Overview
- The Pope greeted crowds outside the basilica, led the Angelus, and urged heads of state to listen to the cry of the poorest, saying there can be no peace without justice.
- He revisited his theme of a “globalization of impotence,” rejecting the belief that history cannot change and calling Christians to be a living sign of hope among the poor.
- Attendance filled St. Peter’s with about 6,000 inside and roughly 12,000 watching from the square on screens.
- He lunched with 1,300 people in Vatican venues, including about fifty transgender participants accompanied by Don Andrea Conocchia and Sister Geneviève Jeanningros, with support from Caritas, Sant’Egidio, the Vincentians, and Fratello.
- He decried discrimination and attacks on Christians in countries including Bangladesh, Nigeria, Mozambique, and Sudan, recalled the 20 victims of the ADF massacre in Byambwe, and lamented new strikes on Ukrainian cities.