Priests meet with Pope as synods approach

January 04, 2018

At his January 3 general audience, Pope Francis met briefly with two priests, with whom he discussed upcoming synods of bishops.

Father Hernanni Silva, a missionary priest in Vinhas, Brazil, discussed his witness to Christ as he ministers in a children’s hospital and in a maximum security prison. The priest expressed hope that the October 2019 synod on the Amazon will encourage evangelization and closeness to the indigenous population.

Passionist Father Maurizio De Sanctis, who seeks to evangelize through art and music, also met with the Pope as the October 2018 synod on youth approaches.

In addition, the Pope greeted 130 young people associated with Palavra viva, a Brazilian apostolate that has spread to Europe; the Daughters of Mercy and of the Cross, a Sicilian religious institute founded in 1892; a folklore group from Sardinia; and a group of young Canadian soccer players.

 

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Further information:

• Nella prima udienza del 2018 (L’Osservatore Romano, p. 8)