Pity and punish the powerful but take no delight in their fall.

The church must "remain female" and "have this attitude of a wife and mother" who nurtures her children, the pope said in his homily May 21 during a morning Mass commemorating the feast of Mary, Mother of the Church.

One day, I looked up to the statue of Our Lady and prayed: “God has taken my mother. I need you to be my mother.”

Gaining a renewed and deeper understanding of Mary's nurturing and caring side is something he said the church, especially in today's climate, could certainly use.

The Memorial will celebrated on the Monday after Pentecost in churches throughout the world.