The Italian coastguard continues to retrieve bodies in the sea around Lampedusa, with the official death toll at 231 as of this morning (October 8th). These images speak by themselves on the human tragedy of migrants who risked their lives, and unfortunately many of whom lost their lives, to arrive in Europe. The migrants in the ship were coming from Somalia and Eritrea. They crossed deserts and risked many perils to arrive to the shores of the Mediterranean. Crossing the sea was only the last of the many hardships they had to withstand to find little hope to have a future, out of the tragic context of poverty, war, dictatorship and persecution they were facing in their own countries. The importance of truly “seeing” human tragedy, remaining compassionate and rejecting the “globalisation of indifference”, is a theme which Pope Francis has often picked up in relation to the plight of migrants across the world. It is important to reflect on what tragic life conditions motivated these migrants to incur into risks such has surviving human traffickers, bandits, spending all their life savings, to seek asylum in countries that would recognise their refugee status (which is not the case in the countries they were crossing. Only Europe or Israel were the closest political areas that would provide such recognition). As Pope Francis many times stated, we cannot remain indifferent to these tragedies. They are our brothers. On Monday morning Pope Francis recalled the parable recounted in the Gospel in which there is a half-dead man lying in the road. A priest walks by – a zealous priest wearing a cassock and on his way to say Mass. The priest looks at the man and says to himself “I will be late for Mass” and goes on his way. “He didn’t hear the voice of God” – Pope Francis pointed out. Then a Levite passes by – the Pope continued – and perhaps he thinks “If I get involved and the man dies, then tomorrow I will have to go before the judge and give testimony…” so, the Pope continued “he too goes on his way. He too – Francis points out - “turns away from the voice of God”… Only the Samaritan, had the capacity “to hear God and to understand his request”. “The Samaritan understood that God was calling him and he did not turn away. He went to the man, bound up his wounds, poured on oil and wine. He set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn and took care of him”.
Posted on: Wed, 09 Oct 2013 00:58:03 +0000
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