Pompeii, ITALY, 19.10.08 - Benedict XVI said the second couple to be beatified in the history of the Church proclaimed the Gospel through living an 'exemplary' married life.

Louis Martin and Marie-Zélie Guérin, the parents of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, were beatified on Sunday in Lisieux, France, by Cardinal José Saraiva Martins, retired prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes.

Before praying the Angelus today during his one-day trip to the shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii, the Pope noted that the beatification fell on the same date as World Mission Sunday. Pius XI, he explained, declared St. Thérèse 'patroness of the missions.'

The Pontiff said the two parents 'proclaimed the Gospel of Christ through their exemplary married life. They lived their faith ardently and transmitted it to their family and all around them.'

'Through their prayer and their evangelical witness,' he added, 'St. Thérèse’s parents accompanied and shared the journey of their daughter, who was called by the Lord to unconditionally consecrate herself to him within the walls of Carmel.'