Pope Leo celebrated World Day of the Poor with lunch with 1,300 people struggling to raise what they need for a dignified life. And with them he wants to remember, and also praise, Pope Francis for this intuition. It was Bergoglio who initiated these Days and the entire Church today reminds us of the importance of the poor and the need to place ourselves at their service.
The morning began with Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica. Too small to accommodate the thousands of people in attendance and with the event unscheduled, before the celebration, Leone went to St. Peter’s Square to welcome those who remained outside and invited them to join the mass on a giant screen. In his homily the Pope spoke directly to world leaders, inviting them to “hear the cry of the poor”.
Then Leo underlines that subtle worm, loneliness, which is the origin of all poverty. “How much poverty oppresses our world! First and foremost is material poverty, but there are also many moral and spiritual situations, which often concern especially young people. And the drama that runs through it all – says Leone – is loneliness”.
ANSA Agency Pope in the basilica, mass on the Day of the Poor – News – Ansa.it Also at lunch there were about fifty trans people. Leo at the Angelus: “The pain of the attack in Ukraine, a just peace is needed” (ANSA) “Today, above all, the war scenario, which unfortunately occurs in various regions of the world, seems to leave us in a state of impotence. But the globalization of impotence arises from a lie – continues Leo
Then Pope Leo underlined that “poverty is a challenge for Christians, but this challenge also challenges everyone who has a responsible role in society. I therefore urge Heads of State and Heads of Nation to listen to the cries of the poorest. There can be no peace without justice and the poor remind us of this in many ways, with their migrations and their cries that are often suffocated by myths of prosperity and progress that do not take everyone into account, and even forget many creatures, leaving them to their own fate.”
The day ended with lunch in Nervi Hall, organized thanks to the organizations that work with the poor every day, from Vincentians to Caritas, from Sant’Egidio to the French association Fratello. The latter arranged a lunch in the Vatican Gardens and surprisingly Pope Leo wanted to welcome and bless them too.
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