As Pope Francis is back in Rome and his fifth trip to Africa is now in the rearview mirror, there is much talk about what impact his visit to the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan will have and whether any real change will result.
Pope Francis in Africa
Arms Trade is a ‘Plague,’ Pope Says on Flight Back From Africa
At the end of six days in African countries bloodied by war and conflict, Pope Francis said that “the biggest plague” afflicting the world today is the weapons trade.
Pope, Anglican, Presbyterian Leaders Push South Sudanese to Make Peace
Three Christian religious leaders faced the president and vice presidents of South Sudan and told them it was time for them to get serious about peace, development and democracy.
Congo War Victims Recount Horrors to Pope, Thank Church for Recovery
Victims of the bloody conflict scarring eastern Congo met Pope Francis Wednesday, sharing their horror stories and crediting the Catholic Church for making their recovery possible.
Pope Urges Congo Catholics to Press Beyond Ethnic, Regional Divides
On his second day in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pope Francis told Catholics to go beyond ethnic and regional divides in fostering peace, stressing forgiveness and conversion to overcome the violence and divisions currently tearing apart the country with Africa’s largest Catholic population.
Pope Francis Set to Offer Message of Hope to War-Torn African Nations
On Tuesday, Pope Francis will set out on his fifth trip to Africa, bringing a much-needed message of peace and consolation to people ravaged by years of conflict in the war-torn nations of the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
On American Critics, Pope Says He Doesn’t Want a Schism But He’s Not Afraid of It
In response to a question about his recent declaration that he’s honored when “Americans are attacking me,” Pope Francis said September 10 that while he prays to avoid a schism in the Catholic Church, he’s not afraid of it either, because such rifts have occurred throughout history.
Pope Calls on Mauritius to Welcome and Protect Migrants
During the eight hours Pope Francis spent in Mauritius, a multiethnic island nation in the Indian Ocean about 1,200 miles off the coast of Africa, he urged the inhabitants to remember their immigrant roots and to integrate those who are arriving as they were welcomed by their ancestors.
Solidarity, Not Poverty, is God’s Plan, Pope Says in Madagascar
Madagascan President Andry Rajoelina, a Catholic, and his wife, Mialy, sat near the front of the crowd as Pope Francis preached about the Gospel call to solidarity and the joy that comes from putting faith before power or possessions.
Pope shares stage with fellow Argentine who insists ‘poverty is not fate’
The great majority of those who packed the small sports stadium Sunday were children who live in the 5,000 homes built by Opeka and his foundation. Some 15,000 children a year receive a free education that runs from kindergarten to university. The kids waited for hours for Francis to arrive, singing songs and cheering whenever Opeka spoke to them in Malagasi, the local language.