Pope inflight presser: 'He who
builds walls will end up imprisoned by them'
Answering questions put to him by reporters on the papal
flight back from Morocco, Pope Francis touched on various topics including
dialogue with Islam, the need to protect the rights of migrants, and freedom of
conscience.
By Linda Bordoni
During the flight bringing Pope Francis back to Rome after
his two-day apostolic visit to Morocco, Francis spent over half an hour
chatting to reporters and answering questions on different subjects.
Christian-Muslim Dialogue
Asked what he thinks the consequences of this visit will be
for world peace and dialogue between different cultures, Pope Francis said “I
will say that now there are flowers, the fruits will come later”.
He expressed satisfaction for having been able to talk about
peace, unity and fraternity during the visit to Morocco and also during the
previous one to Abu Dhabi, during which he recalled the important Document on
Human Fraternity that he signed together with the Grand Iman of Al-Ahzar.
He upheld the religious freedom he witnessed in Morocco and
the respect with which all brothers and sisters are welcomed.
“This is a beautiful flower of coexistence that promises to
bear fruit. We must not give up!” he said.
The Pope acknowledged there are still difficulties because,
he said, “In every religion there is always a fundamentalist group that does
not want to go ahead and lives on bitter memories, on the struggles of the
past, looking for more war and also sowing fear”.
But he reiterated the need to continue to work for fraternal
dialogue, pointing out that dialogue can only flourish when there is a human
relationship at various levels.
“If it is human, it is with the mind, the heart and the
hands, thus agreements are signed” he said.
And he referred to the signing in Rabat of the common appeal
for Jerusalem, which he said, was “a step forward made not by an authority of
Morocco and by an authority of the Vatican, but by brother believers who suffer
to see that this city of hope is still not as universal as we all want it to
be: Jews, Muslims and Christians”.
“We are all citizens of Jerusalem, all believers” he said.
Build bridges, not walls
Speaking of those who prefer to build walls instead of
bridges he said “they will end up imprisoned by the walls they have built”
while those who build bridges will go a long way.
Pope Francis conceded that building bridges takes a great
deal of effort. He revealed he has always been touched by a phrase from
Ivo Andrich's novel "The Bridge on the Drina" in which he says that
the bridge is made by God with the wings of angels so that men can
communicate... “.
Instead walls, he said, are against communication, they are
for isolation and those who build them will become prisoners.
Freedom of worship and of conscience
Regarding the question of Muslims who convert to
Christianity and who are not safe in all countries, the Pope noted that the
Catholic Church removed the death penalty for heretics from the Catechism 300
years ago, because, he said, the Church has grown in consciousness and in the
capacity to understand its own faith which in turn promotes respect for the
person and for religious freedom.
Acknowledging that in some countries there continues to be a
problem of conversion he upheld the example of Morocco where, he said,
people of all faiths are protected.
But he also highlighted limitations of freedom of conscience
in some Christian countries where, for example, some doctors are deprived of
the right to conscientious objection when it comes to euthanasia.
“How has it happened?” he asked “that the Church has gone
forward and Christian countries are going backwards?”
Today, we Christians, the Pope added, are in danger of some
governments taking away from us the freedom of conscience: that is the first
step towards freedom of worship.
Cardinal Barbarin
Regarding the situation of French Cardinal Barbarin who is
under investigation in France for allegedly covering up clerical sexual abuse,
Pope Francis reiterated the juridical principle that at present there is the
presumption of innocence and the case is open.
He invited the journalists to think twice before issuing a
media condemnation until the Court gives the final judgement.
Migrants
Underscoring Pope Francis’s repeated appeals to
policy-makers and government leaders to protect and help migrants, one
journalist highlighted the fact that European politics are going in the exact
opposite direction and that populist policies reflect the opinion of mostly
Christian voters. “How do you feel about this sad situation?” she said.
"I see that so many people of good will, not only
Catholics, (…) appear to be gripped by fear” that is the fodder of populism, he
said.
Fear, the Pope continued, is the beginning of dictatorships.
He recalled the fall of the Weimar Republic and the birth of
Nazi Germany and expressed his belief that we must not forget the lessons of
history.
“To sow fear is to make a collection of cruelty, of closures
and also of sterility. Think of the demographic winter in Europe. Even we who
live in Italy are below zero” he said.
The Pope decried the lack of historical memory pointing out
that Europe “was made” by migrations and this is its wealth.
He noted that European nations sell weapons to Yemen to kill
children, calling on it to be consistent as it continues to preach the need for
“safety”.
“I say this as an example, but Europe sells weapons” he
said.
“Then there is the problem of hunger and thirst. If Europe
wants to be mother Europe and not grandmother Europe, it must invest; it must
intelligently try to help growth through education, through investment”.
You cannot prevent emigration by force but by generosity,
education and economic investment, he said.
And reflecting on how to receive and distribute migrants who
come to Europe, the Pope said that it is true that a single country can't
receive everyone, “but there's all of Europe to distribute migrants” and he
reiterated that the reception must be with “an open heart, that accompanies,
promotes and integrates".
