Pope Francis meets with President of Belarus
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis
on Saturday morning met with the President of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko,
who subsequently met with the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro
Parolin, who was accompanied by Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, the
Secretary for Relations with States.
A statement from the Holy See
Press Office called the discussions “cordial”, and said “satisfaction was
expressed for the good state of bilateral relations and various themes of
mutual interest were considered, with particular reference to the life of
the Church in Belarus and the peaceful co-existence between Catholic and
Orthodox communities, and with other religious confessions, in the
country.”
The statement also said
the role played by the capital of the country, the city of Minsk, which
hosted recent discussions with the aim of seeking solutions for peace in the
Region, “was underlined.”
President Lukashenko
presented several gifts to Pope Francis: A cross, an icon, and a model of a
carriage made from homemade pasta.
Pope Francis gave the
President copies of the three most significant documents of his papacy: The
Encyclical Laudato si', and the Apostolic Exhortations Evangelii
Gaudiumand Amoris Laetitia.
Ahead of this visit, the
Vatican Museums hosted an exhibit of sacred art from Belarus, consisting of 31
icons and 2 icon covers dating as far back as the 17th century.
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