Pope Francis: Every Catholic Institution in Europe Needs to Take in One Refugee Family

In his most forceful appeal to date, Pope Francis launched an urgent plea Sunday asking all Catholic institutions on Europe to take in one refugee family, beginning with his own diocese of Rome . . .

“Faced with the tragedy of tens of thousands of refugees fleeing from death by war and hunger,” Francis said, “the Gospel calls us, asks us to be ‘neighbors’ to the smallest and abandoned” . . .

“God,” Francis said, “is not closed in on Himself, but opens and connects with humanity. In his great mercy, he exceeds the abyss of the infinite difference between Him and us, and comes to us.”

Citing the Gospel of the day, Francis said that we are often “closed in on ourselves, and we create so many inaccessible and inhospitable islands. Even the most basic human relationships sometimes create situations incapable of reciprocal openness: closed couples, closed families, closed groups, closed parishes, closed nations” . . .

Therefore, as we approach the Jubilee of Mercy, Francis said, “I appeal to the parishes, religious communities, monasteries and shrines throughout Europe to express the reality of the Gospel and accommodate a family of refugees.” (Read more from “Pope Francis: Every Catholic Institution in Europe Needs to Take in One Refugee Family” HERE)

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