Francesco on a motorboat with the songs coming from the piers and the raising of the gondoliers. Venice embraced the Pope for his short visit, about 5 hours, but dense. From the Giudecca inmates for whom he asks for “dignity” to the artists of the Biennale, from the young people gathered for him at the Salute, up to the crowd in Piazza San Marco where over 10 thousand people participated in the mass.
Venice is used to Pontiffs: many have visited it and there were several Popes who governed the lagoon diocese (which is traditionally called the Patriarchate), before arriving at the throne of Peter, such as John XXIII and John Paul I. But Francis’ visit, awaited for years, is welcomed with great enthusiasm. And he returns the affection by talking about the beauties of this unique city in the world“splendid but fragile”, in need of care, because “without the care and protection of this natural setting it could even cease to exist”, is the heartfelt consideration of the Pope.
“If today we look at this city of Venice, we admire its enchanting beauty, but we are also worried about the many problems that threaten it: climate change, which has an impact on the waters of the Lagoon and on the territory; the fragility of the buildings, cultural goods, but also that of people; the difficulty of creating an environment that is on a human scale through adequate management of tourism; and also all that these realities risk generating in terms of frayed social relations, individualism and solitude”, said the Pope in the homily of the Mass in St. Mark’s Square.
And then “Venice, which it has always been a place of meeting and cultural exchange, it is called to be a sign of beauty accessible to all, starting from the least, a sign of brotherhood and care for our common home. Venice that makes brothers”.
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The Pope began early in the morning with the visit to Giudecca. Here is the Holy See pavilion of the Biennale. But here above all there are women who can’t hold back their tears.
And Francis, in the presence of the Minister of Justice Carlo Nordio, lists the critical issues of living in prison: “It is a harsh reality, and problems such as overcrowding, the lack of structures and resources, episodes of violence, generate a lot of suffering there “. The appeal to the institutions is therefore “not to take away the dignity of anyone”. “Today we will all leave this courtyard richer. Perhaps the one who will leave richer will be me”, he told the inmates.
Then the meeting with the artists in which he evoked the biblical image of the ‘city of refuge’ who “disobeys the regime of violence and discrimination”. Art can “free the world from senseless and now emptied antinomies, but which seek to gain the upper hand in racism, xenophobia, inequality, ecological imbalance and aporophobia, this terrible neologism which means ‘phobia of the poor'” .
Then again the homage to women artists, among whom he mentions Frida Khalo.
Video Pope in Venice: ‘It is essential to offer prisoners tools for human growth’
Finally the boys, who welcome him at Salute with choirs and songs. He warns them against social media and launches an invitation: “Get up and go”. “Have you thought about what a young person sits on a sofa all his life?”, “there are sofas that take us and don’t let us get up”. The gaze therefore on God who loves and does not consider us “a digital profile”. The mobile phone? It can also be “useful for communicating but be careful when your cell phone prevents you from meeting people.” “A hug, a kiss, a handshake, people” is what really matters in the end. Finally, the invitation to be “revolutionary” and go “against the tide”, doing things gratuitously and not always chasing profit as the world teaches. “Row consistently to go far.” Just like they do in Venice.
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