“I give a warm welcome to the Arabic-speaking pilgrims, particularly those from Iraq, Jordan and the Middle East!”, said Pope Francis during the General Audience of March 1, 2017.
This morning’s General Audience was held at 9:30 in St. Peter’s Square, where the Holy Father Francis met with groups of pilgrims and faithful from Italy and from all over the world.
The Pope spoke in Italian, translated immediately into Arabic by one of his collaborators in the Roman Curia: “Lent is a journey of hope: the hope of reaching the Passover through the desert of fasting and of mortification; a journey of faith, where we experience the love faithfulness of God who never abandons us; a penitential journey, where salvation is accomplished and fulfilled through the free response of man; a path of liberation from the idols of the world to come to the freedom of God’s children; a journey of the victory over the temptations with the help of prayer and the sacraments.”
“I wish you good Lent,” Francis said, noting, “May the Lord bless you all and protect you from the evil one!”
