The Pope urged the political class to “come together to carry the Homeland forward”

The highest authority of the Catholic Church led his classic general audience this morning at the St. Peter’s Squarein his passage addressed to Spanish-speaking pilgrims, where he dedicated a fragment of his message to the Argentine political leadership.

Francisco focused his attention to reply to joint letter of congratulations sent to him by the main party and social referents of the country. I want to thank in a special way to all people belonging to political parties and social referents from my country who have come together to sign a letter of greetings on the occasion of the tenth year of the pontificate, thank you for this gesture,” said the Holy Father.

He also raised, as if it were a prayer, a proposal. “It occurs to me to tell you: just as they have come together to sign this letter, how nice that they come together to talk, to discuss and take the Homeland forward,” he commented on the letter signed, prominently, by President Alberto Fernández, Vice President Cristina Kirchner, Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and other officials, governors and legislators.

”May Jesus bless you and the Holy Virgin take care of you”, he added when closing his daily thanks during the salutation.

Both leaders, from the ruling party and from the opposition -together with social movement leaders- sent a letter to Francisco I on Monday in which they expressed their “admiration and closeness.” And the wish that you visit the country, soon. The full text is as follows:

“Dear Pope Francis: On this tenth anniversary of your pontificate, we, Argentine men and women from different spheres of public life, from different religious, political and ideological backgrounds, want to express our admiration and closeness for your work in favor of Humanity, particularly of excluded people and poor peoples, your firm defense of world peace and your permanent promotion of an Integral Ecology that allows us to hear the cry of Mother Earth and of the Human Being in the face of destructive situations that threaten peoples and the nature”.

We Argentines and Argentines love you very much. We greatly appreciate your tenacious work for peace, justice and integral human development throughout the world. We know the resistance that your work generates among those who may see interests that are not legitimate affected. Although we desire and look forward to your visit, we trust in your wisdom to say yes and eventually when.

Thank you for what you have done and do.

Those of us who have faith, pray for you; the rest, we accompany you with love and trust.

The letter is signed by referents of different political signs, from the deputy of the Frente de Todos (FdT) maximum kirchner and the social leader John Grabois even the Buenos Aires head of government, Horacio Rodriguez Larreta; the former governor of Buenos Aires Mary Eugenia Vidal and the legislators Martin Lousteau and Facundo Manesamong governors, civil servants, union representatives of the CGT, the Autonomous CTA and the Workers’ CTA, leaders of social movements, rectors of universities and representatives of the cultural and sports field, it was reported in a statement.

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