Pope Francis defends migrants at sea
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Pope Francis defends migrants at sea

Pope Francis defends migrants at sea

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(AGI) Vatican City, Dec 4 - "Migration flows deserve adequatewelcome procedures. Migrants should not be abandoned at sea atthe mercy of human traffickers. Countries should cooperate toeffectively manage these events," said Pope Francis during hisaddress to members of Focsiv, a group embracing NGOs andinternational cooperation movements. The Pope underlined that"migrants and refugees have often left harsh conditions andhazards of all kinds in their countries of origin". "Everyonemust collaborate - institutions, NGOs and the ecclesiasticalcommunities alike, to promote a harmonious coexistence amongpeople of different cultures. The poor cannot become a sourceof income," said the Pontiff. "There is a great need to testifyto the value of giving," he added. According to Bergoglio, inpoint of fact "poverty has changed its face, and even among thepoor there are people with different kinds of expectations.They want to be protagonists, some get organised and supportothers with the kind of solidarity there is among those whosuffer. You have been called to grasp these signs of changingtimes and become a tool at the service of the defence of thepoor." Pope Francis thanked all the volunteer workers becausethey "offer a facet of the Church which rolls up its sleevesand is ready to serve the brothers in hardship." He went on:"the diverse elements making up Focsiv seek to combine theexperience and the goodwill of its members according to theexample of the Good Samarithan, consistent with evangelicalvalues. This stems from your Christian identity. You presentyourselves as 'volunteers of the world' with the numerousdevelopment projects running to provide a factual response tothe scandals of hunger and wars. I wish to thank you," addedthe Pope, on Thursday morning in a crowded Aula Nervi. "I wishto thank you for everything you do and for the way you do it!Your actions next to the women and men in hardship heraldvividly the tender love of Christ, standing next to mankind atall times. Carry on along this path of disinterested andvoluntary commitment. Showing solidarity for the poor meansacting and thinking, focusing on the community, giving priorityto everyone's life rather than to the hoarding of goods. Itmeans also fighting against the structural causes of poverty,namely inequalities, unemployment and homelessness,representing the negation of social and labour rights.Solidarity is a means of participating in the making of historywith the poor, without boasting and reducing the other to apassive condition." .
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