Over a thousand people attended the afternoon of meeting, prayer, and reflection, which featured the women and men of the Trigoria institution. A journey of faith and participation that reaffirmed the deepest meaning of dedication to others.
Rome, April 2, 2025 More than a thousand people, including students and professors, nurses and doctors, researchers and administrators, technicians and volunteers, accompanied by family and friends. Twelve buses overflowing with enthusiasm and hope departed from the Trigoria campus, in addition to the hundreds of colleagues who made their own way to the meeting point in Piazza Pia. The people of the Campus Bio-Medico gathered yesterday afternoon for an event destined to remain part of the institution's thirty-year history: the pilgrimage along Via della Conciliazione, the passage through the Holy Door, and the Mass inside St. Peter's Basilica, to celebrate the Jubilee of Hope together and reaffirm, at the same time, the sense of a shared mission of service to others.
A commitment inspired directly by the blessed Alvaro del Portillo, who first – according to the teaching of the founder of Opus Dei St. Josemaría Escrivá – dreamed of establishing a university and a hospital in Rome, dedicated to the education and care of all, starting with the youngest and most vulnerable. This vision has become a reality thanks to the passion of a community that works daily with joy, dedication, and love to continually combine progress and humanity, education and care, innovation and respect for human dignity.
The afternoon of meeting, prayer and reflection was sealed by the Holy Mass held at the Altar of the Chair of the Vatican Basilica, concelebrated by His Eminence Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, Archpriest of St. Peter's Basilica, from the vicar of Opus Dei in Italy donation Giovanni Manfrini and by the Director of the Chaplaincy of the Bio-Medico Campus Don Luca Brenna accompanied by all the other chaplains, with the songs and music of the university choir.
“In an era in which technology and medical science are making giant strides, it is essential not to lose sight of the human aspect of training and care,” underlined the President of theUniversità Campus Bio-Medico di Roma and the Campus Bio-Medico University Polyclinic Foundation Carlo Tosti, who then continued: “The Jubilee is for us an opportunity to reaffirm our original mission and our commitment to always and in any case putting the person at the centre”.
"Arise is the verb of resurrection, that is, stand in your dignity, do not forget the condition from which you come, and walk. The mystery we celebrate is this: healing and the delivery of a mandate, especially for you, for those who care for others," Cardinal Cardinal Martini stated during his homily. Mauro Gambetti, which has then the liturgy concluded With thanks to the community of the Campus Bio-Medico gathered in prayer: “I would like to thank you and encourage you in the mission you have embraced, so that you can truly show everyone how Jesus treated and healed, to the point of being unable to distinguish the human from the divine, such is the humanity in his approach to others.”
Hence also the exhortation of donation Giovanni ManfriniMay each of us turn our loving and merciful gaze, first and foremost, upon our colleagues, with eyes of understanding and trust, as well as upon our students and patients, so that St. Josemaría's wish to be sowers of peace and joy may come true.
The importance of this event for the people of the Bio-Medico Campus has also been highlighted by Don Luca Brenna"The Jubilee is a time of prayer and an experience of communion that reminds us how our daily journey unfolds in faith and in service to the most vulnerable. Seeing so many people united in this pilgrimage is a sign of great hope for the future, demonstrating the strong commitment that characterizes us as a community."
Today there are seven entities that make up the Bio-Medical Campus System and that work daily to carry forward and try to best realize the original project of the founders: Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Campus Bio-Medico University Hospital Foundation, Alberto Sordi Foundation, Biomedical University Foundation, Association of Friends of the Bio-Medical Campus of Rome – ETS, CBM Spa and Campus Bio-Medico Association.
The profound personal and emotional involvement aroused by this shared moment is also evidenced by the words of some of the participants. "Every day our work presents us with challenges and suffering, but this pilgrimage reminded me that care goes beyond the technical gesture: it is a journey of closeness and hope alongside patients and their families," they stated. Claudia Pagavino, nurse at the oncology Day Hospital of the Policlinico Campus Bio-Medico. She echoed her Marianna Amura, a third-year student at the university's Faculty of Medicine and Surgery: “Walking alongside my fellow students, the faculty, and everyone present was a tangible sign of what it means to be part of this community: moving forward together for a better future.”
