{"id":16014,"date":"2016-09-17T11:03:00","date_gmt":"2016-09-17T11:03:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/the-world-needs-a-merciful-response-to-refugees-pope-francis-says-44360\/"},"modified":"2016-09-17T11:03:00","modified_gmt":"2016-09-17T11:03:00","slug":"the-world-needs-a-merciful-response-to-refugees-pope-francis-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2016\/09\/the-world-needs-a-merciful-response-to-refugees-pope-francis-says\/","title":{"rendered":"The world needs a merciful response to refugees, Pope Francis says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

<\/p>\n

Vatican City, Sep 17, 2016 \/ 05:03 am (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- In a world marked by increasing war and conflict, Pope Francis said a generous and merciful response to those fleeing violence is needed in order to combat hatred and foster a greater sense of fraternity and solidarity.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this place and time in history, there is great need for men and women who hear the cry of the poor and respond with mercy and generosity,\u201d the Pope told a group of Jesuit alumni Sept. 17.<\/p>\n

He noted how there are \u201ctragically more than 65 million\u201d forcibly displaced persons around the globe, calling the number \u201cunprecedented\u201d and \u201cbeyond all imagination.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe displaced population of today\u2019s world is now larger than the entire population of Italy,\u201d he said, but cautioned that beyond the statistics, each refugee is no different from our own families, and has \u201can inalienable right to live in peace and to aspire to a better future for their sons and daughters.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pope Francis spoke to members of the European Confederation and World Union of Jesuit Alumni and Alumnae present in Rome for a Sept. 14-16 conference titled \u201cGlobal Migration and Refugee Crisis: Time to Contemplate and Act.\u201d<\/p>\n

Throughout their conference, the group was accompanied by the Jesuit Refugee Service, which was founded in 1980 by Fr. Pedro Arrupe, superior general of the Jesuits while Pope Francis was a young priest.<\/p>\n

In his speech, the Pope noted how more than 35 years ago Fr Arrupe intervened on behalf of Vietnamese boat people in the South China Sea who were suffering from pirate attacks and violence in their homeland.<\/p>\n

\u201cSadly the world today still finds itself embroiled in countless conflicts,\u201d he noted, adding that \u201cthe terrible war in Syria, as well as civil conflicts in South Sudan and elsewhere throughout the world, can seem irresolvable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, as war \u201crages\u201d throughout the world and record numbers of refugees continue to die trying cross the Mediterranean or spend years \u201clanguishing\u201d in camps, the Church, Francis told the group, \u201cneeds you to draw on the bravery and example of Father Pedro Arrupe.\u201d<\/p>\n

He urged them to go back to their Ignatian roots as they face the problems experienced by refugees, offering the Lord \u201call your liberty, your memory, your understanding and your entire will\u201d in serving refugees and understanding the root causes of forced migration in each of their own countries.<\/p>\n

\u201cI urge you to draw on the joys and successes that your Jesuit education has given you by supporting the education of refugees throughout the world,\u201d the Pope said, pointing to the \u201cdisturbing truth\u201d that less than 50 percent of child refugees have access to primary education.<\/p>\n

Further, Pope Francis noted that only 22 percent of adolescents are enrolled in secondary school, while less than 1 percent of refugees have access to a university education.<\/p>\n

Francis urged the Jesuit alumni to \u201cput your mercy in motion and help transform this educational reality\u201d in order to build \u201ca stronger Europe and a brighter future for refugees.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pointing to the Holy Year of Mercy, the Pope stressed that together with the Church, the group would be able to better respond to the \u201chuman tragedy\u201d of refugees through concrete acts of mercy which promote their integration not only into Europe, but any culture they move to. \u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, I encourage you to welcome refugees into your homes and communities, so that their first experience of Europe is not the traumatic experience of sleeping cold on the streets, but one of warm human welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although it can at times seem like we\u2019re alone when it comes to putting mercy into action, Francis assured the group that they have the support of the various ecclesial organizations and humanitarian causes dedicated to serving the marginalized and excluded.<\/p>\n

\u201cYet more important, remember that the love of God accompanies you in this work. You are God\u2019s eyes, mouth, hands and heart in this world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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