A distressed vessel discovered by the US Navy (USN) Oliver Hazard Perry Class Guided Missile Frigate USS RENTZ

WIKIMEDIA COMMONS - N.N.

Pope Supports Youth Initiative to Stop Mediterranean From Being 'Sea of Death'

Says presence of migrants is opportunity for growth, meeting, dialogue, witness to Gospel

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Share this Entry
[From Vatican Radio] Pope Francis over the weekend sent his support to an event taking place in the Italian Diocese of Ugento-S. Maria di Leuca called “Mediterranean: A Sea of Bridges,” which brought together young people from Europe and the countries bordering the Mediterranean to create a Charter which would help stop the Mediterranean from being a “sea of death.”
In a message sent through the Secretary of State, Pope Francis express his wish that the event “enkindle a renewed commitment to promoting a culture of hospitality and solidarity, and thus promote peace and fraternity among peoples.”

Related: Syrian Olympic Swimmer Saved 20 Refugees by Swimming Their Sinking Boat to Shore

The message went on to say the Holy Father encouraged the participants at the meeting to “consider the presence of so many brothers and sisters who are migrants to be an opportunity of human growth, of meeting and dialogue among cultures and religions, and also even an occasion to witness to the Gospel of Charity.”
The meeting, which concluded on Sunday, issued the Charter of Leuca, which pledged the participants’ willingness “to preserve, to reconstruct, and to bring together the bridges linking the countries of the Mediterranean.”

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Share this Entry

ZENIT Staff

Support ZENIT

If you liked this article, support ZENIT now with a donation