During his apostolic trip to Bahrain, Pope Francis focused his messages on building peace and interreligious dialogue. At the closing of the 'Bahrain Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistence,' he explained that being a pacifist means much more than not attacking anyone. It requires renouncing the potential benefits of war.
POPE FRANCIS
It is not enough to say that a religion is peaceful, it is necessary to condemn and isolate the violent people who abuse its name. Nor is it enough to distance oneself from intolerance and extremism, it is necessary to act in the opposite direction.
At a meeting with the Muslim Council of Elders, Pope Francis called on people of all faiths to look beyond their communities and work together against challenges such as war or climate change. He added that these problems are a consequence of turning away from God.
POPE FRANCIS
We who are descended from Abraham, the father of peoples in faith, cannot be concerned merely with those who are “our own” but, as we grow more and more united, we must speak to the entire human community, to all who dwell on this earth.
In a meeting at Sacred Heart Catholic School in Manama, the Pope called on young people to embrace the culture of caring, to be champions of fraternity and to be brave enough to make choices in life. He also invited them to listen to their soul to know what was being asked of them. The Pope explained that the Church expects a lot from them.
POPE FRANCIS
As Pope I want to tell you: the Church is with you and needs you so much—She needs each of you a lot to rejuvenate, to explore new paths, to experiment with new languages, to become more joyful and hospitable. Never lose the courage to dream and live big! To greatness!
Pope Francis also met with the Catholic community of the Arabian Gulf. In addition to people from Bahrain, there were Catholics from Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. The Pope explained the paradox of faith—the more it is shared, the more it grows.
POPE FRANCIS
To you, who have discovered this joy and live it in community, I would like to say: keep it. Rather, multiply it. And do you know what is the best way to do this? Share the joy. Yes, this is the way. Christian joy is contagious because the Gospel makes people go outside themselves to communicate the beauty of God's love. So it is essential that in Christian communities, joy is not lost but is shared.
At the press conference during the flight back to Rome, the Pope explained the complementary roles of men and women. He encouraged the continued fight for universal equality and called female genital mutilation a 'criminal act.'
POPE FRANCIS
Women are a gift. God did not create man and then gave him a dog to play with, no. He made two, equals, man and woman.
Women carry their own; they don't have to become like males. No, they are women; we need them. And a society that erases women from public life is a society that impoverishes itself.
These are the central messages from Pope Francis' 39th apostolic journey to the Kingdom of Bahrain.
RM
TR: KG
