In the month in which the Pontiff himself will visit Peru during his Apostolic Visit there and to Chile, Jan. 15-22, 2018, Pope Francis is mourning the victims of a bus accident on Tuesday north of the nation’s capital of Lima.
A tractor, sources cite, stuck the bus carrying 57 passengers on the ‘Devil’s Curve’ highway, plunging it off the cliff and claiming some 50 lives.
In the telegram sent by Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, on the Pope’s behalf, Francis expresses his closeness to the loved ones of those killed, and his prayers for their consolation.
Here is a Zenit-provided translation of the telegram sent in Spanish today on Pope Francis’ behalf, offering the Pontiff’s condolences to the victims:
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The Holy Father, profoundly grieved on learning the painful news of the traffic accident that occurred in Pasamayo, which occasioned numerous victims, offers prayers for the eternal repose of the deceased.
I pray Your Excellency to transmit His Holiness’ heartfelt condolence, as well as his expressions of consolation to the relatives that mourn such a heavy loss, as well as his spiritual closeness to the wounded, while he prays to the Lord to shed upon all of them the gifts of spiritual serenity and Christian hope, in pledge of which he imparts to them his heartfelt Apostolic Blessing.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin
Secretary of State of His Holiness
[Original text: Spanish] [ZENIT’s translation by Virginia M. Forrester]
