During his encounter with young people, Pope Francis heard some of their stories and spoke very clearly with them.
Like when this Nigerian girl told him she was a human trafficking victim and was later forced into prostitution. The pope said treating people that way is criminal and reveals a serious misconception – that it's acceptable to take adavantage of women.
POPE FRANCIS “If a young person is accustomed to this, stop it. It's criminal. Whoever does this is a criminal. 'But, Father, one can't make love?' This isn't making love, this is torturing a woman. Let's not confuse terms. This is criminal.”
The Holy Father took advantage of the opportunity to speak about the dignity of every woman, and he urged young people to protect it.
POPE FRANCIS “This is one of the wars I ask you all to fight – for the dignity of the woman. For dignity. It's more than saying, 'If a woman can do this or that, if she can hold such an office...' No. She's worthy. She's God's daughter. She's much more.”
Pope Francis addressed various issues, such as spiritual direction, helping priests and education. The youth who participated were very satisfied.
PAUL GABRIELLI “It gives me the courage to decide to take on a responsibility for bettering society, to face life with hope.”
NICHOLAS LOPEZ “In one aspect they trust our wisdom, and that's why they brought us here, we trust their wisdom to guide us in this.”
MARÍA DE LA MACARENA SEGUI “What changed me was being with people from so many different places. I knew it was going to happen, but the moment of encounter and to see how all of us were so different, and to see him among all of us, that changed me.”
CAO HUU MINH TRI “Expectations I think it is the Church to be more open-minded and youthful in considering the needs and the expectations of young people.”
TENDAI KAROMBO “This is a chance for us young people to make a change. I feel this is the greatest opportunity that we have ever been awarded by the Church, and I feel we are not going to say this in vain, but we are going to say it because someone is ready to listen to us.”
In addition to telling their stories, the pope asked the youth to listen humbly to their peers to discover how to address the challenges of others of the same age.
We will see the outcome of this interaction very soon.
