Pope Francis meets victims of
Japan’s “triple disaster” - News Video
On his third day in Japan, Pope Francis meets the victims of
the earthquake, tsunami and Fukushima nuclear accident of 2011. He reminds us
we are all members of one family, and that if one member suffers, we all do.
By Alessandro Di Bussolo
The Pope’s embrace with Matsuki Kamoshita was one of the
most moving moments of his meeting with victims of the so-called "triple
disaster". Matsuki was 8 years old in 2011, when the earthquake, tsunami
and Fukushima nuclear disaster shook Japan. Today he is 16 and still lives as a
displaced person.
During his testimony in Tokyo’s Bellesalle Hanzomon
Auditorium, he described being bullied for the fact of being a victim, claiming
that people had “given up being concerned” about those displaced by the
disasters. Eight years after the Fukushima accident, people are still feeling
the effect of radioactive contamination, he said. Matsuki asked the Pope to
pray that those in power “may find the courage to follow another path".
Before delivering his address, Pope Francis invited those
present to spend a moment in silence, “so that our first word will be one of
prayer for the more than 18,000 people who lost their lives, for their
families, and for those who are still missing.”
Eight years after the triple disaster, Japan has shown
how a people can unite in solidarity, patience, perseverance and resilience.
The path to a full recovery may still be long, but it can always be undertaken
if it counts on the spirit of people capable of mobilizing in order to help one
another.
One of the greatest ills has to do with a culture of
indifference. We need to work together to foster awareness that if one member
of our family suffers, we all suffer. Real interconnectedness will not come
about unless we cultivate the wisdom of togetherness, the only wisdom capable
of facing problems and solutions in a global way. We are part of one another.
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