The following comes from a May 12 story on LifeSiteNews.com
Pope Francis surprised about 40,000 Italian and international participants in today’s Marcia per la Vita (March for Life) Internazionale in Rome this morning, when he left the ApostolicPalace to greet them personally from his popemobile in the street where they were lined up.
Monsignore Ignacio Barreiro, the head of the Rome office of Human Life International, toldLifeSiteNews.com that for the pope to have effectively joined the March for Life was highly unusual.
Since his election, the pope has gained a reputation for making spontaneous gestures that have sometimes taxed his security staff, beginning with taking the bus back to his temporary residence with the other cardinals the night of his election, instead of the car reserved for the pope.
In this case, however, the Vaticanappeared to have prepared the event ahead of time. Monsignore Barreiro noted they had prepared crowd control barriers to guide the popemobile out of St. Peter’s square and across the adjacent piazza and down the wide Via della Conciliazione that leads up the Basilica.
But if organizers knew about a planned appearance by the pope at the march, they made no mention of it before the event, leaving participants delighted by the unexpected arrival of the pontiff.
The pope also gave a shout-out to the marchers from his usual weekly Regina Coeli address, briefly welcoming them and endorsing a European-wide pro-life petition against embryo research.
The ‘One of Us’ campaign is seeking to gain 1 million signatures as part of a European Citizen Initiative. If organizers of the campaign achieve their goal the European Parliament is duty-bound to schedule a debate on the issue.
“I invite you to keep the attention of everyone on the important issue of respect for human life from the moment of conception,” the pope told the marchers.
He also invited all to attend theVatican’s “Evangelium Vitae Day,” which he said would be “a special moment especially for those who care about the defense of the sanctity of human life,” to take place “in the context of the Year of Faith,” on 15 and 16 June.
March organisers were delighted with the greeting and with the extraordinary surge of numbers from last year’s march, which attracted 15,000 from around the country.
“The welcome of Pope Francis represents the highest recognition for the initiative and the confirmation of the sensitivity of the Pope to the non-negotiable principles, beginning with the right to life,” organisers said.
Mons. Barreiro also described the dramatic increase in numbers, from 1000 two years ago, to 15,000 last year, to about 40,000 today. This he put down to the hard work of the organisers in helping thousands come by bus from up and down the length of Italy, and to a “renewed awareness” among the public that Italy’s abortion law “must be abrogated.”
“The people are now really certain that we have to stake a stronger position than that which has been held in the past by some Italian pro-life groups.” https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pope-surprises-40000-italian-pro-lifers-joins-rome-march-for-life
The pope is known for his strong defense of the right to life.
In 2005, as activists urgedArgentina to legalize abortion, the future pontiff urged Catholics to defend the right to life even if they “deliver you to the courts” or “have you killed.”
To read entire story, click here.
God Bless Pope Francis, and may his example shame some of our more reticent bishops and priests into joining such events! Yet even they are getting better.
THANK YOU HOLY SPIRIT FOR CHOOSING HOLY FATHER FRANCIS!!!!
WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
This is wonderful. God bless Pope Francis.
God bless the Holy Father!
And here, when he was newly elected, SOME people were attacking him for being “too informal and spontaneous.”
Michael get your knife out and stab those whom you say those things about their comments…you just had to remind everyone ….oh but wait you already threw many under the bus with your condescending remark. Can’t you just be grateful for this nice article without jabbing at others?
I am thankful that Pope Francis is setting a good example…may our Bishops and others watch and learn.
See Michael how that sounded, my last comments? Not so nice right?
Well anyhoo back to the topic at hand. I am not surprised that our Pope did this because he really does seem very humble and very pro-life. God bless him and we pray for Him daily, we know He is human too and needs our prayers, love and support. God bless!
I love both of our living popes, but I’m in danger of going crazy for Pope Francis! He is a wonderful example to every priest, bishop and cardinal in the world!
We may be being led by saints these last many years. No matter what may have dismayed and sometimes overwhelmed us in recent years, in their own individual ways, these popes have been demonstrating to us what it means truly to follow the teachings of Our Lord. I am rejoicing!
Give PFI credit on this public display for pro life action.
I pray that his orthodoxy is shown across the board!!!
Does he stand up against sodomy marriage,if yes, then
we need him here in RI.
Go PFI Go
I love this Pope! A gift from above! May God continue to Bless him in all that he does. May he continue to reflect the face of Jesus! AMEN!!
Wonderful. Not even Pope Benedict XVI did this. Where are all the “trads” now who spent the first week of Pope Francis’ papacy criticising him for not wearing red shoes?
I wonder why the news fails to identify the name of the abortionist or abortion mill being witnessed by Pope Francis?
Rename the Popemobile the LifeMobile. God bless Pope Francis.