Photo: CNS/Marko Djurica, Reuters
POPE Francis is calling on all European parishes and religious communities to take in one refugee family, as the United Nations recognises the record number of people trying to enter Europe, mostly from Syria, Eritrea and Afghanistan.
“Every parish, every religious community, every monastery, every sanctuary of Europe, take in one family,” the Pope requested, after praying the midday Angelus yesterday (September 6) with those gathered in St Peter’s Square.
As we witness the “tragedy of tens of thousands of refugees who flee death in conflict and hunger and are on a journey of hope”, the Pope said, “the Gospel calls us to be close to the smallest and to those who have been abandoned”.
And reminding the faithful of the upcoming Jubilee Year of Mercy, he said offering shelter to the needy was a “concrete act in preparation” for the Holy Year.
The Pope asked the bishops of Europe to support his appeal.
He indicated at least two families would be taken in by the Vatican City’s two churches would
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