The previous record was 24 hours, held by former soccer star David Beckham.
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The pontiff in his Palm Sunday homily lamented what he called the “indifference” of all those who don’t want to take on the responsibility of deciding the destiny of refugees flooding into Europe. But he still as a while to go to compete with Selena Gomez’s more than 70 million followers, which makes her the most-followed person on the platform.
“I am beginning a new journey, on Instagram, to walk with you along the path of mercy and the tenderness of God”, Pope Francis Tweeted to his followers.
The Pope and Systrom reportedly talked about the power of images to enhance togetherness across various cultures and languages.
Pope Francis walks in procession as he celebrates Palm Sunday Mass, in St. Peter’s Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, March 20, 2016.
Three posts later, he had over 1 million followers, making it the fastest growing Instagram account in the history of the company.
He posted his first photo which showed him kneeling down praying with the caption “Pray for me” on Saturday night which marked the third anniversary of his inauguration as Holy Father. @franciscus, welcome to the Instagram community!
THE Pope has joined Justin Bieber, the Kardashians, Taylor Swift and Beyonce as one of the top players on Instagram. “Your messages of humility, compassion and mercy will leave a lasting mark”, Systrom commented. According to CNN, his account will be separated from the official Vatican account and it will be administered by Vatican members.
“Even as every form of justice is denied to him, Jesus also experiences, in his own flesh, indifference”, the pope said.
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Joining Instagram was a particularly smart move since, according to a spokesperson, the platform has been quickly gaining popularity in countries with a large Catholic presence such as Mexico, France, Italy and Brazil.
