The Pope said he wanted to reach out to all Christians dwelling in “the beloved lands of Iraq and Syria in this particularly troubled and sensitive moment”, offering them a message of comfort and Christian solidarity.
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In defending their right to keep their culture he said: “The time has come to uproot centuries-old prejudices, preconceptions and reciprocal diffidence that often are at the base of discrimination, racism and xenophobia”.
FAMILY members of the victims of the Carrickmines fire are among a group of 400 Irish Travellers who met Pope Francis at the Vatican today.
“We no longer want to see family tragedies where children die of cold or in fires”, he said.
Pope Francis exhorted the Roma, Sinti and other itinerant peoples to become protagonists of fraternity and sharing in our cities in which there is so much individualism.
And the Pope held up the example of the Blessed Zeffirino Giménez Malla as a model of life and religiosity. Telling them, “are you in the heart of the church”, he urged them to be protagonists of their own future, send their children to school and uphold laws.
Palma said Francis loves being called “Lolo Kiko” in the Philippines as it only shows that he is “appreciated” and “loved” by the Filipino people.
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Pope Francis made a surprise visit October 25 to French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, retired president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, who was hospitalized at Rome’s Gemelli hospital after falling in St. Peter’s Basilica.
