Pope Leo’s address to the members of the Marsodeto Federation (Toledo, Spain)
Clementine Hall – Monday, 24 August 2026
“The Marsodeto Federationis a Spanish non-governmental Organization
that supports people with intellectual disabilities and cerebral palsy.
Pope Leo’s Address
Your Excellency, distinguished authorities, dear brothers and sisters,
It is a great joy to receive you this morning during your pilgrimage to the See of Peter.
I am grateful for the opportunity to give thanks to God for the fruitfulness of your institution’s forty-five years.
I join you in this special celebration and ask the Lord to bless your work.
It is undoubtedly an arduous task, with a lot of hidden work that no one sees, and for which only God can reward you.
It is very gratifying to discover Jesus Christ himself in each person.
Through your commitment, you can bear witness in a special way to what we hear in the Gospel. “Amen, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Matthew 25:40).
Recognizing the gaze of Christ in the lives of the weakest and most vulnerable is what makes us grow as human and Christian societies.
Your approach to people with intellectual disabilities and cerebral palsy is characterized by many values: solidarity, defense of human dignity, and full inclusion.
Thanks to these values, you have succeeded in garnering the support of a large institutional presence here today, bearing witness to your commitment to your work and the greater good.
In retrospect, we thank God for inspiring Fr. Marcelino Casas Puente, who started what seemed like a dream more than forty years ago.
Today, we see it as a reality: no family with a person who has an intellectual disability will be left to fend for itself.
Today this Federation can be proud to reach out to so many people, turning what I recalled during my recent visit to Spain into reality.: “The love of Christ impels us toward our brothers and sisters, and the charity and concern with which we respond to His impulses are the test of our faith.”
(I visited to the workers and assisted of the social project “Cedia 24 Horas“, 6 June 2026).
Dear brothers and sisters,
I entrust you to the maternal protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary so that she may continually accompany you in your mission.
May she encourage you in your greatest moments of difficulty and help you always turn your gaze to the Lord.
May your Federation continue to be an authentic work of ecclesial and social reference point.
May God bless you.
Thank you.