Pope Francis to visit Auschwitz but will not speak

'At Auschwitz the Pope wont say anything, but will have a moment of silent pain, of compassion, of tears.'

Pope Francis will be visiting Auschwitz - but he refuses to deliver a speech.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - According to Catholic News Agency, Pope Francis will be stopping by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Nazi death camp along his Polish journey for World Youth Day.

Unlike popes who have traveled to the death camps before, Pope Francis has decided not to deliver a speech. Instead, he has chosen to stand at the site where so many lives were needlessly slaughtered to offer only prayers and tears.

The touching offering is yet another example of the Holy Father's compassionate heart. He knows no words can soften the events in Auschwitz.

The most powerful words he can offer are in the form of prayers, and the greatest sign of true pain he can express are the drops of true pain and sadness dripping down his face.

Fr. Fedorico told journalists, "At Auschwitz the Pope won't say anything, but will have a moment of silent pain, of compassion, of tears."

Fr. Pawel Rytel-Andrianik, president of the Polish bishop's conference, was touched by the Pope's decision to remain silent.

"In the world there are two very parallel places," Fr. Rytel-Andrianik said. "The first is the Wailing Wall and the second is the wailing place. The Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, and the wailing place in Auschwitz-Birkenau in the German Nazi concentration camp."

Pope Francis' decision to remain silent "shows that the Pope has this in his heart: wailing in the place where so many victims perished." His silence "is very important for the Jewish people ... So personally I feel very linked and I am very grateful personally that the Holy Father is going to visit the death camp."

Fr. Rytel-Andrianik explained Poland's chief Rabbi, Michael Schudrich, believes the Pope's silence "is a very good thing because after the death of his sons, Aaron (from the Bible) was in silence. There is an expression in the Bible "vayidom Ahoran" (the silence of Aaron) so he was in silence. And the Holy Father will do the same thing in Auschwitz."

After sharing the pontiff's decision, Fr. Fedorico commented two martyred Saints, St. Maximillion Kolbe and St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, passed away at the death camp.

"It's interesting," Fr. Redorico commented, that the day Pope Francis is to visit Auschwitz is the day of "the condemnation to death of Kolbe; it's the 75th anniversary of the day in which he was condemned to death."

When the pontiff arrives at the camp, he will pass beneath the main entrance's archway on foot. He will then be driven to Block 11, where he can pray in silence.

Once he has prayed, he will sign the Book of Honor "and these will be the only words that we'll have from the Pope at Auschwitz," Fr. Lombardi stated. before adding the visit will last "a few hours."

After the signing, Poland's Prime Minister Beata Szydlo will be waiting to greet Pope Francis, along with ten survivors.

Fr. Federico Lombardi, a Press Officer at the Vatican, explained the Pope "will individually meet" with each survivor, "the last of whom will be given a candle."

Please pray along with Pope Francis during his visit. Pray for the dead, the living, and the future.

---

'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'

Copyright 2021 - Distributed by Catholic Online