Pope Francis on the last day of his week long pilgrimage to Brazil urged Catholics to reject selfishness, hatred and intolerance to help build a new world.
Paraguayan president-elect Horacio Cartes declined a personal invitation from his peer Dilma Rousseff to attend Francis mass on Sunday in Rio do Janeiro, the closing event of the pope’s visit to Brazil, according to one of his top foreign policy advisors.
Pope Francis in yet another strong message said on Friday he understands the young people who lose faith in the church because of bad ministers, and confidence in political institutions because of corruption, but also urged them to change the world.
A huge crowd estimated in 1.5 million people defied rain and chilly weather to greet Pope Francis on Rio do Janeiro’s Copacabana beach on Thursday. With his captivating charisma Francis repeated a theme of his visit to Brazil urging young Catholics to shun the trappings of materialism and put Jesus Christ at the center of their lives.
Pope Francis on Wednesday warned Latin America against legalizing narcotics and urged courage in the face of deadly drug violence as he met addicts in a Brazilian hospital.
Pope Francis held his first mass as a pontiff at the Basilica of Our Lady of Aparecida in Sao Paulo before thousands of faithful who gathered despite de cold and the rain. During the Wednesday mass, Pope Francis urged young people to shun the ephemeral idols of money and pleasure and cherish traditional values to help build a better world.
Rio de Janeiro's subway broke down on Tuesday, causing chaos for throngs of pilgrims in town for a huge Catholic gathering and a papal visit already marked by security lapses. Crowds of people crammed into buses, scrambled to find taxis or began walking toward Copacabana beach for an evening mass to officially kick off World Youth Day.
Around 400,000 Roman Catholics have joined a Tuesday evening ceremony on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro to mark the opening of World Youth Day. The highlight of the festival will be a visit on Thursday by Pope Francis.
Rio de Janeiro was the stage for violent protests centred at Palacio Guanabara where earlier in the day Pope Francis had been received by Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff. The incidents occurred Monday night during a demonstration against Rio state governor Sergio Cabral which convened an estimated 1.500 people according to the police.
Pope Francis warned Monday that the world risks having an entire generation of jobless young people as he arrived to Brazil. The 76-year-old Argentine, speaking to journalists aboard the papal plane heading to the Catholic youth event in Rio de Janeiro, said his trip aimed in part “to encourage young people to integrate into society” and convince the world not to abandon them.