Prot. 034/25 Nicosia April 21, 2025
To all Latin priests
Men and women religious
And all the faithful
May the Lord give you peace!
With deep sorrow we have received the sad news of the death of the Roman Pontiff, our Holy Father Francis, which occurred today, April 21 at 7:35 am. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and His Church. With his simple lifestyle, he taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity. With immense gratitude to the Lord for the gift of having had him, we commend the soul of Pope Francis to the infinite merciful love of God.
A solemn Holy Mass in suffrage of his soul will be celebrated on April 23 (Wednesday) at the Church of the Holy Cross in Nicosia at 6:30 pm, presided over by myself, and I invite our priests to concelebrate as much as possible. On the same day, in all our Latin Parishes on the Island of Cyprus, Holy Mass will be celebrated in suffrage for our deceased Pontiff.
With prayers in this time,
† H.E. Msgr. Bruno Varriano, OFM
Bishop Patriarchal Vicar of Cyprus