'Lord, forgiveness for so much cruelty!': Pope Francis' somber moments in Auschwitz

Pope Francis leaves solemn message in death camp's 'Memory Book.'

True to his word, Pope Francis offered no words, only silent prayer and tears, in Poland's Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - When Pope Francis arrived at the death camp, he remained silent as a psalm was read in Hebrew and again in Polish.

According to the Catholic News Agency, he prayed in silence in the camp's courtyard and was then escorted to the infamous Block 11 building, where victims were brutally tortured.

He was greeted by Poland's Prime Miniser Beata Szydlo and offered a few words to some of the few remaining Christian survivors who helped save Jews during WWII. While he spoke to some, he offered all a smile, a light hand shake and a rosary.

The pontiff was offered a candle, which he accepted and used to light a bronze lamp containing images of the Auschwitz fence line and the heart of Jesus - his gift to the camp's museum.

The Holy Father briefly toured the rooms of Block 11 before entering St. Maximilian Kolbe's old cell, where he prayed without light.

St. Maximilian Kolbe hid at least 2,000 Jews from German persecution before he was caught and transferred to the Auschwitz concentration camp.

There, he volunteered to take the place of a man who was to be starved to death. In his last days, when lack of food and water failed to kill him, guards injected carbolic acid into his veins and the saint raised the arm the Nazis used then calmly awaited his end.

When Pope Francis concluded his prayers in the cell, he was driven to the Birkenau camp - the site where Nazi gas chambers and crematoriums could be found.

He prayed silently before the commemorative plaques at the site and lit a candle as he passed each plaque.

After the prayers were finished, the Pope met with a group of 25 non-Jewish men and women who attempted to save as many Jewish lives as they could during the war.

Each had been honored with the title of "Righteous among the Nations" by the State of Israel for their efforts during the Holocaust.

Survivors were also present, each of whom were honored to see how Pope Francis honored the site and the horrific loss of life.

Pope Francis kissed each survivor on both cheeks and one woman kissed his hand.

After honoring the survivors, the pontiff took a large white candle and placed it at the Death Wall, a site infamous for the large number of victims murdered there.

His humble silence sparked respect from around the world, with one survivor sharing her experience and how touched she was by the papal visit.

Lidia Maksymowicz was only two-years-old when she was brought to the camp and three when she was stripped naked then tattooed with a number.

When she was five, in 1945, the camp was liberated by the Soviet Red Army and though she was again free, it would be nearly 20 years to be reunited with her mother.

She told Polish TVN: "It is an extraordinary thing that this pope, who is sensitive to human poverty and humiliation, was able to see this place where people were brought to the lowest levels of degradation."

At the conclusion of his visit, the pontiff wrote a simple, two-sentence message in the camp's Memory Book: "Lord have mercy on your people! Lord, forgiveness for so much cruelty," which he signed "Franciscus."

So ended the papal visit to the death camp known around the world. The Pope's Auschwitz visit was on the third of his five-day visit to Poland for World Youth Day and he is expected to continue to meet with young pilgrims, visit a children's hospital in Krakow and participate in a Way of the Cross event.

---

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

Copyright 2021 - Distributed by Catholic Online