Just days ahead of Pope Francis’ Dec. 2-6 visit to Greece and Cyprus, both he and the Cypriot ambassador to the Holy See have issued statements highlighting, among other things, the urgency of the migration issue for the island nation and the broader Mediterranean region.
Visiting Cyprus and Greece in early December, Pope Francis will have several meetings with the countries’ Orthodox leaders and with the migrants and refugees their nations host.
Pope Francis’ planned trip to the eastern Mediterranean in December will focus on migration, Catholic-Orthodox relations and promoting peace in a region known more for its vacation spots than its ongoing political tensions.
In an interview with an Argentine news site, Pope Francis confirmed travel plans for the end of this year and spoke of several international gatherings of world leaders, including the upcoming G20 summit in Rome and the COP26 gathering in Glasgow.
Pope Francis on Wednesday said that Communion is for those who are “in the community” and politicians who support abortion are “outside of the community.”
Speaking at the largest Roma impoverished community in Europe, Pope Francis said they are not in the margins of the Catholic Church, but at its center, and that they should be at the center of society too, integrated and not hidden from view.
Pope Francis said on Tuesday, Sept. 14, that the cross is not a flag to be waved, nor a political symbol. The pontiff’’s remarks were seen as a rebuke of populist politicians such as Matteo Salvini in Italy and Viktor Orban in Hungary using religious symbols as political tools.
Speaking in the place that was once the beating heart of Slovakia’s Jewish quarter, Pope Francis asked for Jews and Christians to work together so that the past is not forgotten, and religion doesn’t become irrelevant.
March 8 marks the end of Pope Francis’ emblematic trip to Iraq — it’s been filled with many firsts for the only pontiff to visit the Land of Abraham. There were places to go, people to meet, stories to tell and, of course, lessons on human fraternity to learn. Here’s a look at some of the highlights.
Although the impact of papal trips is often hard to assess in the immediate aftermath, such cautions mean little to the leader of Iraq’s local Catholic church, who quickly proclaimed Pope Francis’s March 5-8 visit to his nation a “miracle” on Sunday.
