“To the refugees and to the Greek people, I brought the solidarity of the Church.” These were the words of Pope Francis at the Regina Coeli at St Peter’s on Sunday, speaking of his visit the day before to the Greek island of Lesbos. “With me were the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, and Archbishop Hieronymous of Athens and of All Greece, to signify the unity in charity of all the disciples of the Lord.”
The Holy Father began his remarks by thanking all those “who accompanied” the voyage with their prayers. He then recalled his visit to one of the refugee camps, where the three prelates were able to visit with more than 300 refugees, from Afghanistan, Syria, North Africa and other parts of the world. “So many of them were children!” the Pope said, noting how some of the children had witnessed the deaths of parents or companions. “I saw so much sorrow!” he continued, before recalling the particular case of a young Muslim man, with two young children, whose Christian fiancée was killed by terrorists because she would not deny Christ and renounce her faith. “She is a martyr!” the Pope said.
The Pope’s short visit to Lesbos drew attention to the plight of thousands of migrants and refugees crossing the Mediterranean Sea in search of new lives in Europe.
