Leaving Greece, pope asks youth to resist tempting 'sirens'

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Pope Francis arrives for a gathering with young radical astatine the Saint Dionysius School of the Ursuline Sisters successful Athens, Greece, Monday, Dec. 6, 2021. Francis' five-day travel to Cyprus and Greece has been dominated by the migrant contented and Francis' telephone for European countries to halt gathering walls, stoking fears and shutting retired "those successful greater request who sound astatine our door." (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

ATHENS – Pope Francis wrapped up his sojourn to Greece connected Monday by encouraging its young radical to travel their dreams and not beryllium tempted by the consumerist “sirens” of contiguous that committedness casual pleasures.

Francis met with students astatine a Catholic schoolhouse successful Athens successful his last lawsuit of a five-day sojourn to Cyprus and Greece that has been dominated by his interest for the plight of migrants seeking introduction successful Europe.

Francis echoed a communal taxable helium has raised with young people, encouraging them to enactment accelerated successful their faith, adjacent amid doubts, and defy the temptation to prosecute materialist goals. He cited Homer’s Odyssey and the temptation posed by the sirens who “by their songs enchanted sailors and made them clang against the rocks.”

“Today’s sirens privation to charm you with seductive and insistent messages that absorption connected casual gains, the mendacious needs of consumerism, the cult of carnal wellness, of amusement astatine each costs,” helium said. “All these are similar fireworks: they flare up for a moment, but past crook to fume successful the air.”

Two migrant students were among those who greeted the pope, including an 18-year-old Syrian refugee, Aboud Gabro, who told the pope of his family’s flight from Aleppo successful 2014 aft a weaponry exploded connected their home. They yet arrived successful Greece aft a perilous vessel crossing from Turkey.

“It was hard being connected a stone without h2o oregon food, waiting for dawn and and a seashore defender vessel to travel prevention us,” Gabro said.

Francis listened to his story, “a existent modern-day odyssey.” and expressed gratitude that helium and his household had made it safely aft “so galore refusals and a 1000 difficulties, you landed successful this country.” But helium suggested it besides showed a consciousness of escapade and radical pursuing their dreams.

“The meaning of beingness is not recovered by staying connected the formation waiting for the upwind to bring thing new. Salvation lies successful the unfastened sea, successful mounting sail, successful the quest, successful the pursuit of dreams, existent dreams, those we prosecute with eyes open, those that impact effort, struggles, headwinds, abrupt storms,” helium said. “So don’t beryllium paralyzed by fear: imagination big! And imagination together!”

Francis is returning to the Vatican with immoderate important pre-Christmas events connected his agenda: a scheduled gathering with the members of a French committee that investigated intersexual maltreatment successful the French Catholic Church, a scheduled gathering with Canadian indigenous peoples seeking a papal apology for abuses astatine Catholic-run residential schools, and Francis’ ain 85th day connected Dec. 17.

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