Reflecting on the visit to Algeria, the pope described it as \u201ca wonderful opportunity to continue building bridges and promoting dialogue.\u201dYAOUNDE, Cameroon \u2014 Pope Leo XIV arrived Wednesday in Yaound\u00e9, the capital of Cameroon, after a five-hour flight. While meeting with journalists aboard the papal plane, he delivered a brief address, thanking the Algerian authorities and reflecting on the first leg of the journey.<\/p>\n
Leo, speaking in English, expressed his \u201cgratitude to all the authorities in Algeria, who made this visit possible. As you\u02bcve seen, they\u02bcve even granted us the full honor of an escort as we fly over Algerian airspace.\u201d<\/p>\n
This, the pope said, is \u201ca sign of the goodness, of the generosity, of the respect that the Algerian people and the Algerian government have wished to show to the Holy See, to myself. And so I want to say a word of thanks to them, as well as a word of thanks to the very small but very significant presence of the Catholic Church in Algeria.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pontiff then reflected on the journey.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had, as you know,\u201d he said, \u201csome very special visits both in the Basilica Notre Dame d\u02bcAfrique as well as in Annaba yesterday, in the Basilica of St. Augustine on the hill overlooking both the modern city of Annaba and the ruins of the ancient Roman city of Ippona. And that in itself, I would say, is also symbolically significant, because St. Augustine, who was bishop, as you know, of Hippo for more than 30 years, actually is a figure which is very much from the past and speaks to us of tradition, speaks to us of the life, the Church, as the Church grew in the early centuries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Continuing to speak about St. Augustine, Leo said that he is \u201ca very important figure today as his writings, his teaching, his spirituality, his invitation to search for God and to search for truth is something that is very much needed today \u2014 a message that is very real for all of us today, as believers in Jesus Christ, but for all people. And as you\u02bcve seen, even the people of Algeria, the vast majority of whom are not Christian, they very much honor and respect the memory of St. Augustine as one of the great sons of their land.”<\/p>\n
“So it was a special blessing for me personally to return once again to Annaba yesterday,” he said, “but also to offer to the Church and the world a vision that St. Augustine offers us in terms of the search for God and the struggle to build community, to seek for unity among all peoples and respect for all peoples in spite of the differences.\u201d<\/p>\n
The pope concluded: \u201cIn two days in Algeria I think we\u02bcve really had a wonderful opportunity to, if you will, continue to build bridges, to promote dialogue. I think the visit to the mosque was significant and to say that it showed that although we have different beliefs, we have different ways of worshipping, we have different ways of living, we can live together in peace. And so I think that promoting that kind of image is something which the world needs to hear today, and that together we can continue to offer in our witness through as we continue on this apostolic voyage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pope Leo XIV is the third pope to visit Cameroon.<\/p>\n
Leo will first meet with 92-year-old President Biya, elected to an eighth term and in power for 40 years. After his address to the diplomatic corps \u2014 a standard stop at the beginning of every trip \u2014 the pope will visit the Ngul Zamba orphanage, a historic point of reference for the care and education of orphaned children and minors in situations of serious social vulnerability.<\/p>\n
In addition to Yaound\u00e9, Leo XIV will also visit the city of Bamenda, around 230 miles from the capital, at the center of the Anglophone crisis \u2014 a complex situation in which English-speaking separatists have also called for the formation of their own state.<\/p>\n
The pope will also visit Douala, Cameroon\u2019s economic capital, thus touching all the major realities of the country before departing for Angola on April 18.Follow the Live Updates of Pope Leo\u2019s Trip in Africa available at\u00a0EWTN News.<\/p>\n
Andrea Gagliarducci contributed to this article. This article was originally published by EWTN News in English.<\/p>\n