Pope Francis renewed his plea for Venezuela while in nearby Colombia, asking for a peaceful solution for the “grave crisis” the country is experiencing.
Pope Francis renewed his plea for Venezuela while in nearby Colombia, asking for a peaceful solution for the “grave crisis” the country is experiencing.
In a city many think of as being synonymous with new directions for the Catholic Church, Pope Francis told Colombian Catholics faith is not measured by how well they follow rules, but by the depth of their prayer life and the degree to which they share the Gospel.
If just one victim of Colombia’s civil war forgives his or her aggressor, it can set off a chain reaction of hope for reconciliation and peace, Pope Francis said.
“Your birth, O Virgin Mother of God, is the new dawn that proclaims joy to the whole world, for from you has been born the sun of justice, Christ our God” (cf. Antiphon for the Benedictus). The feast of the birth of Mary shines its light over us, just as the gentle light of dawn radiates above the vast Colombian plain, this beautiful landscape whose gateway is Villavicencio, and shines its light too upon the rich diversity of its indigenous peoples.
In a country and a continent often infamous for chauvinistic attitudes towards women, Pope Francis called Colombians on it Friday, insisting that the Gospel story itself is a commentary on a world in which “psychological, verbal and physical violence towards women is so evident.”
After celebrating a Mass for a crowd estimated by the local mayor at 1.3 million, Pope Francis met with five bishops from Venezuela on Thursday. The encounter lasted just 10 minutes, but participants said it was enough to update the pontiff about the country’s worsening situation.
Pope Francis had a packed first full day in Colombia, with a roller-coaster of emotions for locals, more than a million of whom waited the entire day, under the rain, to participate in the first Mass he celebrated here.
Human life must be protected at all its stages, but especially when it’s most fragile, Pope Francis said on Thursday at an open-air Mass that gathered a crowd estimated at 1.1 million people by the office of the mayor of Bogotá, Colombia’s capital.
During his first official address on his visit to Colombia, Pope Francis told civil authorities to work to resolve structural causes of poverty that lead to exclusion and violence.
For the young, the pope said while addressing some 22,000 youth in Colombia, it’s easy to encounter each other, needing only a coffee or a drink as an excuse, knowing that the culture of encounter is not about agreeing on every thought. “Rather, [it is] in knowing that beyond our differences we are all part of something greater that unites and transcends us; we are part of this wonderful country.”