Pope Francis greets a group of Syrian refugees upon landing at Rome's Ciampino airport April 16, 2016.
Posted on 04/17/2016 6:54:39 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Pope Francis greets a group of Syrian refugees upon landing at Rome's Ciampino airport April 16, 2016.
The Vatican City population of about 800 grew by 12 as Pope Francis put three families of Syrian refugees aboard the papal plane before leaving Greece.
The Vatican said in a statement that the pope "desired to make a gesture of welcome regarding refugees" by taking in the families, which include six children. "These are all people who were already in camps in Lesbos before the agreement between the European Union and Turkey."
"The Pope's initiative was brought to fruition through negotiations carried out by the Secretariat of State with the competent Greek and Italian authorities."
The Vatican noted that all of the refugees are Muslim.
"Two families come from Damascus, and one from Deir Azzor (in the area occupied by Daesh). Their homes had been bombed," the statement continued.
"The Vatican will take responsibility for bringing in and maintaining the three families. The initial hospitality will be taken care of by the Community of Sant'Egidio," a lay service organization. The Vatican will pay for their housing and care costs.
At the Port of Lesbos, Pope Francis was joined by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and the Greek Orthodox Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Ieronymus II, where he prayed that in caring for refugees "may we seek a world where none are forced to leave their home and where all can live in freedom, dignity and peace."
Pope Francis told reporters aboard his plane that “everything was arranged according to the rules."
"They have their documents. The Holy See, the Greek government and the Italian government have checked everything. They have been welcomed by the Vatican and with the collaboration of the Saint Egidio community they will be searching for work," the pope said, according to Vatican Radio.
Asked why Muslims instead of Christians were taken in by the Vatican, the pope said they weren't selecting refugees by religion but by which families had their papers in order.
“I have always said that building walls is not a solution. We saw walls during the last century and they did not resolve anything," he responded to questions about the closing of European borders. "We must build bridges. Bridges are built with intelligence, with dialogue, with integration."
Pope Francis also acknowledged meeting Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who was one of the speakers at a conference on social, economic and environmental issues hosted by the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, but stressed it was not a political meeting -- rather, a polite greeting.
"When I came out he was there, he was staying at Santa Marta and knew at what time I would be leaving. I greeted him and his wife, a handshake and nothing more. It’s called courtesy," the pope said. "If someone thinks that greeting someone is meddling in politics it's time to look for a psychiatrist."
Sanders said after the meeting: "He is a beautiful man. I am not a Catholic, but there is a radiance that comes from him. It was very wonderful to meet him." The senator's wife, Jane, is Catholic, and said "the trip was definitely worth it."
I’m sure he’ll put them up in the Vatican. /s
Wow...a whole 12 people.
kay now take away all the guns and knock down that wall and then I’ll be really impressed.
Ah, there’s the rest of the family! 12 woman and children come to be at least on the same continent with their hundreds of thousands of fathers already there. Hallelujah!
Wow, not one a military age man that’s invading the rest of Europe...hypocrite socialist assclown.
The Pope is taking in Muslims?
Why not Christians?
Twelve. Fancy that! And, from the looks of them, families with women and children.
Take in a thousand males between the ages of eighteen and twenty-eight - no women and no children - and then crow. If you’re still alive and the Vatican’s still standing.
What an A-hole. Flew in 12 handpicked refugees on his private jet, to his luxury mansion, where he never need encounter them again except for an occasional picaninny photo.
Give me a call when he lets in as many as THEY choose, all male, and lets them demand how Vatican city must be run. Damned jerk.
I notice none of these refugees are Christian. The Christians have all been left behind to be murdered by the same people he is welcoming into the Vatican.
Disgraceful! The Vicar of Satan.
How many Christians in that group?
Syrian? Probably Catholic or Christian.
Nope, they’re muzzies.
Versus the original:
"The Vatican will take responsibility for bringing in and maintaining the three families. The initial hospitality will be taken care of by the Community of Sant'Egidio," a lay service organization. The Vatican will pay for their housing and care costs"
Kind of a disconnect between reportage and reality there?
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