On this date, blessed Alvaro was received for the first time by Pope Pius XII.
St. Josemaria had sent him to Rome to negotiate with the Holy See the nihil obstat for the diocesan foundation of the Priestly Society of the Holy Cross. Bl. Alvaro had not yet been ordained a Priest.
Don Alvaro was wearing the uniform of the School of Engineers (he was 29 years old) and when he entered through the 'Portone di Bronzo', the swiss guards mistook him for one of their captains. The guard in charge summoned the other guards so that “the Captain”, as per protocol, could carry out the troop inspection. Don Alvaro, in his good humor, played along and carried out the troop inspection, to the surprise of some of those present who commented about how young "the captain" was.
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| Dressed with the uniform of the School of Engineers, he explained to Pope Pius XII in 1943 the new ecclesial entity of Opus Dei |
Don Alvaro was with the Pope for about 45 minutes. The Pope would always remember the image of the young spanish engineer that would talk to him about new ways to achieve sanctity in the midst of the world. He didn’t forget that conversation - to the point that, when they met once again in a second hearing on 3/april/46 (by then Don Alvaro was already a Priest and was wearing his cassock) the Pope greeted warmly: “Hello, Engineer!"
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