At the end of Wednesday's General Audience, Pope Francis expressed his concern over the ongoing conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian-majority region of Azerbaijan.
POPE FRANCIS
Yesterday, I received worrying news from Nagorno-Karabakh, in the southern Caucasus, where the already critical humanitarian situation has now been worsened by further armed clashes. I want to appeal to all parties and to the international community to cease fire and make an effort to find a peaceful solution for the good of all people and the respect of human dignity.
Moments earlier, the Pope once again referred to the current situation on the African continent. He dedicated his weekly catechesis to St. Daniel Comboni, the first bishop of Central Africa and founder of the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus.
POPE FRANCIS
In the Africa so beloved by Comboni, today it is torn apart by many conflicts. After the "political one," an equally enslaving "economic colonialism" has been unleashed. It is a tragedy before which the more economically advanced world often shuts its eyes, ears and mouth. I therefore renew my appeal: "Stop suffocating Africa. It is not a mine to be exploited or a soil to be plundered."
Before concluding the Audience, Pope Francis asked those present not to forget the poor. For this, he recalled an encounter he had just before arriving in St. Peter's Square.
POPE FRANCIS
Don't forget the poor. Before I came here, I had a meeting with Brazilian legislators who work for the poor and try to advocate for the poor with social justice assistance. And they do not forget the poor. They work for the poor. To you I say, "Don't forget the poor because they will be the ones to open the door to heaven."
To mark their feast day, the Pope also recalled St. Andrew Kim and his companions martyred for the faith in Korea. At the end of the Audience, Pope Francis turned his thoughts to Ukraine before imparting the final blessing.
CA
TR: KG
