Vatican City, May 21, 2006 / 22:00 pm
At midday today, Benedict XVI appeared at the window of his private study in order to pray the "Regina Coeli" with thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square below.
The Pope first dedicated some remarks to the Ascension of the Lord, which falls on Thursday May 25, though in some countries it will be celebrated on Sunday May 28.
"Jesus' final gesture, has a dual significance," he said. "In the first place, by rising 'up' He unequivocally revealed His divinity. He returned from whence He came, in God, after having completed His mission on earth. Moreover, Christ ascended to heaven with the humanity He had assumed and caused to arise from the dead: that humanity is ours, transfigured, made divine, rendered eternal. Thus the Ascension reveals the 'ultimate vocation' of all human beings, each called to the eternal life of the Kingdom of God."
This year, the day of the Ascension of the Lord coincides with the World Day of Social Communications, dedicated to the theme: "The media: network of communication, communion and cooperation":