With gratitude and hope: our final farewell to Pope Francis
Even in his last speech, just hours before he left, Pope Francis appealed for peace. In the Urbi et orbi blessing of Holy Easter he recalled the suffering in Palestine and Israel, of the Gaza conflict, of Christian communities in Lebanon and Syria, of the "beloved Middle East." These are the places dear to the John Paul II Foundation, those where for years and with daily commitment it has been giving proof that - as taught by Pope Woytila and recalled on every occasion by Pope Francis - "no peace is possible where there is no religious freedom or where there is no freedom of thought and speech and respect for the opinions of others. No peace is possible without true disarmament." Pope Bergoglio urged us, in the light of Easter, "to break down the barriers that create divisions and are fraught with political and economic consequences." He invited us to "care for one another, to...