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.
Pope Francis in Africa
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.
In Africa, Pope tells nuns to beware of “educated devils”
“Maybe the day you entered the convent, the devil remained sad at the door,” the pope said to the cloistered nuns disregarding his prepared text.