A message of peace, unity and harmonious coexistence was sent by Pope Francis during a Divine Liturgy at noon in the central square of Skopje, where more than 10,000 people were present.
Earlier today, the Pope met President of North Macedonia Gjore Ivanov and Prime Minister Zoran Zaev at the presidential palace of Northern Macedonia.
In his welcome speech, the primate of the Roman Catholic Church noted that multiethnic and multi-religious background of the people of Northern Macedonia is the country’s asset and makes it a bridge between East and West.
After his meeting the president and the prime minister of Northern Macedonia, Pope Francis visited the Memorial House of Mother Teresa, the Catholic nun who was born in Skopje in 1910 and whom he canonized in 2016, while held a meeting with representatives of the main religious denominations of Northern Macedonia.
The Pontiff was warmly welcomed in the Memorial House of Mother Teresa, where a young woman named Sonia told the Pope that being a single mother with a child she was destitute and the Sisters of Mercy were the ones who offered her shelter and security.
Then the Pope crossed the street from the Mother Teresa’s Memorial House to the central square of Skopje with the popemobile, greeting the crowd that applauded and cheered him.
Pope Francis arrived in Skopje early this morning. He has become the first Pope ever to visit North Macedonia, where the Roman Catholic Church comprises less than one percent of the population.
Source: ANA-MPA
