Pope Francis linked the solution to the acute migration problem with the need not to be indifferent to the fate of all the poor and destitute people in the modern world.
On Sunday, the pontiff celebrated Mass at St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican on the occasion of World Migrant and Refugee Day, which this year the Roman Catholic Church celebrates for the 105th time.
“We, as Christians, cannot be indifferent in the face of the drama of old and new poverty, total loneliness, contempt and discrimination of those who do not belong to” our “group. We cannot remain insensitive, with a pained heart in the face of the poverty of many innocent people. We cannot but cry, we cannot but respond, “he said in his sermon.
Pope Francis recalled that his special message on the occasion of today is the eloquent title of “It’s not just about migrants.” He urged believers to pay special attention to all the destitute of our time, who, according to him, together with migrants are victims of a “culling culture.”
The papal message on Migrant Day emphasizes that the presence of refugees in modern society is pushing for “the restoration of some basic dimensions of our Christian existence and our humanity.” According to the pontiff, now “not only the interests of migrants are at stake, not only they are in question, but about all of us, about the present and future of the human family.”
Pope Francis has repeatedly called on the international community and all people of good will to provide comprehensive assistance to migrants and refugees. Earlier, he called the “shame” the situation prevailing around the mass migration to Europe.