In Poland, pope draws attention to immigrants
KRAKOW, Poland — Before an international crowd of 600,000 gathered for the World Youth Day celebration Thursday, Pope Francis urged people to welcome migrants and refugees, a stance resisted by the Polish government.
“A merciful heart is able to be a place of refuge for those who are without a home or have lost their home,” the pope said. “It is able to build a home and a family for those forced to emigrate;
it knows the meaning of tenderness and compassion. A merciful heart can share its bread with the hungry and welcome refugees and migrants.”
Pope Francis has frequently tried to draw attention to the plight of migrants. Several days before the pope began his trip, his office admonished countries in Eastern Europe that have “artificially created fear of Muslims,” urging them to be more open to refugees and asylum seekers from places that have been torn apart by conflict.
Francis urged Poles to stay united even as their nation is divided over the issue of refugees and migrants, especially those who aren’t Christians. At his evening pep rally, he told the young people he was confident they would “join the adventure of building bridges and knocking down walls, fences.”
Walls and barbed-wire fences have sprung up in eastern and central Europe to keep those fleeing wars and hunger in the Middle East, Asia and Africa from penetrating into the heart of the European continent.
Earlier in the day, the pope celebrated Mass at one of Poland’s most renowned shrines, urging Catholics to embrace “the humble love that brings freedom” and to shun the lust for wealth and power.
“To be attracted by power, by grandeur, by appearances, is tragically human,” Francis said at the 14th-century monastery of Jasna Gora, a pilgrimage site in the city of Czestochowa known for its painting of the Virgin Mary. “It is a great temptation that tries to insinuate itself everywhere. But to give oneself to others, eliminating distances, dwelling in littleness and living the reality of one’s everyday life: This is exquisitely divine.”
Jorge Carrasco, 25, a volunteer from Spain at the Krakow event, said after listening to the pope: “I think I could share my home with one or two refugees. I mean I have the space, so why not?”
The pope also talked about finding meaning in life and expressed his concern for “young people who waste their lives looking for thrills or a feeling of being alive by taking dark paths and in the end having to pay for it, and pay dearly.”
The message touched Arturo Sanchez, 21, one of a group of 31 pilgrims from Chile, who called the pope “a superhero.”
“I believe that the Holy Father has super powers and can change people’s hearts, even bad people’s hearts, with his unconditional love for everyone,” Mr. Sanchez said.
Poland is an overwhelmingly Catholic country; 92 percent of the population identifies itself as Catholic and 40 percent attend church on Sundays. The visit by Francis, his first to Poland as pope, had been eagerly awaited, in part because of his connection to one of his predecessors.
Pope John Paul II, who was canonized in 2014, is the only pope to have been born in Poland, and he remains one of the nation’s most revered and cherished figures.
“Pope Francis is incredibly close to my heart; he was the one who elevated our John Paul II to sainthood,” said Dorota Wisniowska, 24, who came to Krakow from Wloclawek, a town in central Poland. “John Paul II was the first pope to become a bridge between Catholicism and other religions. And I hope Pope Francis, just like our pope, will continue to break the walls instead of making new ones.”