Freed from elevator, Pope names new cardinals from Muslim, developing countries

After being trapped in an elevator due to a power outage, Pope Francis made it to his weekly Angelus prayers. There, he announced 13 new cardinals from the periphery of the church and some who have worked with refugees.

DW, 1 September 2019

Pope Francis at Angelus prayers

Pope Francis arrived late for his weekly Angelus prayer service on Sunday, prompting worried worshipers to speculate that the pontiff, 82, may have fallen ill. He surprised the crowd, however, by announcing that his late arrival was due to being stuck in a Vatican elevator for nearly half an hour.

Francis then further surprised his audience by saying that several of the new cardinals he had been expected to name would be from the Muslim world as well as clerics well known for helping refugees.

"I was trapped in a lift for 25 minutes, there was a power outage and the lift stopped, but then the firemen came," the pope said.

"Let's give a round of applause to the fire service," he added, with the crowd obliging.

13 new cardinals

The pope then named the 13 men he will officially elevate to the status of cardinal in October. Several were from developing countries, such as Cuba, Guatemala, and Congo. Two more came from the Muslim-majority nations of Morocco and Indonesia. Another is a Spaniard who works in interfaith dialogue and has a background in Islamic studies.

The move is in line with Francis' desire to highlight the work of those in the periphery of the Church's reach.

"Their provenance expresses the missionary vocation of the Church to continue to announce the merciful love of God to all men on Earth," Francis said.

The other new cardinals include the Czech-Canadian Jesuit priest Michael Czerny, who has previously worked in ecology and social justice, and is now responsible for migration and refugees in the Vatican, and Matteo Zuppi, now Archbishop of Bologna, who was previously with the Sant'Egidio Community charity in Rome, known for its work with the homeless and refugees.

Cardinals are among the most powerful leaders of the church, and are the only clergy eligible to elect a new pope.

Pope promotes national unity in Protestant Latvia

Yahoo – AFP, Catherine MARCIANO, Michel VIATTEAU, September 24, 2018

Worshippers greeted Pope Francis at the Shrine of the Mother of God in
Aglona (AFP Photo/Vincenzo PINTO)

Aglona (Latvia) (AFP) - Tens of thousands of people on Monday swarmed Pope Francis in largely Protestant Latvia on a visit many hope will put the small Baltic country on the map and bring its people closer together.

The pontiff was visibly tired but smiling as he arrived by helicopter to the southern village of Aglona where around 40,000 people -- including some Poles, Russians and Ukrainians -- greeted him at the country's most important Catholic church.

"We came as a family to see the pope," said Ivan Petrov, a Catholic who made the journey from the western Russian city of Pskov.

"It's unlikely that Francis will be invited to Russia, at least in the immediate future," he told AFP while carrying a Russian flag.

Latvian Laura Pushmucane said she was "positively surprised" to hear the rosary recited in Latgalian, a dialect whose use was restricted under Latvia's former Nazi and communist regimes.

The pope notably quoted Boleslavs Sloskans, a Catholic bishop from the Latgale region who was exiled during the Cold War.

"Do not let hatred ignite in our hearts, not even against our oppressors, because hatred would turn us from faithful believers into fanatics," he quoted.

Pope Francis said Latvia had built unity between the different Christian 

churches (AFP Photo/Vincenzo PINTO)

The Latvian government had declared Monday a public holiday for the papal visit.

Many were grateful to the pope for visiting Latvia in a year when it along with two other Baltic countries celebrates 100 years of independence.

Occupied by Nazi Germany and then by the Soviets for nearly half a century, Latvia is now tied to the west as an EU and NATO member.

But the country of 1.9 million people is still in the process of building a national identity.

Faith unites

Latvian President Raimonds Vejonis told Francis that "faith brings countries together beyond their national differences."

Protestants make up 25 percent of the Latvian population, followed by Catholics at 21 percent and Orthodox 11 percent.

Earlier Monday, Francis met Christian leaders -- Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Episcopalian -- at Riga's Lutheran cathedral.

The immense red-brick building is the largest medieval cathedral in the Baltic states and houses one of the world's largest organs.

Pope Francis was welcomed by Latvia's President Raimonds Vejonis (second left) 

and children at the airport in Riga (AFP Photo/Handout, Handout)

Shuttered by Soviet authorities in 1959, the cathedral became a concert hall before the Lutherans got it back in 1989.

Francis lauded what he said was a country marked by "friendship between the different Christian churches, which have succeeded in building unity while preserving the unique and rich identity of each."

The pope also visited the freedom monument in downtown Riga, a huge statue of a woman with arms raised towards the sky.

"I'm happy he's here. I recognise him even though I'm Lutheran," said lawyer Ketija Strazda, who was among the couple hundred people who turned up to see the pontiff.

"He's the head of a major religion... He'll make my country known abroad."

Tabita and Helga, two young Catholic volunteers, were also there handing out little flags in the Vatican colours.

"Thanks to the pope's visit, perhaps more people will find the way to God," Tabita said.

Before arriving in Latvia, Francis spent the weekend in Lithuania -- the only Catholic-majority country of the three Baltic states. He was due to end his tour in Estonia on Tuesday.

Protestants, Catholics mark 500 years since Reformation

Yahoo – AFP, John MACDOUGALL, October 31, 2017

The service at the gothic Schlosskirche (All Saints' Church) in Wittenberg in eastern
Germany marks the end of year-long celebrations of the 500 anniversary of the
Reformation (AFP Photo/John MACDOUGALL)

Wittenberg (Germany) (AFP) - Catholic and Lutheran leaders Tuesday begged forgiveness for violence sparked by the Reformation, as worshippers celebrated 500 years since the religious revolution that created the Protestant church.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier arrived for a service at the church where German theologian Martin Luther is said to have first displayed his list of criticisms of the Catholic Church in 1517.

Legend has it Luther nailed his "95 theses" to the church door in a brazen challenge to the powerful institution, creating shock waves that eventually changed the face of Christianity.

The Reformation caused major upheaval in Europe, leading to wars, persecutions and exoduses, including the departure of the Pilgrims for what was later to become America.

The deadliest of Europe's religious conflicts was the Thirty Years' War which ended in 1648 and after which religion's role in European politics was reduced.

The Vatican and Lutheran World Federation released a rare joint statement on the anniversary Tuesday, saying they "begged forgiveness for our failures and for the ways in which Christians have wounded the Body of the Lord and offended each other during the five hundred years since the beginning of the Reformation until today".

"We recognise that while the past cannot be changed, its influence upon us today can be transformed to become a stimulus for growing communion, and a sign of hope for the world to overcome division and fragmentation," they said.

'Overcoming differences'

The service at the gothic Schlosskirche (All Saints' Church) in Wittenberg in eastern Germany marks the end of year-long celebrations by protestants in 700 German towns and cities.

A statue of German theologian Martin Luther stands in Wittenberg, eastern Germany, 

where he is said to have launched his challenge against the Catholic Church (AFP 

Photo/Hendrik Schmidt)

Ahead of the service, celebrants crowded the street leading to the 16th-century house of worship, which houses Luther's tomb.

Luther challenged Catholic clerics' practice of selling "indulgences" to repentant worshippers.

He said Christians could not buy or earn their way into heaven but only entered by the grace of God, and his challenge had widespread ramifications, including the establishment of the Church of England in Britain in 1534.

However, the theologian's name has also been associated with one of Germany's darkest periods: his attacks on Judaism in his writings were used as a reference for Nazi ideology.

Merkel, herself the daughter of a Protestant pastor, said it was essential that Luther's anti-Semitism never be scrubbed from his theological legacy.

"That is, for me, the comprehensive historical reckoning that we need," she said in her weekly video podcast on Saturday.

There are many theological differences between Protestants and Roman Catholics, including whether or not the Bible is the highest authority in matters of faith and whether the pope has full power over the Church.

In the joint statement, both parties committed to "overcome remaining differences between us", adding that it was "clear that what we have in common is far more than that which still divides us".

The precise number of Protestants is difficult to establish, given the number of Churches and offshoots, but the independent Pew Research Center estimates there were more than 800 million in 2011.

Pope makes historic visit to Rome Anglican church

Yahoo – AFP, February 26, 2017

Pope Francis attends a ceremony during his visit to the All Saints' Anglican
Church in Rome on February 26, 2017 (AFP Photo/FILIPPO MONTEFORTE)

Rome (AFP) - Pope Francis attended a service at the All Saints' Church in Rome on Sunday, becoming the first pontiff in history to visit an Anglican church in the Italian capital.

Francis's visit marked the 200th anniversary of the All Saints' church, furthering a rapprochement between the Vatican and the Anglican Church of England that began last year.

In a further sign of the closer ties, the pope spoke of the "possibility" of a visit to troubled South Sudan with the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, his Anglican counterpart.

Pope Francis added that such a visit would only be for a single day "because the situation is difficult there".

South Sudan, which only gained nationhood in 2011, has been engulfed since 2013 by a civil war which has left thousands dead and three million people displaced.

"As Catholics and Anglicans, we are humbly grateful that, after centuries of mutual mistrust, we are now able to recognizee that the fruitful grace of Christ is at work also in others," the pope said in a sermon on Sunday.

"Today we can be encouraged by our gathering."

Closer ties with other faiths and branches of Christianity have been a priority for Francis since he became pope in 2013.

Last October, he attended a special service in Rome with Welby to mark the 50th anniversary of the first joint prayer of a Catholic pontiff and a head of the Church of England.

The service marked the historic meeting between then archbishop Michael Ramsey and Pope Paul VI.

The Church of England broke away from the Roman Catholic church under British King Henry VIII in the 16th Century, and Anglicans have not recognised the pontiff as their spiritual leader since then.

Pope Francis and other religious leaders at the Vatican. Photograph: AP

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Pope meets Orthodox leader at close of Turkish trip

Pope Francis reflects alongside Islamic cleric in Istanbul mosque

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“.   New Tolerance

Look for a softening of finger pointing and an awakening of new tolerance. There will remain many systems for different cultures, as traditions and history are important to sustaining the integrity of culture. So there are many in the Middle East who would follow the prophet and they will continue, but with an increase of awareness. It will be the increase of awareness of what the prophet really wanted all along - unity and tolerance. The angel in the cave instructed him to "unify the tribes and give them the God of Israel." You're going to start seeing a softening of intolerance and the beginning of a new way of being.

Eventually, this will create an acknowledgement that says, "You may not believe the way we believe, but we honor you and your God. We honor our prophet and we will love you according to his teachings. We don't have to agree in order to love." How would you like that? The earth is not going to turn into one belief system. It never will, for Humans don't do that. There must be variety, and there must be the beauty of cultural differences. But the systems will slowly update themselves with increased awareness of the truth of a new kind of balance. So that's the first thing. Watch for these changes, dear ones. ...."

European Council President Praises Indonesia’s Democracy and Religious Tolerance

Jakarta Globe, Eko Prasetyo, April 22, 2016

President Joko Widodo meets with European Council President Donald Tusk
in Brussels, Thursday (21/04). (State Palace Press Photo/Laily)

Jakarta. President Joko Widodo met with European Council President Donald Tusk at the Europa building, seat of the European Council, in Brussels, an official statement said on Thursday (21/04).

In the meeting, Joko said Indonesia is a "living laboratory" where Islam, democracy and religious tolerance exist side by side.

Tusk in response praised the way Indonesia has been fostering democracy, human rights and religious tolerance, often under difficult circumstances, and said the council will continue its interfaith exchange program with Indonesia.

The European Council also said it will look at the proposal for a visa waiver program for Indonesian citizens, as soon as the security situation in Europe improves.

The Indonesian president had earlier met with European Parliament President Martin Schulz, and conducted a bilateral meeting with European Commission President Jean-Claude Junker.

Pope Francis washes the feet of refugees

In a sign of "humility and service," the Argentine pontiff has washed the feet of refugees from various religious backgrounds. One of the asylum seekers said he felt "more important than Obama."

Deutsche Welle, 24 March 2016

Pope Francis washed the feet of 11 Muslim, Orthodox, Hindu and Catholic refugees and one aid worker at a shelter for asylum seekers as part of traditional rituals held on the Thursday before most Christians celebrate Easter on Sunday.

The "washing of the feet" ritual represents a "gesture of humility and service" that reflects the moment Jesus washed his disciples' feet in chapter 13 of the Gospel of John, according to the Vatican.

"All of us together - Muslims, Hindus, Catholics, Copts, Evangelicals - but brothers, children of the same God, who want to live in peace, integrated," the pope said in unscripted comments, according to Reuters news agency.

"Three days ago, there was a gesture of war, of destruction, in a city of Europe by people who don't want to live in peace," he said, referring to attacks in Brussels that left more than 30 people dead. "Behind that gesture, there were arms manufacturers, arms traffickers, who want blood, not peace, who want war, not brotherhood."

The pope, who has championed refugees' rights in Europe at a moment of growing anti-migrant populism, has called on European leaders to do more for refugees and migrants, many of whom are fleeing war in the Middle East, Asia and Africa.

Pope Francis washed the feet of refugees this #MaundyThursday in Rome. Other leaders can't even see them as human. pic.twitter.com/KfdteRcOvM

— Joseph Willits (@josephwillits) March 24, 2016

"Washing the feet of the refugees, Pope Francis demands respect for each one of them," wrote Archbishop Rino Fisichella earlier this week.

'More important than Obama'

Angelo Chiorazzo, who founded the charity running the shelter outside of Rome, told Vatican Radio that the asylum seekers were looking forward to the ceremony.

"One of the boys [at the shelter], a Muslim from Mali, told me: 'I really feel more important than [US President Barack] Obama. That the pope, the most important in the world - the best man in the world - will wash my feet," said Chiorazzo.

After the ceremony, the pontiff individually greeted many of the nearly 900 asylum seekers residing at the shelter.

Related Articles:

Pope Francis Says He'd Love to Visit Indonesia

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“.   New Tolerance

Look for a softening of finger pointing and an awakening of new tolerance. There will remain many systems for different cultures, as traditions and history are important to sustaining the integrity of culture. So there are many in the Middle East who would follow the prophet and they will continue, but with an increase of awareness. It will be the increase of awareness of what the prophet really wanted all along - unity and tolerance. The angel in the cave instructed him to "unify the tribes and give them the God of Israel." You're going to start seeing a softening of intolerance and the beginning of a new way of being.

Eventually, this will create an acknowledgement that says, "You may not believe the way we believe, but we honor you and your God. We honor our prophet and we will love you according to his teachings. We don't have to agree in order to love." How would you like that? The earth is not going to turn into one belief system. It never will, for Humans don't do that. There must be variety, and there must be the beauty of cultural differences. But the systems will slowly update themselves with increased awareness of the truth of a new kind of balance. So that's the first thing. Watch for these changes, dear ones. ...."

Pope and Russian patriarch to meet for the first time

The Vatican and the Russian Orthodox Church have announced that Pope Francis would meet Moscow Patriarch Kirill for the first time. The two religious leaders are set to discuss the persecution of Christians.

Deutsche Welle, 5 February 2016

The pope and the head of the largest Orthodox Church would meet next week in Cuba, the churches said in a joint statement on Friday.

According to the statement, the high-profile summit on February 12 "will mark an important stage in relations between the two churches. The Holy See and the Moscow Patriarchate hope that it will also be a sign of hope for all people of good will.

"They invite all Christians to pray fervently for God to bless this meeting, that it may bear good fruits," the statement added.

The two leaders are set to meet at the Havana airport during Kirill's visit to Cuba, with Francis making a stop on his way to Mexico.

Pope Francis has been focusing
on relations between religions

Metropolitan Illarion, the Russian cleric in charge of foreign affairs, said the main topic on the agenda would be persecution of Christians worldwide.

"The situation in the Middle East, in northern and central Africa and in other regions where extremists are perpetrating genocide of Christians requires immediate action and an even closer cooperation between Christian churches," Illarion said.

While there are still issues separating the two organizations, "we need to put aside internal disagreements and pool efforts to save Christianity in the regions where it is subject to most severe persecution," he added.

Religion coming back to Russia

The relations between the two Christian denominations have been strained for nearly a millennium, ever since the split between the Western and the Eastern branches of Christianity in 1054.

Kirill was elected patriarch in 2009

Even today, Orthodox Christians differ from Catholics on a range of issues, most notably allowing their priests to marry and rejecting the Vatican's authority.

There is also no counterpart of the pope in the Orthodox world.

However, Patriarch Kirill leads the Orthodox community with the most members. Some 75 percent of Russia's 144 million people declare themselves to be Orthodox.

The church in Russia has boosted its influence dramatically since the fall of communism in the early 90's. The current patriarch has been criticized for his increasingly close ties to the Kremlin.

dj/sms (AP, Reuters, Interfax)

Pope Francis listens to chief Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni (R) in Rome's main

Synagogue on January 17, 2016 (AFP Photo/Vincenzo Pinto)

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Pope Francis and other religious leaders at the Vatican. Photograph: AP

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“.   New Tolerance

Look for a softening of finger pointing and an awakening of new tolerance. There will remain many systems for different cultures, as traditions and history are important to sustaining the integrity of culture. So there are many in the Middle East who would follow the prophet and they will continue, but with an increase of awareness. It will be the increase of awareness of what the prophet really wanted all along - unity and tolerance. The angel in the cave instructed him to "unify the tribes and give them the God of Israel." You're going to start seeing a softening of intolerance and the beginning of a new way of being.

Eventually, this will create an acknowledgement that says, "You may not believe the way we believe, but we honor you and your God. We honor our prophet and we will love you according to his teachings. We don't have to agree in order to love." How would you like that? The earth is not going to turn into one belief system. It never will, for Humans don't do that. There must be variety, and there must be the beauty of cultural differences. But the systems will slowly update themselves with increased awareness of the truth of a new kind of balance. So that's the first thing. Watch for these changes, dear ones. ...."

"The Humanization of God"–  Jul 16, 2011 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text version)

“… The Humanization of God

I'm going to title this channelling so that my partner will not. I don't always title them, for labeling items is something done for 3D reasons. In your reality, you want a label for the message you're about to hear. So I'll give it to you, just as a dichotomous exercise. Its title will be, "The Humanization of God."

My partner sits in a chair. It has taken him 22 years to bring my conceptual thoughts to you. Even though these conceptual thoughts from the other side of the veil are also within each Human, within your Higher-Self, they are not easy to access. This is because they exist in a multidimensional state and not one that a Human relates to. Therefore, it has taken 22 years for my partner to learn to linearize the concepts into a string of words, presented in a language that you will understand.

Not all of you here and reading this will understand what I'm teaching today. I am aware of that, for Spirit does not speak to Human Beings with words in this fashion. Instead, the language of Spirit speaks in that what you call intuitive flashes, outside of linear time, and all at once. That is how you get your best information. Yet many of you feel you have God all figured out.

Examples of the Linear

As I sit here, perhaps an individual who may be here for the very first time asks the question, "Who are you, Kryon, and where are you from?" Now those two questions may absolutely be logical and normal to every single Human Being who hears and reads this message, but I will tell you that the questions themselves betray biased linear thinking. For Kryon is not a who and is from nowhere. How can that be? The only way I can explain this is to give you metaphors. I know that metaphors don't hold up under full examination, since no analogy is perfect. So consider it only a close example to get you to begin the understanding process.

Let's say you feel incredible love in your life for another Human, or for an animal, for instance, or for your child. Let us say that it is overwhelming and perhaps even has you weep with joy, so strong it is! Now, when you feel this way, do you look around and say, "Who are you, really? Who is there?" Would you address that love emotion as though it had a body and ask, "Where are you from?" You would not! Instead, you'd simply accept it and say, "I know it's coming from me, but it really doesn't feel part of me."

There's something about love. It comes from everywhere. It permeates the soul of the Human Being. You feel it so strongly. You are not aware of it being sent to you, or pulled to you; it just is. But it's unusual and profound, almost like it's part of something else, something bigger. Perhaps it's the God part of you, expanding? You'd be right about that. Love is not singular. You don't segment it into parts, or put a body on it and give it a name either. It's a concept that affects every cell of your body and all your body functions. It sometimes even takes over! This is the beauty of love.

I'm not a who. You hear me within this voice, coming from a singular body of a Human Being. So you understandably want to know who's talking. But the only thing singular here is the Human who I come through. I am best identified as that which is the collection of the confluence of the creative energy source in the Universe. I am uncountable and am not isolated and singular. You can't notate me (define me with attributes in 3D). Twenty-two years ago, I identified myself and said, "I am, that I am." And then I said, "And so are you!" I told you that at the center of the atom is where I am. I told you that the space between the electron haze and the nucleus is filled with love. I told you that the benevolent, creative source energy that is part of you is part of me. It is all things together. You'll find it in a tree, in the dirt and in the grass. You'll find it in the air and you can't ask who because we are not singular. You can't count the flavor in the soup, or identify "where is the salt?" It just "is" the soup.

God does not have the mind of a Human Being with the consciousness of a Human Being. God is not a collection of many separate consciousness parts either, and this is difficult for you to understand. God can talk to every single Human - all 6, 7 billion of them - at the same time. God can carry on a loving, healing conversation, being personal all at once with every single one of you. Think of that! That's not a who. That's the creator of the Universe. That's a divine, intelligent, loving energy. Don't humanize this source! It's not like you.

The Linear Thinker

Humans want to make everything separate and individual. You want to separate, identify, and quantify. This is Human nature, for every living thing you come into contact with is separate and singular - a Human, an animal, a bug, a tree. They all have this in common. Each one is a closed life system and is ONE thing. So placing God in this box makes you feel better. Because only then can you grasp how you're supposed to act and react to Spirit. Linearizing God helps you to feel what you're supposed to do and when you're supposed to do it. All of the survival attributes that you've learned all your life go into this, and we call it the Human linear bias. God is better understood if it's a man with a beard and a low voice - the authority figure. But Spirit is not like that.

God is not an authority figure, either! Yet many of you will not accept that. "You mean the creator of the Universe is not in charge?" I didn't say that. I said that God is not an authority figure. God is family. If there is any authority energy, then you share it with God, for God is in you. Therefore, YOU are the authority figure.

There is no protocol, either! Did you hear me? There is no generic protocol! Thousands of years of religion have created thousands of "rules" of how to "get God's favor." What if none of that is so? Let me ask you something: If you wanted to talk to your own body's cellular structure, what's the protocol? If it's you with you, how do you start? Should you dress up a bit, kneel, prepare yourself? Do you invent something, some framework of motions, so it will work better? Or do you simply go inside with your mind, talk to that which you own, and work the puzzle out? Do you see what I mean? Humans never consider God in them. Instead, they wish to separate God. They wish to elevate God and put Spirit on the altar where they can face it and perhaps even create a statue so they can visualize who to talk to. That is humanizing God.  …”

In Sarajevo, Pope says world haunted by atmosphere of war

Yahoo – AFP, Olivier Baube, Rusmir Smajilhodzic, 6 June 2015

Pope Francis greets the crowd from the popemobile in a street of Sarajevo,

 on June 6, 2015, ahead of a ceremony at the Catholic Cathedral (AFP

Photo/Elvis Barukcic)

Sarajevo (AFP) - Pope Francis on Saturday bemoaned the "atmosphere of war" haunting the world as he urged the people of war-scarred Sarajevo to provide an example of how different cultures and religions can co-exist peacefully.

The 78-year-old was given a rapturous reception by a 65,000-strong crowd at the city's Olympic stadium and tens of thousands more took to the streets to greet him.

Pope Francis arrived in Sarajevo on 

June 6, 2015 for a one-day visit aimed

at bolstering reconciliation between

war-scarred Bosnia's Serb, Croat and 

Muslim communities (AFP Photo/

Elvis Barukcic)

Many conflicts across the planet amount to "a kind of third world war being fought piecemeal and, in the context of global communications, we sense an atmosphere of war," the pontiff said in a mass at the stadium during a one-day visit to the Bosnian capital.

"Some wish to incite and foment this atmosphere deliberately," he added, attacking those who want to foster division for political ends or profit from war through arms dealing.

"But war means children, women and the elderly in refugee camps, it means forced displacement, destroyed houses, streets and factories: above all countless shattered lives.

"You know this well having experienced it here."

The pontiff had earlier referred to Sarajevo, with its synagogues, churches and mosques, as a "European Jerusalem", a crossroads of cultures, nations and religions which required "the building of new bridges while maintaining and restoring older ones."

In a reference to the legacy of the war, which left Sarajevo in ruins and Bosnia permanently divided along ethnic lines, he urged the country's Muslim, Serb and Croat communities to reach out to each other at every level.

"In so doing, even the deep wounds of the recent past will be set aside," Francis said in a meeting with officials of the rotating presidency.

Later, at a meeting with Catholic, Muslim, Jewish and Orthodox religious figures, he said Sarajevo could reclaim its former status as a beacon of multiculturalism.

"In a world unfortunately rent by conflicts, this land can become a message: attesting that it is possible to live together side by side, in diversity but rooted in common humanity."

Pope Francis was given a rapturous reception by the 65,000-strong crowd in

 Sarajevo and his one-day visit to Bosnia comes 20 years after the end of a 

1992-95 conflict that ripped the Balkan state apart (AFP Photo/Gabriel Bouys)

The pope boarded a plane back to Rome at around 1840 GMT, after spending roughly 10 hours in the Bosnian capital.

Lack of trust

Despite a show of unity to welcome the pope, it was not hard to find reminders on Saturday of how fragile Bosnia's unity is.

It was noticeable that there were far more red and white Croatian flags being waved than Bosnia's blue and yellow ones.

The national anthem played for Francis on his arrival remains without words because the three communities have been unable to agree a common text.

Katarina Dzrek, a Bosnian Croat who was in the stadium crowd said: "Bosnia is in need of the message of peace the pope will send because there is still a lack of trust between the communities."

The 1992-95 Bosnian war left nearly 100,000 people dead and resulted in half the population, some two million people, being forced to leave their homes, many of them never to return.

More than a third of Bosnia's pre-war ethnic Croat population have left the country which is now divided in two between a Bosnian Serb republic and a Croat-Muslim federation.

Bosnian Muslim survivors of the Srebrenica 1995 massacre cry beside the 

coffin of a relative during a 2014 memorial service for the 8,000 people killed

in Europe's worst atrocity since World War II (AFP Photo/Elvis Barukcic)

At the city's cathedral Francis heard testimony from Catholics who suffered during the war. Ljubica Sekerija, a nun, told him how she had been beaten and threatened with death by "foreign soldiers" if she did not convert to Islam, while Jozo Puskaric recounted his four months spent in a concentration camp. "It was 120 days that felt like 120 years for me," the priest told Francis.

Francis said interfaith dialogue was vital to overcoming the legacy of such bitter memories.

"Dialogue is a school of humanity and a builder of unity," he said at the inter-faith meeting he attended.

Around 40 percent of the population of Bosnia is of Islamic heritage, just over 30 percent are from the Serbian Orthodox tradition and around one in 10, almost uniquely Croats, describe themselves as Catholics.

Francis is the second pope to visit Sarajevo after Jean-Paul II, who braved a snowstorm to come two years after the end of the war.

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"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Old Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God / Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“.   New Tolerance

Look for a softening of finger pointing and an awakening of new tolerance. There will remain many systems for different cultures, as traditions and history are important to sustaining the integrity of culture. So there are many in the Middle East who would follow the prophet and they will continue, but with an increase of awareness. It will be the increase of awareness of what the prophet really wanted all along - unity and tolerance. The angel in the cave instructed him to "unify the tribes and give them the God of Israel." You're going to start seeing a softening of intolerance and the beginning of a new way of being.

Eventually, this will create an acknowledgement that says, "You may not believe the way we believe, but we honor you and your God. We honor our prophet and we will love you according to his teachings. We don't have to agree in order to love." How would you like that? The earth is not going to turn into one belief system. It never will, for Humans don't do that. There must be variety, and there must be the beauty of cultural differences. But the systems will slowly update themselves with increased awareness of the truth of a new kind of balance. So that's the first thing. Watch for these changes, dear ones. ...."