Pope Francis, Catholic Church Urge Rebels and Colombians to Reconcile
Pope Francis begins his five-day visit to Colombia on Wednesday, Sept. 6. He's on a peace-building mission to the country and he urges the rebels and the Colombians to pursue full reconciliation following some steps undertaken last year.
The pope will be at Villavicencio for the national reconciliation prayer, where an expected 6,000 victims of the clash between the rebels and the government will be in attendance. Pope Francis will also beatify Bishop Emilio Jaramillo who was kidnapped and tortured to death by the National Liberation Army in 1989. The leftist guerilla group is one of the main players seeking peace in Colombia today following more than 50 years of civil war.
In September 2016, some rebels aligned with the Fuerza Alternativa Revolucionaria del Común (FARC), a guerilla ally, signed an agreement with the government. Voting Colombians, however, shut this down in a referendum because they did not like the government's deal with the rebels.
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Colombia's congress passed a revised agreement last November even as the deal remains unpopular with the general public. At that time, Pope Francis promised that he would visit the country to help with the peace-keeping efforts.
Pope Francis' trip to the South American nation has the theme "Demos el primer paso" ("Let us take the first step"). He told Colombians in a video message that reaching out is a crucial step to the peace process.
"Peace is what Colombia has sought after for a long time, and she is working to achieve it: A stable and lasting peace, so that we see and treat each other as brothers and not as enemies," the pope said in his message. "Peace reminds us that we are all children of the same Father, who loves and consoles us."
Pope Francis will also be in Bogota, Medellin, and Cartagena during his Colombian trip to deliver speeches and say mass. The archbishop of Villavicencio, Oscar Urbina Ortega, emphasized that this remains a pastoral visit and should not be politicized. As such, the pope will not have any meetings with any political parties except to make a courtesy call to President Juan Manuel Santos.
