The first ever World Humanitarian Summit begins Monday in Istanbul, and Pope Francis is sending a top level delegation to represent the Holy See, headed by his secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin.
The summit was convened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and will gather representatives of governments, humanitarian organizations and the private sector.
After praying the midday Angelus today in St. Peter’s Square, the Pope explained that the summit “aims to enable reflection on the measures which must be adopted in order to face the dramatic humanitarian situations caused by conflicts, environmental problems and extreme poverty.”
“Let us accompany with prayer the participants in this gathering,” he said, “so they fully commit to reaching the principal humanitarian objective: saving the life of every human being, with no one excluded, in particular the innocent and most defenseless.”
