelity. May the Virgin Mary be support, comfort, and hope for all!".
Almost 100,000 faithful came to listen to him, some of them participating in the celebration from the sea, where many boats full of sailors and fishermen gathered.On the eve of the feast of the birth of Mary, which has been observed on September 8 for centuries, the pope emphasized at the Angelus how "this event constitutes a fundamental step for the Family of Nazareth, the cradle of our redemption; it is an event that concerns all of us, because every gift that God granted to Her, the Mother, was granted with us, Her children, in mind as well".