Pope Francis meets with Muslims in Central African Republic

The pontiff made the comments during his visit to PK5, a Muslim district in capital Bangui, where he also visited a central mosque.

On a rare trip into the volatile neighborhood known as PK5, the pope recalled Monday how Christians and Muslims had long lived together peacefully in Bangui. “God is peace, salam“.

For months it had been separated by a no-man’s land from the rest of the Central African Republic’s bitterly divided capital city, its perimeter guarded by armed Christian militia fighters and its remaining Muslim residents too frightened to venture forth.

However, nowhere is his call for peace and reconciliation more pressing than in Central African Republic, where thousands have died and hundreds of thousands have been displaced in clashes that have split the country along religious lines.

Despite the security risks, the pope traveled in an open-air vehicle and received an exuberant welcome.

The visit of the Pope is very important for the continent, Dominic told presenter Anthony Isaacs.

Love, he preached, was the antidote to the hatreds that tribalism and sectarianism can unleash. “We don’t live in heaven, we live on earth and earth is full of difficulties”.

“I’m ready to pardon those who harmed me”, Redepouzou said.

“But I am old and these trips are heavy”, he said. “The Kenya government is not willing to help the poor because of rampant corruption”. I prayed about it and felt that this is where I belong to. He ignored them, bringing a powerful message of peace and moderation.

He dismissed this however as “not the problem” and said it reminded him of the question asked Jesus, “Tell me, teacher, is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath? Together, we say no to hatred, to vengeance and violence, especially that committed in the name of a religion or God”, The Associated Press quoted Francis as saying.

Pope Francis arrived at the cathedral after a meeting with representatives of the Central African Republic’s evangelical and Protestant communities. A life of delinquency, falling into drug abuse, or even into suicide… They targeted churches and Christian communities.

Catholics in Uganda now comprise around 40 percent of the population. The area was policed by armed Muslim rebels watching out for Christian vigilante groups.

But he has also emphasized the kind and joyous welcome he felt in each of the three nations he visited.

On Monday, the pope made what was perhaps his most significant visit of the entire trip, to the Grand Mosque of Koudoukou, which has been a symbolic site of the deadly struggles between Christians and Muslims in the region. “To come together, as we do today, to rejoice in his presence and in the new life and the salvation which he offers us”. Speaking in Italian and translated into the local language, Sango, the pope said young Central Africans should be “actors of change”. “What our leaders can do to honor the pope’s visit is to deal with these issues”.

But it is also a scandal in a world torn apart by hatred and violence, a world yearning for a word of peace and unity, he said.

The pontiff went on to acknowledge the acts of solidarity shown by Christians and Muslims towards persons of other religions by “welcoming them and defending them during this latest crisis in your country, as well as in other parts of the world”. “We need his message of hope”.

“Let’s not talk about if one can use this type of patch or that for a small wound, the serious wound is social injustice, environmental injustice”, Pope Francis continued.