Pope calls on Europe to rediscover hope in Mediterranean

At the general audience Pope Francis reviewed his apostolic journey to Marseille. "The sea is a cradle of civilisation for life, it is not tolerable that it becomes a graveyard. Young people who are poor in hope, closed in their private lives, preoccupied with managing their precariousness, how can they open themselves up to encounter and sharing?"

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - "Europe needs to rediscover passion and enthusiasm". Pope Francis said this today at the general audience with the faithful in St. Peter's Square, retracing the apostolic journey that took him to Marseille in recent days for the conclusion of the Rencontres Méditerranéennes, which involved bishops, mayors and young people from the Mediterranean area.

“The Mediterranean is the cradle of civilization – Francis recalled – and it is a cradle for life. It is not tolerable that it becomes a tomb, nor even a place of conflict. The Mediterranean Sea is the most opposite there is to the clash between civilizations, to war, to human trafficking. It is the exact opposite: the Mediterranean connects Africa, Asia and Europe; the north and the south, the east and the west; people and cultures, peoples and languages, philosophies and religions”.

“What came out of the Marseille event? – Francesco asked himself. "A look at the Mediterranean that I would define as simply human, non-ideological, non-strategic, not politically correct nor instrumental. Human, that is, capable of referring everything to the primary value of the human person and his inviolable dignity".

At the same time “a look of hope emerged. This is surprising every time – he added -. When you listen to witnesses who have gone through inhuman situations or who have shared them, and from them you receive a 'profession of hope', then you find yourself faced with the work of God. And you realize that this work always passes through brotherhood : through the eyes, hands, feet, hearts of men and women who, in their respective roles of ecclesial and civil responsibility, seek to build fraternal relationships and social friendship".

Precisely this hope is the most precious legacy which - the pontiff warned - "must not evaporate", but "concrete in long, medium and short term actions".

“It means working so that people, in full dignity, can choose to emigrate or not to emigrate – he exemplified -. Let us all work so that everyone can live in peace, security and prosperity in their country of origin. But there is another complementary aspect: we need to restore hope to our European societies, especially to the new generations. In fact, how can we welcome others if we do not first have an open horizon to the future? How can young people lacking in hope, closed in their private lives, worried about managing their precariousness, open up to meeting and sharing? Our societies, sick with individualism, consumerism and empty evasions - he concluded - need to open up, to oxygenate the soul and the spirit, and then they will be able to see the crisis as an opportunity and face it in a positive way"