A spiritual leader who’s trying actually lead? I’m still trying to grasp this concept:
Pope Francis made his decision to visit Lampedusa after hearing about the deaths of refugees whose boat capsized off the coast of Sicily in late June. Several of the refugees clung to the fishing nets of a Tunisian-flagged vessel before the fishermen cut the nets loose, sending at least 10 people to their death.
Many of the bodies were never recovered. “When, a few weeks ago, I heard the news — which unfortunately has been repeated so many times — the thought always returns as a thorn in the heart that brings suffering,” Francis said. “And then I felt that I ought to come here today to pray, to make a gesture of closeness, but
also to reawaken our consciences so that what happened would not be repeated.”Francis then thanked the people of Lampedusa along with the rescue workers, NGOs and volunteers who man the centers on the island where refugees are taken. He acknowledged the Muslim immigrants who recently arrived on the island and who are beginning to fast for Ramadan, wishing them “best wishes for abundant spiritual fruits.”
But he lashed those who ignored the plight of refugees. “The culture of well-being, that makes us think of ourselves, that makes us insensitive to the cries of others, that makes us live in soap bubbles, that are beautiful but are nothing, are illusions of futility, of the transient, that brings indifference to others, that brings even the globalization of indifference,” he said.
The pope’s words were not likely meant for the people of Lampedusa, who open their hearts and homes to the hoards of refugees who land on their shores each year, but rather to the greater European Union which has struggled with what to do with the influx of migrants and refugees in recent years. Italy and Malta have long pushed for a comprehensive European Union immigration policy to help absorb the influx but France and Germany have resisted implementing such a plan, calling on the southern nations to do a better job patrolling their borders.
American spiritual dialogue has been so poinsoned by the bottomless hate filled mantra of the religious right, it’s actually shocking (and a little unbelievable) to hear a Christian leader actually follow Christ’s teachings. Baptists and other born again cults have all but ruined the brand.
Odd side effect: you don’t see Catholics as much on the 24/7 opinion shows, huh. I guess tolerance and love don’t sell as much toothpaste as hate.