Pope Commends Nobel Peace Prize Winners for Working With 'Hearts'

Pope Francis met privately with the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize winners on Saturday, calling them “architects of peace.”

According to Vatican Radio, Pope Francis met for 15 minutes with Mohamed Fadhel Mahfoudh, Abdessatar Ben Moussa, Wided Bouchamaoui, and Houcine Abbassi on Saturday morning.

Commending them for the methodology they used for dialogue and bringing stability to Tunisia, the Pontiff said the Nobel Laureates accomplished their work “with their hands and their hearts.”

The 2015 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, for what the Nobel Committee called «its decisive contribution to the building of a pluralistic democracy in Tunisia in the wake of the Jasmine Revolution of 2011.»

The four winners who make up the quartet represented the Tunisian General Labor Union; the Tunisian Confederation of Industry, Trade and Handicrafts; the Tunisian Human Rights League, and the Tunisian Order of Lawyers. After a series of political assassinations in 2013, these organizations all contributed to establishing a new constitution and facilitating presidential elections last year.

The Nobel Laureates gave him a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi, thanked the Holy Father for receiving them, and called the Pope a “true man of peace.”