Pope Francis asked for
mercy and forgiveness for "unevangelical" conduct by Catholics
against members of other Christian churches during a Vespers
service to mark the end of the week of Christian unity on
Monday.
"At the same time I invite all Catholic brothers and
sisters to forgive if, today or in the past, they have been
offended by other Christians," the pope said in his homily at
the Basilica of St. Paul's outside the Walls in a service
celebrated with the Orthodox Archbishop of Malta, Gennadios
Zervos, and Anglican Bishop David Moxon, the Archbishop of
Canterbury's Representative to the Holy See.
"We cannot erase what has been, but we do not want to allow
the weight of past guilt to continue to pollute our relations.
God's mercy will renew our relations," Francis continued.
Earlier in the day the Vatican said Pope Francis would
travel to Lund in Sweden on October 31 to mark the 500th
anniversary of the Reformation in a joint ceremony between the
World Lutheran Federation and the Catholic Church.
The pope has repeatedly stressed the importance of
ecumenical dialogue with other churches and dialogue with other
faiths.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA