In a dramatic moment, the 79-year-old Francis, walking deep in thought in his long robe, did not notice a step down and fell to the ground before the altar. Thankfully he was not hurt.
Advertisement
Guido Marini as he stumbles on the altar as he celebrates a mass in Czestochowa, Poland, Thursday, July 28, 2016.
The Mass was held in celebration of the 1,050th anniversary this year of Poland’s acceptance of Roman Catholicism.
Pope Francis urged Poles to stay united even as their nation is divided over the issue of refugees and migrants, especially those who aren’t Christians. “He never said a word”, Depo added. The baptism of a medieval king in 966 put the nation on course to be part of the Latin-speaking world, setting it apart from Orthodox nations on its borders.
Francis praised what he called “the contagious power of a genuine faith, passed down from family to family” in Poland, which is about 98 percent Catholic.
The pope, whose main goal in Poland is to preside at an global gathering of Catholic youth in Krakow, was driven to this city about 140 km (87 miles) away instead of taking a helicopter as planned because of the possibility of bad weather.
Present were members of government and head of state President Andrzej Duda. John Paul II and Faustina.
His actual destination was Blonia, a park where young Catholics participating in World Youth Day were gathering.
At his first meeting with youngsters on Wednesday evening at the window of the archbishop’s palace in Krakow, he encouraged the thousands gathered below to party.
Francis’ visit will make him the third pontiff to visit Auschwitz after his predecessors, the late John Paul II, a Pole who died in 2005, and Benedict XVI, a German.
Advertisement
Francis then delivered a speech urging Polish authorities “to overcome fear” and show compassion to migrants.
